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December ~ Holiday Open House
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Come celebrate the holidays with us...
- Our Discussion Leaders have shared two favorite short stories in the spirit of the season - as is custom this time of the year. You may notice these stories seem to center on warm memories of home and family.
Do they match your mood this time of year?
Let's share precious - and humorous memories of days gone by!
December 1-7: The Gift (http://www.nexuslearning.net/books/holt_elementsoflit-3/Collection%204/The%20Gift.htm) (Ray Bradbury)
December 8-14: The Gift of the Magi (https://www.auburn.edu/~vestmon/Gift_of_the_Magi.html) (O'Henry)
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---What memories of gifts given or received stand out in your mind?
--- Is there something you received long ago that you still treasure?
---What's the best gift you ever received and why is it the best?
Feeling lucky? All participants posting in this discussion will automatically be entered in a drawing to win a $15 gift certificate to either Barnes and Noble or Amazon, your choice. Simply post here and enjoy the discussion. Two contest winners will be selected randomly and announced on December 21. Two prizes will be awarded of $15 each! Winners will be emailed (at the email address you provided on this website) to obtain contact information in order to award the prize.
December 15-31: And what is a holiday without good food! (http://seniorlearn.org/latin/graphics/Graphics/Turky/Turkey.5.jpg)
---What is a "must have" on your table at the holidays?
---Do you make any special cookies or candies for a holiday treat for family and friends?
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And since we can't send you special fudge and cookies, our treats to you are links to some additional online Christmas stories you might enjoy as your time permits:
Pepin's Lord of Misrule - A Medieval Christmas (http://www.themedievalchronicle.com/Medieval%20Christmas%202009.pdf) (Denis Domning)
The Burglar's Christmas (http://cather.unl.edu/ss031.html) (young Willa Cather)
T'is the Season (http://socialistreview.org.uk/291/tis-season) (China Miéville)
All Seated on the Ground (http://will.tip.dhappy.org/blog/Compression%20Trees/.../book/by/Connie%20Willis/All%20Seated%20on%20the%20Ground/Connie%20Willis%20-%20All%20Seated%20on%20the%20Ground.html) (Connie Willis)
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Happy Holidays, everyone
Your SeniorLearn DLs! (http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/graphics/holly-corner.gif)
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(http://seniorlearn.org/latin/graphics/hollysmall.gif) Welcome to our December Open House!
Our Theme this year is Gifts.
Like all open houses, we hope you'll drop by when you can, and return often, and bring us the gift of your presence and your ideas, jokes, stories, memories of past holidays and things you enjoyed.
Share a laugh, read one of the stories in the heading here, all uplifting and wonderful, and share with us some of your own stories and remembrances. What is the most memorable gift you ever received and why?
Let's share disaster stories, too. The turkey which turned to petrified wood. The salad which slid to the floor. The beautiful heirloom cloth with the unmovable stain, what do you put on it to hide it? Do you or don't you serve the cranberry with the "rings?"
Let's share our favorite foods of the holidays. What is the ONE dish that you have to have on the table or have to eat during this season or the holiday is "just not the same?"
Let's come together from all parts of the world and share our holiday traditions, gifts, successes and failures.
And have a laugh and learn something about each other in the process.
Welcome!
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HO HO HO!
Let's start off tis holiday month by thinking about gifts. read the (short short) story by Ray Bradbury listed in the heading and come in and tell us: what is the most unforgettable gift you ever received?
I've got the eggnog and hot cider ready, so see you around the tree.
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The Holidays are coming and we are celebrating again with stories that open us to the wonders of life. Love it...!
My memories are filled with 'getting ready' this time of year - all the cleaning, decorating, baking, sewing, crafting ornaments, shopping, getting out the cards and the annual notes on many of the cards, wrapping, attending traditional events, on and on...
I realized this Thanksgiving how easy it can be to buy what you need or want, even a holiday dinner and decided 'easy' is not satisfying - oh it can be fun and delightful but, the satisfaction that comes with 'the doing' is just not there so, if a glitch comes along and the 'easy' has to be cancelled it is "easy" to do just that and then, you have to wonder how meaningful was 'easy' to begin with.
And so I am thinking, like the story - a purchased gift is 'easy' - however, a wonderment is greater than what we can give all purchased and wrapped - wonderment is a community, a family, sharing in the light of something greater than ourselves - is that the basis of religion do you think? The winter solstice was also a celebration of light and so maybe deep within us we long for a light that is more than the warmth of a Spring day.
Well with all of that - but the story did take me into my thoughts and hope ol' Ben Bradbury can bring you to a place of warmth and light in your heart - And if not ol' Ben than for sure our family here on Senior Learn will share our warmth and light from our hearts. Looking forward to hearing about everyone's month of preparing for their anticipated holiday celebration.
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What do I get from reading Ray Bradbury's "The Gift"? Of all the thoughts of childhood Christmases as a child, I remember being so excited about my brother, Joe, who had just been taken into Boy Scouts before the holiday and the gift that hung on our tree for him. In my excitement, I eagerly yelled at Joe about the gift he just wouldn't believe was there. Reaching out and trying to pull his new BS knife off the tree limb, I had a problem! In my urgent rush to get that gift down, I felt the tree coming at me and just yanked on the knife harder! Well, you know what happened, of course you do! I pulled so hard that I pulled the tree down and ornaments came flying off while it crashed to the floor. The silence was resounding! My parents, along with Joe, just stood there, in shock! And then we all managed to get the tree back up, rehanging the decorations and all of a sudden, I realized, I had the knife in my hand. While presenting it to my brother, I waited for someone to scold me. But, my parents just burst our laughing at what had happened. I felt so lucky! My gift that holiday? The memory of the laughter ringing out and arms of love around me. I have never forgotten it!
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The music of Christmas, the carolers, the hymns we all know and love. We hear them once a year; I think we all feel comforted by them, feel connected.
O COME, ALL YE FATHFUL!
TELL US WHAT YOU LOVE ABOUT CHRISTMAS.
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Good December the Oneth morning to all! I know we say this over and over, but where does the time go?
It's a very "crisp" 12°here this morning. I had to laugh at a local TV news anchor who moved to Iowa from N. Carolina. She said she couldn't understand why Iowans put out their Christmas lights, etc. so early in the fall. And then the temps went to the low single digits and she said she had an "Ah ha!" moment and now understands.
I read the Bradbury short story earlier, but I need to go back and reread it again before commenting. I was a little leary of it...SciFi not being my thing, but it was cute. It's just that my short term memory is not what it used to be, so I need to re-read.
jane
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I just read the GIFT, the Bradbury story , and candles seem to be important to the boy; he had to leave the tree and candles behind to go on his trip, but he found billions of candles while on his way. However, the purpose of the story, perhaps, is you can find the "the season and love" everywhere, on earth or in space.
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I'm happy that we have this discussion. It will bring back so many memories. My husband and I were married a few days before Christmas, and our first child was born December 20, so our best memories are of those happy days.
Our holiday this year will be very different. It has changed much over the last couple of years as our family has spread out and grown, so that the tradition of Christmas Day that we had for so many years has been replaced by our children's traditions with their own families.
Last year we spent Christmas Day alone, with much time on the phone and computer to share the day; then spent a later party day with some of our family in person and others via Skype. This year, we're traveling and will miss the family here but connect with some far away.
But the tradition of spending time with loved ones and sharing the holiday continues. There will be few, if any, gifts, but lots of food and laughter wherever we are.
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Well all the advent calendars are out and rather than the tall candles in the pewter advent wreathe I decided to use what I have and i have 3 white and 1 red votive candle - not even the correct colors but the idea is there and I am using some rosemary stems and nandina which both will dry out but I have loads and can refresh the circle of green each Sunday as I light the additional candle - I was both pleased and surprised since I leave on the 16th I will have 3 Sundays and over two weeks to light the Advent Wreathe during my dinner time.
I am postponing putting on that heat - hate the hot air blowing but today the temp dropped 35 degrees from yesterday when it was 79 degrees most of the day and in the lower 70 for the two days before Sunday - now it is in the lower 40s brrrr - nothing like Jane's teen degree temp but for us it does not feel good. I need to get busy - I have some ironing to do - that should get the blood moving.
Been clearing out all year and finally the last room - the laundry room and in the bottom basket of the tower I had all these table cloths that were washed but never ironed - of course I had to wash them afresh but while ironing them I am shocked that several I never realized - they are hand made - were given to me by aunts and grandmothers and just used them all these years - never looked closely - the stitching is a wonder - all hand done close and even - I do not think most of the young today even know about hand stitching and the labor poured out by someone or the skill it took to make these fancy hems and invisible hems or to attach lace that some of that is even hand made - I am in awe at the workmanship and find it sad that I seldom spread a table almost like a ritual with handmade linens and family Silver, Chrystal and China.
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Will you all hate me if I say I spent Friday at the beach? Hard to believe Christmas is coming among the palm trees. But the warmth and love inside is the same.
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JoanK....certainly not hate...but maybe envious...since I had to run errands to the bank and court house, and it's still COLD out there. Enjoy those warm temps and palm trees for all of us in colder areas!!!
