The wish of a Christmas tree
I feel like I have no control over my life. I come into the world as a tiny, fragile sprite and do notice that they are patient with me. Well yes, for a while anyway. I am surrounded by my brothers and sisters and we have daily discussions and make bets on who will get off the streets first.
I am already looking forward to all the attention I will get and how I will look. People really put a lot of energy into you, you know. You get a new warm home, sometimes temporarily, sometimes for a longer time. Sometimes I do have pain; yes really, first I have to be transported and then I have some bruises here and there, especially on my head. I am then put in a small moving thing like this, and then I have a stiff neck afterward. If I am lucky, I get a chance to ground, but very often they cut off my feet and toes. However, I always thought I didn’t have long toes. I already know then that I will have a short life, so I have to make the best of it.
I’ve always dreamed of becoming the biggest, like the one on the Grand Place in Brussels, with all that glitter, did you know it’s 22 meters and comes from Mary and Joseph from Lier? I won’t get there. In any case, carpe diem really does apply to me. I always sacrifice myself for others. Had said to do it differently this year, but yes … I am in the hands of my caretakers. Worst of all is that sometimes I do feel used, once the good times are over, I am soon forgotten, as if I no longer exist and then I lose all my strength. In the worst case, I am then just thrown on the street and transported once more and burnt along with my brothers and sisters. And did you know that sometimes people come to see that too? I wonder what I would be called should the roles be reversed.
I do know that somewhere I am descended from the family of the pine tree, but I didn’t know we had to take this so literally. Could it also be with a little less pain next year, please? That’s my only wish 🎄🙏.
Author: Sofia Van Nuffel
(I crawled for the past
days for a while under the bark of a pine tree and how it might feel during this time of year).