christmas traditions Archives - It's All About Home With Jo Rae

Today is December 18th, and so far I’ve received, sigh, far more Christmas cards than I’ve sent. I’ll admit that I’m behind in getting my cards out, but I’m afraid that many of my friends and family have abandoned a tradition that has been around since 1843.

That was the year Sir Henry Cole commissioned John Calcott Horsley to paint this card showing the feeding and clothing of the poor. Sir Henry, an inventor, writer, and founder of the two museums from which the Victoria and Albert Museum grew, had so many Christmas greetings to send handwriting each was impossible. Sir Henry’s mass produced card began a tradition that continues today. According to Hallmark, Christmas is the largest card-sending holiday in the United States with approximately 1.5 billion cards sent annually. Many Americans also include a Christmas letter and family photo inside their cards.

In our era of social media, email, and picture messaging, I’m afraid many have replaced the mailed Christmas card with a one dimensional pixel post. It’s only my opinion, but there is no comparison. After all I can’t display an e-card on my mantle and the alert on my email doesn’t compare to the joy of discovering a colorful envelope hand-addressed to me amidst the bills in my mailbox. Can your text offer a holiday scent (I’ve mailed a few needles from my tree), a fun confetti, or a surprise gift? I don’t think so!

Richard Armour, a popular American poet and literary critic wrote, “You cannot reach perfection though you try however hard to there’s always one more friend or so you should have sent a card to.” It’s not too late. Grab a colorful pen and send out a few cards. This is one tradition I plan on keeping.

Merry Christmas,

Jo Rae

(Nothing like my signature, but it’s the best I can do online!)

Ding dong! The doorbell chimed on cue as it had for years each Christmas Eve. I watched from the couch as my children, Timothy and Lauren, race from opposite ends of the house and collide at the door.

Staying up alone on Christmas Eve was difficult for me as a single parent of two small children. I feared I’d nod off while I waited on the little ones to fall asleep. Far too early and at the risk of being caught, I would begin the time-consuming process of assembling hidden gifts, while trying not to make a sound. Rarely was I successful.

The excitement of the holiday would build all season. By the time December 24th arrived, it was hard for any of us to come down from our holiday highs long enough to have sugarplums dancing in our heads. When I learned of a particular tradition that was touted to be the best cure for getting children to sleep on Christmas Eve, I was elated as well as relieved.

Around 8:00 PM on Christmas Eve, a friend would place two wrapped packages on our front steps. She’d ring the doorbell and run around the corner of the house to hide and listen for the squeals of joy as my children discovered the gifts at the door. Each year, the presents were wrapped in paper unlike any wrapping paper under our tree. Each had a note attached, written in an unfamiliar handwriting. The note would read:

Dear Timothy and Lauren,

I stopped by to deliver your toys and see you are still awake.

I’ve left your Christmas pajamas. I will fly by one more time but you better be in bed!

Love,

Santa

In the beginning, I had to read the note to them. All too soon, my children could read the note for themselves. The gentle reminder from Santa Claus noting that Christmas Eve is a busy night for him motivated my children into their new pajamas and tucked in their beds. Before you could say reindeer paws, they were asleep!

Believing in Santa is a lot like believing in God. It takes faith. As Kris Kringle said in the classic movie Miracle on 34th Street, “If you can’t accept anything on faith, you are doomed to a life dominated by doubt.” When children are told there is no Santa, Christmas is never the same. Pajamas that came from Santa enabled us to keep just a small part of the wide-eyed wonder that is lost when we no longer believe.

When Lauren and Timothy reached the teen years, I assumed they’d outgrown this tradition and I reluctantly suggested it might be time to give it up. They were very vocal in their opposition to the change. I’ve enjoyed this ritual almost as much as my children. As each year passed my teens showed less enthusiasm over one more holiday activity, and I faced the reality that one day my kids would be gone.

Traditions change and kids grow up, but I savor every memory of my laughing towheaded son crouched next to his green-eyed, baby sister. Delight spilled out from eyes brighter than any twinkle light on our tree. Encased in their Christmas pajamas, love and joy is smeared across my children’s faces like the remnants of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

Timothy and Lauren are now 25 and 22, and no longer live at home, but Pajamas from Santa still appear each Christmas. They haven’t outgrown this tradition, and it’s a delight to watch them upwrap memories with each pajama gift. This year God gave me a surprise gift, my husband Jim, and new memories are being created. With only 3 days to Christmas I’m still searching for pajamas for his 6’5″ frame. God filled my tall order. Pray I can do the same.

Create a memory . . . start a tradition.