From Good To Great

"I have a simple philosophy: Fill what's empty. Empty what's full.

Scratch where it itches." -Alice Roosevelt Longworth

I have such an attitude about Christmas decorations this year.

Well. Let's be honest. I have an attitude about pretty much everything these days.

Less is more. 

So when it came time to splash some holiday cheer on this little corner of my world - the place where I probably spend the most waking hours of anywhere in my home - I just could not bring myself to drag out the usual tinsel and fanfare.

I tossed up a tree trunk garland, purchased for a song from a Target clearance aisle, and I tucked a tiny little Merry Christmas message into the preexisting art arrangement. 

That precious dollop was a gift from a word-art-loving math mom. Bless you, Julie

I'd like to say that I thoughtfully added the splash of ivy and two white vases to bring some life and round contours to the composition. 

But that would be a lie.

Truth is that I pulled those vases from another room where they were no longer needed and set them down by the sink till I figured out where to put them next. And when I came back a few minutes later, I decided that they looked fine right where they were, and crossed that challenge off my to-do list.

Bam. Problem solved. Moving on.

And you know, compared to what I've done other years, this Christmas display is next to nothing.

But guess what. Next to nothing is suiting me just fine. 

But what happened next was a stroke of genius. When I came back into the kitchen to make dinner, I impulsively grabbed a bit of greenery from a nearby vase and wedged it into the arrangement.

So happy with that decision.

The moral of the story is that less is still more. But there's nothing like a tree branch to take a simple Christmas look from good to great.