There is something about Christmas lights that makes me smile. I love the twinkling glow and the way they seem to make everything look better. Christmas lights lining a fence, wrapped around a tree, or outlining the roofline of a house just give me a warm feeling inside.

Some people begin putting up their decorations right after Thanksgiving. I love to take any December visitors I get on a drive around to see the beautiful lights on our lovely Amelia Island. From the sparkling white lights of the Ritz Carlton to the amazing collaborations off of Citrona, the sights are wondrous to behold.

I did not know where the tradition of decorating with lights began and so I decided to do a little research. One theory I read had to do with the winter solstice. It explained that on December 22 of the calendar year, the Sun stops moving south – it actually rises lower and lower in the sky each time it makes its daily appearance. The December 22 date is significant because that day the day that the Sun stops moving south in the sky, and does not move north for December 22, 23, or 24. To ancient civilizations, this symbolized death of the Sun. On December 25, the Sun moves about one degree north, signaling the “rebirth” of the Sun, something to be celebrated. The article went on to explain that the sun was the first light to help with the celebration of life.

Candles on the Christmas tree were next. The danger of fire made it difficult to keep the candles burning long and Christmas trees were not kept in the house for very long. The candles were glued to the tree branches with wax or attached with pins.

Electric Christmas lights, on the other hand, were invented by an associate of Thomas Edison back in 1882. Edward Hibberd Johnson, VP of Edison Electric Light Company, wired 80 red, white, and blue incandescent lamps about the size of a pinball to a pine tree. Johnson displayed this new invention in his parlor on Fifth Avenue in NYC on the 22nd of December 1882.

This quote was published in the Detroit Post and Tribune by a visiting reporter named Croffut:

“Last evening I walked over beyond Fifth Avenue and called at the residence of Edward H. Johnson, vice-president of Edison‚Äôs electric company. There, at the rear of the beautiful parlors, was a large Christmas tree presenting a most picturesque and uncanny aspect. It was brilliantly lighted with many colored globes about as large as an English walnut and was turning some six times a minute on a little pine box. There were eighty lights in all encased in these dainty glass eggs, and about equally divided between white, red and blue. As the tree turned, the colors alternated, all the lamps going out and being relit at every revolution. The result was a continuous twinkling of dancing colors, red, white, blue, white, red, blue‚ all evening.

I need not tell you that the scintillating evergreen was a pretty sight, one can hardly imagine anything prettier. The ceiling was crossed obliquely with two wires on which hung 28 more of the tiny lights; and all the lights and the fantastic tree itself with its starry fruit were kept going by the slight electric current brought from the main office on a filmy wire. The tree was kept revolving by a little hidden crank below the floor which was turned by electricity. It was a superb exhibition.”

Thank you, Mr. Johnson. Because of your creativity, Christmas lights have continued evolving and now come in all colors, shapes, and sizes. There are incandescent mini-lamps, LEDs, and even fluorescent Christmas lights. Christmas lights typically come in more configurations than just a line of lamps connected with a plug and a connector, there are strands that are shaped like a net, there are strands that look like icicles, and others that are just wacky. There are no rules on Christmas lighting design except for not getting yourself electrocuted and/or falling off the roof. The only rule that I would recommend is to take the lights down at the end of the season and not keep them up for next Christmas.

No matter what kinds of lights are used, I love driving around and looking at Christmas light displays. It doesn’t matter to me if they are elaborate or very simplistic. The bright glow tells the world that the people inside have hope and faith in the meaning of the holiday and the promise that the New Year will bring.