In the hustle bustle of today's world the season has lost some of the magic it once had. Today you see packages under the tree that were for the most part bought and for the other part expensive. The more gifts the better. Take a look at the ancestors we are tracking. What their Christmas must have been like. Some of mine came over before 1700. What kind of life Christmas must have been. There was not time for presents much less celebrating. Every day must have be a celebration of just being alive for one more year. The winters were horrible and people died. I am sure that there was not much celebrating until the spring and it was for making it thru the winter. Then things improved. Merriment became a part of life again, You were lucky indeed if you had money to buy one gift for those special loved ones. Most likely it would be a handmade gift from you to someone else. If you lived far from any settlement that is most likely how you would give gifts. A lot of love went into the gifts made by hand. From the conception to the result would be a labor of love. If you happened to live on the prairie most likely you had no tree. Just a gathering of the family to go over good and bad times of the year. Most of all the gathering of the families were for the most part the best of the season (as it should be today). I guess what I am trying to say is to remember our ancestors this Christmas and the hardships that they went through. Season's Greeting and Happy Holidays Glitz