It can be easy to get trapped in your own westernized idea of celebrating the holidays. Follow Pooja and Deenie as they walkthrough different cultures history's of their holiday traditions, and speak on how to make your holiday season a more generous one.
In America, Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. The holiday is believed to go back as far as December 25, 336 A.D but, in the United States, it was not an official federal holiday until June 26, 1870. Before Christmas was the celebration of Jesus, Christmas was originally celebrated by Europeans for light and birth in the darkest days of winter. Many people rejoiced during the winter solstice, when the worst of winter was gone and they could look forward to extended hours of sunlight and long days.
In Great Britain, Christmas was celebrated until the Puritans banned the holiday in 1645. They did this because they believed that celebrating the birth of Christ was a sign of decadence and a disgrace to Christianity. In the English colonies, the English separatists also believed in worshipping Jesus without ceremonies and made celebrating Christmas a crime. In Germany, people celebrate Christmas by decorating and putting lights on evergreen trees to keep away evil.
In the fourth century, church officials decided to declare the birth of Jesus a holiday. Pope Julius I, of Rome, chose December 25. First called the “Feast of the Nativity”, the custom spread to Egypt and then England, Germany and gradually around the world. In the 1800's, as more immigrants started coming to America and cultures began to spread and become more diverse, perspectives on Christmas also gradually changed in America. More and more Christian Americans started to follow European traditions of Christmas trees and giving gifts and family traditions. The tree began to represent Jesus and a became a symbol of new beginnings. German immigrants inspire the tradition of lights, sweets and toys on the branches of the tree. The tradition of putting Christmas trees in houses became more popular in American homes and so did the day of Christmas. As it grew in popularity, many states declared the day as a state holiday, until 1870, when President Ulysses Grant made Christmas a federal holiday.
There are so many Christmas traditions in America, like decorating Christmas trees and houses, giving presents, and singing carols. But how do other countries and religions celebrate this holiday? Let's find out!
In Sweden, the "Yule Goat” is a Swedish symbol of Christmas, and typically made of straw. The Swedes have historically believed that the Yule Goat is an invisible spirit, who visits Sweden before Christmas to make sure all Yule preparations have been done. Neighbors hide a mini ornament of the Yule Goat in each other's houses and pass it along. In the Philippines , the city of San Fernando holds “Ligligan Parul”, a giant lantern festival, featuring lanterns that symbolize the “Star of Bethlehem”. In Iceland, people celebrate thirteen days of Christmas and children place their shoes by the window. During the night, thirteen yule lads visit and either place candy for good behavior or leave childrens' shoes full of rotten potatoes if they are bad. In South Africa, during Christmas time, families come together for a cookout called “braering”. They share meals like steak or boerewors sausage, followed by malva pudding with custard. To celebrate the holidays in Mexico, church members put a play together called Pastorelas (Shepherd's Play) to retell the Christmas story. They lead religious marches in early December to show the journey of Mary and Joseph and they use colorful, vibrant flowers as decorations throughout Mexico. It is amazing to see the different traditions used by cultures to celebrate this holiday in various ways.
The holidays are a big deal to a lot of people. We buy presents, spend time with our family and friends, eat a ton of food and try our best to stay warm-- but what do you do when you can’t do any of these things? You can definitely still stuff your mouths this year and I hope you all try and stay warm, but it is better that we stay as far away from people as possible, so maybe buying presents and spending time with certain friends and family is not the best option.
If you insist on buying presents this year, you could always make a gift yourself, but that can be a lot of work. The next best option is to order online but, before you order a bunch of stuff off of Amazon, maybe consider other companies. There are so many companies/ small businesses this year that are struggling. If you find a product that you like on Amazon, look at its brand and do some research about where it is from. Spend a little time Googling. It is more likely than not that these companies have their own websites, where you should buy products instead. You can also look for similar products that are being sold by other companies. Most companies who sell their items off of Amazon only get a small portion of the proceeds, so why not go to their website and buy it off of them directly so they get all of the money? Many big companies do not have very good ethics and, even though it is so much easier just to go on Amazon than to research a completely different brand, a lot of smaller businesses have better ethics than these big companies and benefit more from your purchase. Personally, I would rather buy and pay a little more for a product that comes from a company with amazing ethics and better products than to take the easy way out and buy from a big corporation that is not very good. Buy online, but do your research.
A lot of families this year are struggling to even keep the clothes on their backs. If you can, go through your clothes, go through your family's clothes and see what you are willing to donate. Thrift stores are never the best donation options. They sell your items and take most of the money for themselves. A better way to know that your clothes are getting put to good use is to donate to a shelter or charities. There are many good shelters near us, so do your research and decide which charity or shelter deserves your donation to. Not all shelters or charities are good, so make sure to dig deep and do a lot of research on the organization.
If you do not want to donate your clothes and you have a little extra money in your pocket, consider donating food. Grants Pass High School is doing a food drive and there are lots of organizations that are always in need of food, so please, if you can, give. Also, animal shelters are in need of help. Donate food, treats, or whatever you can. A lot of animals have been euthanized this year and the problem is not getting any smaller. These animals want to be loved, just like us. Do what you can.
So many people and animals are deprived of basic needs that other take for granted: shelter, food, and water. If and when you can give back, not just during the holidays, make it happen. People need help all times of the year. This year has definitely been full of ups and downs, but we all just have to keep our heads up. If you are really struggling to figure out how to help, the Internet can be a great place to find information.
Please wear your masks, social distance, and stay as safe as possible. People are still dying every day because of this virus and that is not going to change during the holidays. Be kind. It costs nothing.
