← The Preamble
The Preamble
How Beavers Built America, The 5 Habits of Hope, And Jackie Kennedy’s Christmas Legacy
00:44:36
How beavers the size of black bears shaped America, a conversation on finding hope with psychologist Dr. Julia Garcia, and Jackie Kennedy’s holiday traditions.
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- [00:00]
A
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If you had wandered across North America several thousand years ago, you might have crossed paths with a creature that looked like it belonged in the Princess Bride. A beaver the size of a black bear. Yes, you heard correctly. Giant beavers once roamed North America, Asia and Europe, sharing the landscape with creatures like saber toothed tigers. Today's beavers are smaller and far more familiar, but they remain just as astonishing. They have five fingers, a tail that seems custom designed by a committee, and when they hear the sound of running water, something in their brain simply says, no, absolutely not. And they head off to stop it.
- [03:29]
Why they do any of this is a scientific mystery. Researchers don't fully understand why beavers build dams or how that behavior began. They don't know whether instinct drives them or whether their intelligence pushes them toward these massive engineering projects. Their eyesight is poor. Their brains are small. They navigate primarily by smell, using the unique scent of each tree to decide which one to bring down next. And yet their impact on the landscape rivals anything done by humans.
- [04:08]
I'll share the rest of that story in a moment. But first, welcome to the Preamble Podcast. Each week you'll hear some of the most interesting stories from our weekly magazine, also called the Preamble. This week we're bringing you unique pieces that will spark your imagination and make you think. Like how being silly can actually help you with the more serious parts of your life. In today's episode of the Preamble Podcast, I'm talking with Dr. Julia Garcia about the power of hope. So many of you ask me regularly how you can find more hope in your life. She is going to tell us. I'm Sharon McMahon, and this is the Preamble Podcast. Now, back to our story.
- [04:49]
Beavers don't fit neatly into our categories for intelligence, but maybe the problem is the categories themselves. Our human instinct is to evaluate intelligence by the tools we use. Logic, memory, language. But other creatures operate with forms of knowledge that don't map onto our charts. Watch a beehive long enough and you will realize the insects simply understand something we do not. Beavers, in their own way, do too. They are one of the few keystone species on the continent. If you remove them, the entire ecosystem collapses. And they are, other than humans, the only species that intentionally and dramatically reshapes the natural world. They are ecosystem engineers, and for thousands of years, they were among the most successful mammals In North America, when Europeans first began exploring the continent, an estimated 400 million beavers lived here. Indigenous communities understood their importance long before Europeans ever laid eyes on the Americas. For many woodland tribes, beavers held a status comparable to that of the bison of the plains. Vital, respected, and interwoven into daily life through food, trade and spiritual meaning. But when Europeans arrived, they weren't looking for spiritual meaning. They were looking for trade. By the 1500s, Spanish, English, Portuguese, and French ships were already crossing the Atlantic, searching for resources. Fish, yes, but also furs, especially those that native Americans readily traded, because to them, pelts were abundant. Europeans could scarcely believe their luck. One pelt after another, handed over as if there were endless supplies. And in those days, that was true. France dove in quickly. By the early 1600s, Samuel de Champlain had crossed the ocean nearly two dozen times, helping establish Quebec and new France. And the Dutch followed, sending Henry Hudson and founding beaver trading posts on the island. And that would become Manhattan. It would not take long before men were fighting over beavers. Why? Because not all fur was created equal. Europeans distinguished between fancy furs, the showy, fluffy pelts of animals like mink or fox, and staple furs, which have long guard hairs over a dense undercoat. Beavers fall into the second category, and that undercoat, called wool, was the gold. Russian fur processors had perfected the means for separating the beaver's guard hairs from its wool. And for generations, Europe had relied heavily on Russian beaver for felting. Beaver wool produces the finest felt in the world under the right conditions, which are temperature changes, agitation, and certain chemicals. The microscopic barbs on animal fibers permanently lock together. You can just ask anyone who's ever ruined a cashmere sweater in the dryer. The result is a fabric that is naturally water resistant, antimicrobial, durable, and able to hold its shape. The perfect material for hats. Between the 1500s and the early 1800s, a beaver felt hat was the Patagonia fleece of its day. Expensive, high quality, and widely recognized as a sign that you had the means to buy the best. By 1700, England alone was consuming about 5 million hats per year, roughly 1 per adult. As hat fashion spread across Europe, more than 20 million beaver hats were exported from England between 1700 and 1760. It took about 10 beaver pelts to make a single top quality hat. Europe's appetite required roughly 200 to 300 million beavers in the 18th century century. Which raises an obvious where does one get that many beavers? Largely from North America? And what would nations be willing to do to protect those Sources. The short answer? Nearly anything, including war.