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JoanK, how could anyone hate you for being on the beach -- most of us would love to be there. We had lovely warm almost beach weather yesterday and then freezing rain and sleet all day today.
But your talk of Christmas and the palm trees brings back many memories from when we lived in Puerto Rico and the poinsettas grew almost to the height of small trees.
I love our SeniorLearn discussions about Christmas and am looking forward to reading and talking about the different stories. Tomorrow is my day to indulge in doing just that as my visiting New York daughter is leaving at 5 am. It was a lovely visit, she was able to squeeze in an extra day, and helped me get some Christmas decorations up -- it's the first time I've ever had anything up to early.
Barb, you've brought back memories of our Advent Calendars, how my four would each scheme to be the one to hang the star on Dec. 24. Interesting about your tablecloths. This weekend my daughter and I helped an 87-yr-old friend move from one apartment to another. She had a piece of exquisite embroidery on a lamp table and told us, "My mother-in-law made this."
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I think that I "discovered" Ray Bradbury in my early teens. I remember reading THE GIFT and sharing in the awe that the little boy experiences looking into space at all of the stars that his father knew could become the lighted candles of the family's Christmas tradition. Outer space is usually thought of as cold and far from home but this family and the other people in the cabin were able to transform it into a familiar warm tradition. I think that, as some of you have posted, many of us are forming new traditions as we and our families change over time. Inspired by this story, I'm going to try to be more imaginative in our holiday celebrations this year. I'll need to think about that and get ideas from each of you. I'm enjoying hearing about some of your holiday memories and traditions.
Annie, I love your story about your brother's knife and the fallen tree! I'm so glad that you didn't get into trouble :-)
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The beginnings of an interesting discussion. I will reread The Gift a little later today. I've also bookmarked The Gift of the Magi to reread. My agenda today is to cook a turkey, get the Christmas music out, and find a spot for my little Christmas tree.
Speaking of gifts, my sister requested that I make her an infinity scarf for Christmas. The one I picked out is a broomstick lace pattern. Naturally, I couldn't just buy one skein, I ended up with several, and some new crochet and knitting needles. Now I have enough to make several scarves and cowls. This is eating into my reading time. And of course, the cats have discovered YARN. ::)
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Frybabe, what is an "infinity" scarf? Do they never end?
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Pedln, an infinity scarf is just a scarf that is extra long and joined together at the ends so it makes a loop. I guess the idea is that you can leave it hang or wrap it around your next twice.
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Frybabe, An infinity scraf! How exciting, I go to my church's annual Christmas bazaar, and purchase myself a new one each year now. I absolutely love them, they keep me so warm when going outside. Here in Ohio our temps dip to way below zero many times throughout the winter. I knitted and crocheted for all the years my three children were growing up, and have not done anything in years. It's such a relaxing, rewarding thing to do.
Annie, I am sitting here chuckling at your story of your tree falling down with your hand still on the knife. It brought me back to when my forty year old son, (who was very shy, timid and afraid of everything,) was just seven years old. We had decided to finally use a real life tree, and put it up early to admire it. One morning I was getting ready for work, and the two boys Mike 7yrs. old and his brother Jeremy 5 yrs old, were laying on the floor near the tree watching cartoons, before leaving for school. All of a sudden I heard a cry, and a scream....MOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMM!!!!! I came running down the stairs to see the tree had fallen on poor Mike and he was buried underneath it, afraid to move. The branches were picking him on his back, and oh the poor thing was just petrified. Luckily in the midst of this chaos, my 30 yr old nephew happened to come to the door and he was able to get that huge tree off my son, and take it outside. Needless to say, we have never attempted a real tree since. We do still laugh about how Mike was trapped under that scratchy tree to this day.
I have not read The Gift, yet. Will put it on my afternoon, to do list today.
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It's hard to believe another year has flown by already. Like nlhome, Christmas is different now that our girls our grown and off on their own. While we still see them somewhat regularly for Holidays and special occasions, they aren't here to help with all the traditional preparations and decorating we've done together as a family since they were little. Now it's just my husband and me. We still make the annual trip to the Christmas Tree farm, however, where we spend 30 minutes 'negotiating' for our favorite tree before hauling it home to decorate. We have so many good memories of those annual trips...horse-drawn sleigh rides, hot cocoa in a warming shed, looking at every last tree before we picked one :-). One year the girls were just recovering from the chicken pox, but still insisted we make the trip. They were still pretty small, and we ended up carrying them on our backs through the farm! Some day I hope to have grandchildren with whom to share this wonderful tradition. Until then, I'm grateful to have two healthy, happy daughters who still love to come home as often as they can.
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It's so neat that each family has their own Christmas traditions that are so meaningful to them.
My son is newly engaged, and going through what every young couple go through: trying to blend the two families' traditions. He thought it would be easy, since our family always celebrates on Christmas Eve, but unfortunately hers does too. I'm watching this early test of a couple learning to compromise from a distance, willing to go along with whatever they decide.
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Oh this is fun. So glad I clicked in. Not much time for a post, but I want to thank you for Ray Bradbuy's story, The Gift. I loved it! It's funny, I seem to be the only "believer" in my wonderful family of mostly techie/engineering geeks and professed atheist/agnostics who lovingly put up with my advent wreath, grace before meals, etc. Anyway, I'm reading a book by a cosmologist named Guy Consolmago titled God's Mechanics: How Scientists and Engineers Make sense of Religion. I planned on giving my son the engineer a copy of it. I will absolutely share this story with my family. I recommend the book and also the article "Sci-Fi Legend Ray Bradbury on God, Mosters and Angels" You can find it online if you google it. Got to run.
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I love this time of year. It always sneaks up on me though living here in Florida. But I have good memories of my childhood in Illinois of the snow and being all bundled up in our snowsuits to go out and make snowmen and snow angels or just sliding down the hills. Also going to search for the perfect tree down the street at the Piggly-Wiggly store and the 4 of us kids helping Dad carry it back home. Ice-skating on the local frozen pond. Mom making up four batches of sugar cookie dough so we could each roll out and decorate our own cookies. Yes, good memories.
One of my favorite things about the holiday season is the music. I love all the caroles and hymns.
What a great time of year.
I have a younger sister who is very talented but not when it comes to cooking. Her skills led to lots of laughter for several years. First turkey-no idea there were gizzards and such tucked inside until the bird was cooked. First ham (because the turkey thing didn't work out so well) she had a heck of a time pushing the cloves into it...as it started to cook and some plastic looking material started to shrink up, we realized she forgot to take the second wrapper off the ham. Sweet potato casserole..the kind with the marshmallows on top? Yes those, never set on broil and walk away. We smelled something burning and when the oven door was opened FLAMES licked out at us. We were howling. And her last attempt at cooking she pared it down to a special cornbread. It came out flat and dry. She couldn't understand what happened. My BIL opened the microwave later in the day and said what's all this melted butter for? Aha!! What a good sport she always was. So I have to say being together and laughing has always been the greatest gift.
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Haha Bellamarie your Tree falling story, although difficult for you son must have been an unexpected surprise that you never know if you should laugh over or be upset over till much later when the story becomes part of the family folklore and everyone can smile with the remember when...
We had our Tree falling incident some years ago - no one near it - my son and his family put their tree and indoor decorations up on Thanksgiving weekend and I have always spent Thanksgiving with them - it was while they were living in Bryan and the boys were 5th and 6th grade - we were sitting down to a very late lunch of leftovers after, the entire Saturday morning having been devoted to the tree - while we were at the table it was like slow motion and we reacted slow motion not believing what we were seeing, with forks of food in mid air we watched this tree slowly, grandly take a fall - astounded we did not run but slow motion, as if a specter came in and blew the tree down, we stood around it and gradually without a word, picked it all up shaking our heads at what seemed unreal - from then on their tree, both real and later the artificial tree was always attached to the wall with several guy wires.
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Venia your story of chopping down your tree at the Christmas Tree farm also, reminds me of my son and his family when for nearly 3 years they lived in Beaverton, a suburb of Portland, Oregon and together we went to a Christmas Tree Farm - what a sight - it was up in the mountains and the view was spectacular with Mt. Hood nearby - 2 of the years it was cold with snow on the ground so the sleigh ride and hot chocolate seemed like a Christmas card come to life - it is hard isn't it when they are all grown and off on their own - when they are little we think it will go on forever and then trying to figure out what is important and what was for our children.
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Isn't interesting Pam how some can seamlessly see God and Science as extensions of each other while others, from both Science and Religion see them as separate and never the two can entwine - I had to quick look up the book you are reading on Amazon and another he wrote that has me chomping to order is - Brother Astronomer: Adventures of a Vatican Scientist Thanks for introducing us to this author - very interesting - My one grandson is the geek who shakes his head without appreciating how a spiritual connection makes sense - where as his younger brother is into all things Chinese and has studied Buddhism - he is off to China for his next semester and then an internship in Shanghai for the summer - in between he intends to join a small group hiking in Tibet for 2 weeks and on the way they will see several important Buddhist temples - this takes my breath away - more exciting then being 5 or 6 waiting for Christmas Day. Just reminds me how there are so many various viewpoints mingling or not in this world - fascinating isn't it.
