HOW TO MAKE YOUR VERY OWN CHRISTMAS TREE OUT OF BOOKS

For years, nestled between the couch and the end table in our library was my collection of more than 200 Christmas-themed books.  WHY I had them is a mystery because I'd read only a few of them, but I would "pick them up" at yard sales, etc., and my sister-in-law Jean would hand some to me and say, "Do whatever you want with them."  They all ended beside the couch.

Last year, because of my efforts to "downsize" and "de-clutter", I actually gave away a number of the Christmas books to my friends Judy and Margery.  I still cherished the Mark Twain, Willa Cather, and L. Frank Baum volumes I referenced in earlier BLOG articles, as well as Jimmy Carter's Christmas In Plains, Louisa May Alcott's The Abbot's Ghost, The Hired Man's Christmas by George Givens, The Gift Of The Magi, and A Christmas Carol.

Last year I also came across this internet video:  HOW TO MAKE YOUR VERY OWN CHRISTMAS TREE OUT OF BOOKS:

How to make your very own Christmas tree out of books

I thought, "What a perfect solution to my situation."  This year, I convinced Gerald to try the project.  His mound of books atop the coffee table in the library was quite impressive, but by the time he went upstairs to fetch the camera to record his prodigious feat of engineering, the books toppled onto the couch and surrounding area.  My brother shouted, "JENGA!"

Now the books are stacked in front of the bookcases.  My brother asked, "Why don't you just donate them to The Well?"  I mumbled something to the effect that I was going to get around to reading them.  He scoffed and as he nudged a book on the floor with his toe,  he said, "Yeah, it's highly unlikely that you're going to read John Grisham's Skipping Christmas!"  He continued, "And WHY would you have four different versions of 'Twas The Night Before Christmas?"   Feeling naturally defensive, I retorted,  "That's actually A Visit From Saint Nicholas!"

There are 156 Christmas books remaining.