HOLIDAY SPIRIT IN NEW FAIRFIELD, CT
Those of us who live near New York City are certainly spoiled by the grandeur, lavishness and opulence of the elaborate holiday decorations the City undergoes every year. The most famous is probably the enormous Rockefeller Center Christmas tree that towers over the skating rink plaza. The lighting ceremony in early December typically draws thousands of spectators. Similarly, the huge snowflake of lights above the intersection of 5th Avenue and 57th Street is unparalleled. The Empire State Building glows with the colors of the season. Many of the well-known department stores (e.g. Saks Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman, Lord & Taylor) try to outdo themselves with glitzy, holiday-themed storefronts. Tourists and locals alike, young and old, just eat it all up and form long lines to catch a fleeting glimpse and to take a few snapshots. 
In small towns, such as New Fairfield, CT, what we might lack in splendor or extravagance when decorating for the holidays, we make up in charm, loving touches and... proximity. Various town groups and clubs band together to offer holiday cheer, be it decorating our historic town hall, lining streets with holiday lights, arranging our own tree-lighting ceremonies, sleigh rides, pancake breakfasts with Santa, clearing ponds for ice-skating, arranging library holiday story times for children, just to give a few examples how we demonstrate our holiday spirit.
Simply driving around town is a pleasure to behold the various ways individual families choose to display their celebratory moods - cheerful lights, reindeer sleighs, nativity scenes, wreaths or candles in every window, all arrestingly beautiful touches, with their own special charm.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ALL AND A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR!
(I am not late in posting this today - the Russian Orthodox Christmas is yet to come on January 7th, 2015. S Rozhdestvom!
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