Christmas Tradition.

Can you remember back to the times of your youth, there are a few traditions that we can all remember, see if you can pick o few out.

Christmas Tradition.

 

There used to be a lovely saying “If it snowed on Christmas Eve, then geese were being plucked in heaven.  Many of the Christmas traditions are still practiced today such as cutting a sprig of Holly, if you’re lucky the birds might have left a few berries on it. Bring it into the house add a few pine cones and a bit of ivy and decorate the press, hang bits of it over picture frames and mirrors and make a Xmas decoration for the front door.  Some people will go for a swim on Christmas morning. The Wren boy procession is becoming something of a rarity but still goes on in some parts of Ireland. Whitewashing the house and outbuildings was done by the men and the inside of the house was cleaned by the women.

Part of our Christmas tradition is getting out the step ladder climbing up into the loft and retrieving the tinsel and threadbare decorations that we really should have thrown out last year but I thought that they’d do another year. The arguing about the fact that they’re falling to bits and where are the drawing pins and I wonder is Don McGreeveys still open. Funny thing is it always seems to work out in the end.

After evening meal on Christmas eve the kitchen table was again set and on it were placed a loaf of bread filled with caraway seeds and raisins, a pitcher of milk and a large lit candle. The door to the house was left unlatched so that Mary and Joseph, or any wandering traveller, could avail of the welcome. Most people will have a small crib in the house as a symbol of the birth in a stable placing a small baby Jesus in the manger on Xmas morning.  Oh and don’t forget to leave out a mince pie and a bottle of guiness for Santa although a carrot and a glass of milk is now the more usual because Santa should not drink and drive. This tradition of leaving something out for Santa may stem from the old Irish tradition of leaving a seed cake and a drink out for Mary and Joseph.

Choosing the Xmas tree has become a modern tradition and many families will go together in order to agree size and shape. Then the Trees are taken home and decorated with lights and trinkets, generally the same ones year after year, though some style conscious people create (or buy) a whole new look for their tree annually.  Then sticking the fairy/angel on the top. Or a twinkling star or whatever takes your fancy. We like to buy a big box of roses chocolates and hang them individually on the branches of the tree. Closely followed by young and not so young thieving fingers and crafty dog who seems to have developed the knack of removing the chocolate while leaving the paper and string still hanging from the tree.

The 8th of December, or around that time, is the usual date for putting up and decorating the tree although some people may do it later or earlier. In fact it has been known for Xmas trees to appear in late November.

The streets of Westport and every other place are filled with Christmas lights, and of course one or more Christmas Trees.  Shops try to outdo each other by having the most impressive window displays  and Cribs are erected, some almost life size, in churches, town centres and in shopping areas. Some shopkeepers still uphold the tradition of giving a little Xmas box or gift to their regular customers and many of the older members of our community will have fond memories of another Xmas box that was received, sent by relatives overseas.

Decorating the outside of houses was a rarity but it is now becoming more common, with some people putting on quite lavish displays of lights. Talking about shining lights, one of the old customs that continues to be observed is the placing of a candle in the window on Christmas Eve. It is a symbol to welcome strangers who may be travelling abroad this night. I like to think it shines like a small lighthouse guiding home those who may have left home for one reason or another, usually to look for and hopefully find work. I’m not exactly sure how well strangers dropping by for a visit would actually be welcomed nowadays were they to take the symbol literally. The tradition of a candle in the window stems from the fact that Mary and Joseph were refused room at the inn and this symbol represents a welcome and an offer of warmth and shelter.

However, the little lights shining in windows do give a warm and welcoming feel when driving through the countryside or walking through a town. The candle is usually a large one so that it will last throughout the Christmas period and we used to place it into a pot of sand or earth on Christmas Eve although nowadays its one of those candelabra type of stands that seem to be favoured. The youngest member of the family is given the honour of lighting the candle, under supervision and when the time comes after the Christmas period it is their job to blow it out. It’s blown out and relit every night just in case the dog might knock it over, A bit of a modern twist but health and safety you know.

On Xmas morning the church bells are rung all over Ireland to call people to mass and after the service you would visit the crib and if no one was looking you might borrow a bit of straw for luck. Then home for the dinner and maybe a few stories and a drink of something a wee bit stronger than tea.

An extremely important tradition that must be kept up in this ever changing Ireland that we now live in is Nollaig na mBean or Women’s Christmas. January 6^th is the Feast of the Epiphany; it is the last day of Christmas and the day when all women in Ireland get the day off. This is the day when any right thinking man will do the housework, cooking and washing up. Breakfast in bed is the order of the day and you start the day as you mean to go on. Oh and if your wife wishes to go out with her friends for a bit of craic then fair play to her.