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Becki your sister does sound like a hoot - what fun - and those batches of sugar cookies - reminds me of growing up when advent was the time for mom to bake and bake and bake - sugar was a premium during WWII so my Aunts would pool their sugar coupons to Mom, who not only baked but was the jam maker - the best of all these cookies was the day before Christmas Eve she made melt in your mouth butter cookies and on Christmas Eve I helped package them - we used blue tissue paper that we studded with those silver stars teachers used if your homework or test was a high mark - carefully we wrapped cookies with two butter cookies on top and tied the package with silver tinsel rope - a package for our two neighbors, one for each Aunt and one for each of the nuns that taught my sister and I and one for the principle, Sister Celestine - I got to carefully bring these packages to the convent and to the rectory a package of cookies for Father Albert, the pastor and Father Jordan who was the moderator for the Cadet and Scout mothers and the Alter society that mom was a part of. Precious pearls could not have been treated with more honor than those cookies - forgot about all that till you mentioned your Mom baking cookies.
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Years ago I had splurged on a rather nice sound system to play CDs. There are 5 trays so that is quite a long spell of music and over the years I have developed a nice collection of Christmas CDs that I bring out in December.
A lot of the classic voices, choirs and show people like Michael Ball and Michael Crawford but best, I love the music from the middle ages that some folks call it all Gregorian Chant - also the early English and Celtic music - not the kind of music that is easy to work with but so haunting - Joan Baez does real justice to the Old English Ballads and Carols and today over and over I just had to listen to a Celtic collection for Advent sung in a Convent in Brittany - the voices, the high notes - ahhh I did nothing but listen and later even had a glass of wine - yep, I am celebrating - had my eye appointment and finally I am out of the woods - it had been an ordeal that had me very cranky and scared but all's well that ends well.
Tomorrow I need to find something with a good beat to it and get something done around here - I still have to wrap the hose bibs so that if we have a freeze while I am gone the pipes won't burst - the cards are not started and that mailbox needs a coat of paint before I hang a wreathe around it - it is an old rural mailbox that we used before we had house to house deliver that I simply moved up next to the front porch and a couple of years ago I spray painted it with that copper paint - I like the effect but it looks sad and needs a sprucing up. Haven't put up any lights in years - a wreathe or big bow on the mail box and a wreathe on the front door is what I prefer over all the lights. With the deer hanging out on my front lawn low key seems appropriate.
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Oh how I am enjoying all of these wonderful Christmas stories and memories.
Becki, you made me laugh out loud, telling of the various meals gone wrong.
Venia, your trips to the tree farm sound like a Norman Rockwell painting come to life!
Pam, isn't it wonderful to be the spiritual light during such a Christian filled time of the year.
JoanK., Oh dear, figuring out the time slots when another family has to be taken into consideration is so difficult. My grand daughter is dating, and so here we are once again trying to slot out times, to hopefully include him.
Barb, I'm with you, I too have a five disc cd player, and I love Christmas music. Only I have to admit, I have made myself a mixed cd of all the new renditions of Christmas songs, by pop and country artists. I love and enjoy these tunes so much, along with the old time favorites, and I made copies so I can listen to them in my car.
After reading The Gift, it inspired me to write my very own true story of a Christmas long ago. Since we are in the season of sharing, I will share this with all of you. I am a published writer of poems, and have a children's Christmas story I wrote, and had my granddaughter illustrate for me that is about to be submitted for publishing. It is a long time coming and my confidence has held me back from submitting it sooner, although I have promised my granddaughter we will see it in print one day, one way or another. But...this story I am going to share today is not that one. So, be merciful when you read it, since it is a rough draft, and the first time I am sharing it with anyone other than loving family members.
A Christmas Long Ago by: Annabella Marie Patterfritz Reinhart
I'll tell you a story, Annabella said, about a Christmas long ago….when I was a little girl, around the age of three years old. I lived in a tiny three bedroom house my Daddy built from scraps of wood he could beg, borrow or steal, and railroad ties along the tracks, and other materials he could come by for free or cheap. Our tiny home was in a very small rural town of Monroe, in the countryside, with fields covered in snow. We had acres of land, yet a wee small house, that was home to me, my five sisters, my brother, my mother and stepfather, (after my Daddy was killed in a train accident.) We were very poor, with very little to eat at mealtime. We ate lots of potatoes and rice dishes to fill the hunger in our stomachs. We had very few toys to play with, since the only time we ever received any toys was at Christmas time. Each of us girls would get a new doll, and sometimes a tea set. So throughout the year my sisters and I would cut out any woman, man or child picture from newspapers or catalogs, to use as paper dolls. It would be the most fun times, especially if we could get our hands on a furniture catalog, which would allow us to have paper rooms of furniture.
In our very tiny house there was one bedroom on the main floor where my parents slept. Upstairs there were two open rooms, with slanted ceilings, and no doors, just an archway to separate the rooms. There were the seven of us siblings, sharing beds together in these two rooms. In the back bedroom there was a floor vent for the heat to rise up and keep us warm. We could look down through the grill vent and see into our tiny living room.
One Christmas Eve night we were all fast asleep. I’m not sure who heard the bells first, and who woke who up from their sleep, but we all crept silently to the vent in the floor, to peek down into the living room to see what was going on. The clanging of bells, we recognized as Santa sleigh bells that had awoken us, was still making their jingling noise. As we peered down into the vent, we saw the front door open. At first we saw a huge white Christmas box with green holly and red berries on it, being carried into the living room. Then we saw these big black, shiny boots, and red velvet pant legs with white furry cuffs, walk into the room. We all looked at each other in great surprise. Then very softly we heard Santa say to our parents, “Ho! Ho! Ho! You all have a Merry Christmas!”
We scampered back to our beds, our eyes so wide awake and in wonder at what we had just seen. We whispered; go back to sleep so Santa will not know we saw him. After all, we had heard the lyrics in the song enough times to know…….”You better watch out, you better not cry, you better not pout, I'm telling you why, Santa Claus is coming to town. He sees you when you're sleeping, he knows if you're awake, he knows if you've been bad or good, so be good for goodness sake.”
We fell back to sleep, woke up on Christmas morning to beautifully wrapped presents underneath our Christmas tree, stockings filled with candy, nuts and fruit, gifts for all, and at dinnertime, a feast for plenty to eat. As children who grew up in a very poor family, we had no doubt in our hearts; there truly is a Santa Claus.
Years later, one Christmas Eve night, when I was eight years old, sleeping in my bed in the bigger house we purchased, next door to the very tiny one my Daddy built, my oldest sister and her boyfriend awoke me in the middle of the night with their voices in our hall attic, saying, “Shhhh…. be quiet, don't drop the dolls, you don't want to wake them, or they will know there really is no Santa.” I lay there in my bed, silent, not wanting to make a move so; they would not know I had overheard them. I had tears in my eyes, and pain in my heart after hearing those words. I never told anyone about that night because no matter what I know I heard, I know the night I saw Santa through my bedroom floor vent was all the proof I needed, and I would not allow anyone to take that belief away from me.
Today, as a grandmother to six beautiful grandchildren, I see the joy and wonder in their small eyes each year as they help us put up our Christmas tree, bake cookies with us, and go to our annual Children’s Wonderland, where they visit Santa, to tell him what they want for Christmas, and I know in my heart…..Yes, Annabella, there really is a Santa Claus. Santa is not just a person; Santa is a spirit, a feeling of love, joy, laughter spread all over the world this time of year. Santa is a gift we give to each other, and to ourselves, because believing in the miracle of Christmas is what makes it so magical.
And yes, the Salvation Army who delivers to the needy, food, presents, and stockings, in white Christmas boxes with green holly and red berries, ringing sleigh bells and dressing up as Santa on Christmas Eve night, is indeed the spirit, the true gift of Christmas.
Now, we have an Elf on the Shelf named Annabella, who brings Christmas joy throughout our Advent season, reminding our grandchildren……You better watch out, you better not cry, you better not pout, I’m telling you why, Santa Claus is coming to town! [/i](Lyrics by Haven Gillespie)
Another song comes to mind now that I am older; it is Josh Groban’s song,
Believe:
Believe in what your heart is saying
Hear the melody that's playing
There's no time to waste
There's so much to celebrate
Believe in what you feel inside
And give your dreams the wings to fly
You have everything you need…………………….. If you just believe.
(http://i1.cpcache.com/image/62408930_125x125.png)
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I am new here and have never been part of an on-line discussion group before, so please forgive me if my contribution is a bit clumsy.
My wife and I have a tradition of watching A Christmas Carol on the Friday night following Thanksgiving. This is the 1984, George C. Scott version which is our favorite of all the movie versions. We started this when we moved to Germany some 30 years ago and will continue it when we move to the States this coming year. We liked the idea of keeping the spirit of Christmas all year round and so whenever we travel or go to fests we are always on the lookout for Christmas presents that will mean something both to us and to our families. It is a nice way of keeping them close when we are far away. It also helps us from avoid the Christmas rush :) .
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Oh, Bellamarie, what a wonderful story. My Mom was also from a large (nine children), poor family. She always said if it hadn't been for the Salvation Army, they may not have survived. I've never forgotten that. They are one of the few charities I contribute to.