- [09:15]
As demand soared, England and France established major trading companies to funnel pelts from North America back to Europe. The British Hudson Bay Company built trading posts and waited for trappers to come to them. The French sent voyageurs deep into the interior of the Great Lakes region, forming direct relationships with indigenous trappers. The profit margins were astonishing. A pelt that cost three or four shillings worth of goods in North America could sell for 40 shillings in London. Which brings us to a young German immigrant in the 1780s. A 20 year old apprentice who worked in a relative's musical instrument shop. He scraped together enough for a steerage ticket to America and boarded a ship, his belongings packed tightly beside him, including several flutes. On the voyage, he overheard wealthy passengers discussing the enormous profits to be made in furs. It was a conversation that would change his life. His name was Johann Jakob Astor and he was later known as John Jacob Astor. Within a few years of arriving in New York, he began trading directly with Native Americans, learning to process the furs himself and selling them at a remarkable profit. By 1800, he was the modern equivalent of a multimillionaire. Astor partnered with the Montreal based Northwest Company until the United States passed the embargo act of 1807, halting trade with foreign nations in response to British impressment, Britain's practice of boarding American ships and forcing sailors into service. As many as 10,000Americans were conscripted this way. It was a national humiliation and an impossible burden on the maritime economy. The embargo hit Astor's business hard, so he did what ambitious men often do. He built his own empire. The American Fur Company, the Pacific Fur Company and the Southwest Fur Company all sprang out of this moment. He financed the expedition that established Fort Astoria, the first American settlement on the west coast. And along the way, members of the expedition learned of a key route through the Rocky Mountains South Pass. Indigenous nations had long known the pass existed, but it was unknown to European traders. Its location would ultimately make possible the Oregon Trail, the California Trail and the Mormon Trail. In other words, the settlement of the American West. And yes, this too happened because of beavers. When the War of 1812 broke out, the underlying tension was European Britain and France could not stand each other. Both demanded that the United States and other nations refuse trade with their enemy. And the thing everyone wanted to trade, primarily beaver furs. When Britain refused to end impressment, President James Madison declared war. The British responded by blockading the east coast and burning Washington, D.C. including the White House, where Dolly Madison instructed enslaved people to save the now famous portrait of George Washington, the Star Spangled Banner, was written after the bombardment of Fort McHenry. And although generations of school children were taught that the United States won, the truth is far muddier. No one really did. Meanwhile, Astor expanded into new ventures, including opium smuggling, before ultimately turning his fortune toward Manhattan real estate. His wealth, compared to the size of the national economy, would rival that of someone like Jeff Bezos today. By the 1830s, changing fashions and competition meant the American Fur Company was fading. But Astor's influence was already baked into the map of the United States. And behind all of it, every conflict, every trade network, every expedition and settlement, was the beaver. The beaver trade shaped North America from the 1600s through the 1800s. It drove colonization, it fueled the growth of the United States. It helped spark the American Revolution, pushed the continent toward the War of 1812, and opened pathways into the West. It transformed ecosystems and radically altered indigenous life. And even today, beavers remain quietly, steadily at work, reshaping landscapes, creating wetlands, making room for fish, birds, insects, forests and meadows. Almost every thriving ecosystem they touch traces its success back to their engineering. The most influential animal in North American history might just be the one chewing on a poplar branch, minding its business, hearing the sound of running water and muttering to itself. Absolutely not.
- [14:37]
Up next, my interview with Dr. Julia Garcia on strategies that you can use to help you become more hopeful.
