When I was little our homes wee decorated with huge Christmas light bulbs. So big that only 1 or 2 could be held in our hands at a time. At some point in time between Thanksgiving and December 1st each year the decorating would begin. The ladder moved around the perimeter of the house foot by foot. We'd begin early in the morning and be done by early afternoon most of the time.
Our life sized stuffed Santa would be placed sitting on the bench by the front door and waving at all who passed. The floodlight shone on him throughout the holiday season. We added a red and green colorwheel one year which lit him up in Christmas colors.
It wasn't the amount of lights we had or the colors they were or the perfect alignment in straight lines which made it Christmas for us. It was the fact that the boys we're helping their Dad bring in the spirit of the holidays one electrical string of complete happiness at a time. If there was some snow on the ground all the better to see how many steps we had taken with him that day.
My older brother has kept the "Large Bulb" tradition alive while he decorates his home. Some people write a check and have a service design and install their holiday lights. You might have a party to get the job done. In the end of this lighting tradition we almost all share the experience in similar awe. If you're really good at it, which automatically happens over time, you'll be one flick of a switch between Bethlehem or the North Pole.
This is Joseph and Mary's home whose names I changed to protect their anonymity. There are so many things going on it's hard to keep track without missing anything. This is Joseph's evolution of Christmas lighting which has been added to every year since they moved in almost 20 years ago. You ask how I know that this is the most popular Christmas light show in the neighborhood. It's all because of the kids!
Razor scooters line the street at night, the children come out in droves with blank stares, sometimes their little heads just can't stop twitching about as the Christmas tunes put a magical rythym in their heads. Then there's the stream of cars that cruise by at a snails pace and absorb what spirit they can from the drive by. Joseph and Mary don't have any children of their own but during the holiday they enjoy a whole neighborhood of them from ages 1 to 111.
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