I see some new people here. Welcome, Venia. Kenneth, Pam and Becky I remember from the intro discussion. I am so glad you are joining us in this discussion. I hope you find your way to more.
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Kenneth, there's no such thing as clumsy here. It's just a bunch of friends chatting, and we're glad to welcome you as a friend.
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Wow, what great stories. It's so pleasant to stop in here for a few minutes.
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What a great group of friends, new and old we have here. WELCOME WELCOME!
PAM55: I have the same split in my family. And it works: we all respect each other's beliefs, and never try to convert each other.
BECKIC: your sister needs the cookbook written by my son-in-law: "Help My Apartment Has a Kitchen Cookbook." It starts with the same story you just told: as a college student, he realized he was broke from eating out and asked his mother to send him some recipes. She sent him one for roast chicken, but forgot to tell him that he had to take the bag full of giblets out of the chicken before roasting it....
They wound up writing this cookbook together: she sent him recipes and he tried them and wrote about it. It's very funny. (and wound up a best seller).
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Kenneth please please pleeeaaaassse tell us some about Christmas in Germany when you were young - where in Germany did you live?
JoanK is that the name of the book - I need to look for it although, it appears the grands seem to have a handle on cooking for some unknown reason - my daughter cooks because she has to but she does make a mean pie with a crust to die for - and my daughter-in-law barbecues everything - I do not think she even knows how to turn on her oven - no wait - she makes brownies and veggies are anything that can be added to a salad and yet, her oldest is quite the cook at age 24 and my daughter's oldest gets fresh everything, never going to a frozen food dinner or canned anything. Interesting how it skipped a generation.
Frybabe it is not easy going past a bellringing Salvation Army rep is it - they have helped so many - and it sounds like you are grateful they were around when you and your family needed that boost.
Not sure Bellamarie if it was a true story or a made up story but it showed the courage and fortitude that folks have when life is hard. I think there are so many who as depression babies can see bits of their life in your story.
It is one of those funny days - overcast, looking for all the world like a cold winter's day and yet, it is just hitting 70 - hadn't realized till I noticed the hot air heat was not coming on. Did a dumb thing - decided to dust with one of those new dusters that I had used a few times, so I thought I would refresh it with a spray of furniture polish and while dusting the CD cases a couple of CDs were out of their case and got smeared with the polish - well, I learned I can clean them but it requires distilled water and lo and behold you can make distilled water - now lets see if this works - it says to soak the CD in half and half alcohol and distilled water - we shall see...
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Yes, Barb, it is a true story about my youth, and thank goodness we have so many generous people who open their hearts to give to the Salvation Army, so families like mine and Frybabe's mother's could have a Merry Christmas!
Welcome Kenneth, we are so very happy to have you! We all fumble around in here from time to time, so don't give it a second thought. My husband began collecting the Dicken's Village Dept. 56 over thirty years ago. We absolutely love the story A Christmas Carol. All of our grandchildren can not resist touching the buildings and figurines that we set up each year. They especially love the ski hill and the skating pond that is animated. I am almost certain our little grandson Zakary who is now six years old will inherit this village since he is the one who MUST help put it up each year. Traditions are what makes the holidays so much more special.
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Just found a few moments to almost catch up here, but need to read the stories. Time for me is an enemy this year and with my new rescue corgi taking up lots of time. ( she is spooky and timid), so she is coming first.. I have some things in the garage to set up for Christmas, but truth would be that I am not here for the holiday but at a sons. Since my husband died, I have had little heart for decorations. He loved the holiday and would decorate anything in the house.. So I have lovely memories of finding ornaments in the strangest places.. but doing it alone does not feel quite right. I know I will find a happy medium someday, but not sure when.
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BARB: "JoanK is that the name of the book" Yes. It's by Nancy Mills and Kevin mills.
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Thanks JoanK - another mournful day with overcast skies - did have some good news while registering for a class found out I have more than enough credits to renew and one of the classes I was registering for I do not need - hurrah - more time to get other things done.
I was up to my friends last night for our weekly dinner and her daughter had come in from Alvin, small town south of Houston, together they completely decorated the house with outside lights and lighted wreathe, inside table top tree, little mechanical singing devices all over the house and a new angle that lights in changing colors for the hutch. We spent time as she showed me so many of the ornaments she or Bill her deceased husband had made and ornaments from her childhood as well as from her children's childhood - it was a trip down memory lane and then we have to each year admire the beautiful manger scene of larger than usual ceramic figures all fired and painted by her sister years ago. Her daughter even had about a foot tall Santa tucked in the trunk of a tree near the bird bath - fun.
We have broken from our usual reading topic and we are reading a novel about an Amish community where the women are quilt makers - the romantic complications and handling life's experiences that do not fit the expectations of the more conservative members of the community is the theme but what blew me away - a young man, a woodworker only 24 years old who finishes an order of table, 8 chairs and a hutch - to be that skilled at any age but at age 24 - wow.
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JoanK--I will be looking for that book. Thank you so much for mentioning it. So I take it your daughter has a husband who knows how to cook! Oh how I envy her. Perhaps the cookbook will be under my own tree this year. And then I can only hope for a little Christmas magic.
Frybaby..I was enjoying the book discussion on the The Atomic City Girls with you, Joan, Barb, Bellamarie and others but then this really fun, challenging Latin class began and well that was the end of leisure reading for me. Lol. I am happy to report, although I was sorry to leave the discussion, I am thoroughly enjoying learning Latin.
bellamarie-the Salvation Army...of course. They do seem to be the one organization that consistently "shows up." What a special memory for you. It touched me deeply reading your story.
Happy Holidays to everyone.
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Almost all amish women are quilters. They really have to be, since buying blankets is unheard of and whenI was growing up, I can remember that Amish girls would be building a trousseau of quilts, embroidered things, etc. Hope chest, I would guess.
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December ~ Holiday Open House
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Come celebrate the holidays with us...
- Our Discussion Leaders have shared two favorite short stories in the spirit of the season - as is custom this time of the year. You may notice these stories seem to center on warm memories of home and family.
Do they match your mood this time of year?
Let's share precious - and humorous memories of days gone by!
December 1-7: The Gift (http://www.nexuslearning.net/books/holt_elementsoflit-3/Collection%204/The%20Gift.htm) (Ray Bradbury)
December 8-14: The Gift of the Magi (https://www.auburn.edu/~vestmon/Gift_of_the_Magi.html) (O'Henry)
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---What memories of gifts given or received stand out in your mind?
--- Is there something you received long ago that you still treasure?
---What's the best gift you ever received and why is it the best?
Feeling lucky? All participants posting in this discussion will automatically be entered in a drawing to win a $15 gift certificate to either Barnes and Noble or Amazon, your choice. Simply post here and enjoy the discussion. Two contest winners will be selected randomly and announced on December 21. Two prizes will be awarded of $15 each! Winners will be emailed (at the email address you provided on this website) to obtain contact information in order to award the prize.
December 15-31: And what is a holiday without good food! (http://seniorlearn.org/latin/graphics/Graphics/Turky/Turkey.5.jpg)
---What is a "must have" on your table at the holidays?
---Do you make any special cookies or candies for a holiday treat for family and friends?
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And since we can't send you special fudge and cookies, our treats to you are links to some additional online Christmas stories you might enjoy as your time permits:
Pepin's Lord of Misrule - A Medieval Christmas (http://www.themedievalchronicle.com/Medieval%20Christmas%202009.pdf) (Denis Domning)
The Burglar's Christmas (http://cather.unl.edu/ss031.html) (young Willa Cather)
T'is the Season (http://socialistreview.org.uk/291/tis-season) (China Miéville)
All Seated on the Ground (http://will.tip.dhappy.org/blog/Compression%20Trees/.../book/by/Connie%20Willis/All%20Seated%20on%20the%20Ground/Connie%20Willis%20-%20All%20Seated%20on%20the%20Ground.html) (Connie Willis)
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Happy Holidays, everyone
Your SeniorLearn DLs! (http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/graphics/holly-corner.gif)
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;D. I love it!
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A joke about what happened to me. Just pet him and give him a treat and next time nail attach your tree to the wall with wiring coming from the ceiling. Hahahaha! I love it, too, Jane.
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saw it on facebook yesterday and loved it. Many years ago when we had cats, they took our tree down, so ever after, we too fastened it in several places to walls andceilings.
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A fainting tree -- Wonderful, I love it.
Welcome to our new friends -- Kenneth, Pam, and BeckiC. So glad you're here -- and everyone else too. Talking about the season is FUN.
Barb. what is the book you and your friends are reading? I've been searching Amazon for Amish Quilters and there are lots to choose from. Several Amish Christmas books. There's an author on the tip of my tongue, but I can't get it up.
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Pedln it is just a light bit of fluff that is predictable but her books have enough unexpected events that ultimately teach a loving message - I say she because we had read one other of her Amish quilt books and she is one of the three authors listed for this one - I wonder how three gals get together and author one book - hmmm interesting I wonder how they do that.
Any how here is the book we are reading
An Amish Christmas Quilt by Charlotte Hubbard (Author), Kelly Long (Author), Jennifer Beckstrand (Author)
And it is Jennifer Beckstrand who we had read - probably will not finish this one before Christmas since I leave here on the 16th so we only have this coming Wednesday night to read. On a good night we may get three chapters but we are inclined towards one long or two.
