Holiday Traditions

Our holiday tradition goes like this: On Christmas Eve we start a fire in the fireplace. This is a special fire. One of the logs has to be from a fruit tree.

Sometimes I have a hard time finding such a log. When my father-in-law was alive he always brought us a log from a fruit tree for our Christmas fire. After he passed in 1995 I had several logs left over that he had brought to our house.

On the first Christmas after he passed I built our normal fire. I placed his fruit log on the top. My wife and I each have a glass of wine and we have a third glass that we pour on to the log before we light it.

We say a prayer for my wife's father and all the other's in our family that have passed. Then we sit quietly and remember.

Cliff Faudree

Top of Page

Have you forgotten what Christmas is really about? It is Jesus' birthday!

What if you woke up in the morning and nobody said happy birthday? That is probably what Jesus says every Christmas.

"They forgot my birthday." "They forgot my presents." What you can do is...

• Wrap a shoe box.(like a present)
• Everyday until Christmas, do something nice for someone and write it down.
• Put the slips of paper in the box.
• On Christmas Eve, put the box under the tree.
• In the morning when everyone gives their presents, Jesus will also recieve his gift.

Leslie Shewalter (Age 13)

Top of Page

My favorite Holiday tradition was always breakfast at my parents after midnight mass. My neighborhood was the most amazing place in the world and we all considered everyone family.

The kids were all born in stages, My sisters always had playmates as well as my brothers and myself so it was only right that we all had breakfast together after mass. My parents house was always cramped but noone seemed to mind the closeness as we all were from large families.

My father would spend hours cooking bacon before mass and I of course would spend hours sneaking some. As I look back I can truely say those were the best of times and it was nights like that where I learned love not just for my family at home but my neighborhood family.

My friends and I have all grown and have our own families now but will always find time to talk about breakfast and never forget how much like sisters we all are. Thanks Mom and Dad for teaching me that love.

Marybeth Walsh

Top of Page

When my seven children were young, we would make a different kind of ornament for the tree each year. Of course, we started with the easiest things: paper chains and strung popcorn.

We progressed to fancy cut-outs made from the Christmas cards we received the year before and then fancy snowflakes covered with sparkle.

One year I kept all our burned out light bulbs. I spray painted them silver and the kids then wrapped the ends of them with green pipe cleaners and made loops to hang them.

By far my favorite were the deer we made using wooden clothes pins (do they still even exist?), red felt with gold braid trim and little eyes glued on.

Even though my "baby" is now thirty-six, I still have many of the ornaments we made so many years ago. They remind me of a time when life was simpler.

Susan Daniels

Top of Page