By JOANNE RAE M. RAMIREZ and JOSE PAOLO S. DELA CRUZ/ Photography by MARK CHESTER ANG
Good things definitely come in ‘trees’ for US Ambassador MaryKay L. Carlson, who has nurtured and spruced up not one but seven dazzling Christmas trees in her residence in Makati City. And each tree is a labor of love, beauty and unity in diversity.
Ambassador Carlson, who has served as the deputy chief of mission and chargé d’affaires at the US Embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and New Delhi, India, and served at US diplomatic missions in China (twice), Ukraine, Hong Kong, Mozambique, Kenya and the Dominican Republic before her Philippine post, collects memories — and Christmas ornaments — from all of her postings. And her home, wherever she was posted in the world, was usually the most “Christmassy” place in the neighborhood.
She welcomed PeopleAsia recently to the historic three-bungalow (said to represent Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao) US Embassy residence designed by architect Gabriel Formoso, where we had quite an impressive ‘tree-hopping’ ceremony – with a few stopovers!
1. The Living Room Tree
Also referred to as the “Generic” tree, this 10-ft. tree in the main reception area is the home’s opening salvo. “People ask all the time, how long did that tree take? And I tell them, you know, when men especially come off the golf course, you don’t say, ‘Oh my gosh, how long did that round of golf take? Golf is long, but if you’re enjoying it and having fun, then it doesn’t really matter. So I always say the best question to ask is, ‘How much fun did you have’?”
The tree topper, whose lights are remote-control operated, are twigs from Philippine Treasures in Baguio. Showcasing the ambassador’s eye for improvisation, the tree skirt is a sari that the ambassador bought while stationed in India.
2. The Mindanao Tree
Tree Number Two is a 12-ft. tree of twigs from Mindanao, festooned in silver and gold ornaments. Right behind it is the swimming pool. Located in one of the residence’s open areas, the tree looks just as stunning with the lights off, as it does with its golden lights on. The simple tree-topper, which is also a locally sourced handicraft, perfectly caps off this edgy and minimalist tree.
3. The Alliance Tree
If you’ve visited the US Ambassador’s Residence during the holidays, this is probably where you snapped your money shot. The “Alliance Tree,” as its name suggests, features peace doves, mini flags from both the US and the Philippines, tiny capiz parols and other ornaments, mostly from Dapitan. The Ambassador shares that the red, white and blue wooden pieces beside the tree were given to her by the seller for free, after she bought quite a few pieces from her stall.
4. The “Ferdie and Sally” Tree
Located inside another reception area in one of the three bungalows in the compound, this tree got its name from the Ambassador’s household staff who helped her decorate it. “The idea for this tree was to have a theme of red, gold and green,” Ambassador Carlson points out. A lot of the ornaments are souvenirs from her several international postings that aren’t Christmas related, but are festive nevertheless, like tiny beaded pillboxes [as shown in the picture].
5. The Pool Tree
When Ambassador Carlson arrived in the Philippines, the residence had two Christmas trees that weren’t really up to her standards. And while she was ready to discard them, her festive spirit took over and she decided to take on the challenge of jazzing up said trees. One of them is now known as the pool tree, which features silver and blue ornaments. It has since found its home on a porch overlooking the residence’s sprawling pool.
6. The Fancy Tree
Standing proudly in the TV room and adjacent to the private quarters of the ambassador, the Fancy Tree lives up to its name. It’s also called the “breakable tree,” because virtually all its ornaments are so. “Almost everything on this tree, what we call the fancy tree or the breakable tree, are all our things. These are all breakable, for the most part. And that unifies the whole tree.” Among the décor are glass icicles, White House ornaments over the years and décor from Ukraine and China.
7. The Family Tree
At the end of our little tree hopping excursion, Ambassador Carlson brought us to the one tree that is probably closest to her heart for a number of reasons. For one, it was decorated with the help of her husband, Aubrey Carlson. “I married the right man,” says the ambassador with a chuckle.
The “Family Tree” has swirls of red ribbon and dazzles with trinkets and souvenirs the Carlsons have collected through the years. “It’s a mishmash tree of decades worth of memories,” she adds. One ornament is a baby in a cradle given to her when her first daughter was born. From the Philippines, there is a Santa in a barong and a jeepney. The ornaments are unified by the red ribbon and the red balls.
Trees aside, the Ambassador has also decorated her home with a plethora of miniature Christmas trees made from preserved leaves, Capiz shells and other unique materials from Philippine Treasures and other local sources. Two nativity scenes – one made from stuffed jute from Bolivia and a wooden one from her grandmother (which she remembers admiring even as a little girl) also made it to the Philippines. She also has a table top tree that is decorated with bejeweled ceramic eggs and lit by real candles.
The ambassador’s efforts could well be called “holiday diplomacy.” The world is represented in her trees, each of which show unity in diversity. Each tree sparks conversations that draw people together, no matter their race or religion.
“To see other people enjoy and appreciate it, that’s what’s fun. So, for me, showing you all around tonight has been the best,” says Ambassador Carlson, who has two grown-up daughters.
We left the home feeling at peace with the world, and joyful. Indeed, the sparkle of Christmas comes not only from the trimmings, but from the eye of the beholder.