Finally the sun is out - I was going to do all this Christmas enjoyment type stuff today - The old German School is having its annual Market where they bring in everything they sell from Germany and the Texas Capitol lights its tree with a sing-a-long on the Capitol steps and the Old Bakery is having special Christmas cookies with a place set aside for Children to decorate their cookie and come back later after they are baked - and all the Congress Ave (the main street that leads up to the Capitol) is a strolling area with these tent like canopies that include the farmer's Market along with special one of a kind type art goods and handmade toys and local made pinatas of course so many of our local musicians will be playing on street corners.
Sounds great but the sun is finally out and I really want to cross all these things to do off my list - Found more linens I forgot I had that need ironing and packed in tissue with notes about them - I am determined to get everything in this house sorted, cleaned, packed, given away, labeled, inventoried, who made what and where things came from - on and on - once that is done I will feel I can relax and take in where as now I have all the "in" I can handle.
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Saw a play yesterday.. Christmas by Committee, a musical writtenby a local. OK.. not great, but not run screaming from the room either.. Still it was nice to get out with the widows group and then we split up and had dinner in several of the local restaurants.. Fun
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Steph do you attend any of the High School productions - all of a sudden all the High Schools in this area have Choral groups that are singing all over town for one thing or another and for several years now one of the older High Schools, in fact the one my children attended, has become a school for music, drama, dance and art - I just have never attended any of their performances and I think I will this year. Going to a high school to enjoy something alone does not feel daunting, it is easy to chat with those in the seat next to you, they are usually family or friends of someone teen performing.
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Just what we need today if it is as cold and overcast where you are as it is here today...!
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I just got my Christmas music out today. There is a lot more now that I have Mom's to listen to. There is even one in there that still has its wrapper.
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The most memorable Christmas was the one where I received a doll bed, built & painted Pink by my father. My mother made a quilt and a little pillow to go on the bed. There was a small inexpensive baby doll in the bed. I found out much later that my parents were worried because they didn't have much money & were afraid that I would be disappointed. I can still see that doll's bed in my mind's eye. As times changed & money became more plentiful, I received many gifts; but none as memorable as that one!
Sally
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Our high schools locally seem to have a lot of music going on and a lot of smaller groups who also entertain. Our womans club has used some of the small groups as entertainment and loved it. I am told that one local high school puts on a spectacular musical once a year.. Have never gone.. I guess I am a snob about some forms of entertainment.. I wont do local opera or ballet.. Trying is not good enough for those disciplines.
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Sally....what a wonderful memory of your parents giving you the gifts you treasured and their worry you'd be disappointed.
Steph....in this area The Show Choirs are a big deal at the high school level. The music depts seem to focus a lot on public performances, esp. In the spring. Then they do big productions as well....Shrek one year, etc.
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This time of year I love reading short stories about Christmas. On my ipad I click my ibook, then click, store and type in free Christmas books, and there are tons of them! Just finished a nice one called "A Family For Christmas" by Mona Ingram. A feel good story. I also found a four in one book of Christmas stories at my Dollar store.
Just finished reading The Gift of the Magi. I thought it was so thoughtful of each of them to give up something they cherished in order to give a gift to one another. It's sweet Jm bought Della the hair clips, and yes, her hair will grow back again and they will look beautiful in her hair. But, it seems a bit sad, even though Della gave Jim the chain for his treasured watch, he will never be able to reclaim that particular one from generations passed on.
This story reminded me of the other day when I was glancing at friends/family Christmas decorations in pictures posted on my Facebook. Everyone was excited to share their pictures after decorating and getting their tree up. I glanced at the different ways people decorate and the things they collect along the years, and have kept from generations passed down. I felt a little sad, realizing I have so little from my mother or my husband's mother to treasure. Then I look around and see all the wonderful collections my husband and I have personally been collecting for forty plus years, me I love dolls, so I have many Ashton Drake series such as "The Beautiful Dreamers, "Little Women" and the "Princess Diana" collection, along with misc. other dolls, and then I have a collection of Precious Moments that are so very special, along with a collection of "Guardian Angels Who Watch Over me" porcelain figurines that have an angel with a little girl from the time she is a baby up til she is eighteen yrs. old. Then my husband has been collecting the Dept 56 Dickens village A Christmas Carol, and nutcrackers. How do you decide, or do you decide, who will eventually own these items. My only daughter has no desire for anything collectible, and she has no children, so I suppose I will specify my dolls and figurines go to my grand daughters. So, I imagine the nutcrackers and village will go to the grandsons. I just wonder if they will mean as much to them as they have to us? Would they sell any of these precious items for something they would want to use the money for someone special, as Jim did with his watch? Should family members save heirlooms? Does this generation today even care about family items passed down? It just makes me wonder.......
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Look, idn't he cute...
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Haven't read A Family for Christmas Bellamarie but I am with you enjoying short stories with a Christmas theme this time of year. I especially like some of the classics meant for children - just have to read Paddington Bear and Baboushka and the Three Kings. Miss Read is another favorite who has three Christmas stories with The Christmas Mouse being my favorite. When I was a child and then when I had children we always spent a long afternoon in the library loading up on Christmas books, our treat looked forward to before bed or as a special late afternoon after choirs were done.
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Barb, did you know that Paddington is coming out in a new movie for Christmas? I think Colin Firth is either narrating or is P's voice. The trailer is fun.
This discussion of Christmas stories brings lots of memories. I'm looking for a Christmas Mouse, but not the one by Miss Read. This is a chocolate one and it belongs to a poor little girl who go it instead of a dolll. It was in Ideals Magazine, years ago. I loved Ideals magazine. I guess they're out of print now, or not what they used to be. I don't know how we got them. Somebody must have given them to us. That's where I first saw Eugene Fields '" Jest before Christmas" -- Father calls me Wiliam, Sister calls me Will, Mother calls me Willie, but the fellers call me Bill.
One book I remember very vaguely as a much-loved book was Scamper's Christmas. It was my older brother's book. Scamper was a bunny who lived in the WHite House -- an appropriate title for a little DC boy -- created by Anna Roosevelt Dall. (Who was Buzzy Dall?) I think my 80-something brother still has that book, along with his Madeleine Brandeis books which I also loved -- and tried to claim.
Does anyone remember The Story of the Little Match Girl? And another from this book of Christmas stories that I"m sure is long-gone -- about a statue, a prince, who had lost his eyes and suffered many indignities, as statues are prone to do?
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I think my daughter will treasure things passed down -- my son less so. Especially the things she remembers from her childhood.
My mother collected family letters that had been passed down, typed them up and had them printed. One set from my great-great grandfather who was in the California gold rush. Since we've moved to California, my grandchildren are now reading them, six generations later.
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JoanK., six generations of special family letters. Now that is something to treasure! I saw a post from a friend today on Facebook who has only one little son, and his wish this year for Christmas is to have a conversation with his father's Dad, his grandfather who passed away years before Chase was born. Can you imagine if his Dad had generations of letters, he could sit down and share with his little son.
Barb, I absolutely LOVE Paddington bear! I saw previews of the upcoming movie to be released and I can't wait to see it with my grandchildren. I have the children's story Santa Mouse. Just read it to the daycare children the other day. It so cute!
I just love the memories we make at Christmas! This artist is one of my favorite.
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When my daughter got married l7 yrs ago. I started her a cookbook with all the recipes for family traditional foods served on various holidays. She still uses the cornbread dressing, giblet gravy, and pumpkin pie recipes for Thanksgiving & Christmas (yes, we repeated the basic meal on both holidays, with changes in sides & many more desserts for Christmas). She has also added some of her own recipes & family favorites to the cookbook. She has pretty much taken over the cooking on those two holidays. I make my grandson's favorite pumpkin/cranberry bread. So far, I still do the Easter dinner (with their help, of course).
I have to smile when I see her take out that cookbook!
Sally
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What a wonderful idea. And it can be passed down through the generations (assuming our great-great...s are still eating food, and not scientific tablets or something)..
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I decorate so little now.. No husband andnot here for
Christmas makes me do only a few things..
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Been meeting myself coming for the past few days - no time even now but just a quick Hi, - leave for my daughter's on Tuesday and my son and daughter-in-law come up tomorrow and still have tons to do...
Steph like you I do not do the kind of decoration that I did at one time - this year I was feeling the need for something and pulled down all the old and saved advent calendars that I had placed all over the house and I did at least get something on the mail box and on the front door - whoops forgot gotta stop the mail - putting it on my list -
Till later next week - spread your gratitude that leads to Joy... :-*
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Because we leave here for Christmas in Ohio and then south until March, I put out only a few snowmen, the ceramic tree my Mother made, and a small lighted Christmas village. I know many think the ceramic trees are "tacky," but I see my Mom everytime I look at it.
I used to put candles in 20 some windows of this old house, we put garland and bows on the white fence, etc. Lovely memories, but they don't work for us now.
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I have a small deer lighted in silver that I will put on my porch today.That is it for outside.. inside, my little fibreoptic tree with teeny little ornaments an a dozen of the led candlelights. and a bunch of angels for my table. My new rescue corgi is a bit wary of all this. She seems to be the type of dog, who does not like change..
