As we contemplate the transitions from living in a home to moving into the bus one of the biggest changes to consider this time of year is Christmas decorations and traditions. Our home has been no stranger to change in these regards, considering its size and our already non-traditional attitudes.
Our first Christmas when it was just me and “mom” we didn’t even have a tree but made a “Christmas nook” out of a built-in bookcase.
Later on, we tried to do a living tree that we would then plant out front at the end of the season. The goats loved that idea….
We had an array of Christmas trees through the years.
Eventually, we left the real trees behind in favor of a ‘ladder tree’ that stayed up all year, with changing decorations for the seasons.
Even this small space is gargantuan considering the shift from 1281 square feet to less than 250.
That’s just the tree. What about the other holiday knick-knacks and tchotchkes inside the house? Have you ever noticed how BIG a Christmas stocking is? What about outside, holiday lights, inflatable Santa?
Ounces are pounds and pounds equal pain.
I have a friend who does cosplay and I heard him once say about props “ounces are pounds and pounds are pain” meaning that he wanted to build everything as light as he could because you don’t want to be wearing 40 lbs of gear for 8 hours on the convention floor when you can build it in less than 2 lbs.
I can’t help but draw a parallel between that and all the holiday stuff in the bus; inches are feet and feet are pain. Our “little” ladder tree is still 18 inches by 36 inches at the base, that’s 4.5 square feet of floor space or roughly 2% of the floor space of an empty bus. So no tree, even temporary. We’d like to try and keep one string of light for outside, but even wound compact they will take space, not to mention the power to run. Window clings are an idea we’ve floated. They pack flat, weigh next to nothing, and are cheap. We’ll have to see how it ‘feels’ next winter as we re-enter the season.
White Christmas is now a dream.
Another thing to consider is that we’ve always lived in a temperate climate. While a white Christmas was never very likely, it was always a possibility, and we at least get cold weather every winter. However, moving into the bus, we’ll be following the sun, and our winters will be spent down south. Snow, freezing weather, or even frost won’t be much of a possibility. We’ve promised Kid 2 that we’ll go find snow to play in sometimes, but it won’t be something we’re living in. Warm Christmases (or any winter holiday) are very different from cold ones, and it’ll take some getting used to. It’s easy for me to get sad about the loss, but I need to weigh it against the opportunity that this adventure is, and with that in mind, it’s a small price.