Gasp

 Gasp- A Tale of Christmas

As we all know, I’m the Queen of Christmas. Not Mariah, not Lacey, me. ;) I have a magical Christmas tree that I can program with an app on my phone. I can make the lights on the tree any color in the spectrum, as well as have it do fifty (or more) programmed effects. Additionally, I can customize the colors and effects, the brightness, the speed of the effect, as well as the duration of the effect. I can have a different Christmas tree every day if I want to! Every hour! Every five minutes!

Years ago, before I had my magical tree, I had an evergreen garland on my mantle. It was the latest technology back in the day, in that it would modulate between white and multi-colored lights. It operated on a battery pack, and had a six hour timer. I loved that garland, and used it for years. But, time moves on, technology advances. After several years, the lights on the evergreen garland stopped working. I used the garland on the mantle without lights that year.

Time went on, and I discovered Twinkly lights! The magical lights I was looking for, but didn’t even know existed! (Twinkly is the manufacturer of the lights, as well as my magical Christmas tree. If anyone from Twinkly is reading this post, reach out! I can always add another tree!!) : )

I waited until Black Friday to order a light strands of Twinkly lights, as they were at a greatly reduced price. Once I got the Twinkly light strands home, I fell in love with them! I then ordered a second set of lights before the sale ended! I was so enamored with the Twinkly lights that I purchased a Twinkly Christmas tree the next year. The following year I purchased a Twinkly wreath for above my mantle! Christmas decor complete! : )

As I was building my cache of Twinkly tech, my evergreen garland began to deteriorate. I decided to donate it, so someone else could find it and use it in their home. 

For the next two Christmases, I used the Twinkly lights on my mantle without any type of garland. I was on the lookout for one, shopping the after Christmas sales, in the hopes of finding one I liked. But, nothing ever struck my fancy. While it frustrated me, I waited in hope. (No pun intended. Okay, maybe a little.) I knew I’d eventually find a garland I liked. 

During that time, I saw a wreath that I liked, made of multi-colored ornaments in various colors, design styles, and sizes. While I liked it, it was too expensive for me to purchase. When the Christmas clearance sales happened after the holiday, it was always sold out. 

Fast forward to Christmas 2024. I decided to purchase the wreath I’d been eyeing for two years. However, to my complete shock, the wreath wasn’t available anymore!  The store website had similar ornament wreaths in different colors schemes, but not the multi-color option I had seen over the past two years. 

I scoured the website, hoping to find the ornament wreath I wanted to purchase. However, it was a fool’s errand, an exercise in futility. I then decided to search for the wreath I wanted. In a fraction of a second I got a result on my search-and found an ornament garland!!

I clicked the thumbnail image to see a bigger image of the garland. I had never seen the garland before; it was the exact same ornament color scheme of the wreath I’d been looking for. IT was exactly what I wanted! It was, however, in garland form, not wreath form. I looked at the price for the garland; it was on sale for less than half price. I decided to buy a garland, to set it home and see if I liked it. 

The store had a retail location close by, so I decided to pick the garland up at the store, to save money on shipping. Later that day my order was ready. I picked it up the next day, as it was my day off that week. I picked up the order and brought it home.

The garland was in an abnormally large bag. I lifted the garland out of the bag by its product card, a piece of cardboard with a notch, where it would have been hanging on a hook in the store. I was instantly impressed! 

The garland is made up of a collection of ornaments, in different sizes, colors, and finishes. Each color family blends seamlessly into another. It’s absolutely beautiful.

I put the garland on my mantle, and it fit! I have a short mantle, and haven’t ever found a garland to fit it, evergreen or otherwise. But this garland fit!! I then turned on my Twinkly lights, nestled behind the garland. The combination of ornaments and lights was truly beautiful.

About a week later, I had a thought: what would the garland look like on the Christmas tree? I took the garland off the mantle and put it on the tree. I arranged the garland in a diagonal swirl, cascading down the tree.

I then turned the Christmas tree on, opened the Twinkly app on my tablet, and changed all the lights to white. (Which I never do.) I loved the look of the white lights and the multi-color ornament garland. 

As I stood there, taking in the beauty of the lights and garland, I had another thought: I wonder what the multi-colored garland would look like with multi-colored lights? I again grabbed my tablet, opened the Twinkly app, and changed the lights on the tree. 

I looked back to the tree, and gasped. I literally audibly gasped. The garland and lights were breathtaking. My hand instinctively went to my chest; I was touched, moved. It was absolutely beautiful. I stood there in silence, completely taken in by the beauty on the tree. 

I then got my phone, and took photographs of the lights and garland. I made sure to go in close, capturing close-up photos of the ornaments and lights. 

A few days later, I had another thought: I wonder if that garland is still on sale? I checked the website. To my surprise, the garland was on sale, at a further discounted price! I knew I had to act before the sale would be over. I ordered three more garlands. One for the mantle, two for the tree. 

This time, I had the garlands shipped to my home, as I didn’t need them at speed. When they arrived, I opened the box with eager anticipation. They too were absolutely beautiful! I put one on the mantle, and put two on the tree, continuing the diagonal cascade down the tree. Everything looked beautiful. Christmas complete. 

The Christmas season was merry and bright in my home. The ornament garlands were so beautiful on my tree, I didn’t decorate it. Why put other ornaments on the tree? It didn’t need them, it was gorgeous as it was.

Looking back, I was surprised by my reaction, that I audibly gaped like that. That was a phenomena that never happens to me. But, I think it’s a rare phenomenon for anyone.

Think about it-when is the last time you audibly gasped in amazement, upon seeing, or taking in, breathtaking, staggering beauty?