Julie Burns
One of my favorite Christmas memories as a kid is baking cookies for days and days, for the Christmas caroling party that we had at our house each year. We had so much fun making dozens and dozens of all kinds of cookies and decorating them. And of course we could not forget the "forgotten cookies" you had to make the night before. Mix them up, put them in the oven, and then turn the oven off and leave them their til morning. So yummy!
Then we would all go Christmas caroling (unheard of in France) in our neighborhood and invite all of the neighbors back for the party. The first couple of years they were always shocked and amazed to be invited into our home for homemade goodies. In France, you only go into some one's home if you know them REALLY well. There was something about the Christmas carols though that broke down the barriers and people would let down their reserve to come and join their neighbors for some fun cookies and apple cider. Now it is a tradition in my parents neighborhood and everyone always asks them when they are going to do it so they can make sure they are home. They have also started contributing to the goodies and we have seen a softening of their hearts toward the Gospel. I sometimes wonder how far off we are in this country to that scenario. It would have been almost unheard of 20 years ago... Do we know our neighbors? Do we have a heart for their Salvation? Would they come to our house for a Christmas gathering? What are some creative ways we can share the message of Jesus, with others this Christmas season? After all, isn't that what it really is all about? The cookies are just an extra added bonus!
Then we would all go Christmas caroling (unheard of in France) in our neighborhood and invite all of the neighbors back for the party. The first couple of years they were always shocked and amazed to be invited into our home for homemade goodies. In France, you only go into some one's home if you know them REALLY well. There was something about the Christmas carols though that broke down the barriers and people would let down their reserve to come and join their neighbors for some fun cookies and apple cider. Now it is a tradition in my parents neighborhood and everyone always asks them when they are going to do it so they can make sure they are home. They have also started contributing to the goodies and we have seen a softening of their hearts toward the Gospel. I sometimes wonder how far off we are in this country to that scenario. It would have been almost unheard of 20 years ago... Do we know our neighbors? Do we have a heart for their Salvation? Would they come to our house for a Christmas gathering? What are some creative ways we can share the message of Jesus, with others this Christmas season? After all, isn't that what it really is all about? The cookies are just an extra added bonus!
Teresa Varela
When I was 5 years old my family lived in Alaska because my dad was in the Army. I remember waking up Christmas morning on the top of my bunk bed I shared with my sister and hanging off the end of my top bed post was a cloth sack with 3 pockets in it.. Inside each pocket was a bear... a mama bear, a daddy bear and a little bitty baby bear... That's right it was the 3 bears... After I played with it for a short while I climbed down from my bunked and crept downstairs.. I only reached the half way point when I looked down into my living room and saw our white aluminum tree all lit up with the room drowning in wrapped and unwrapped gifts from Santa... It was like looking into a Christmas toy store... I always remembered that Christmas morning.....
Years later my mom asked me this same question... I relayed to her my memory of this fantastic Christmas... When she started laughing I couldn't understand. She explained to me that I was only 5 years old and to a 5 year old everything seems larger than life... especially Santa and Christmas morning.. I said that I clearly remembered it right and she reminded me that my father was in the Army... He would never have been able to afford a room full of toys like the one I described, and that it was my imagination that made everything seem like so much..
Rose Wilms
My early childhood in the Philippines, By Dec. 18th, we start Christmas Caroling until Christmas Eve, house to house, we would go and sing in every one's front door, people usually gave us money, bake goods, fruits and what not, all the stuff we collected we bring to church and it is distributed to families who are under privilege. Then it's a must that we go to "Noche Buena" midnight church service. On Christmas day, we always had our own stockings hanging and we get to open it, then we visit all our godfathers and godmothers and they always have gifts for us.
Random Fruitcake Facts:
- Fruitcakes were buried with the dead in Ancient Egypt. It's true. Ancient Egyptians used to fill the tombs of the dead with all the supplies that they would need to enjoy the afterlife, including food and water. Fruitcake was often put into the tomb of a deceased person because a fruitcake soaked in a natural preservative like alcohol or fruit juice would last a long time. It was thought that the preserved fruitcake would not spoil on the journey to the afterlife.
- Fruitcakes will last for years without spoiling. It's true. A fruitcake that is properly preserved with an alcohol soaked cheesecloth that is then wrapped in plastic wrap or foil can be kept unrefrigerated for years without spoiling.
- In the early 18th century, fruit cake, then known as plum cake, was outlawed in Europe for being sinfully rich.
We would love to read about your special memory or tradition surrounding Christ's birth. Send an email to mcarbi@hotmail.com.
Merry Christmas,
Niki
0 Thoughtful Words:
Post a Comment