It was one of my favorite times of year! Time to head into the woods to tag 300 of the nicest pine trees that Western Pennsylvania could grow.

After the trees were tagged with a ribbon, the cutting began. The men were armed with chainsaws and the rest of us were in charge of dragging the trees to the tire location where each tree was pulled through a tire, bound with twine, and then loaded on the truck. It was not easy, but we worked as a team.

Once we got back home with the trees, our yard was transformed into a beautiful showroom. Every kid in the neighborhood was welcome to work and earn money for Christmas.

We were eager to please the customers and ready to help them choose the perfect tree. A happy and satisfied customer meant the possibility of a good tip. A genuine smile and a helping hand made the tips even bigger.

We learned so much by working together each year selling those trees. My parents were so creative in finding ways to provide for our family.

It wasn't until I got to college that I realized that we were probably poor by most people's standards. Those Christmas trees were how my parents paid for all of us to go to college.

I didn't realize that ground hog pot pie, rabbit and dandelions were not being served at very many other people's homes. I suppose we were organic before organic was in vogue.

But we surely never felt poor. In fact, we felt down right rich. We worked together, we were thankful, and we had a warm house fueled by firewood cut by my dad and brother.

We always had fresh fruits and vegetables in the fruit cellar that we canned late in the summer and venison in the freezer. We had our faith and we had each other. It was the best childhood I could imagine.

We Western Pennsylvanians have deep roots, a strong work ethic and long standing traditions. Faith, family and freedom are valued.

I now have my own five children and our Christmas tree comes out of a box, our food and clothes come from a store, and I have beef in my freezer.

But we still value family, faith and freedom. We still value tradition, and our roots run deep.

Take some time this Christmas season to share your favorite memories with your family. Get out that old family recipe that takes too long to make and make it with your children or grandchildren. Open the photo album and share your stories and remember what the Lord has done for you and your loved ones.

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas.

Cindy Starr Stewart and her husband, Lance, are raising their five children in Grove City, where they met and fell in love during college.She is the author of three inspirational books: “The Lamp Maker,” “The Potter” and “Our Father.”Stewart grew up in Allegheny Township. Her parents are Dick and Kathy Starr.Her blog is at CindyStarrStewart.com.