Christmastime Is Here
Our continuing family history project has allowed me to look at a wealth of Christmas photos from the many years of family celebrations. Here are a few simple observations I can make from looking through the eyes of the ghost of Christmas past.
Faith was always a central part of our Christmas celebration. The primary symbol of this in our family was in our celebration of the Eucharist together on Christmas Eve. We did this even before making our annual trip to our grandmother’s house to be with all our uncles, aunts and cousins. A nativity scene was placed next to our Christmas tree each year and I remember one year taking part in a living version of the nativity scene in front of our church. I enjoyed playing the part of St. Joseph mostly due to the fact that I was able to be out of the wind.
We were generally not afraid of Santa Claus, but perpetually worried that we might be on the naughty list and have him pass us by. It does seem that many of us were deathly afraid of having our picture made with giant rabbits, but that is another story. There was at least one year when Santa made a visit to our house prior to Christmas. It was a great surprise to see him walk through the door and to know that we were still on the nice list. I also remember that he spoke with much more authority than my parents when telling us he would not be able to visit until we were all in bed asleep on Christmas Eve.
We took delight in simple things and especially in the happiness of one another. Small things like a gingerbread house could hold us in rapt amazement. As the family continued to grow, gifts became more and more humble, but never lost the message of love behind them. It strikes me that in almost all of our pictures of people opening gifts they are surrounded by a group of excited onlookers.
While I don’t remember this directly, photo evidence would also point to the fact that we always wore clothes meant to be entertaining for future viewers of our family Christmas albums. One such example would be three brothers dressed as farmers in matching plaid and overalls.
As enjoyable as it is to reminisce about the past, the ghost of Christmas present also has some observations. The deaths of key family members, divorce and relocation of family members to far away locales makes it very unlikely that the celebrations described above will be taking place any time soon. But is it really such a terrible thing for the past to remain in the past? As I reflect on recent family Christmas gatherings it seems to me that we have been too focused on trying to bring back the past. The past has kept me from being more fully tuned in to the present. The same elements of faith, a desire to seek the good, and the delight in simple things are still with us, but I can’t yet see how those will take concrete shape for this now grown generation of children.
Perhaps the ghost of Christmas future will help us to see some new traditions take shape in the years to come.
About The Author
We could make it a tradition for everyone to fly out to Austin each year.
Kids expect bunnies to be bunny-size, not giant-size!
It’s fun to reminisce every now and then, but telling the same old stories gets boring after, oh, 35 years or so. The past just ain’t what it used to be.
Plus, my Jimmy Stewart gets a little better each year…
sounds like a plan for a new tradition to me. it is just like you read my mind!
by jimmy stewart are you referring to george bailey or harvey?
The new tradition has begun. Austin is great for Christmas!