What appeared to be several thousand people filled Krutch Park and Krutch Park Extension, as well as a large portion of Gay Street for the annual lighting of the Christmas Tree. Anticipation built as Milkman and the Big Band provided Christmas tunes and laser holiday cartoons danced on the wall of the adjacent Embassy Suites. The mayor stepped onto the stage and was soon joined by the Big Guy himself.
This was the moment the crowds had anticipated, but the holiday weekend began with a Turkey Trot (and coma-inducing amounts of food for this jolly elf). The run itself drew thousands running up and downtown Gay Street, from the serious athletes up front to the costume clad Turkeys strolling in the back. It was a great launch and as Thursday turned to Friday, the Fantasy of Trees continued cranking, venders lined Union and Market Streets, the ice rink opened, and everything led to the moment pictured above.
The photos show a bit of the fun, but the human drone video really captured it better. Fireworks exploded, snow (confetti) poured down on all sides of the tree, and the crowd roared. The tree lighted, joining the sparkling trees in the park, and a star shone brightly in the west (not really from my perspective, that would be the north, but in keeping with the season, it was to someone’s west).
It’s truly a spectacular event, though not without some frightened pets and a bit of debris scattered about. We’ve been attending for about fifteen years now and watched it grow from a small affair to a massive gathering. The happy (and cold) families milling about, the couples smiling for selfies with the Tennessee blade sign, and the friends taking photos of the tree makes this time of year just a little happier.
With that, we are fully launched into the season. Please come downtown and enjoy the lights and all the activities. Support the local businesses that are there for you year-round. It’s a great time of the year to remember we’re all just messed-up humans doing the best that we can to have a happy life. Have a hot chocolate and smile at the other humans as we intersect on our journeys during a pretty cool time of year.