The H Street Sledding Records by Ron Carlson
Room For One More
Family rituals at Christmas time is significant to "The H Street Sledding Record" by Ron Carlson. A husband tells the story of his wife Drew, and their daughter Elise and rituals that keep the family together. He finds personal significant in a sledding record, throwing horse manure on the roof, and buying a Christmas trees.
The strangest family ritual involves getting horse manure from a friend and throwing it on the roof for Elise. He does this not only for his daughter but also for himself, as a reminder of what it is like to be a child around Christmas. The excitement of believing in Santa Claus. Drew takes this time to call his mother and talk in amusement of the horse turds being heaved onto the roof. He takes "their responses to my ritual as a kind of fond, subtle support". Even though they laugh at him, they know he has the best intentions of making his child believe that Santa Claus and his reindeer really do exist. Even though Drew would prefer half-eaten cookies and milk as evidence he makes up excuses to not go with such an idea. He then blames it on the fact that he does not like desserts, so therefore the manure will remain until his arms give out.
There is and added complication in that he would like to have another child to throw the reindeer droppings on the roof for. Even though he wants this more than anything, he is reluctant to approach his wife. He fears that she may not share his desire and that would just be too painful to accept. He would prefer to have a boy and vividly anticipates this imaginary child finding the evidence on the roof on Christmas morning. ...
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...ry year on the day after Halloween they get out the sled and make minor adjustments to get it ready for the big day. Over the years they have added a brake made of a sawed off baseball bat, they installed the brake while Drew was pregnant with Elise. They climb their way up to Eleventh Avenue stare down the avenue and prepare for yet another record. Elise gives advice on how to make it successful year, by leaning from there past experiences. All their excitement grows as they get ready to set off.
With the sled as old as the marriage and a brake as old as their daughter their ritual is now a strong bond which they hold dearly to their hearts. This family ritual is strong and makes them look forward to each Christmas together as a family. Knowing that they will always be there to carry on the tradition that they have installed in themselves.
Have you ever asked yourself how Christmas was celebrated in the late 20th century? The song, “Rocking Around the Christmas Tree,” was written by Brenda Lee in 1958. In this song, the author uses three literary devices to express how Christmas was celebrated in the late 50’s. For instance, the literary devises that were used by Brenda lee were repetition, alliteration, and sight. These literary devices were used to explain how Christmas was celebrated in the late 1950’s.
Family - A Christmas Carol presents family life as the most ordinary and most advantageous experience that all people ought to hope for. At last ,it is insufficient that Scrooge essentially be rehabilated as a man - he additionally must be re-fused into family life.
A Christmas Carol. Classics of Children's Literature. Ed. John W. Griffith and Charles H. Frey. 3rd ed.
In the play, Mr. Scrooge is a greedy man who thinks Christmas is “Bah Humbug!” (Dickens 3). His family has always wanted him to join them for a Christmas feast, but Mr. Scrooge has never wanted anything to do with Christmas. Marley, Mr. Scrooge’s old business partner, didn’t want Mr. Scrooge to end up like him with chains of greed attached to him when he died, so he sent Mr. Scrooge three spirits: Christmas Past, Present, and Future.
Family portrays an important part in Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol throughout the entire story. The three main points I am going to focus on are Scrooge’s relationship with Fred and family, Bob Cratchit’s family, and the effect Scrooge’s approach towards finances, work, and peers had on his relationships.
Christmas has consumed itself. At its conception, it was a fine idea, and I imagine that at one point its execution worked very much as it was intended to. These days, however, its meaning has been perverted; its true purpose ignored and replaced with a purpose imagined by those who merely go through the motions, without actually knowing why they do so.
This turning point is different than the rest because it is shown to scrooge that the cratchit also has a family and everybody else does too. They care for their family but they need help. Scrooge needs to help them and his own family. The ghost of christmas present them the shadows of christmas present. The cratchit family is a happy family who respect and love what and what they have. Cratchit walks in with tiny tim on his shoulder. He has crutches and a brace on his leg. Cratchit is afraid that he might die. Show in this line
If children start to cry and hear Erica Goples voice then they will start to think that Santa isn’t real. If children heard Santa in a womanly voice then it could ruin their Christmas. Also, if a child doesn’t think that Santa isn’t real then they could go around to other people telling them that Santa isn’t real. If they go around telling other people that Santa isn’t real then that could ruin someone else’s Christmas. And, in the the story A Secret Santa Into Her Role even said that kids could get scared from her voice and think that Santa isn’t real.
