Senior Slant...
Christmas Calories Don't Count!
By Hilda Maston
It's interesting that any discussion of
Christmases past brings up a discussion of holiday food.
It seems
that each family has its own food traditions.
Christmas Eve at our house meant oyster stew. Oysters
were cooked just enough to make them ruffle a little.
The cream, butter and milk we added had to be farm fresh
to make the stew just right. The oyster stew worked out
just fine, some of us liked the oysters and some liked
the stew.
Living
in Wisconsin, a lot of our food traditions had to do
with foods that would sustain one in below-zero
temperatures.
One of
our traditions was Christmas morning breakfast. We were
too excited to eat much, but the Jule Kaka went down
very easily. Jule Kaka is a coffeecake made with
sweet-roll dough and dried fruits. Very Scandinavian!
The English tradition of roast beef and Yorkshire
pudding took care of dinner, and pleased my English dad.
Down the
street, my Polish friend favored stuffed cabbage for the
holiday meal, while my Italian sister-in-law’s family
had Veal Birds as their main dish.
When I
lived in the South, it was still different. There, the
holiday table groaned under its burden of black-eyed
peas, rice, squash, turkey or fried chicken, and pecan
pies. Many different kinds of pickles and relishes
spiced the meal.
Out
West, in ranch country, I noticed that thick steaks were
part of the holiday fare. Here in the Northwest, there
are some who prefer salmon or crab for the festive meal.
So, it
seems that different parts of the country have different
traditions. Wouldn't it be wonderful to have a little
private jet plane, so we could travel all over and
visit each area, and so taste foods of the many
different traditions? One good thing to keep in mind……
Christmas calories don't count!
Gift of the Magi
Sometimes I wish that the three kings had left the
presents at home when they went to see the baby Jesus.
That way
the tradition of giving presents at Christmas time would
never have got started, and we could celebrate Christmas
without the craziness of Christmas shopping,
stressed-out people, and the overburdened credit card,
the worry associated with the modern Christmas.
We could
concentrate on beautiful music, family gathering, giving
to the poor, and meeting with friends and neighbors in
peace and good will.
Just
imagine. Picture it, no Christmas merchandise in
the stores even before Halloween, no stressed-out
parents who can't find the exact wanted toy.
Wouldn’t
it be wonderful if we turn the Christmas Season from
commercial to compassionate! Peace, calm and happiness
instead of worry and fatigue…. that would be a real
Christmas.
