Christmas Tree Cottage

The time when Christmas memories really come flooding back is when I set up our fresh-cut pine. Nanette pulls out a carefully packed box and the Kinkade family hangs the Christmas tree decorations. Each year, we add carefully selected ornaments that commemorate our travels and special times. So decorating the tree has become a treasured trip down memory lane.

Our Christmas tree reminds us of beloved family rituals and our own precious memories of childhood. More than that, it connects us to a grand tradition of Christmas celebration that dates back hundreds of years. That’s why I’ve chosen the Christmas tree as the theme of the fifth issue – and midpoint – in my decade-long Christmas Cottage Series.

A stately evergreen dominates the scene; this glorious symbol of Christmas tradition is echoed in the rustic bentwood gate and the relief-carved door of Christmas Tree Cottage. And, when I think of the glory of Christmas, I also think of the radiant sunsets that set the snowy world aglow at that time of year. The luminous golden color of the sunset in Christmas Tree Cottage is a vibrant reminder that the glory of the Christmas season truly comes from God alone.