A Tale of Two Trees

Mini Tree - Daycare

Meet our latest tree...

Last week, my daughter's daycare did it's Xmas fundraiser aka Evening of Savage Children Running and Screaming Mercilessly for Two Hours under Unflattering Fluorescent Lights.

(Note to Reader: I love so many elements of the alternative philosophy with which my child is being educated: eco-consciousness and sustainability, political awareness, learning at one's own pace - but the functions are a torment. It's like Lord of the Flies meets Gremlins with some veggie food. And I must clarify: I love and respect the parent crowd. It's just the scene I can't stand.)

Having disclaimed, I should mention that my daughter enjoyed herself immensely, and bounced up to me at the end of the event to advise that she was the "lucky winner" of her daycare class Xmas tree.

The tree, fyi, is a delightful mini spruce. It was decorated with sewn felt child creations in a lovely pot. It can even be replanted in our garden come spring.

The mini-hitch is that my daughter didn't so much win the tree as buy it on our behalf via an unwitting silent auction "showdown" with a class mom.

Note to parents: It's a good idea to teach your kid about silent auctions before unleashing him or her at one unsupervised.

Somehow, we managed to transport this 40-pound prize a mile in the freezing rain without a car. All the credit goes to my spouse, spatial-reasoner extraordinaire, who actually managed to fit it into his bicycle pannier with uncanny skill. And to my daughter who ran behind him collecting stray ornaments that fell off in transport.

New tree now lives peacefully in M's room, like a pet, languid in front of the picture window, absorbing rays, waiting for springtime and a chance to blossom. Nice life if you can get it. Huh?