I am contemplating having a party and setting my Christmas tree on fire.
Alone last night I sat staring at it sitting on the floor with my arm around Goddess. She is asleep. The television is on but I’m not paying it any attention.
There will be a few ornaments that I will keep. The angel that sits atop the tree is one Chelsea made for me when she was a little girl; the Snoopy sitting on top of Frosty that I made when I was a little boy. A Celtic cross, a Tasmanian thing Shirley gave me, my Grandfather tie made into an ornament by one of my aunts … these are the ones I will keep.
The rest are all hanging pieces of sadness; relics from another time when they represented togetherness, a house full of good cheer, and the promise of better things in the New Year.
I think taking the Christmas tree outside still decorated, with some friends over and setting it on fire would be a pretty good way to put all of that behind me. Only a third of the lights work anyway.
It’s an artificial tree so I suppose that lighter fluid will be involved.
It will take longer to burn so my friends can toast, drink and sing songs around the damn thing if they wanted to.
Maybe I could get my friend Chuck Courtenay or Sam Adams and Gordon to perform from the beloved back deck while the rest of us stand in the back yard watching it burn.
“Oh Tannenbaum” or “Come on Baby Light my Fire!”
Of course Tybee Island has more government than it’s ever had before and parts of the island now resemble a police state. I suppose a permit will be involved.
Shirley is my friend, neighbor, Mayor Pro-tem of the Island, actually in charge of most of Chatham County anyway and would of course be at the party. I have complete confidence in her abilities to secure the permit.
If not though I’ll invite Dr. Ricky Temple pastor of Overcoming By Faith Church and we’ll just tell the Tybee Island Fire Department that we are conducting a religious service and they have no jurisdiction over God’s burning bushes.
Come to think of it, April my friend runs the Fire Department and she and her husband James will of course be at the party singing around my burning Christmas tree. She can handle permit thing.
So I think that I am on to something. Today is my Mom’s birthday and that would be a great surprise for her!
So it is New Year’s Eve too. Whitley and I have already agreed to allow our bicycles to get drunk. Johnny O and Judy are meeting me later. Roma appears to have survived death again. At the Breakfast Club this morning, I sat in the back room leaning against Nancee, talking to Val, about these things.
But if you are going to go through Christmas and New Year’s alone for the first time in your life …
To hell with!
Any excuse for a party!!
Especially a good excuse!!!
Like little pieces of sadness hanging from the branches of a broken family tree.
