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===== Español =====
Desde que mamá falleció todos los años coloco la navidad (esté donde esté) como un recordatorio en su honor. Para ella, cualquier festividad queda opacada con lo que la navidad lograba en nuestra familia.
Para continuar su espiritu, tengo 10 años colocando el arbol de navidad en su honor, para mantener la esencia del espiritu de colaboración, amistad y ambiente familiar.
Feliz preparación de la navidad
Gimp: Capa en modo solapar con desaturación al 80%
===== English =====
Since mother died I always set up Christmas (wherever I am) as a reminder in her honor. For her, any celebration was overshadowed by what could Christmas do in our family.
To continue her spirit, I have 10 years setting the Christmas tree in her honor, to keep the essence of the spirit of cooperation, friendship and family atmosphere.
Merry Christmas preparation
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Isn’t a bit early to set the Christmas tree? we are still in November… Santa will not come so early…
BTW, in my country we have 2 different Santa: the first one is Saint Nicholas (Romanian: Sfîntul Niculaie, just like my name :D) coming on 6th December (St. Nicolas Day), which drop gifts in the kids shoes and the proper Santa Claus (Romanian: Mo? Cr?ciun) coming on the Christmas eve. You need a tree only for the second one.
Oh, you talk about serious stuff, remembering your mother, and the silly me can’t think of anything else than toys, gifts, Santa…
@nicubunu In Venezuela we don’t believe truly in Santa, Here we say to kids that “jesus child” bring their presents. I know is really weird because a “new born” can’t even walk to give you presents… but that’s how is done here.
and yes… Christmas to me is more about give presents, cook and remember my mom, spending time with my family (that I usually can’t)
I just realised you don’t (and really you can’t) fully get what the Christmas is about (as it was “invented” in another part of the world) – for you is probably mostly a religious holiday, still not the largest one (according with the Christian doctrine, Easter is much more important). However, it is about the winter solstice, about the Christmas tree (evergreen) and about the Christmas food, let me get into details:
- in the Bible, nowhere is mentioned 25 December as a date for Jesus birth… still it is not an arbitrary date: it was set then by the Roman empire to embrace and extend (just like in today’s computer software from Microsoft) a pagan/Roman tradition: Sol Invictus/winter solstice. Living near the equator, your days are split about 12h/12h of day/night… around here in the winter the day goes to a bit under 9h and the night a bit over 15h… Christmas is the time of the year when the day start growing again, is the victory of the day over night, light over darkness, is the rebirth (thus the association with the Christmas birth);
- again, living near the equator, for you the nature is green all year long. Not so for us, here all what is green dies in the winter, with one single exception: the conifer trees (the evergreen). The Christmas tree is just like that, the celebration of the life resisting the winter (again, I believe this is something pre-Christian). Probably we decorate the tree, the house and the city with the Christmas lights also as a resistance against the winter long nights;
- the food is also important: with the nature dead during the winter, people had few options for eating (there is nothing to harvest), traditionally they stockpiled cereals, potatoes, cabbage and pickles and survived with those until the spring. But this is not enough, you need a lot of energy to resist during the cold weather (I don’t talk about modern day society, with supermarkets, imported food and such), so almost all families used to grow pigs. It became a tradition to sacrifice the pigs for Christmas and have meat for the entire winter (to go along with potatoes and cabbage). The winter was also good for preserving the meat, in the medieval era people didn’t have freezers, but during the winter they practically lived in a freezer (at under 0°C). Keep in mind the Christmas is preceded by several weeks of fasting, probably the last chance to eat fresh vegetables, and you will understand how it is a big food party, largely based on pork;
- not last, the carols: you probably are familiar with religious and modern carols, but in a traditional society you can see some pre-Christian ones, with masked people, costumes and a lot of noise: those are remains of some fertility rituals and something people in the past though as a way to fight the winter and the darkness.
On top of those add the religious parts you already know already, add the modern day over-commercialisation and I believe you can get a better picture.
@nicubunu yes, for us is a complete diferent history. For us christmas is more about family… nothing else.
- Vacations time: for many of us is the only period of the year when we can travel to see our family; so you can see in a 2 person house a bunch of people (15 or more)
- Food: we cook in family, our typical meal this days is something call “hallaca”, and is made by (at least) 5 people. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hallaca
For us, christmas is more about what you can share with your friends and family after a complete year working or at school. Besides, I’m agnostic :\
…and I am an atheist, but this does not mean I am not aware about what is happening around, it also mean that I should have some knowledge about the doctrine I claim is wrong.
And speaking of food: http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&source=hp&q=pomana+porcului
I think everywhere in the world Christmas is supposed to be celebrated in the family.
@nicubunu of course I know the “basics” about the Christmas celebration, but that doesn’t mean I follow all the steps.
haha! here we probably have once again quite different points of view, as you know it from a catholic perspective and i am more familiar with the orthodoxy.
however, yesterday evening i missed an opportunity: passed near a christmas concert place when they had a wonderful carol/tradition with people dressed as bears (i believe using real furs) and a lot of noise. too bad i arrived just when they were ending and recorded less than 30 seconds of useful material.
excelente recuerdo e inmerable foto,creeme que me conmovio profundamente…saludo cordial desde colombia
excelente recuerdo e inmejorable foto,creeme que me conmovio profundamente…saludo cordial desde colombia