- [14:46]
A few months ago, I decided to give myself a little gift a Masterclass subscription. And honestly, it's been a game changer. Instead of scrolling on my phone after work, I started listening to lessons, and it quickly became my favorite way to unwind and feel inspired. One class that really stuck with me is by Atomic Habits author James Clear. I had been struggling to build consistent routines in some areas, and the practical strategies I learned have helped me stay on track and I actually enjoy the process. Masterclass gives you unlimited access to over 200 world classes taught by the best in business, writing, cooking, and more. All for plans. Starting at just $10 a month billed annually, you can watch or listen anywhere, turn travel time into learning time, and even download classes to watch offline. Each membership also comes with bonus guides and a 30 day money back guarantee, so there's zero risk in giving it a try. Masterclass always has great offers during the holidays, sometimes up to as much as 50% off. Head over to masterclass.com Sharon for the current offer that's up to 50% off@masterclass.com Sharon masterclass.com Sharon support for here's where it gets interesting comes from Sixpenny Home is many things. It can be chaotic, it can be joyful, and at times it can be serene. Choosing beautiful pieces to live with is a thoughtful way to turn your home into a space you love. Sixpenny is reimagining luxury at home with extraordinarily comfortable slip covered furniture for living, dining and sleeping spaces, plus distinctive tables and accent pieces. Their furniture is completely customizable and made by hand at their own factory using all natural linens and color cottons, lofty cushions overstuffed with ethically sourced feathers or recycled fibers, all without the use of harmful chemical coatings. Bottom line Sixpenny furniture is both high quality and high value and since launching in 2017, Sixpenny has been featured in Architectural Digest, the New York Times, Wirecutter, Time and more. You can visit sixpenny.com Interesting for a leisurely browse through their impeccably designed pieces and perhaps even order yourself some free swatches. That's s I x P-E-N-N-Y.com Interesting.
- [17:09]
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- [18:12]
I'm joined now by Dr. Julia Garcia. She is a psychologist, author and speaker and her new book, the Five Habits of Hope offers a practical path through life's toughest moments, showing us how we can move past fear and hopelessness to build lasting habits of healing and hope. And this is such an encouraging, uplifting conversation that I know you're going to love. So let's dive in. I am so excited to have you here today because I read your book and I know that this is something that so many people are going to want to listen to. They're gonna wanna pick up the five habits of hope. This is something that, like the world needs at this moment. So thank you for being here.
- [18:58]
B
Thank you for reading it. That means so much. Thank you.
- [19:01]
A
It was truly my pleasure. I mean, this is something that I hear on a daily basis from nearly everyone I interact with, that the world seems kind of hopeless, that they don't know how to even see a blue sky on the horizon, that they are sort of waiting for this feeling of hope to descend upon them that is based on, you know, their external circumstances. Like things are looking up. And I think people equate things are looking up with I now get to experience hope. And I would love to hear you speak to that.
- [19:41]
B
That was such a beautiful parallel because the intersection of feeling up, feeling that I would say that happiness, we'll call it happiness, and having hope, there is an intersection, they cross over because when you feel hope, you're going to most likely feel more happy. But they're not the same, they're different. And having hope doesn't mean you have to be happy. So some people think, oh, if I'm not really happy right now, then I must not have hope. And then that can create this cyclical effect of like, okay, the next negative thought creeps in of, so this doesn't matter if I do this or nobody will care if X, Y and Z. So that's a very powerful distinction just to jump into is that hope doesn't equate to happiness, but they do intersect.
- [20:30]
A
Is hope a feeling in your experience as a psychologist, as somebody who writes about hope? The title of your book is the Five Habits of Hope. To me, the word habit is an action verb. It's a practice. It's something you are doing on a daily basis, not just a feeling that you are sitting around waiting to experience.
- [20:53]
B
Exactly. So it's pairing of both. Because if someone believes what they feel is real, it's helping us navigate our feelings. And it is an action, but it's also in our sense of worth. And when we tie the action with a sense of worth, that's how we can create a process that's sustainable and sticks and doesn't just come and go with our feelings because it's attached to a sense of worth. And in my experience personally as well, growing up, I didn't have a process or a sense of worth, so I was kind of over two. And then with the action, maybe I was proactive in being high performing and, and doing maybe positive things, but because I didn't have a sense of worth, of value in myself and Because I didn't have a process for things like anger or sadness. Both of those really were making hope feel just like this constant come and go, ebb and flow. And it wasn't something that I could. Okay, I'm feeling hopeless right now. How do I get back to myself again? How do I navigate through this feeling? I would say that a lot of this book for me is about accessibility. I didn't have access to tools. People didn't talk about feelings. I didn't learn about them. In this traditional school that I grew up in, it was actually shameful to talk about feelings. And even if you did feel, I call it the dark place. Sometimes hopelessness is a dark place. Even if you did feel that way, you kind of like, just get it together, suck it up, or just get back to doing things. The action part, but when I was doing the action part, but I didn't have a sense of worth, I didn't see value or purpose in my own life then. The actions didn't make me ultimately stay hopeful. And what I've seen working with people, whether it's people in prisons or in Ivy League schools, is that there's so much in the world that can easily block us from feeling. Hope, being overwhelmed, burnout. Just the external things. And just doing external actions are really great. Coupled with having that internal process and that sense of internal worth, that you have value, that you have purpose, that there is meaning to things that may seem of a waste, that your feelings, no matter what they are, you can repurpose them. And so it was really pairing all three of those things. Action, a sense of worth, and navigating the feelings that we have.
