By Molly Exum - I have romanticized expectations for just about every situation imaginable. So, Christmas … oh, Christmas…it plays on all the senses and conjures images of harmonious family get-togethers singing carols by a roaring fire-- Currier and Ives picture perfection--in my mind, that is. That said, this photo is my dream come true on digitally aged card stock in sepia-tone hues. It tells a lovely story. However, in reality, our children didn’t even want to go with us to pick out a tree. They chose not to join their Daddy (i.e. Clark Griswald) and me in our search of the perfect tree at a farm I had so diligently researched-- a Christmas tree farm promising mountaintop hayrides, caroling, hot chocolate and the opportunity to cut our own Fraser fir. What child would not love this adventure? Instead, our pair pleaded to stay with cousins at a lakeside cabin lounging in a hot tub and watching movies on a giant flat screen—imagine that! That’s how “Clark” and I ended up at the Country Corner Market, in Marion, NC, watching a woman bind our parking-lot-chosen evergreen by running around it with a ball of twine. So, there you have it ... the truth. No, we did not cut down that beautiful Christmas tree in Doughton Park off the Blue Ridge Parkway. Nooo, we drove it there-- from Marion to Elon to Roaring Gap. Then, we lugged it a good mile round trip up AND down the perfect bald mountaintop, offering 360º views, on the coldest day of the year. The ax was a prop bought and returned to Lowe’s Home Improvement. There’s more. Capturing that perfect moment took quite a production. We loaded up the children, the gear, extra clothing, the tree and photographer, Joey Seawell. Then, we drove 2 hours under ominous skies, rain and sleet. After persuading the children into 4 layers of clothing, convincing them that yes, they were having a good time(!), getting a shot of the mountains, the tree, and all four family members carrying it, the production was still not over! There’s postproduction: digitally mastering the look while painstakingly searching for the perfect quote. We combed pages of quotes, poems, and movie lines. Our favorites included Dante’s, “Nature is the art of God,” Muir’s, “In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks,” and Joyce Kilmer’s poem (to which Steve gave an emphatic “NO!”) “I think I shall never see a poem lovely as a tree ... Poems are made by fools like me but only God can make a tree.” We didn’t want anyone to focus on the fact that we are uprooting God’s art.  Another one that gave us a good laugh was Charlotte Carpenter’s, “Remember, if Christmas isn’t found in your heart, you won’t find it under a tree.” True, but ... When we stumbled upon the Huxley quote we knew it was the one because when we reached the top of the mountain and looked out over the majestic Blue Ridge, it started to snow. It was a breathtaking, awe-inspiring, “the hills are alive with the sound of music” moment. We ran around catching snowflakes and singing Christmas carols. So, we didn’t have the hayride or the hot chocolate; Heck, we didn’t even cut our own tree. Instead, we had each other and the mountains and the snow (and Joey)—a blessed, harmonious Exum family Christmas memory captured in a photo .        

 --- Wishing you many beautiful Christmas memories.

**Special thanks to Joey Seawell who patiently and artistically documented our adventure, then spent hours at his computer editing and creating the look.