One of the things I’ve always loved about the holiday season is the various light displays people put up on their houses and in their yards. Where I grew up in Missouri, there were a few houses that really went all out and had thousands of lights on the trees, the house, as well as displays of animals, snowmen, etc. It always seemed such a shame that the beautiful display of lights only lasted for a month at best, and everyone was tearing down all their lights, only to put them away for the next eleven months.
One of the the interesting things I notice the first Christmas we moved to our home here in Nederland, and is that the holiday light display didn’t end on January 1. I remember driving home the first week in January and being somewhat surprised that people were still putting their lights on — maybe they lost track of the days on the calendar? But now in our fifth winter, I’ve realized, this is no accident, people continue to display their lights well into January and even into February — it seems here, it is more of winter light display, than just for the holidays. And it isn’t confined to just out little town of Nederland, but seems to be the case all throughout the mountains. As I made the drive from Nederland to Winter Park and back for a day of skiing, the gambling town of Black Hawk was lit up in bright colors as well, and all the little homes along the Peak to Peak highway were ablaze in white and colored lights. It particularly cheered me up as I drove along the dark highway on my way home.
Now we join in on the fun, and continue to plug our lights in each night, to provide a bit of cheer and bring a smile to the face of a neighbor, during these dark days of winter.