It’s December of 1801 and the whole town is decorating, dancing, singing, and laughing as they get ready for a near holiday: Christmas. All but one pessimistic, obdurate cripple of a man. His name is Ebenezer Scrooge, an undermined old male swathed in dark clothing. He is typically found strolling the streets on Victorian London with poor posture, eyes locked on the cracked sidewalk beneath the soles of his shoes. Slumping along, carolers cease to sing near him and nobody speaks when in his presence. Scrooge is a prejudging business man who hurries to be left alone and disregards cheer. He is obdurate and blind to the consequences of his actions. Sudden wealth brings a snobbiness when his business partner dies, and as a result, his one true love divorces him, sending him into a state of hatred and regret. With this evidence to back it up, Scrooge can be perceived as a negative, crippling man with little tolerance to change. However, things are bound to change with the visitation of the wraiths: the Spirits of Christmas Past, Present, and Yet to Come, an inevitable change that be...
The narrator is in a tug of war with his beliefs past and present about Christmas. The character grows from ignorance to knowledge, when he says “For Christmas is a time of both past and present and often the two are imperfectly blended” (MacLeod 300). This shows the imperfect blend
Sledding is a childhood experience full of laughter and excitement. From the first time a child is pulled in a sled to the time when they attempt their first crazy sledding feat, wonderful memories are being created. Sometimes these memories blur together like snowflakes in a January wind. Happy memories with forgotten details, but still leading to the same ending; delight. Most of my sledding memories were like this; running through backyards and flying down hills. Sometimes however, memories are not always delightful. One memory in particular fell into that category.
... Religious Customs, History, Legends, and Symbols from around the World; Supplemented by a Bibliography and Lists of Christmas Web Sites and Associations. Detroit, Mich: Omnigraphics, 2003. Print.
Meeting the Ghost of Christmas Past begins the first stage of Scrooge’s transformation: regretting his actions. When Scrooge is shown his younger self alone in his classroom on Christmas, he regrets chasing a Christmas caroler away from his door. The Spirit skips ahead a few years to show him a happier time. His sweet little sister Fan arrives to take him home, and this is his first Christmas in a long time that is spent with family. Unfortunately, Scrooge doesn’t see it that way; seeing this scene makes him “uneasy in his mind” as he thinks about the way he treats his nephew Fred. Instead of treating him like his only family member, Scrooge denies invitations to Christmas dinner every year and is rude whenever Fred speaks to him. He doesn’t have time to dwell on this for long, however; Scrooge has many other important things to think...
Ah, to be a kid again. How wonderful it would be to relive the magic of Christmas. Don’t get me wrong, I have always been a kid at heart and a true lover of Christmas. But as we get older and we realize that Santa Claus and the North Pole were just stories our parents told us so we’d behave, Christmas starts to lose that magical feeling. No matter how much we might still love it, Christmastime just isn’t the same as when we were young. And at a time of all the aggravating shopping hustle and bustle, dents in the pockets, headaches, traffic jams and long lines, I begin to realize that God has sent me the most magical Christmas gift of all, a beautiful three year old whom I can relive Christmas in all over. Through my child’s eyes, I see myself each time his face lights up at the sight of Santa, and I feel his anticipation each morning as he faithfully opens up one more window on the Christmas calendar. Tonight, as we decorate the tree, I admiringly watched his tiny fingers delicately place each of the ornaments on all the same branches until they drooped to the floor. So proud of his work, I secretly placed some elsewhere, as to not hurt his feelings, and wondered how many times my own mother had done the same thing. And after a long day of shopping and excitement, I watched his eyelids begin to droop while lying underneath the warm glow of the Christmas tree lights.
Ever since I could remember, I have spent Christmas at my grandmother’s house, a house which is full of comfort, warmth, and happiness. At Christmas, I have always been able to escape the cold and dark real world allowing myself to truly enjoy just several moments in time. These moments have left impressionable memories from my childhood making Christmas a holiday that is special to me and my family. It is a time for my family to get together, share stories, laugh, and even cry.