Sparsely, Sage and Timely
A child’s Christmas in wails
Christmas is a confusing combination of the bitter and the sweet. We celebrate a birth by killing a turkey and an evergreen tree. Christmas trees, for that matter, have nothing to do with Christianity but originated with woodland priests, the Druids of Germany. Same with holly and mistletoe, which were put over doorways at during the winter solstice to keep demons away.
Similarly, the ancient Romans used lights and greenery for decorations during their Saturnalia, which also corresponded with the winter solstice.
Christmas as we celebrate it didn’t begin England until the early 1700s and in America until the late 1700s. Because of its pagan trappings, the Puritans actually banned celebrations of Christmas in the colonies of New England.
"Even as late as 1851, a Cleveland minister nearly lost his job because he allowed a tree in his church," notes horticulture teacher David Robson of Springfield, my authority for much of this. "Schools in Boston stayed open on Christmas Day through 1870, and sometimes expelled students who stayed home."
On Wednesday, I asked my newsroom what Gaspard, Melchoir, and Balthazar have in common. Reporters Jacob Resneck and Jim Kravets thought it over and concluded these were all names they couldn’t spell. Until this week, I couldn’t have answered the question either, except to say that Balthazar was the title character in the second book (1958) of author Lawrence Durrell’s Alexandria Quartet.
In fact, Gaspard, Melchoir, and Balthazar were the names of the Three Kings, the Three Wise Men, or the Magi, whichever you choose to call them. By tradition, they showed up at Jesus’ manger with gifts, the oddest of which was Balthazar’s.
As a youth, I was always perplexed by the fourth verse of the Christmas carol We Three Kings of Orient Are. In the second verse, Gaspard says: "Born a King on Bethlehem’s plain, Gold I bring to crown Him again..." In the third verse, Melchoir says, Frankincense to offer have I. Incense owns a Deity nigh..."
But then comes Balthazar with a gift that sounds more like a curse: "Myrrh is mine. Its bitter perfume breaths a life of gathering gloom, sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying, sealed in the stone-cold tomb." Say what?
Perhaps because this has been "the winter of our discontent," as Shakespeare called it, or "the times that try men’s souls," as Thomas Paine put it, I can’t seem to get Balthazar’s verse out of my head. You think coal in your Christmas stocking is bad? Lucky you didn’t get myrrh.
Some Christmas traditions, of course, are less ominous. Take, for example, this letter I received from Larraine Peck of Marshall:
"My father was born in Sweden and each year at Christmas time, he told us stories about our Swedish family and how they celebrated the Christmas season. Last year, my grandson Christopher, age nine, had to choose a word from his school spelling list and write a story. He chose the word "tradition." Christopher’s dad had passed down some of the Swedish family stories, told to him by his grandfather, and he, in turn, had passed them down to Christopher.
"The following is a story Christopher Peck wrote called Christmas in Sweden. This humorous tale is a child’s view of how he as an American and his Swedish family celebrate Christmas. Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year."
The Swedish celebration of Christmas involves many traditions. Some of these traditions are similar to American traditions, and others are different. Four of these traditions are the Saint Lucia ceremony, the Christmas Eve celebration, the Walt Disney Special, and the Christmas tree.
The Saint Lucia ceremony is an important tradition since it marks the beginning of the Christmas season. It takes place on Dec. 13. The daughter of the family wears a white robe, red sash, and a Saint Lucia wreath on her head. She serves the family coffee and Saint Lucia buns in bed. We do not have a tradition like this in America.
The big celebration occurs on Christmas Eve. The children watch a Walt Disney Special on TV. A feast is served with traditional foods such as ham, jellied pigs feet, and lye-fish [Lutfisk]. Someone dresses up as a gnome called Tomte, who passes out presents. This celebration is similar to the American Christmas Day celebration.
An unexpected tradition involves a Walt Disney Special. The special is called, From All of Us to All of You. It comes on at 3 p.m. on Christmas Eve. Dinner and presents must wait until the special is over. Swedish children enjoy cartoons as much as American children.
The Swedish put Christmas trees in their homes. This is a tradition that came from Germany. They put them up two days before Christmas. They decorate them with little straw goats, lights, and glass ornaments. We have the same tradition in America.
Swedish traditions in the Christmas season are similar to, but also different from, American traditions. A tradition we share is the Christmas tree. Another tradition is the Walt Disney Special, which is somewhat American. Traditions that are unique to Sweden are the Saint Lucia ceremony and a big Christmas Eve celebration.