Essay Sample: The Process of Decorating a Christmas Tree

To get my family and I in the Christmas spirit, we have to start by putting up our Christmas tree and decorating it. Millions of families share this tradition around the world. The process of decorating a Christmas might seem simple, however, you do not want to be one with a hideous-looking Christmas tree. Throughout the holidays, when someone’s family comes over, the main focus of their home is their Christmas tree. This tradition is so worldwide that every year during December, more than 95 million households do one thing in common, which is decorating a Christmas tree (“Seventy-Seven Percent” 2).

Before you can even start to decorate your Christmas tree, you have to find the perfect spot for it in your living room and you want to make sure that you have the tree being the centerpiece of your home or where most people would see it. Now, it is time to get the tree down from the attic, which for my family is my dad's only job on this day. Once he brings the tree down or after you buy a real tree we are going to put it aside so we can get all the supplies we need, including lights, ornaments, tinsel, extension cords, the star, and your tree skirt. You are going to want to gather all of these materials and bring them into the living room to start decorating your tree. The last and final step before you start decorating the tree is the most important, which is turning on the fire and blasting Christmas music. 

Now that you have the supplies you are going to need, it is time to put up and make your tree look stunning. You are going to take the tree out of the bag or box that it comes in and you are going to build the tree. Once you have the tree up and in place, you are going to want to fix the branches making sure none are out of place or bent from being in a box for eleven months. This is a crucial step in decorating your tree because if the shape of your tree is off, the whole tree will not look right. We are now onto the most exciting part of this process, which is getting to put the lights and ornaments on. One thing you want to make sure of is that you test the lights before putting them on the tree, making sure that they all work. When putting the lights on the tree you have to keep in mind that you can never have too many. You are going to want to put them in evenly spaced rows up and down the entire tree. Once you have completed this step, it is now time to put all the unique and memorable ornaments onto the tree. You want to use the ornaments to fill any holes that there might be and fill the empty spots in. When putting ornaments on the tree, I like to the front and center of my tree to have my favorites and then the ones I like the least towards the back. This next step is optional, which is putting tinsel on the tree, just how you put the lights on. Tinsel is “threads, strips, or sheets of metal, paper, or plastic used to produce a glittering and sparkling appearance in fabrics, yarns, or decorations” (“Tinsel”). My family and I personally do not put tinsel on our tree, however you can if you want to. 

The most exciting part of decorating my Christmas tree is the final steps when you see it all coming together. For this next step, it is a break it or make it a moment, which is putting your star on top of the tree. Just like with the lights you are going to want to make sure that it works before putting it on the tree. It would be terrible if you got the star on the top and then realized that it did not work. The star is the hardest step in the process because it has to be perfectly straight and at the correct angle. You are going to want to make sure that the star is centered with the center of the tree and not tilted one way or another. To make sure that is straight you are going to want to have other members of your family look at different spots, to get the best position to shine. The last step is to get your tree skirt and carefully put that around the bottom of your tree, making sure not to bump the tree causing ornaments to fall off. Finally, the moment comes when you can flip the light switch and see what you just worked on for hours, light up, and dazzle. 

The process of decorating a Christmas tree takes time and patience, however, once you see the result you will fall in love with it. Your own Christmas tree might not be seen by 125 million people like the one in Rockefeller Center, however, you will see your tree every day and want to be proud of your unique and special tree (“ Rockefeller Center Christmas”). By completing this process, it will make you feel joyful and able to get in the holiday spirit with your friends and family.