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So I requested "In the Dark Streets Shineth" (as told by David McCullough from interlibrary loan, and I read that short little book and looked at the pictures. In a pocket on the inside cover was the DVD of the story narrated by Mr. McCullough with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir singing O Little Town of Bethlehem and I'll Be Home for Christmas, and a lot more WWII pictures.
So I spent a pleasant bit of time on this dreary, foggy day. Some of the pictures reminded me much of pictures of my parents during that time.
We put up a few decorations outside, including some very old ice skates and a lighted wreath tied to my old wood sled with a red ribbon. Inside we got out the Christmas mugs and napkins, but as we're traveling at Christmas, not much else.
The guest room, on the other hand, looks a "lot like Christmas" as it's piled with wrapping paper, gift bags, wrapped and unwrapped gifts and the usual chaos that is preparation for getting together with family.
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My next door neighbor just put up a new outdoor decoration. I'm sitting here with the drapes open and I didn't even see it until it was up. It is one of those inflatables - a Dinosaur with a santa hat on and a present in his mouth. I see something purple at his feet, but I can't make out what it is from here.
Giminids are4 tonight, but as usual with such an event, we are cloudy. It was supposed tp be sunny today. Never happened.
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FRY: so you're a stargazer like PatH? Here in the LA suburbs, we're lucky if we see one star, with all the light pollution.
NLHOME: I don't know the story: it sound like a good. one. Is it by McCollough?
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Joan, it's McCullough telling the story of Christmas 1941, when Winston Churchill came to the U.S. and spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with the Roosevelts, along with the story of the writing of O Little Town of Bethlehem and then the story of I'll be Home for Christmas. He tied them up by using words from Churchill's address to Americans about each home being a "brightly lighted island" and then the words from the carol "in the dark streets shineth" which Churchill apparently heard for the first time that Christmas.
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That's interesting!
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Frybabe, thanks for the reminder, though it's cloudy here too.
Nlhome, your mention of Christmas with the Roosevelts reminds me of the Christmas Eve ritual when I was little. We decorated the tree in the afternoon. In the evening, we turned on the radio and waited for president Roosevelt to light his tree. (I don't remember what else was on the program, news, or Christmas carols, or what, but they did announce the moment he lit the tree.) We would light our tree at that time. Then we would put on a record (78 rpm of course) of Madame Schumann-Heink singing Silent Night (in German, so it was Stille Nacht). We might play the flip side (Weinachten) or other records, and then we would open our presents. Yes, not waiting until morning, but my parents got to sleep late, and of course it seems normal to me.
Here's a 1911 record of Schumann-Heink singing Stille Nacht. I'm guessing we had a later recording, since she made a Christmas ritual of singing it on the radio up through 1935. She died in 1936, in time to avoid being axed for being half Jewish.
In retrospect, I wonder why we coordinated with Roosevelt in tree-lighting, since my mother was definitely not an admirer of him.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_IpWSR_E6c (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_IpWSR_E6c)
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Rooting around for free books again, I discovered The Man Who Invented Christmas: How Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol Rescued His Career and Revived Our Holiday Spirits by Les Standiford (not free unless you find it in your library). Overdrive has it, but I am on hold, so I also ordered it from my library. It's a race to see which comes first.
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My parents decorated our tree on Christmas eve after I had gone to bed, when young.. I would see Dad bring in the tree that afternoon and was told that the elves came and decorated. I must have been about 14 or so before I got included in the decorating..
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No fair--decorating it is half the fun.
During WWII you couldn't buy icicles (they were made of metal foil) so we would carefully save them from year to year. Each year they would be more ragged and fewer in number.
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I wonder, Pat, if your mother didn't like President Roosevelt, but he was the President, and it was a national event on radio, so maybe she felt she was joining with others across the country in celebrating the holiday. That was a theme in that little book.
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We also had the elves decorating the tree and preparing Christmas for the entire month of Advent that we kept which included, giving up a candy or muffins or something usually sweet as well as, doing an extra household task each day that often was listed when we opened the window on the Advent Calendar like, shine the shoes for the family, or set the table for supper - These were commercial Advent Calendars usually written in German and so it was not just our family that participated.
But back to the tree - we never even saw it enter the house but Christmas morning when we awoke we were to stay in our bed and call out Marry Christmas - our stocking was always left at the foot of our bed that always included a tangerine and a cookie loaded with dried fruit. Eating those gave my parents another half hour as we played with some small toy included because, like ourselves (we carried on the same tradition) we adults never got to bed till at least 3: in the morning and a couple of times I remember it was 5: with children calling out Merry Christmas by 6:30 and then our parents came and got us, taking us by the hand to the room that had been closed off all month and there lit in all its glory was the Tree with the Bethlehem scene below - as children I remember just looking and being stunned with the smell and sight of that tree. We could hardly open our gifts gazing at that tree till we had our fill and it was often mom who would encourage us to open our gifts.
For our own children the gazing spell was broken when I brought in a mug of coffee for their Dad and myself - and another difference was, I had the table set with the best china and special Christmas cups - it all looked very festive and we had a lovely sit down breakfast before going to Mass at noon where as, when I was small we had to hurry to get to 10: Mass which was the one time each year my Dad joined us - he was German Lutheran and when he went to service he joined my Aunt in their church while we attended the Catholic church.
Later, when I was in 7th and 8th grade I sang in the choir for midnight mass and mom always made me a special dress for the occasion - still the Christmas room was closed off till I was in Bed. Only when I was in high school and Mom and I went to midnight mass together did I help then, my sister started a year later when she was only in 8th grade to accompany us - since we had to fast in those years before receiving Communion when we got home mom always fixed BLTs on rye bread and we cut into the Christmas Stollen - we had to be so quite not to wake our young brother and sister. It was a full time with so many rich memories -
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I grew up in the Missouri Synod Lutheran church, which is or was very very german.. So much of what Barb speaks of pertained to us as well.. My stocking always had a tangerine ( at that point, they were rare and expensive) and I loved it so very much.
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It's interesting to read others' Christmas experiences/traditions. Ours were very different from Barb's or Stephanie's.
Picking out a Christmas tree was a part of all the pre-Christmas hoopla...and then getting it home and opening those boxes of ornaments...and the ever-present paper chains and popsickle ornaments my sister and I had made in our great art careers in elementary school! Masterpieces, of course. We would try to talk Mom out of having those faded and worn things on the tree, but she always insisted.
No presents under the tree in our early years until ol' "Santy Claus" brought them during the night and had left only crumbs, an empty milk glass, and the carrot stubs the reindeer had devoured.
My sister and I awakened each other first, then peeked down the stairs to see if presents were there...and then "awoke" Mom and Dad...who now were already awake...[who wouldn't have been with two squealing little girls bouncing around upstairs.]
Eating coffee cake [only time I remember having it regularly] as we opened our gifts...to be followed by a big noon time dinner and then visiting grandparents, etc. in the afternoon.
jane
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I went to a one-room school in the country, outside a small village (bar, gas station, feed mill, general store/post office) for the first four years. Every year we had a Christmas program, and each of us had a reading, song, poem recitation, in front of the whole community. I can still remember part of my poem from one year, although not enough to find it; and I will never forget listening to one of the older students sing "O Holy Night." Although we were a public school, the program included the Christmas pageant as well, so we had roles in that. And then parents and other community members would perform and join in a carol sing. At the end, Santa came in with small brown paper bags for each child, and those bags would have hard candy, sometimes nuts in the shell, and an orange.
The Christmas program was held in an auditorium (a big room with a stage) above the general store, up steep and narrow stairs accessed in a door at the side of the building. We would practice for a couple of weeks in our school, then walk almost a mile each way at least once to rehearse on the stage. While we were practicing in the school, while waiting for our parts, we would work on gifts for our parents. My mother kept these, and I now have the fruit bowl made of Popsicle sticks. Another was a metal plate that we etched a design on and then brushed with steel wool, actually very pretty. I have that also.
Then Christmas Eve our large Lutheran church in the nearest town had the children's Christmas pageant, so many children and so many attending that there were two services held in the evening, one for the farmers after milking. Again we sang and some recited verses or poems, ending with Silent Night in German, because this was a German immigrant community. And again Santa with the brown paper bags of treats, and maybe a religious book from our Sunday School teacher. I remember ribbon candy and peanuts, maybe a chocolate or two.
Please excuse how long this is, but once I started I decided I should add more and copy it for my grandchildren. I have a few pictures to add to it for them. Celebrations are different now, but family and friends are still important.
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Nlhome, the details are important; it's great to read these different stories.
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(http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/graphics/holly-corner-top.gif)
December ~ Holiday Open House
(http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/holidaymemories/birds-garland.gif)
Come celebrate the holidays with us...
- Our Discussion Leaders have shared two favorite short stories in the spirit of the season - as is custom this time of the year. You may notice these stories seem to center on warm memories of home and family.
Do they match your mood this time of year?
Let's share precious - and humorous memories of days gone by!
