TIP#320 - OF CHRISTMAS DREAMS This is my annual Christmas message to you, my one non-genealogical post each year. If you wish to reprint this or any of the research tips, permission must be requested. Merry Christmas! It is December 21, 2000 as I write this. The lights are off in the house with the exception of a Christmas tree in one corner of my living room. Outside, our Christmas white lights and candy canes are glowing and revealing a soft coating of snow as it continues to drift from the skies. Freezing rain is on its way which will give the entire vista a magical appearance and yet a dangerous driving condition for our modern world. The cardinals, snow birds, chickadees and other of our feather friends I've been feeding throughout the day are silently nested in the tall shrubs by our house. The squirrel who had been gobbling every piece of corn I'd put out is asleep somewhere. Two stray cats that I have taken pity on are curled up in a box on the carport where I'd put an old blanket. No traffic zooms past the house and it is still once more. It reminds me of my past Christmases. When I count back how many Christmases I have celebrated with my family, it's a mixture of sadness and happiness all wrapped into one. The sadness comes with the memories of how many of our family are not here to celebrate with us as in years past. The happiness at childhood excitement over the arrival of Santa Clause and the most important meaning, the birth of the Christ Child. Recently, on a PBS program, a gentleman was showing old time decorations and explaining traditions of the past. He was so young and spoke of the olden days - days that I enjoyed! Whereas the last couple of Christmas seasons for my annul gift to you was about the settlers, this year it will be one of my memories with a touch of the past thrown in. I basically grew up in the country, or in a rural town with small population. It was the golden times I guess - one in which doors were left unlocked at night and the community knew each other by first name. We were able to sing Christmas carols in school and our classrooms were decorated with paper chains of red and green, popcorn and other handmade ornaments. There was always a Christmas program at school for the parents, as well as one at the church. Christmas carolers were always waited for and it was a special thrill to be one of those frozen, rosy cheeked singers! Santa was never seen except maybe on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day - no malls had he or his helpers in every department. The cookies and milk were left out just as today and the anticipation of what might be under the Christmas tree was just as real. I will never forget THE Christmas. We lived 2 miles out in the country and on Christmas Eve had seen 2-3 inches of snow fall. The next morning when I awoke with great anticipation, my parents told me to go look outside! I bundled up in coat, mittens, galloshes, sweater (remember those days!) and ran out into the front yard. I looked toward the house and lo and behold, on the roof were sleigh marks and little footprints! Gifts for the children were not quite as fancy in those days. I grew up past the age of a lump of coal if I'd been bad, but a perfect gift would be a doll, some oranges, some children's gardening tools, a sled, a teddy bear .... nothing electronic with batteries that needed recharging constantly. Games like checkers, Chinese checkers, Old Maid ... these would occupy us through the winter months. And know what? We were as thrilled as any child could be! The only year I wasn't happy with my Christmas presents was the year I found the secret hiding place and peeked at what my parents had gotten me. That sure took the fun out of it - and they knew it too, I didn't re-wrap the packages very well! My favorite gift of all times was a teddy bear I named Paddy O'Cinnamon. I don't know how many of you remember a 15 minute daily radio program that ran 2 weeks before Christmas up until Christmas eve day called "Paddy O'Cinnamon, the Cinnamon Bear." I loved that show and "my" Paddy is still with me at age 57 and showing every bit of his age. I was thrilled a few years back to find a tape of that show which I listened to after all these years with my girls who are not quite toddlers anymore, but who loved it too. So, in this Christmas season, take time to tell your children or grandchildren of your Christmas memories. Tell them of presents you remember, customs your family celebrated, funny things that happened, meals you enjoyed. We have always had certain customs of our own - simple things but it is the simple that can be the most beautiful. Our tree always goes up on Thanksgiving Day and comes down on New Year's Day. If we don't have snow on the ground, we have "magic snow" on Christmas morning. If you would like to know about magic snow, write me privately, many of my friends have used this technique with their younger children on snowless days. We always made our own decorations for the tree in addition to the "store bought" variety. Now when my youngest daughter married last year, she was allowed to go through the decoration boxes and pick her favorite decorations to start her own Christmas tree. Sometimes she chose the plainest of decorations because it reminded her of a time, a place, a person or an event that meant a lot to her. No matter where you live, or if you don't celebrate Christmas, it is so important to have a special time and a special way to celebrate an event. Sometimes this is by telling our descendants of our lives, or even stories that we have read of customs in other times and places. We have celebrated Christmas in the snows of Illinois and Missouri, to the Dallas area. Even at 5,000 feet on a mountain top 50miles outside of Tucson with Christmas lights shining from cactus (carefully!) and being able to be seen for miles ... to our beloved Kentucky. We've made memories, adjusted customs, added traditions; taking something from everyplace we've lived. It doesn't matter if there is one present under the tree or none - Christmas is love, is sharing, is loving. Our Christmas celebration will be small this year as our family circle narrows, but when I look out my front window and look out on the soft white stillness - I can still remember not only the Christmases of my past, but wonder how our settlers saw December 25th 200 years or so ago. With candles on their trees, lit only on Christmas eve, with homemade gifts of aprons, shirts, knitwork, oranges and apples ... they made their memories too. Merry Christmas to all of you. Sandi (c) Copyright 21 December 2000, Sandra K. Gorin. All rights reserved, sgorin@glasgow-ky.com Col. Sandi Gorin, 205 Clements, Glasgow, KY 42141 (270) 651-9114 Member: Glasgow-Barren Co Chamber of Commerce Publishing: http://ggpublishing.tripod.com/ <>< RESEARCH: http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/genbbs.cgi/USA/Ky/Tips KYBIOS: http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/genbbs.cgi/USA/Ky/Bios SCKY ARCHIVES: http://www.public.asu.edu/~moore/files/sck/sck.html Merged Surname Registry all counties in South Central KY: http://www.public.asu.edu/~moore/files/surnames/surnames.txt