The Christmas Opera

Merry Black Friday!  I've never shopped on the Friday after Thanksgiving.  It's a tradition I don't want to break, but good for all you who go out and have a fabulous time getting good bargains.  I learned a few years back to shop online.  And I do shop locally, too.  I try to do my part in keeping the dollars in Christmas.  Since we're now in the season, I have a few memories to share, not all here.  One of my (and my sister's) bestest memories is the "trimming the frickin Christmas tree fit," an opera of many parts performed by our mother.  The overture began with the tree shopping and much cursing.  I don't ever remember finding the "perfect" tree, only one that screamed "THIS WILL WORK."  The never ending music (a true blessing) that played in our house all day long provided the arias.  It was the recitatives that truly lit up the house with Mom's particular Christmas spirit.  Every box of ornaments that was brought out from under the steps also brought out the anger that lived within my mother's soul.  "YOU GIRLS GET DOWN HERE AND GET TO WORK!!!!!!!!!!!  YOUR DAD IS NEVER HERE TO HELP ME AND THIS IS THE LAST YEAR I'M PUTTING UP A TREE!!!!!!!!  I'M SICK OF THIS!!!  %^&$%&$^@%#$@" Never mind that my sister and I never knew when she was putting up the tree - we were supposed to read her mind, and her anger.  Never mind that our dad was at work - he was also supposed to read her mind and her anger.  Mom's rage was never far from reach and the smallest infraction of the multitude of crazy personal rules residing within her could throw it on the floor.  We danced like our feet were on fire when this happened.  And as children often do, we would try to solve a confusing family puzzle by making things happy.  In the frickin Christmas tree fit, we would rush to help trim the tree, put out the presents, clean up any mess, distract in any way (my personal favorite), do anything we perceived would put an end to another act in this opera.   There were always too many acts and sad endings in the operas performed in our house.  For a couple years, there was a break.  The fabulous, sparkling, silver aluminum Christmas tree with blue ornaments and revolving color wheel came to live at our house!!  HOORAY!!!!  It was always perfect and in our eyes, we were sooooo Jetson!  No one we knew put up an aluminum Christmas tree.  It stayed for a while, then went into the attic until I retrieved it about 10 years ago, displayed it in my house for old times sake, and a few weeks ago, my sister became the new owner of the most beautiful tree in the world!  I know she'll display it well.  In an odd twist (and there are so many in my family as we really are pretzels), my mother has always declared she loves Christmas.  And I do believe that.  She loves giving presents and watching people open them, she enjoys all the fun, music, family gathering, and purpose of Christmas.  She just can't control her demons.  But isn't that the stuff of good operas??