Christmas with Nutmeg
Our memories of Christmas time at 17142 Eastview Dr. were perfect. The Christmas tree was covered with hundreds of twinkle lights and unique ornaments. The tree was flanked by a gorgeous brick fireplace that seemed to always have a fire burning inside of it, and whose mantle was decorated with my family's collection of miniature nutcrackers. The final touch to this setting was our dog, sitting in her favorite spot, that was directly to the right of the fireplace, beneath the chair that you would always find my father in while reading my sister and me Christmas stories.
My mom would be in the kitchen cooking all of the food for our delicious meal that lay ahead. When she would yell "Nutmeg!" Our dog would immediately sprint into the kitchen, and then she would wait patiently beside her food bowl while my mom sprinkled nutmeg onto her dog food. Before Nutmeg would begin to eat, my mom would say "nutmeg, for our Nutmeg".
Once my mom had sprinkled the nutmeg, the entire house would be consumed with its smell, and that became the single most memorable part of Christmas.
Eight years ago we moved out of our house on Eastview Dr. and we were ecstatic about making more Christmas memories at our new house. Five months before our first Christmas in our new house, we were forced to put Nutmeg to sleep. We had recently discovered that Nutmeg had cancer, and the pain was too excruciating for her to handle.
Now eight years later we have made many more Christmas memories. Our twelve foot pine tree is also covered with over a thousand twinkle lights and the same old silly ornaments. The tree is standing beside a burning fire in our old brick fireplace, and the mantle is now filled with over 15 nutcrackers. My dad, sister and I sit on the couch directly across from the tree, looking with fascination, when I lay my hand down and let it rest on the head of our new family dog, because he is sitting just below my feet.
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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.
The Christmas tree is my favorite thing to decorate, and I always put white twinkling lights in my bedroom.
Christmas is almost here again, but have you ever thought how odd some of the holiday traditions are and how they became so popular? Buying a pine tree, setting it up in your house and then decorating it with festive lights and ornaments; hanging up stockings filled with candy over the fireplace; or how an old guy in a red-suit comes to your house the night before Christmas and leaves presents. This, too many Americans is normal, but why? Learning about these holiday traditions will get you into the Christmas spirit and show you what Christmas is truly about.
According to William Muir Auld’s book Christmas Traditions, the Christmas tree found its way into the hearts and homes of Christian people with their thoughts and sentiment. Auld writes, “On the night in which Christ was born, all the trees in the forest, despite snow and ice, bloomed and bore fruit” (Auld 138). This story was first told by a geographer of the tenth century named Georg Jacob. This story was as highly believed as the birth of Christ. Christmas trees can be dated back through writing, specifically songs and are associated with the Church, specifically to post-Reformation times. The trees, which decorate homes worldwide, are linked to a spiritual tradition practiced by a variety of religious groups. (The Fir Tree, page 241 in
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.
Christmas is filled with traditions and events, but how did they start and why do we still do them? Traditions are often passed down throughout generations for centuries, but the origins are often unknown or forgotten.
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Frosty the Snowman waves hello alongside Santa 's reindeer that are ready to take off. Candy canes line the sidewalk and the ginger bread dolls dance in a merry circle. The trees all sparkle with thousands of red, yellow, purple, blue, and orange lights. Out back, Mary and Joseph stand over baby Jesus, Choo-Choo train’s chug in spot, stars twinkle with bright yellow bulbs, and Mr. and Mrs. Santa Clause wave in the distance. Kerkhoven, MN, the location of the happiest house on the block. Every year my breath is always taken away as my eyes struggle to soak in the utter abundance of Christmas spirit. I 'm smiling and we 're not even inside yet.
They would go out in the snow and make fake snowmen and try to get them to look like themselves and then take pictures with them. Year after year passed, and eventually they stopped having family Christmas parties. His mother and father had melted away and so had his aunt and uncles. Mr. Evergreen had gotten married and had twin snowboys. They were his pride and joy. The boys work with Henry on the tree farm that had been passed on for generations. Henry loved the feeling of teaching his boys hard work and also having fun doing it.
Finally, we arrived at our destination. I left the car leaving my parents and little brother behind and ran up the steps to my grandma’s house. I just had to be the first one to knock on her door, so I did. She opened the door for me, and I went inside parting with the bitter cold and darkness surrounding me. Inside the house I was immediately encircled with the aromas of her Christmas cooking and baking. A real fresh Christmas tree which was already beautifully adorned with old family ornaments perforated the air with more holiday aromas. I went into the kitchen with my mom, and together we helped my grandma finish preparing the Christmas Eve dinner.
Christmas is my favorite holiday because it is the time of year that everyone should spend with their family and friends loving them unconditionally. Every Christmas, my family and I, on my mother 's side, join together on Christmas Eve to be able to spend time with the ones which we love. Considering that my family loves to eat, my grandmother cooks a ginormous feast! My grandmother loves to cook, but on Christmas she goes crazy. She cooks dressing, corn, potatoes, macaroni, green beans, sweet potato casserole, and my favorite pecan pie. After making sure everyone gets enough food, we all join in the living room to share stories and open our presents. My cousin, Brady Parker, always finds a way to make
As I look out my window I see tiny snowflakes slowly drifting down. I can hear the roar of laughter coming from the living room downstairs. Soon enough Saint Nick will be upon us. Christmas always brings everyone home for the holidays. Christmas is my favorite holiday because of the traditions my families and I celebrate that include our Christmas Eve routine, Christmas morning routine, and giving back to our community.
In many ways Christmas is similar to Thanksgiving in the way we celebrate it. We switch sides, sometimes Christmas is at our house, tons of food is made and we play games. Depending on what side of the family we’re spending Christmas with, there’s a theme, for example, about two or three years ago we spent Christmas with my mom’s side of the family and it was a pajama party and last Christmas we spent with my dad’s side the theme was ugly Christmas sweaters. Every year no matter where we spend Christmas, we always have to get some of my great grandma’s amazing and delicious Champurrado. She makes Champurrado every single year, she won’t tell anyone how she makes it for some reason, but her Champurrado is like heaven in a cup. On both sides of my family,it’s tradition for us get together on Christmas Eve and we have dinner, watch movies, play games, and even take naps, all until midnight and that’s when we open our presents. Also, on both sides, the adults do White Elephant and sometimes depending on what the majority vote is, they’ll do a secret santa exchange. The only thing my mom’s side of the family does differently than my dad’s, is that prior to getting together on Christmas Eve, the adults put each kid’s name in a hat and each person draws a name, and the name they draw is the kid they have to buy a gift for, and they’ll say the least or most amount of money they can spend on that gift.