Light in the Darkness – Holiday Home Tour 2018

Can you believe we’re only two days away from Christmas?! I sure can’t! Last night Ben and I flew out of Denver, headed to Santa Cruz, California, to spend the holiday with his family. As the plane took off and we hovered high above the city we call home, the lights of the city reflected against the shadowy, snow-capped mountains, and it simply took my breath away. It reminded me of the Christmas lights strung up on our house and artfully tangled in the trees of our neighborhood, blazing beautifully in the night long after the sun has set. It reminded me of the pure magic of a glowing Christmas tree in a dark room, when the house is quiet and you’re left alone with your thoughts as the lights reflect in your eyes and bounce off your cheek. It reminded me of a burning menorah displayed proudly in the window, clearly and defiantly visible in the darkness of the night.

It’s the beauty of the light in the darkness that fills us with hope and makes us appreciate that little light all the more. This season, my light in the darkness is without a doubt my incredible family, friends, and the home for which I am so appreciative. And you know what? I’m even appreciative of the darkness too – from the mundane to the difficult to the heartbreaking aspects of life – because without darkness, there would be no light. And how lucky I am to have a life with those beautiful highs and lows, especially when my highs soar at the uppermost elevations, far and above the beautiful Rocky Mountains.

And speaking of my home, it too knows the power of a great strand of twinkly lights! Like a woman has a go-to little black dress in her closet, my house knows it looks its best when all dressed up for the holidays – and it just can’t help but to show off a bit!

Now, since I’m still getting familiar with my camera and all, I photographed my home in the daylight, so I’ll just need you to come along with me and use your imagination for what it looks like in the evening with every twinkle light glittering like a star in a great constellation.

After the sun has set for the evening, icicle lights are dripping from the roofline, and a family of reindeer made entirely of golden light graze quietly on the lawn. My porch light is on and candles flicker in the lanterns, gleeful with anticipation of our friends arriving soon to admire them (so vain, those lanterns are! Ha!)

Stepping inside my foyer, candlelight flickers and lamps glow, enveloping our friends in a warm hug (and a quick kiss, if you find yourself under the mistletoe)! This is a cozy, comfortable home with music always playing and drinks flowing, and we’re happy for you to be here exactly as you are.

Cheery bows bedeck the halls…

Wreaths bedeck hooks and adorn corner nooks…

Ornaments sparkle and shine, grouped in vases and bowls…

Glitter-flecked greenery fills the pitcher on my kitchen table and is strewn across my dining room tablescape, pinecones peppered in amongst tall white taper candles and tealights flickering in votives of mixed metallics…

Each place setting waits patiently for a heavy plate full of warm food to be set atop it. When we finally sit down to eat, filling our bellies as we share a bottle of wine (or two, or three) and swap stories for hours, the table practically glows with joy at bearing witness to memories in the making.

In the daylight, a silver menorah stands on the mantel as the Christmas tree glows peacefully in the room beside it. I smile, remembering spending holidays at my grandparents’ home when I was very young, where they too displayed both vessels of light, love and tradition. My parents have always done the same, and I am thankful to have been raised with more appreciation for the commonalities all humans share than an unnecessary focus on our differences.

Once the lights are turned low and our focus is on the light in the darkness rather than the vessel holding it up, it’s so plainly clear how unimportant those differences are.

Whatever holiday you celebrate, we all find a certain kind of beauty and hope in a little shining light, especially in the wintertime when it’s all too easy to be consumed by darkness. When we find common ground in the different holidays we celebrate, it makes it that much easier to work together in spreading love and light this season.

Whether you have a menorah burning fiercely in your window or a Christmas tree lighting up the night (or both, like my house!), when you focus on what’s really important – the light itself – we’ll find that it doesn’t really matter what’s propping it up. The shared love of light is infinitely more important.

We’ll sink into cozy couches, turn up the music and deal out a deck of cards as we digest our dinner and snack on sweet treats well into the night. The walls of our home dance with reflections of light, mirroring our merriment. When the time inevitably comes for our guests to head home, after big hugs and long goodbyes, we close the door behind them with the cheerful jangle of a jinglebell – and it’s as if it’s mimicking the joy I feel in my heart at the end of a beautiful winter night, spent making memories with the people I love the most.

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