- [23:27]
A
What would you say are the dangers of nihilism? Of feeling like nothing you do matters, that it's all pointless, just like none of this is gonna make any difference. You know, nihilism is in many ways just this, like, profound sense of prolonged hopelessness. Like, nothing I do will ever make any difference. What are the dangers of that? Why shouldn't we just allow ourselves to be cynical?
- [23:57]
B
I don't think there's a greater danger in our day and age or ever. But I specifically think now, with artificial intelligence and AI and emotional atrophy happening, the inability sometimes to have those processes are almost increasing. To not engage in meaningful inner interaction, to not critically think, to not be creatively expressive and take emotional risks in relationships or professionally. So I think that we do those things because we care, because we want to create, even at the risk of failure. It's an innate human feeling to want to connect with others. And we do that through all kinds of things. Creative, professionally, personal risks. We want to connect with each other, but in the backdrop of the social context that we're currently in, when we care less about what happens, we could create more division, more hate in our heart against other people. So I could go in so many different directions with this, but I would say ultimately the greatest danger is that we are humans without a heart. We are on this planet, highly performing, being very productive, but not fully present, not in meaningful relationships that matter to us, not aligning our decisions and choices with values and things that we care about. Because when we are cynical or we develop apathy in any way, shape or form, we become the robots that are running the Internet right now. We lose our heart. And I'm sure you have seen as well, the book mentions a lot about the era of loneliness in the digital landscape we're in. And people are feeling lonely no matter their age, no matter if they're married or have children. Feelings of loneliness is like plaguing the planet all over the place. And it's because we have an innate desire to truly connect. And when apathy seeps in and takes root, it can be so dangerous to not only us, because we don't contribute our ideas anymore, we don't share our heart with people we hold back, but also the world at large because we stop contributing.
- [26:14]
A
And also history just demonstrates that heartless humans are capable of terrible things in a self destructive sense, in a sense of harming others with whom you are in a relationship, but also in like a governmental sense, in an international affairs sense. Heartless humans, people who are completely disconnected from their sense of empathy, from their sense of hope. People who disconnect themselves from that are capable of deeply dangerous things. And I know that nobody listening to this wants to contribute to that problem. And so it is incumbent upon us to do all that we can, you know, where we are with the resources available to us. Not just because it's good for us personally, but because it's good for our communities at large as well. Can you share a little bit more about what are some of the habits of hope? I really want people to read this book to get like a full picture of everything, but give us a sense of what exactly does somebody need to be practicing or doing in order to create the habits that align with experiencing hope?
- [27:17]
B
So each of the habits I align with a feeling framework to help us practice them in real time, if we're up for it. And one of the habits that I think is A great place to start is the first one. And that's the habit of reflection. Because what this is, is it's countercultural to the fast paced society of do, do, be, be, grow, grow. And what it does is it allows us to pause. It's like a yellow light. We're going to slow down, we're going to pause, then we're going to get to a place where maybe we're struggling with something, maybe feeling overwhelmed. We're going to take a moment to acknowledge that because the temptation is to do the opposite and go on what I call feeling detours. Just dismiss it, deny it, all kinds of things, but pause long enough to acknowledge the feeling. Because these are hope blocks. These block us from hope. When we build up feelings and we hold them in and we suppress them, they're not going anywhere. They're staying within us. And what they do is they constrict us. So we may want to be super productive, but if we don't do that, check in first. What we're doing is we can do all the things, but we're restricted in what we're doing. So the first one would be reflect. And that's just a simple pause and reflection. You don't have to hang out there and ruminate. And then you can start moving on if you're ready for habit number two. Habit number two is about risking. And I think emotional risk is one of the biggest things this generation. I would hope that they lean into more because there's so much isolation and consuming and not contributing. So I think emotional risk is a huge one for our culture in our time right now. And it allows us to really acknowledge that we have fear, but we also have courage. And if we are brave, even when we're afraid, if we're brave anyway, maybe we won't get the outcome we want because there's a risk, right? We could be rejected. I've gotten hate mail before for things that I've done and said I've gotten harassed. You know, there are risks involved. But I believe that when you are brave that you will like the person you are becoming. So leaning more into brave and something you can do with that is identifying a feeling. You could say I felt, I felt shame, I felt anger, I felt fear. Because when we label and identify feelings, they become less scary to navigate. And shall we move to number three?