December 1-7: The Gift (http://www.nexuslearning.net/books/holt_elementsoflit-3/Collection%204/The%20Gift.htm) (Ray Bradbury)
December 8-14: The Gift of the Magi (https://www.auburn.edu/~vestmon/Gift_of_the_Magi.html) (O'Henry)
(http://www.seniorlearn.org/jane/jpgs_gifs/giftbox1.jpg)
---What memories of gifts given or received stand out in your mind?
--- Is there something you received long ago that you still treasure?
---What's the best gift you ever received and why is it the best?
And the winner is.... (or are)......
(http://seniorlearn.org/latin/graphics/congrats017.gif)
Congratulations to:
Salan and
Jonathan
the winners of our 2014 Raffle!!
Enjoy your gift certificates!
December 15-31: And what is a holiday without good food! (http://seniorlearn.org/latin/graphics/Graphics/Turky/Turkey.5.jpg)
---What is a "must have" on your table at the holidays?
---Do you make any special cookies or candies for a holiday treat for family and friends?
(http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/holidaymemories/birds-garland.gif)
And since we can't send you special fudge and cookies, our treats to you are links to some additional online Christmas stories you might enjoy as your time permits:
Pepin's Lord of Misrule - A Medieval Christmas (http://www.themedievalchronicle.com/Medieval%20Christmas%202009.pdf) (Denis Domning)
The Burglar's Christmas (http://cather.unl.edu/ss031.html) (young Willa Cather)
T'is the Season (http://socialistreview.org.uk/291/tis-season) (China Miéville)
All Seated on the Ground (http://will.tip.dhappy.org/blog/Compression%20Trees/.../book/by/Connie%20Willis/All%20Seated%20on%20the%20Ground/Connie%20Willis%20-%20All%20Seated%20on%20the%20Ground.html) (Connie Willis)
(http://0.tqn.com/d/webclipart/1/0/e/1/holly1r.gif)
Happy Holidays, everyone
Your SeniorLearn DLs! (http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/graphics/holly-corner.gif)
Yes,our Lutheran church had the Christmas pageant on Christmas eve.. Since I was short, blonde,blueeyed, with long hair,, I was the angel for years.. I was famous in the church because when I was maybe five, I turned around to appear as the angel with the biggest black eye, you ever saw.. Had fallen off the bike that afternoon.. then grinned and of course being 5, had several missing teeth.. One of the farmer males said.."Hmmm. like to see the other guy.and the church broke up in laughter. I was furious..
Steph
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Steph :D
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Mmmm, a lot of Lutherans here.
We had upheaval in my family so I spent the first sememster of third grade in Scandinavia, Wisconsin, living with my mother's oldest sister and her family. I don't remember if it was the school or the Lutheran church (the only one in town) that put on the Christmas program, but I do remember the "big kids" putting on the play Why the Chimes Rang. My mother was working in Chicago, but she came to Scandinavia for Christmas. I was pretending to be asleep in the early hours of Christmas morning when she came and put a sleepyhead doll in bed with me -- one of those dolls that had a zipper opening where you could put your pajamas. I don't think I ever told her that I had been awake.
My best friend in "Scandy" was the minister's daughter and I still have two the Christmas gifts she gave me over the years. Both books, one about famous hymns, and one about famous bible pictures. I never spent another Christmas there, but returned for many summers for several years.
But no matter where Christmas Eve was celebrated, during my growing years, Lutefisk and Lefse was always on the table. I ignored the former, pigged out on the other.
(According to my uncle, Lutefisk was codfish left to dry on the rocks of Norway; according to my brother, lefse, made from potatoes, flour and lard and cooked on a wood stove, was like chewing on your napkin.)
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My younger sister & I always had stockings that were one of a pair of nylon hose (before the days of panty hose). We loved it because they were soooo long! The toe of each stocking was a whole coconut. Candy, whole assorted nuts, apples, oranges, rock candy, chocolate coins and several small wrapped packages filled the stocking. Peeking out at the top was a huge candy cane. We were allowed to sneak our stockings back to bed with us and let the adults sleep another hour; while we went through our stockings. We spent days devouring our goodies! I can still remember my father cracking the coconut with a hammer on our back porch.
Sally
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It seems that the stockings were once a way for the parents to sleep in a bit longer. We were not permitted out of our rooms, but the stockings were hung on our door knobs. That we could open. We could look at the tree and presents and there was always one unwrapped one, but otherwise, we had to have a long leisurely breakfast ( my fathers idea of a good joke) and then and only then could we proceed to the presents.
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"Lutefisk was codfish left to dry on the rocks of Norway". I've always been curious about lutefisk. Does it smell as strong as everyone says? (I notice you didn't eat it!)
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I've never gotten within a mile of lutefisk, which I would guess is about where you would start to smell it. It's not only dried, but when you want to eat it it's rehydrated by soaking in lye. Then you rinse off the lye, and cook it. (I like to think you've gotten all the lye out, but they warn you not to cook it in aluminum pans.) If you cook too long, it turns jello-like in consistency. It's probably like the Italian dried cod. You have to know how to deal with it and then you can get something good.
I had a lot of fun websurfing lutefisk. Here's one:
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/lutefisk-minn-dish-lives-despite-taste (http://bigstory.ap.org/article/lutefisk-minn-dish-lives-despite-taste)
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I had enough problems as a child eating the cookie in German cookery that is pressed with a patterned rolling pin.. Sort of cinnamon, but hard as a rock..
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When we were in Norway two years ago, travel friends of Norwegian heritage were so disappointed lutefisk wasn't readily available. (The rest of us non-Norwegians...not so much!!! ;D ] Guides explained it's now mostly found at holidays only and then only looked forward to by the "older" crowd. Lefse, now, was readily available, but was quite bland, I thought. [Some wags said ALL scandanivanian cooking is bland!] Their breads, however, were wonderful!
I think it's all on what you grow up with.
Cute picture in my mind of the little Angel with the shiner and missing teeth!
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I agree with you on the Springerle (?) cookie, Steph, but I love that other German cookie -- pfeffernous (? spelling). You end up covered in powdered sugar, but they are delicious.
And then there is the German "blatkuchen," much like the Norwegian rosettes and futiman (poor man's cookies) -- so crispy and thin and sweet. I think they are deep-fat fried. Yum. There are a lot of Germans here in southeast Missouri. They came from Saxony, landed in New Orleans and came up the Mississippi. Used to be that sometimes you could find blatkuchen to buy, made by one of the older cooks from one of the LUtheran churches.
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PatH: that's hilarious. I like the idea that you have to try it three times to like it.
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Now reading The Man Who Invented Christmas: How Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol Rescued His Career and Revived Our Holiday Spirits.
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How nice to see pfeffernusse mentioned. You're close enough on the spelling, Pedln. The 'u' would be pronounced with an umlaut. My cookbook describes them as especially popular at Christmas. Mom always baked them. Just look at the ingredients:
4 eggs, 1 pound powdered sugar, 4 cups of flour, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon cloves, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, 1 teaspoon soda, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and the grated rind and juice of 1 lemon.
Mom used to add a little baking ammonia, perhaps as a substitute for the soda. It made our Christmas. And added years to our lives. Me and my five siblings have all made it into our eighties.
Froeliche Weihnachten.
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I love Pfernusse.. but the springerle defeated me, but my Dad adored them. We had a german friend who made apple or cherry kuchen for holidays.. Amazing , when I was grown I went to watch and she could stretch that dough until you could see threw it.. Hers was delicious and delicate. Very few bakeries make it like that.
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Every year, our local fire company sends Santa around the village on a fire engine to distribute candy. Santa and his helpers would be on the back of the engine for everyone to see. At least that is the was it was. This year I noticed that the engine was traded for a fire company pickup with Santa sitting in the passenger seat of the cab where you can't see him too well from the opposite side of the street. He was accompanied by two helpers sitting in the back. What a come down.
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You have a Grinch in the fire department!
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We lived for four years in a teeny town in New Hampshire..Santa came by on the fire engine with a police escort on Christmas Eve.. Everyone went out front to greet him. The year it was snowing hard, the truck was in a massive hurry.. Then we moved to a large town in Massachusetts.. There you went to the police department and left a present(wrapped) with the name and address.. They had dozens of volunteer Santas and drivers and on Christmas eve, they scattered all over town and everyone got a visit ( times were given out). Then all the neighbors used to meet at the various houses ( we went to our neighbors, who had small children). Lots of pictures, laughter, egg nog. I still have a picture of my neighbor and I on the knees of a rather large Santa..
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And the winner is.... (or are)......
(http://seniorlearn.org/latin/graphics/congrats017.gif)
Congratulations to:
Salan and
Jonathan
the winners of our 2014 Raffle!!
Enjoy your gift certificates!
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Salan and Jonathan, congratulations. Enjoy.
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Have fun with them.
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Thank you very much. What fun to drop in and find I've won a raffle! What are you going to do with your share, Salan?
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Congratulations, Salan and Jonathan.
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Right now, I am drooling over possibilities. I also received a $25 Amazon gift card; so now I have $40 in credit!! Don't know if I will use it for Kindle or printed books.
What are you going to use yours for, Jonathan?
Sally
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What a nice Christmas gift. Congrats.
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Ah the joys of decisions on books.. My favorite kind of decision.
