Frohe Weihnachten

This year I am celebrating Christmas in the small town of Jesterburg close to Hamburg, Germany. Christmas in a different culture is always a little unsettling, as one never knows what to expect but if you think about it, it really is very special. It is a memory making time as one always remembers a Christmas unique from Christmas past. The contrast is the very essence of bittersweet.

I was a little nervous about this Christmas I will admit. Even though I spent my fair share of Christmases in Saudi Arabia and other locations, there is always a little heartache for me when Christmas is without my nuclear family. It has been years and years since we were all together though. My eldest brother has been married for over two decades and has built his own Christmas traditions with his wife and three children, my middle brother travels as I have, and his life is busy and full.

We had, when I was growing up, and it was just us five (insert wistful sigh here) the BEST nuclear family Christmases that ANYONE could ever dream up with stuffed stockings, roaring fires, (especially for roasting marshmallows and chestnuts) and one or two gifts off our list that were patiently prepared for Santa’s understanding then any lucky child could ever wish for. As much as I would like to go back to those Christmases I can’t and that is okay… I had them and am forever grateful for the efforts and sacrifices my parents made to make those beautiful Christmases come true.

This Christmas, I found myself looking forward, absorbing a new culture and trying my best to speak and understand German and Polish (no mean feat I assure you), and observe new customs like celebrating on Christmas on Christmas Eve and having Oplatek.

Oplatek is had before sitting down to Christmas Eve dinner. Many families with roots in Poland and other Eastern European countries take part in this tradition, which has roots dating back hundreds of years. Each member of the household takes the wafer and expresses his or her hopes for each person around the table in the new year like good health. The wafer is typically a rectangle about the size of a hand and embossed with a Christmas scene, such as the Nativity. It is made of flour and water pressed and is similar to the bread wafer used in Holy Communion. I thought this was super sweet and so special even though I only understood a few of the kind words that were shared with me. I felt the kindness through expressive eyes and warm hugs.

Christmas Day here is a relaxed affair. I called my parents at 6:30 a.m. to catch them before they started their festivities, I was grateful that I can be transported so easily to their small home in Florida, that is not filled with so many people as years past but still keeps the traditions from our Caribbean culture. Like calypso music early Christmas morning - which if I heard it now would make me burst into ALL THE TEARS. A classic Christmas calypso - “Ma Ma Bake Your Jonny Cake Christmas Comin’” by Stanley and the 10 Sleepless Knights is one that is a family favorite.

We move, in our global communities through and around Christmas traditions at times with jarring speed and at best beautifully and fluidly. The best is to take a little from each culture we encounter, never forget what was, and carry all the beauty of each good Christmas celebrated without accident or incident with all the love our heart and hands can carry into the future.

I have much in my Christmas basket of memories. The British Virgin Islands, the Netherlands Antilles, Princeton, New Jersey (where my nuclear family spent our first cozy Christmases as immigrants to America), Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, Germany, Poland and beyond. Who knows what next year will hold. The thing is to:

Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Make the Yule-tide gay
From now on
Our troubles will be miles away

Here we are as in olden days
Happy golden days of yore
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Gather near to us once more

Through the years we all will be together
If the fates allow
Hang a shining star upon the highest bough

…And have yourself a merry little Christmas now

Merry Christmas Friends! Please share what you are doing for Christmas present or what you have done in Christmases past that make the holiday so special for you in the comment box below.