The Passing of the Tree

This time of year always brings a touch of sadness. And it's not just about figuring out how to pay for all those holiday gifts. As I drive by the houses, it saddens me to see all those harbingers of holiday happiness along the curb waiting for the recycling truck or worse yet - the garbage truck, barely any life left in them.

But sooner or later, the Christmas tree has to go. I keep mine up as long as possible, sometimes too long for my husbands liking. But to me, the tree is such an inviting bright spot in the dreary winter that I'll fight to keep it going as long as I can.

When the time eventually comes and I just can't justify keep it any longer, I like to try to find some way to keep the spirit of the tree around. I think of it as Holiday recycling.

One thing I like to do is strip down the needles from the branches until I have a good size bowl full. Then I'll take those lone socks that the sock monster has left in my dryer and stuff them with the needles. Stitch the end closed and you have a wonderful pine sachet to put in drawers or tuck in corners to add a refreshing whiff of pine when needed.

One of our favorites is to take the tree outside and attach crossed wood pieces so it will still stand. Then we decorate it again - but this time we use strung pieces of fruit or cranberries, dried suet balls, nuts and other bird tasty treats. For at least another month it provides nourishment for a grand assortment of birds, a few squirrels, and our cats who watch from the window.

Whether we make the bird feeder tree or not, we always cut up some of the branches and the trunk and add it to our wood pile. In the summer, we have some nicely dried pine to add to our fire ring. It's a very old tradition to keep the yule log for fires throughout the year, and it's just our way celebrating the old ways.

How do you recycle your holiday tree or wreaths? I'd love to hear from you.