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I usually get at least one Barnes and Noble gift card for Christmas, and I use it to look for a book I never would have bought otherwise (and then have a piece of chocolate cheesecake and coffee in their café).
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Wow how wonderful - forgot about the raffle - great to hear that our friends here are winners - busy busy - boys are in and it is like the Boars head or 12 days of Christmas around here. Now if the sun would just peek out a bit I would be dancing with glee - had a crown come off this weekend and local dentist was able to pop it back on so I do not look any longer like the north witch. Sincerely hope your holiday is warm and merry. Till next year... :-*
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I'm in Portland for the holidays, so Christmas will be merry and loving, but not sunny--it's Portland, after all. It's raining.
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t's sunny here, and I'm having a great holiday!
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Home again and glad to be here. I love my family,but I get so very tired..
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I hope you all had the Merriest Christmas ever! Mine was with my family sharing Mass, opening gifts, eating, and playing games. Oh what fun! Then Christmas morning it was off to my son's for breakfast, opening stockings, and more games. Then off to the other son's for Christmas dinner and enjoying the grand kids play with their toys. Now, my hubby and I are off til Jan 5th and plan to hit some sales and just have some time alone.
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That would be nice.. When Tim was alive, we took the rv down to where they live.That way, we could vanish for a while and reappear as we wanted.
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JoanK., I love Barnes and Noble, I pray the book store stays around for a long time. We are losing too many of the bookstores in our town.
Well, things are winding down here, and we are going to relax a bit before New Year's Eve. We plan a movie, dinner and casino! Congrats to our raffle winners Salan and Jonathan!!
I downloaded the Ellen game Heads Up and want to play it. We finally got back to playing some games with our kids and grandkids through the holidays, oh what fun!
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I have been catching up and decided to start a new tradition for me. Checking out underwear,, I decided that the week between the holidays is a great time to stock up on all of that stuff. Did it yesterday and managed to get all sorts of pay for 2, get 2 more or six for the price of 3, etc. So then played the great discard game and am feeling very spiffy underneath.
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Steph, I always wait for the Victoria Secret annual sale, should be coming up soon. Makes you feel so special when you take the time to update undies!!! ;D ;D
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I am highly allergic to most stuff except cotton underneath. Makes for boring undies..But I did find a new bra from Bali, no underwires, no stuffing and very very soft. Hurray. I do hate bras.
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Is there anyone still wearing the old-fashioned bloomers? Is there anything that can be said for them? They must have been warm and comfy, and a sheer deilght to get into.
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All I can reply to your post Jonathan is they were before my time. :o :o :o
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Steph, I can only wear cotton panties, too. Boring, but comfortable. My daughter wears those string bikini undies. They would drive me crazy even if I could wear them. She claims that I wear old lady panties, even though I wore them long before I was an old lady. One of my favorite memories was when my grandson was about 3 and he came into my closet where I was dressing, and exclaimed, "Grandmama', you wear pull-ups." Everybody got a kick out of that.
Sally
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Love the story Sally. When my grandson was little ( he is 13), I said to him one day, to pull up his britches and he looked at me like I was nuts. What is a britches... Funny how things change.
Bloomers.. do you mean the long ones.. When I lived in New England, I wore long underwear when I was cross country skiing.. Very comfy indeed.
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(http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/graphics/holly-corner-top.gif)
December ~ Holiday Open House
(http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/holidaymemories/birds-garland.gif)
Come celebrate the holidays with us...
- Our Discussion Leaders have shared two favorite short stories in the spirit of the season - as is custom this time of the year. You may notice these stories seem to center on warm memories of home and family.
Do they match your mood this time of year?
Let's share precious - and humorous memories of days gone by!
December 1-7: The Gift (http://www.nexuslearning.net/books/holt_elementsoflit-3/Collection%204/The%20Gift.htm) (Ray Bradbury)
December 8-14: The Gift of the Magi (https://www.auburn.edu/~vestmon/Gift_of_the_Magi.html) (O'Henry)
(http://www.seniorlearn.org/jane/jpgs_gifs/giftbox1.jpg)
---What memories of gifts given or received stand out in your mind?
--- Is there something you received long ago that you still treasure?
---What's the best gift you ever received and why is it the best?
And the winner is.... (or are)......
(http://seniorlearn.org/latin/graphics/congrats017.gif)
Congratulations to:
Salan and
Jonathan
the winners of our 2014 Raffle!!
Enjoy your gift certificates!
December 15-31: And what is a holiday without good food! (http://seniorlearn.org/latin/graphics/Graphics/Turky/Turkey.5.jpg)
---What is a "must have" on your table at the holidays?
---Do you make any special cookies or candies for a holiday treat for family and friends?
(http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/holidaymemories/birds-garland.gif)
And since we can't send you special fudge and cookies, our treats to you are links to some additional online Christmas stories you might enjoy as your time permits:
Pepin's Lord of Misrule - A Medieval Christmas (http://www.themedievalchronicle.com/Medieval%20Christmas%202009.pdf) (Denis Domning)
The Burglar's Christmas (http://cather.unl.edu/ss031.html) (young Willa Cather)
T'is the Season (http://socialistreview.org.uk/291/tis-season) (China Miéville)
All Seated on the Ground (http://will.tip.dhappy.org/blog/Compression%20Trees/.../book/by/Connie%20Willis/All%20Seated%20on%20the%20Ground/Connie%20Willis%20-%20All%20Seated%20on%20the%20Ground.html) (Connie Willis)
(http://0.tqn.com/d/webclipart/1/0/e/1/holly1r.gif)
Happy Holidays, everyone
Your SeniorLearn DLs! (http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/graphics/holly-corner.gif)
And if Jonathan means the knee length or ankle length "bloomers," then Cuddle Duds makes those in "winter strength" that are wonderful under jeans or slacks when it's -10 degrees.
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I was thinking that Jonathan was talking about what we called "Snuggies," but "Cuddle Duds" sounds like a better name.
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It's a brand name
www.CuddlDuds.com
that those of us in cold climates know and love---esp. as we...uh... mature! ::)
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Happy New Year! I wish you all a happy, healthy, and prosperous new year.
Jane - I hope the term "mature" does not imply growing up. :)
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STEPH "I have been catching up and decided to start a new tradition for me. Checking out underwear"
You had me worried, until I realized you meant your OWN underwear. Whew! ??? :D
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d New Years consists of getting together with the kids and grandkids to work a jigsaw puzzle together. We do it every year.
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JoanK.. Oh me, you made me laugh.. The only underwear except mine that I seem to get exposed to is my granddaughters..She wants me to wear updated underwear and dislikes my granny panties. I tell her I am a Granny and she then reminds me of her sizes and tells me of the latest stuff. She manages to score new stuff from me at least once a year that way.
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Happy New Year, everyone.
We rang in the new year last night by playing Quiddler.
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Its just Hanes cotton undies for me that I replenish by having a dozen sent to my daughters and what I do not use since she does have a washing machine ;) are still rolled nice and tight so they come home in my luggage to replace the worst of what is home and a new Wolcoal bra each year that replaces one of my collection and that is it - recently took all my slips and barely worn camisoles to a used store near campus where the girst buy them up for summer outer clothes. Still have a few half slips but I can count on one hand the number of times I wear a skirt any longer. Tshirts and slax with long sleeved silk shirts rolled at the wrist seem to be my go to clothes even for evening events with silk pants and the jewelry sets the occasion. Around here in winter it is gym pants and in summer it is what we used to call claim diggers or some denims all worn with an array of colorful Tshirts and in winter a long sleeved shirt over the Tshirt.
I still have some really nice Geiger skirts and jackets that i have not worn now in a few years - not ready yet to donate but I did get rid of so many blouses and all my suits including my tan suede leather blazer. Got rid of all my high heels but still have about 4 pair of mid heels that I will probably never wear and should just get rid of them.
What did you think of the women in the orchestra playing Gershwin at Lincoln Center last night? Frankly I was uncomfortable with some of the cleavage - took away from enjoying the music - I would have preferred to see them in little lace tops or chiffon tops - there were a few not as daring and I realized I could concentrate on the music rather than checking out how they looked and how the dress was cut or how their upper arms looked.
Well tonight it will be the other extreme I do not think there are any women yet, in the Vienna Philharmonic orchestra - the only women in the performance will be the ballet dancers.
We are not near as cold as most of you but I am sure pleased that this deep freeze is happening today with no expectations to do anything more than turn on a football game or listen to music and raid the refrigerator - my second pot of coffee - my pot makes 3 cups - for some reason I am really excited this year about starting a few projects and checking them off - so I am refining the tasks to accomplish my projects - all these books and gurus that say eat the frog first - in other words start with the biggest badest on your list - humbug I am finding I get more done when I purposely start with the easiest shortest task and that accomplishment makes me feel I can conquer the world so seamlessly I go forward and get things done. I like the feeling and I need to look for an easy to do today. I hope y'all have a great New Year and achieve your dreams this year...!
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Thank you, everyone, for your participation in this discussion. We're looking forward to a great new year of book discussions!! The Boys in the Boat is our featured discussion for January. See http://seniorlearn.org/forum/index.php?topic=4551.0
Coming in February: The Lady of Shalott at http://seniorlearn.org/forum/index.php?board=193.0