Every year families and institutions put up Christmas trees in their homes or somewhere that people can see. The tree is decorated with lights and coloured baubles. Often there is a scene under or next to the tree that has a manger and Mary and Joseph and Baby Jesus along with three wise men and some shepherds and sheep and cows. The tree is a symbol of Christmas; this is the time of the year when Christians celebrate the birth of Baby Jesus.
In New York, a very, very big tree is put up in a square in the city-centre. The square is called Rockefeller Plaza. The tree has become a very special symbol to thousands of Americans and many others from around the world who make a trip to New York to see this huge tree and its beautiful Christmas decorations.
There is a big tree lighting ceremony that is shown on TV around the world. The tree remains lit and open to the public to see until the second week of January of the following year.
This year, the tree lights were turned on for the first time on Wednesday, November 29, at Rockefeller Plaza. The plaza is near West 48th and 51st streets and Fifth and Sixth avenues. When the time comes for the tree to be taken down, the decorations are removed and the tree is taken to a lumber yard where it is cut up into planks that are used to build homes for those in need. Each year, the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree continues to be a symbol of hope. It inspired the children’s book, The Carpenter’s Gift, written by David Rubel and illustrated by Jim LaMarche in collaboration with Habitat for Humanity.
The history about this symbolic tree goes back many, many years. Even before the first formal tree went up, workers lined up beneath a Christmas tree on the Rockefeller Plaza construction site to collect their pay checks during the height of the Great Depression. People from around the world came after September 11 to see the tree decorated in a patriotic red, white and blue. Today, more than half a million people pass by the tree every day, making Rockefeller Center the epicentre of New York City’s holiday celebrations.
Evert year, the beautiful decorations are said to be more beautiful than the year before. This year the 78-foot, 10-ton Norway Spruce will have more than 45,000 LED lights hung over and through the branches.
The tree is usually a Norway spruce anywhere from 69 to 100 feet tall. Putting up a big tree like this became a tradition since 1933. The tree comes from a different place every year. Once a tree is selected, a crane supports the tree while it is cut. It is then put on a specially designed trailer able to transport trees up to 125 feet tall, a trailer that can be driven through the city streets. If you were driving on the highway when this tree was being taken to New York, you would recognized it because of all the red bows the people put on the tree just for the road trip. The tree is held in position in the Plaza by four guy-wires attached at its midpoint and by a steel spike at its base. At the top of the tree is a huge Christmas "Swarovski Star" that’s made of 25,000 Swarovski crystals.
A skating rink was opened below the tree in the plaza in 1936 and there is still a skating rink there today.
Christmas trees in the home are very special too, especially when we all decorate them ourselves. Sometime we may not always have a proper fir tree from the cold North. We could have a tree made from branches we pick up from the beach; we could make a tree from bare branches we spray white or silver before we decorate them. We could also have a paper or a felt tree we hang on the wall. Sometimes, people make Christmas trees out of piles of books or a collection of toys. It does not have to be a huge tree – it is the symbol and the tradition of having a tree that counts.
Here are pictures of different types of trees. Which one do you like best?