- [29:26]
A
Yeah, I would love to hear more.
- [29:27]
B
Habit number three is about receiving. And this one's really tricky. If you're like me and you're very independent minded and you're Like, I can do this, I got this. I don't need anybody's help. Receiving is really about relationships and it's about identifying your worth and saying, I am worthy of healthy relationships. I am worthy of collaboration and connection, true connection. And it's identifying what we need. It's saying, I was needing, I need. Because a lot of times we just take on all of the things ourselves. And so it's stopping long enough to say, okay, what do I need? And this is something I work a lot with parents and family members. This is a huge one that we pause on a lot for. Because identifying a need is a rare conversation. Putting language. I need, what does support look like or sound like for you? And that's what I always say, what does support look like or sound like for you? Because it's gonna be different for you, maybe in that moment or from the person sitting next to you who knows and loves you dearly, but you've never identified how you need support. So that would be receiving.
- [30:27]
A
I wanna ask you a question about what it looks like to have courage in the digital age. Because I feel like when we talk about like, have courage, take an emotional risk, there's no reward if you never risk anything. If you are completely closed off emotionally, you'll never breach the wall of loneliness. And for many of us, we feel like our communities are largely online. And for some people that's actually true. That is where their communities are. They know people almost exclusively online. They're Instagram friends or their, you know, fill in the blank. What does courage or emotional risk look like in the digital age? Because that is, I think, a big question that nobody is asking. I think when people hear this, they think it means to put your feelings on the Internet.
- [31:22]
B
Yeah, yeah. Which could be very dangerous. Especially if we're in a vulnerable place and we don't receive the support that we needed or were identifying would be helpful for us. I would say the biggest way we can stay healthy and take emotional risks in this digital era online today is prioritizing real time relationships and engagement. So if you have a relationship with someone online, getting it to be where you engage in real time, and maybe it's through a FaceTime or WhatsApp or some Zoom, but where we can create more balance of real time connection because then we can learn skills that are core to relationship building. We can have conflict resolution skills built in there in real time because it's not delayed. I'm not going and doing research. Come back on a comment or I'm not canceling you because you're right in front of me. So the more we can have this hybrid relationship with the people we're in relationship with, I think that is critical. Because if we can't because of where we live remote or where the people we're in relationship with are far away, if we can't for some reason, actual restriction, like an issue around being able to see people, then I think the more we can do. Real time conversation in person is always going to be what I would say first and foremost. If you can create more of a balance of in person relationship. But if not real time interaction, that's.
- [32:52]
A
A really important distinction. Especially if you are, let's say you're like a Gen X or you're from the baby boom generation. There seems to be this tendency to look down on people who are digital natives, who are millennials, Gen Z, gen Alpha of like so much of your life is online. It's all terrible, it's blah, blah, blah, but it's normal to people who grew up in the digital age. Part of me is like, and who created this world, sir? For me to grow up in, that would be you. So don't try to blame me for the technology that you created. But nevertheless, my experience has been that people who are from like millennial and younger generations experience this sense of judgment from people who are older than them, that they're doing relationships all wrong when they're the ones who were raised by the older generations. But I think your piece of advice is important. That it's not that you can't meet friends online, it's not that you can't meet somebody on a discord, chat about, you know, some craft that you enjoy or some hobby that you are both into. But it's that we need to prioritize, of course, in person relationships in all of the ways that we can. But real time interactions, not just leave a comment, come back an hour later, see how many likes you got, see how many replies.
- [34:19]
B
Oh, the anxiety. I wonder where the anxiety is coming in. I'm saying it's just you saying that, right?
- [34:24]
A
Yeah, yeah.
- [34:25]
B
It starts to brew the anxiety. Yeah.
- [34:27]
A
I love that advice that like real relationships happen often in real time.
- [34:32]
B
In real time.
- [34:33]
A
Yeah.
- [34:33]
B
Look at that. Is that like a book right there? That, Is that a T shirt? What is that?
- [34:37]
A
I like merch. There's some merch for you.
