A string of lights can make my world twinkle with happiness. It’s such a simple thing, yet transforms our spirit. God must have had such fun creating stars in the night sky and now with a simple string of lights we can feel such delight.  

It’s something like lighting the candles on a cake, it puts a smile on our faces and turns a cake into a celebration. Adding Christmas lights to windows and eves brightens up our homes with joy. We can find all kinds of patio lights that with the flip of a switch turn our dark night into a party or our porch into a glowing welcome mat of friendship.  

Not long ago, I gave a friend and co-worker a vase of flowers for her desk. I was about to go set it in place for her to find in the morning when I had an idea. I went back to a basket of miscellaneous items…phone cords, batteries, odd and ends and yes…there it was! A tiny string of clear lights I’d found at a Home Depot one Christmas with a small battery pack. I checked to see if it still worked. Yes! They twinkled with light. I draped them into the arrangement and went back to the office, hid the battery pack behind the computer and watched them twinkle “surprise.” My heart did a cheer, and so did hers when she discovered it the next morning. Who would think that such magic would come from a little string of lights?  

I think it’s the simplicity of “light” that adds a sense of wonder and fun. How burning a few scattered tea candles in a room, can transform our hearts with joy. Strings of lights are so readily available to us at craft stores and through shopping media for decorating more than ever, and I think we need them more than ever. It’s the simple things in life that make a difference. They can be calming, or tickle us with laughter, they can light your spirit when there is darkness, they can give hope, when it wains…and they can bring out the delight of a child in us at any age.  

A few strings of lights in the canopy of a tree brings out fantasy in your landscape…in two or three trees, it makes it a land of magical dreams. It brings the stars in the sky closer…like stars that have transported you to the heavens, and never forget to “make that wish on a star.”

Just last week I strung some tiny lights into a wreath we have on the wall of our family room and that gave me more ideas! With fall coming, we can use pumpkins or pinecones on our dining tables with a protective runner or length of burlap to protect the table, add a string of lights and you have added the delight and wonder of the season. I love the ones with that little battery pack so easily hidden.  

Patio lights can turn your evenings into a party…or transport you to a place of wonder and peace. I have a string of them in my living room just for fun. They hang on a wall with shiplap painted white and some 10’ shutters that are grass green with peeling paint for that shabby chic look of the beach. When I turn them on, I’m transported to my own beach cottage right at home.

So…in concluding my thoughts, I’d like to shine a little light into your life with the idea of the gift of lights, and if you choose to do so, when you have the chance…bring a little twinkle into the lives of your family and friends.   

Let’s all pass it forward…“let there be light”…especially as we pass through this time of pandemic turmoil, anxiety, changes, restrictions and the unknown future.  

Till next time,

Jackie Jesch