Christmas comes once a year, and is the most loved of all the family festival celebrations. Come October, and some folks start paying attention to shopping sales, while some other folks start dropping hints on what they would “simply love” to have. Family get-togethers are planned, and people not likely to go to their own homes for Christmas get invited by their friends. Early days in December see enthusiastic Moms planning cookie making afternoons, where you come home to a kitchen bathed in cinnamon, walnut, raisin and wine flavors wafting through the air.
To some people, the holidays are a time to think of those not as fortunate as them. People staying alone, elderly sick people with no family, homeless people; Helpful volunteers spend some golden moments with these folks in their silver haired years. Taking them some home made goodies, and decorations to liven up, say, the lounge of the elder care home.
There are several ways you can make this a Christmas to remember.
Make your own tree from Origami. Don’t cut a real tree. Learn to make and decorate an Origami Christmas tree. Origami is the Japanese art and science of paper folding and one may make not only a tree but also even various birds to decorate the tree. There are several books available on Origami with simple step-by-step instructions, and there is a site that gives instructions on making wonderful tree decorations.
Bring out all your heirloom decorations collected over the years that depict our wonderful folk artists. Display them in a nativity scene. Or create a tableaux that celebrates some ecofriendly concept, and your children will learn something new as well. Decide on a new theme every year.
Find out how Christmas is celebrated in different countries. For example, in Germany, where it almost always snows around the holiday season, they have a wonderful tradition of drinking a special warm wine with friends and family. Every year, learn about a new country and emulate at least one simple custom, just for fun. Speaking of snow, you know the best way to make this a memorable holiday for Len and Maggie across the road from you, is to give them a wonderful Christmas present in the form of, say, ten free snow shoveling activities over the winter, for their driveway.
Get your children involved in the seasonal holiday foods. Let them choose an item, and watch as they have a blast making it and presenting it to the whole family on this day.
In today’s world of shopping sales, ipods, and smarter and smarter electronics, Christmas is a time, not for acquiring these things; although it seems to be that way. It is a time to think of those who do not have every thing that you have. Those children, who save their pennies over years and then break open their piggy banks to donate to the tsunami affected children, have some really great family and teachers motivating them. It is very important, that some kind of activity of helping folks, not as lucky as you, be initiated on the auspicious occasion of Christmas.
f you live in Southern California, take the family to see the folk art collection at Rogers Gardens, in Costa Mesa, CA . Let this be their introduction to art appreciation, learning about folk history, fine art techniques, and how technologies in art, change and move across the world. It also teaches children to move carefully through the delicate exhibits, and avoid dashing around everywhere, which is something almost mandatory in most Malls around Christmas time.
It’s probably a good time to start a collection, which you can preserve and hand down across generations. Budget for some single-wonderful collectors decoration pieces. Maybe it’s Folk art. Maybe it’s Tribal. Anything you like. Revel in the beauty of it. Enjoy saving for it. Then lovingly pack it away around new years, so you can admire it again, next year, with a new piece for company.
Lastly, you will want to have a wonderful and healthful holiday feast. There are several sources across the Net that give you low fat and even fat-free Christmas recipes. Look for them to help create lots of dishes using fruit and vegetables, so your family gets their required nutrition. Let them eat it to their hearts content. In today’s world where obesity has assumed epidemic proportions, this could possibly be the best lifestyle gift you can give your family, and make it memorable.