- [34:40]
B
There's a campaign of some sort.
- [34:41]
A
I don't know. I really want people to read the Five Habits of Hope, but I would love to hear. What do you hope that the reader takes with them when they close the last page. What do you hope that they sort of like tuck into their pocket and carry with them moving forward? Or they say to their friend, I just read this really great book. Here's what it's about. What would you hope that they could take forward?
- [35:02]
B
Can I just pause and say, your questions are so poetic. I just want a cup of coffee and a couch. Like the way you said tuck a page. I mean, there's so much poetry and beauty in the literacy that you are sharing. I just appreciate it it so much.
- [35:17]
A
Thank you.
- [35:18]
B
I haven't done this before, but I felt prompted to share a little of the opening. It's just like a short poem. I was thinking maybe I could end with that. Yeah, I'd love that. And also it's a great audio too. I did the audio. So if maybe you're not someone who likes to sit down and read, there's an audiobook where you'll hear my voice. So who are we to speak of hope for those who have nearly drowned in the depths of despair, having to run as fast and as far away as possible to keep from staying there. If hopelessness has ever been a hole you called home. Wherever you are with hope, you will never be alone. For you who may feel hopeless now, you are still here and so is hope. It's yours if you'll have it. I hope you will.
- [36:03]
A
That's lovely and I love that you are giving us practical ways to find our way back to hope. When we take a little side detour which humans are prone to do, that's the human experience. How do we get back on the road to feeling and experiencing more hope which is incredibly important for our own well being, personal well being and well being as a country, as a community, as a world, these are important practices for each of us. Well, happy holidays to you. Thank you so much for being here. It was lovely to be able to speak to you in person and I look forward to seeing you again.
- [36:42]
B
I love this real time relationship conversation. So thank you so much for having me. I hope you all have the best holiday and never lose hope.
- [36:50]
A
Thank you. You can find Dr. Julia Garcia's book the Five Habits of Hope at your local bookstore or head to bookshop.org when we come back, how Jackie Kennedy transformed Christmas at the White House and the traditions she started that are still being celebrated today.
- [37:13]
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B
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Welcome back, friends. If you've ever watched the unveiling of the White House Christmas decorations, the Blue Room tree, the themed ornaments, the carefully chosen colors and symbols, you are largely seeing the legacy of one woman. Jackie Kennedy transformed the entire idea of what the season could look like in the People's House, turning it into an annual story told through art, history and imagination. Jackie arrived with a clear vision. She was already restoring the White House room by room, treating it as a living museum, and she saw the holiday season as another chance to connect Americans to their history and culture. In December of 1961, she unveiled the first official White House Christmas theme, the Nutcracker Suite. The Blue Room tree shimmered with ballet themed ornaments, angels, and handcrafted figures inspired by Tchaikovsky's score. It was beautiful, but more importantly, it was intentional. It was the moment the White House stopped simply decorating for Christmas and started telling a story. If you look at photographs of the 1961 Blue Room Christmas tree, you'll see that the tree itself is tall and full, reaching well into the curve of the Blue Room ceiling. It's lit with electric lights, and the branches are covered with small, closely spaced ornaments that reflect her Nutcracker Suite theme. When you look closely, you can spot miniature figures and toys hanging throughout the tree. Small wooden dancers, tiny instruments and ornaments shaped like candy canes and stars. There are angels placed at intervals across the branches, and at the top sits a large golden starburst. Tucked among the branches are strands of pale blue ribbon that wind their way around the tree from top to bottom, softening the vertical shape and tying the palette to the deep blue of the room's upholstery and draperies. The space feels intentionally coordinated, not just decorated, but dressed for a narrative. Jackie chose deliberately Jackie Kennedy didn't treat her first themed tree as a one time experiment. In 1962, she chose a new concept for the Blue Room Christmas Tree, a children's theme. This tree featured ornaments made by elderly or disabled artisans, along with decorations representing childhood with gingerbread figures, small wrapped packages and candy cane shapes. With just two Christmases, Jackie Kennedy established a pattern that every first lady after her would follow. And because her first two themes were so visually distinctive and so widely photographed, and the press quickly adapted, newspapers and magazines covered the theme as much as the decor. From that point forward, Americans begin to expect not just a beautiful Christmas at the White House, but a meaningful one. From 1961 onward, you can watch the themed tree evolve in the hands of the women who came after Jackie. In 1965 and 1966, Lady Bird Johnson's Blue Room trees