It’s Thanksgiving. You’re sitting around a table adorned with a feast. One by one, the people sitting there alongside you share what they are thankful for and it’s getting closer to your turn. Finally, the “Circle of Thanks” reaches you and you can’t contain yourself. You exclaim with a joyful exuberance, “I’M THANKFUL THAT I GET TO DECORATE MY HOUSE FOR CHRISTMAS TOMORROW!”

If that is you, if you began preparing to decorate for Christmas in September, then this Top 5 list (and the ensuing debate over the rankings) is for you! And if you don’t even know where to start with decorations and feel lost in the Christmas aisle at Walmart, then this Top 5 list is even more so for you!

The Top 5 List of Christmas Decorations:

5) Nutcracker

This winter wonderland warrior is a must in the kingdom of Christmas. It has great versatility. It can be placed outside with a few fellow officers to take the night watch, or you can have it stand guard inside solitarily on the mantle. Poised tall and proud. Stoically surveying it’s realm. Its versatility is only outdone by its variety. Soldier, drummer, baker, unicorn, skier, Gene Simmons, lumberjack, hotdog vendor, and even a yodeler in lederhosen. The possibilities are endless!

4) Stocking

Yes, I know what you’re thinking. “What!? The iconic stocking is only number 4! It should be higher! This is the greatest Christmas tragedy since Aunt Myrtle burned the ham back in ’94!” Certainly the stocking is deserving of Top 5 placement in the pantheon of Christmas décor. It’s mentioned repeatedly in Christmas songs and is the vessel by which Jolly Ol’ St. Nick blesses (or curses) us. There’s also something about seeing a stocking hung in front of a slow burning fire that warms even the two-sizes-too-small heart of any grinch. And the fact that you can personalize the stocking until the reindeer come home is a huge bonus.

But here’s the deal: it’s a tad overrated, it can be a fire hazard, stocking holders can be a hassle, you don’t utilize them often, and they aren’t even the size of real socks. Nostalgia gets it in the Top 5, but a low utility score keeps it from the Top 3.

3) Singing and Dancing Christmas Tree

Ahhh, the sweet serenade of an animated Christmas conifer. Is there anything that sums up the holidays better! The joy of Christmas can’t be contained as this tree comes alive with exuberant carols. Branches lift to reveal eyes aglow with the cheer of the season and mouth agape in order to tell it on a mountain. And does this tree only sing? Oh, no no no. It’s a double threat! It swivels back and forth with the skill and precision of a Juilliard-trained dancer. While all of that seems impressive enough to land it at #3 on the list, what sets it heads and branches above the competition is its motion activated sensor. I defy you to present a better scenario than setting this up at a Christmas party, sitting in a nearby armchair, and awaiting Grandma to walk by and fall prey to its sudden exclamation of merriment. Oh Tannenbaum indeed!

2) Nativity

There is nothing more serene, peaceful, and calming to the soul than a nativity scene. It is the reason for the season. It reminds us about what is truly important and harkens us to simplify. Silent Night. Away in a Manger. Little Drummer Boy. The First Noel. Oh Holy Night. Oh Little Town of Bethlehem. O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. Adeste Fideles. What Child is This? Breath of Heaven. Looking at a finely carved, sculpted, or painted nativity scene while listening to any of these songs is not only emotional; it draws you deeper into the presence of a God who is near.

Do any of you remember mom and dad or grandma and grandpa sitting you down and telling you the story of Christmas while using the figures of a nativity set? When I was a kid, the week of Christmas decorating hit its pinnacle when I finally got to carefully take out the family nativity from the box, gently unwrap each piece from their packaging, and set it up on the sofa table behind the couch. Each year being able to thoughtfully assemble it a different way.

Honorable Mentions:

Before we reveal the number 1 Christmas decoration, here are a few considerable decorations that almost made the cut.

Christmas Village
Old Red Truck with Christmas Tree
Light Up Reindeer with Swiveling Head
Singing and Dancing Santa Claus
Christmas Train

And now the moment we’ve been waiting for: the number 1 Christmas decoration!

1) Christmas Tree

Close your eyes and picture a home decorated for Christmas. What stands front and center? The Christmas Tree. That’s why it’s #1 on the list. Evergreen. Unaffected by the harsh winter. This noblest of firs is the perfect representation of the undying spirit of Christmas. That is, until it dries out and dies in a month. Then we discard it at the curb and allow scavengers to use it as firewood. Nevertheless! Seeing a finely decorated tree through the neighbor’s front window will leave you pining for the day when you’ll visit the Christmas Tree lot….or Home Depot, the more sensible choice.

The Christmas Tree. It is the rare decoration you get to decorate! Star or angel at the top of the tree? It doesn’t matter. All that matters is that YOU were the one that was chosen to climb the ladder and place it there this year. Tinsel, plastic icicles, fake snow, popcorn, ribbon, cement handprints, a paper angel with your child’s kindergarten photo on it, that ugly snowman your great aunt gave you for your first Christmas after getting married. You don’t know that you do it, but with every ornament you pull out of the box you have to show it to somebody nearby and explain its origins. Why? Because the Christmas Tree is the source of so many memories and deeply cherished traditions. It reminds you of the people that you have lost. The people that have stuck by you. The people that distance and time has scattered. The Christmas Tree reminds us of what was and fills us with the joyful expectation of a new year and new memories that are just around the corner. Looking to spruce up your house with the ultimate decoration for Christmas? Look no fir-ther.

Do you agree with this list? Did we leave any off that you think are the best decorations? Can you count the amount of Christmas Tree puns there were in the last entry?

-Pastor Tyler Lemen
Associate Pastor of Family Ministries at Friends Community Church