She was not sure what possessed her to get the pitiful thing. It sat across her on a table: a mini Christmas tree. Or rather, a mini lemon dwarf cypress tree that had been sold as a small Christmas tree. It was rediculously small and the light weight as she carried it home spoke to the fact that it had not been watered recently. Regardless of the neglect, it was a vibrant tender green. Pot wrapped in an excess of shiny wrapping paper to the point it looked like a strange muffin.

The woman had no use for a mini Christmas tree and, in fact, could not even be used as one. The small ornaments that came with it were too heavy for its tender frame. Even the bow on the handle of the bag it came in was too heavy for the top of the tree. She had tried that already. It had been quickly removed after a noticeable tilt was observed. Her last intention was to kill it.

It sat across the room from her still in its silly muffin paper. It had been already watered but she frowned. Its very presence mystifying to her even though all it did was sit in that single spot by the window. Anomalous in the draw it gave off.

She had trouble getting into the spirit of the holidays that year and it had not been the first. Time sped by unnaturally fast. Ripped out by the roots before it had the chance to grow. The woman thought back to how it looked in the grocery store where she had found it. Crowded by other trees of a similar age.

And yet… she had picked up the smallest.

A small smile crept across her face as she once more looked at it.

Yes, she had the smallest piece of ribbon that would be the perfect garland.