followed with the White House Historical association calls an early American theme. They were packed with thousands of small traditional ornaments nuts and fruit, popcorn and dried seed pods, gingerbread cookies and even wood roses from Hawaii. Papier mache angels sat on top of the trees, and by 1967, she had added Santa cookies, little soldiers, snowmen, dolls, tinsel, silver balls and stars and round mirrors to the mix. Pat Nixon pushed the idea of a theme even further. Her 1969American Flower Tree stood in the north entrance, trimmed with velvet and satin balls that represented each state and its official flower. The next year, those same flower ornaments reappeared on the Blue Room tree, this time joined by 53 gold foil lace fans inspired by James and Elizabeth Monroe's portraits. By the mid-1970s, the themes themselves had become stories. In 1975, Betty Ford chose an old fashioned Christmas in America, also described as a Williamsburg Children's Christmas. Colonial Williamsburg staff and volunteers provided nearly 3,000 ornaments made from dried flowers and fruit, acorns, pinecones, straw and yarn. The Museum of American Flag Folk Art lent antique portraits of children to hang on the Blue Room walls and sent old toys and a rocking horse to place around the base of the tree. Rosalynn Carter's trees in the late 1970s kept the focus on handmade and historical. One year she chose an antique toy tree covered in Victorian dolls and miniature furniture and later honored American folk art of the colonial period with hundreds of of handmade ornaments throughout the 1980s and 1990s. The pattern holds Nancy Reagan's Trees Incorporated folk art, animals and ornaments made by teens in a drug treatment program. The Clinton's trees carried themes like an angel tree and Holiday treasures at the White House, with hundreds or thousands of ornaments tied to specific historic landmarks, events or people. Laura Bush's trees are labeled Home for the Holidays, All Creatures Great and Small, A Season of Stories and more, each with very particular decorative schemes spelled out by the Historical Association. Michelle Obama's trees had themes like reflect, Rejoice, Renew simple Gifts and gather stories of the season. And it included a dedicated military appreciation tree. Even the most recent first ladies are working inside the first frame Jackie built. Melania Trump's first year used time honored traditions with the Blue Room tree covered in glass ornaments showing the seal of every state and territory. And her second year adopted American Treasures, a theme inspired by American heritage and patriotism with landscapes and cityscapes worked into the decor. Jill Biden's we the People theme and the creation of an official White House menorah made from Truman era beams carried the same idea forward. The White House holiday decor is meant to say something about who Americans are. The gingerbread tradition that now seems inseparable from the White House holidays actually began quietly in 1972. That year, executive pastry chef Hans Raffert created the first large scale gingerbread house for the Nixons. A small a frame structure covered in white icing, it sat modestly on a sugar base. But the idea didn't stay small for long. The next year, Raffert Hut expanded the gingerbread display for Betty Ford into a full two story sugar house. And over the next several years the gingerbread creation became more detailed, more architectural and more closely tied to the holiday theme chosen by the first lady. What started as a single cottage developed into full gingerbread villages, sugar crafted landscapes and eventually highly precise edible replicas of the White House itself, a tradition that appears in nearly every administration since the scale kept growing during the Clinton years, the pastry team produced gingerbread houses with working sugar, glass windows and elaborate icing filigree the George W. Bush administration added gingerbread reproductions of presidential pets, holiday scenes, and intricate fondant figures. Under the Obama administration, the gingerbread displays sometimes weighed more than 300 pounds and included not just the White House building but entire edible versions of the north lawn. In 2020, the Trump White House gingerbread display featured a full White House plus major American landmarks made of gingerbread, chocolate and icing. And in 2022, the Biden's pastry team introduced something new, a gingerbread menorah to accompany the gingerbread White house. By the 1990s and early 2000s, the White House holidays were no longer just something guests saw in person millions of Americans began seeing them on television. HGTV launched its first White House Christmas special in 1998, giving viewers an inside look at the decorating process, and the network has aired a new special almost every year since, highlighting the official theme, volunteer decorators, Gingerbread House construction and Tours. The combination of televised tours, professional photography, social media, and the annual release of an official holiday theme has turned White House Christmas into a nationally watched event, something Jackie Kennedy could not have predicted but absolutely set in motion when she imagined the Blue room Tree in 1961. What began with a single nutcracker tree in the Blue Room has become a tradition that reflects who we are, what we value, and the stories we choose to tell each other at the end of the year.
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