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Christmas trees U cut
It wasn't meant to be a Christmas present. It was just a random I-was-thinking-of-you-on-Thursday gesture. Andrew went out and got a tree while she was at work that day, set it up and decorated it. (AP Photo/File)

Andrew Walsh and the Christmas gift his girlfriend still talks about

BY Alyssa Kleven  on December 20, 2012 @ 11:00 am (Updated: 9:11 am - 12/26/12 )

His heart was two sizes too small.

The Grinch's heart, that is. Not KIRO Radio host Andrew Walsh's heart. Although it could be said that Andrew sometimes displays some grinch-y holiday behavior.

"I hadn't been in the Christmas spirit a lot in my life as a young adult," said Andrew.

The grumbles start as Thanksgiving passes by.

'Why do I have to get a tree? Come on it's just a symbol. Blah, blah, blah.'

He's said there have been moments where he said worse, but he probably shouldn't admit to it.

So the year that he and his girlfriend of 12 years moved to Seattle, he should have been ecstatic. As they got ready for the holiday, fresh off the move and starting at new jobs she said not to worry.

"You know what?" she said to Andrew. "I don't even care about the tree this year."

But the words just felt so wrong.

It was then that Andrew realized even though he was off the hook for the 'symbol' he grumbled about year after year, he wasn't a curmudgeon. It was more than him not getting to have his tantrum either: It wasn't that his girlfriend didn't care. In the midst of transition she just didn't have the energy for the tradition.

It wasn't meant to be a Christmas present. It was just a random I-was-thinking-of-you-on-Thursday gesture. Andrew went out and got a tree while she was at work that day, set it up and decorated it.

"She still talks about it."

Still grumbling about Christmas each year, the time that Andrew brought a tree still means something special to both of them. "When I think 'I don't have any redeeming qualities ...' I think of that one time I got her a Christmas tree when she didn't expect one."

Alyssa Kleven, MyNorthwest.com Editor
Alyssa Kleven is an editor and content producer at MyNorthwest.com. She enjoys doting over her adorable dachshund Winnie - named for Arcade Fire front-man Win Butler.
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Comments (4)


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  • Stevebo wrote...
    It's amazing how powerful symbolism is...
    December 26, 2012 9:24 am
    And it's also amazing at the smaller gestures that mean so much to those around us.

    My wife to this day will remember times I brought her flowers "just because" more than any time I ever got her flowers when it was expected of me.

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  • DesertRez wrote...
    What I was thinking was
    December 26, 2012 9:27 am
    that if you have been dating for 12 years and are not married yet, their could be some commitment issues!
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  • gomariners wrote...
    Yes
    December 26, 2012 10:25 am
    Considerate actions like this one mean the most. Guys usually don't get that.
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  • po_guy wrote...
    Committment issues?
    December 26, 2012 1:24 pm
    You would think he would make a "symbol" of her and make her an honest woman...but, perhaps he still feels like he will drop her sometime and doesn't want the sticky issues involved with marriage...
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