ROCKINGHAM — Every year, travelers on the northbound lane of US Highway 220 are warmed with the Christmas cheer by a beautifully lit Christmas tree.

The anonymously decorated tree has become somewhat of a local legend, as no one knows who is responsible for sprucing up the lone tree alongside the busy four lane.

We are excited to share this exclusive backstory of the Christmas tradition that was submitted by the person responsible for making us all who see the tree a little merrier and brighter, and who, more importantly, exemplifies the simple, yet impactful, spirit of joy and giving of the season.

Tree of Hope

The first time I saw the little cedar tree on Hwy. 220 North, that had been decorated, all I could do was smile. I know that smile was the look of a child. That smile had been gone from me for many years. I had lived life as many of us in a rush. Not taking the time to stop and look at the beauty of life.

That tree had sat on the side of the road for many years, not being seen, by many of us. Because of the rush to get from one place to another. I, by chance, happened to see it one day. The top of the tree was browned and dying. Why at the time that I noticed it, did it really matter to me?

I really could not tell you. All I know was that I did not want to see it wither away to nothing and die. I took the time to get some fertilizer. I wanted to see if it would give it back its life and it did.

It also gave me back my life. It gave me back my life of a caring human being. For years I had lived my life as a hardened Marine Veteran. All I can say at this point is that I was led to that tree. That tree gave me hope that had been taken from me. Not by others, but by my own state of mind.

I now have seen that little tree bring hope to others in numbers that I could have never imagined. It was never about me or any other person.

I know now that it was about the Christmas season. It was about the hope that the season brings to not just the children but to the child that still lives within all our hearts. A time of giving and forgiving. A blessed time for all people and I do mean all people. We are all God’s children and that has been proven to me many times over.

One day a lady stopped me and asked me my name, I told her. She responded with can I give you a hug. I did not know this lady, but I did say, yes. Then she went on to explain to me that her mother had passed early that year. She told me that she was having a hard time dealing with the death and that she traveled Hwy 220 every day going to work. It was at that point that she told me the little tree had changed everything for her and had given her hope that things would be better for her. How she knew about me and the tree, I cannot tell you. She has not been the only one to ask me if I had anything to do with the tree. I do not answer, I just smile.

Believe what you will. I know God led me to the tree. I gave it back life with God’s help and fertilizer. It gave me back the fertilizer of “Love and Hope of the Christmas Season.”

May God bless us all in these trying times.