Christmas Lights Off the Beaten Path

BY JODY HALL

Even the smallest fraction of light overcomes darkness.

What a welcome surprise to come across a beautiful light display on a cold dark night. Christmas lights in the middle of nowhere seem to bring comfort and often make us stop and enjoy the wonder, beauty and peace of the Christmas season.

Thousands of years ago, two weary travelers were welcomed by the lights of an inn, and later three royal travelers and shepherds were awed by a glorious, bright star in a clear night sky. The custom of decorating with lights came from decorating trees with candles to symbolize Christ being the light of the world. Christmas trees displayed publicly and illuminated with electric lights became popular in the early 20th century.

Clara Powers has a beautiful display of lights and decorations at their home near Wheatland Wyoming. It’s far from town and passersby, at the end of a road, with no other houses around. Her sizeable but artfully displayed lights started when the river flooded, and they had to build a small walking bridge to their house. That Christmas Clara thought it would be pretty to string lights across the bridge and she made little corrugated tin snowmen and put them up around the yard. After that it grew every year to include the house and outbuildings.

The family decided they should have a theme every year and recently she even included a music theme. When you reach the hill on the road above their house, if you tune your radio to a certain station it will play her selected music according to the theme of that year’s display. Some of the themes have been western, gingerbread men, patriotic and even a Hawaiian theme. Around the first of September the family votes on what the theme for the Christmas gift exchange and decorations should be. Clara then gets busy making each family a pair of Christmas socks to match the chosen theme. This year the theme will be “Jingle Bells and Puppy Dog tails” as there are quite a few members with new puppies this year.

“I’m going to have six dogs running around my house this year,” sighs Clara.

With such an extensive display of lights and décor there comes issues as well. It increases the electric bill up to $500 a month. Clara uses about 400 feet of extension cord.

“My husband says you can see it from the satellite in space and he’s afraid the REA pole is going to start leaning. Every year I blow a circuit. It’s quite a project!” Clara says.

When asked why she does it she exclaims, “WHY do I do it? Why do I do it? Because it’s Christmas!”

Tammy and Robert Tate from Clearfield, South Dakota also live off the beaten path and decorate their house, barn and granaries every year with a display of brightly colored lights.

“We live so far out in the country coyotes howl in the daytime,” Robert Tate laughs. “It’s not that far, only thirty miles from town.”

They started their display when the kids were small and each year it grew. They would string lights wherever it was handy: along a garden or corral fence, on the eaves of the horse barn and on the out buildings.

“We go to work in the dark most mornings and it cheered things up,” Robert said. When asked why he went through the trouble of stringing lights he simply replied, “Because it’s Christmas.”

Tips for Storing Christmas Lights

• Wrap lights around a piece of cardboard that is 12” by 6” Then wrap tissue (you can use regular toilet tissue paper) over lights to protect them

• Use an empty Pringle can. Cut a slit in the top and slip one end of lights in slit. Wrap lights around can. Then wrap tissue paper over lights to protect them.

• Use a plastic clothes hanger with hooks on it. Tuck one end of the lights into and around one of the hooks. wrap the lights around hanger. Wrap tissue paper around lights to protect them.

Robert Tate suggests using whatever is handy. Fences are nice for wrapping lights around. Clara Powers says that it takes a lot of patience and sometimes good balance; especially when trying to fasten lights to a suspension bridge.

Handy Tips for Your Light Display

• Use a good ladder

• Secure lights with insulated holders (never use tacks or nails)

• Don’t install lights on trees that come in contact with power lines

• Plug lights in to make sure they all work before installing

• Design a lighting plan

• Use plastic zip ties for attaching light strands to railings

• Use exterior – rated extension cord