Christmas reflections pt. 4

This is the time of year when I miss my mom. There were so many Christmas traditions that included her.

There was a family tradition from my dad’s family that the dinner was always on Christmas Eve. Then Christmas Day there was the opening of presents followed by a full breakfast of bacon and eggs. Then later in the day when one was getting hungry again we had some leftover turkey.

Some went to the midnight service on Christmas Eve and some went to the early morning service on Christmas Day. After the late service we would go to bed. We were interested in our French Canadian neighbours’ traditions. They went to midnight mass and then would come home to host a Réveillon and then on Christmas Day the neighbourhood was very quiet.

My own experiences of Christmas food started when I was quite young. I was probably not even a teenager when I started to make the Spritz cookies. There was a tradition that as I was making them on Christmas Eve, a good friend of my dad would come by with Christmas greetings.

My mom also taught me how to make gravy so that was one of my jobs for the Christmas meal.

I remember special outings especially when my sister and I were younger. We went to Eaton’s in Montreal to Toyland to meet Santa. We went to the local Legion for the kid’s Christmas party and met Santa again. There were also performances at the Sunday School but I am not sure whether Santa was there or not.

The decorations and the tree were always a delight. What kind of stand to put the Christmas tree in was a changing situation from year to year. If the bottom of the tree was not quite flat it was in danger of falling over. The best solution was a bucket of sand instead of the flimsy tree stands.

There was a glass front porch at Princess Street which meant that the lighted tree was quite visible from outside. It was a long time later that my sister told me of the tradition to leave on your Christmas lights on Christmas Eve so that Santa can find his way to your house.

My mom was a great cook and when she came to my house she would bring her famous basket with all kinds of goodies in it. She made rum balls and shortbread and liver pate and fudge and other delights. She also made a rum pie for dessert as my dad was not one for the traditional English desserts.

*****
So what are my Christmas traditions?

I do not like to put up any decorations until the first Sunday of Advent. Then they stay up until Epiphany on January 6.

I like to write a Christmas letter every year. It helps me too to remember what I have been up to.

I much prefer the Christmas Day service to the one on Christmas Eve - too many folks there and too late for an early bird like me.