When I arrived in France many moons ago, Christmas trees were not part of Christmas scene as they are so now. The Christmas consumer market had not yet taken off. The French florists had beautiful floral arrangements, but few Christmas trees. They usually had a few dried up pine trees for sale, reminding me of Charlie Brown's Christmas tree, for a small fortune.
Given this bit of history I want you to imagine a young woman, nine months pregnant, with a belly bigger then two Santas put together, determined to have a Christmas tree for her soon-to-be-Franco-American baby.... Imagine her buying a Charlie Brown tree, then dragging it behind her as she walked the streets of Paris back to her apartment. Then hauling it up the three flights of stairs where she placed the tree upright. One side had bare branches. The other side had needles dangling. The scattered scent of pine, was replaced by sweat and a funny feeling.
We had a Christmas tree just in time for the first ornament that came bright and beautiful.
