December 19, 2016 at 5:28 p.m.

Holiday traditions can evolve and change

As I See It

By Diana Dolecki-

It is only a few more days until Christmas. Some of you may have already hosted your holiday festivities and are looking forward to a quiet Christmas day. Some of you don’t believe in Christmas and that is your right. Then there are the rest of us who are busy scurrying around with last-minute preparations.

This year has been different. The constant worry about Mom is gone. Yes, I know some of you are groaning. The woman has been gone since February. I should be over it by now. Honestly, I miss all of my family members who have died. But it is my mom who demanded most of my time and the loss is still fresh. Bear with me or go read something else.

As I was saying, the worry about Mom is gone. So, too, are the days when we would go Christmas shopping together. She would get embarrassed when I would talk loud enough for her to hear me. I would be offended when she would remark that it was too bad I didn’t look like some model.

I even miss trying to find something that hasn’t been manufactured in decades. Granddaughter Emma is trying valiantly to take her place by asking for something I can’t find anywhere — yet. Every other year the stores are overflowing with this item. I will have to go online and try to find it there. Her birthday is in January so I can give it to her then — if I can find one.

I also miss the days when money wasn’t so tight. There was a time when I could save enough to buy toys and clothes and all kinds of stuff for my loved ones. This year all the kids get a book and a toy. The others get a fraction of what I usually buy.

It doesn’t matter how much is spent. Christmas traditions come and go. As an example of bygone traditions, who among us has ever gone wassailing? What is wassail? From what I can gather it is mulled cider, heavy on the booze, sometimes containing whole apples and sometimes even beaten eggs. It doesn’t sound appetizing to me. Maybe that is why that tradition isn’t so popular any more.

Wassailing was supposed to awaken the apple trees and scare away evil spirits. A procession of people would parade through town, ending up at an orchard. An incantation was recited and some of the wassail was offered to the trees. This was to ensure a bountiful apple harvest the following year. Personally, it sounds like adult trick or treating with booze instead of candy. Today’s apple orchards depend more on chemicals than incantations and evil spirits have names such as, “apple scab” or “fire blight.”

Speaking of bygone traditions, when I was little, my grandmother would spend hours baking pies for the holidays. Apple, raspberry, her favorite sugar cream and my favorite custard would share the table with pumpkin pie. Me, I don’t do pie. I like the filling but not the crust. I haven’t baked a pie in years, let alone multiple pies.

On the other hand, I don’t remember anybody making cookies. I love to make cookies. My husband used to say that he could always tell I when I had had a bad day — the  house smelled like cookies. I have two different kinds of cookies to bake for our holiday this year. I like the batter better than the finished product. Yes, I have heard that eating cookie dough is bad. I haven’t died yet.

The point of all this is to say that holiday traditions evolve. They change. Those things that we “always” do are not what make Christmas special. You and me, our families, friends and innocent bystanders all make Christmas special.

I find it nothing short of amazing that one child, born so long ago, could have such an effect on how I spend a cold day in December. One child. One child who grew up to be an amazing man changed the world. I hope your Christmas is as special as the one whose birthday we celebrate.
PORTLAND WEATHER

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