They say spirit moves you. That would explain why Lisa Hicks is in motion from summertime until December 24: she catches the Christmas spirit very early – and fully.
“I had 25 trees last year,” says the Troy resident. “So I pace myself, because it’s a lot of work.”
Every year, Lisa’s home is a monument to the holidays, with trees, lights, decorations and themes in every nook and cranny of her house. There’s an elf tree, two snowmen, a Grinch area. In fact, we’re doing the interview in a gingerbread room.
I ask Lisa how this tradition started.
“I’ve always totally decorated for Christmas. But my baby daughter had a massive stroke at age 28, and I developed anxiety. Doing Christmas trees became stress relief for me.”
Lisa points. “For this tree, I probably would have done maybe 500 ornaments before. When I was trying to relieve my anxiety, I did a thousand.”
Lisa’s baby daughter is fine now, but the gilded house became a habit. Lisa adds more trees and new ideas every year, choosing her decorations intentionally.
“If you come in, I want you to feel first peace, and then happiness. I'm looking for things that make you smile. My whole kitchen is Candyland, and when the kids go in, they're like—“ Lisa beams to demonstrate their reaction. “That’s all you ever need.”
I wonder how living in a space teeming with Christmas decor impacts day-to-day life.
“My husband's always stepping on things,” Lisa laughs. “But he supports me 100 percent. He's not real thrilled, but he leaves me alone.”
Lisa’s pastor husband Zachary does enjoy when company comes over; he’s proud of Lisa’s handiwork. Lisa says when people come by, “they don’t really look at me. They just start snapping pictures and walking from room to room.”
I assume Lisa takes Christmas off, and I’m right. I ask what she feels on December 25.
“Absolute gratitude,” Lisa replies without hesitation. “I grew up very poor. There were 11 of us. But my mom made Christmas special. One year, all our toys came from the grocery store. You would have thought we had a million dollars worth of toys. We were so happy. When she passed, I kept that going in my mind: Christmas is always going to be special for my kids and me.”
I ask if any adornments pay homage to her mom. “She loved poinsettias," she tells me, "so I did a poinsettia tree for 35 years as a tribute to her.”
Lisa clearly inherited her mom’s giving spirit: she and Zachary operate the Love Outreach Homeless Shelter and Love-N-Kindness Veterans House, and last year they also sponsored a nearby COTS. I ask what Christmas spirit means to Lisa.
“We’re Christians, so for us, Jesus is the reason for the season,” Lisa declares. “Jesus gave his life for us and we need to give as well. That’s what our drive is. We use it as a time to just give.”
I wonder where Lisa finds all the energy. She tells me about a butterfly tree she’s working on right now.
“I can be feeling sick, stressed, my leg might be aching,” she admits. “But I will start working on the butterfly tree, and immediately I calm down and the pain’s gone. It’s unbelievable. When we decorate, all our troubles go out the door.”
That’s all the time Lisa can spare; she’s got to get back to Christmas-ifying her house.
“I gotta go start with the butterflies,” she tells me. Then she catches herself. “Did you just hear me?”
I did; it was a totally different voice. Lisa agrees: “Totally different voice. That’s the sound of peace.”