I’m not sure it ever really did exist. Where do you find towns where the townsfolk
get together to celebrate the lighting of the Town Center tree and light candles
and sing carols together? Did the
traditions ever exist? Do they now? There are tourist areas such as Oakdale, CA,
where they hold traditional Thanksgiving and Christmas feasts. Where the
servers dress in vintage clothing and speak in old fashioned language. You have to reserve 6 months in advance and
be prepared to pay a bundle. But, you
get to experience what once was or was supposed to be. I think perhaps it was invented in the
movies.
These feelings tug at the heart and its these “tugs” that make
people be nicer to each other and make us want to buy presents for those we
love and bake things we never should eat just because it’s the tradition. But - what tradition is that?
I grew up in the 40’s and 50’s during the “Happy Days” era
that was supposed to be so perfect before the Beatles and the hippie movement
and Rock ‘n Roll supposedly ruined the world.
I was too old to be a real Beatle lover but I was definitely in love
with Elvis in the late 50’s. My
grandmother said he was evil and I would go to hell for watching him twist his
hips like that on TV.
Anyway, during the 40’s and 50’s, my family did have
traditions which included mom, daddy, grandma, Uncle Jack and Aunt Osa, cousins
John and Jim which were 2 and 3 years younger than me. My parents and the aunt
and uncle took turns meeting at our house or their house each year for
Christmas Eve and the other house on Christmas Day. We three kids played Monopoly and ate way too
much candy and cookies. A couple of
times we sang Christmas Carols because we kids insisted but my uncle was a
grouchy guy at times and wouldn’t go along so that did not become a tradition.
A tradition at my house with my mom started a month before
Christmas. We would go to the grocery
store and buy several pounds of fresh nuts, and all the other baking stuff
needed to make her famous cookies. Each
night we would each shell the fresh nuts and wrap them up in wax paper to keep
them fresh. Then, about two weeks before
Christmas we started baking. It was an
enormous undertaking. Special cakes and
cookies and fudge, pralines, divinity, more than I can even remember. I tried
to continue that tradition when I had my own home but it was never quite the
same.
I loved Christmas even more as I got older. Junior High and the Sophomore year at High
School were the best. I would use my
allowance to buy gifts for my school friends and then Christmas Eve, before it
got dark, my mom would drive me to each of their houses and I would drop off
their gift. I loved doing that.
When I was 14 and through my 17th year, two weeks
before Christmas, my mom would drive my very best friend and I to work with her
where we would wait excitedly until 9:00AM and then walk across the street to
the Broadway shopping center in Panorama City which was the very best place in
the San Fernando Valley at the time. We were
all dressed up with our hats and gloves and we shopped all day. We tried on clothes, hats, gloves, shoes, “ooo’d
and awww’d” over jewelry, and bought gifts for family. We always went to lunch in the Broadway’s tea
room. So elegant, at least that’s the
way it seemed. We ordered their huge
special Club Sandwich split on two plates and each had an Orange Freeze. I will never forget that. It was a wonderful time in my life.
When I got married I was only 18, and was so excited about
having our first Christmas as a married couple in our own apartment. Unfortunately, fate didn’t have any of the
“warm and fuzzys” planned for us. Two
years later, I was divorced, with a baby, and moved back home with my parents
until I was able to get a job and find a place for me and my son.
That was a very long time ago. My son is now old enough for discounts at
restaurants, but the Christmases during the years in-between created traditions
of their own. I remarried when my son
was 12 and I acquired a wonderful husband and 3 great step-children that were
very young. I’ve always considered them
my children, nothing “step” about it. The four of them grew up together, have
families of their own and I’m happily a grandmother 7 times over and a
great-grandmother of 2. My husband and I
are still happy, healthy and we are very blessed.
But, back to Christmas and why it’s such a unique time. Christmas was originally intended as a way to
celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ so it was a religious day of
remembrance. Over the years, this is
still the reason for Christmas and millions of people around the world still
celebrate this day as the birthday of Jesus.
Christmas has also become a secular celebration of a time of
year to do good and help others and love instead of hate. To enjoy family and show each other how much
we care by buying presents for those we love, and close friends, and people we
work with, and an extra gift or two in case we forget someone, and on and on
and on.
For many, it’s a great time to shop and an excuse to spend
more than we normally would. The World
of Commerce sees it as the Cash Cow of the year and continually try to outdo
each other with the best deals and earliest and latest shopping hours.
For some, it’s a time of gathering family together who’ve
been apart during the year. For others,
it’s a sad time if a loved one is lost.
The political correctness of our Country has evolved to the
point where wishing someone “Merry Christmas” is considered insensitive so “Happy
Holidays” is the acceptable version so as not to offend anyone who does not
have the same beliefs. But, those who
understand why we celebrate Christmas or those who just thoroughly love the joy of it
still wish others “Merry Christmas”.
There’s nothing wrong with Happy Holidays, it just seems to be a
one-sided view leaving everyone else out.
Truth be known, Holiday actually means Holy Day.
Personally, I believe the reason this time of year means so
much and tugs on our hearts is because the Bible makes it very clear that we were created with Hope in
our hearts. The Hope of Eternity with
God. God gave us His Son as a sacrifice
as a gift to those who will accept it; and because He loves us and understands us, He gave us a day, Christmas, to
enliven that hope that’s within us so we remember where the hope comes from and
what it is the hope of.
The secular version of Christmas is wonderful. It’s happy and colorful and joyous; and I
love it. But, I also know why we
celebrate and that the joy comes from more than Christmas trees, colorful
lights and gifts. We’ve already been
given the supreme gift; all we have to do is accept it.
"Joy to the World. Peace, and Goodwill Unto Men"
"Joy to the World. Peace, and Goodwill Unto Men"
