Merry Christmas.  Most of the USA took the day off last Friday to celebrate Christmas Eve, even though the 24th was really yesterday.  The powers that be don’t want anyone to lose a day off.

But, it’s your holiday.  It’s not my holiday. Nor have I ever considered celebrating.  So, I wish you the best holiday celebration ever!

It should also explain that the fact that our family doesn’t celebrate the holiday doesn’t mean that we never created our own family traditions revolving about this day.  Many Jewish families consider eating Chinese food on Christmas day to be the right tradition. After all, for decades, it was the Jews and the Chinese that were the two largest immigrant groups that were truly ailed as part of the populace.   And, Chinese restaurants were open on Christmas day and Eve.  (Another factor- there is no Christian iconography adorning the restaurants.)  However, our family follows the rules of kashrut, so Chinese food is forbidden- even though they do separate meat from dairy;  it’s the meat that is not kosher, not to mention the shellfish on their menus.

For years, I’d haul my kids to the local Shoney’s. One of the few places that stayed open on Christmas morning.    But, then, poof- Shoney’s disappeared from the marketplace.

That forced us to find an alternative place for our brunch.  We chose a local diner, one that- to entice guests to patronize their establishment- had their own Santa walking among the brunch crowd. Seeing the happiness in others made us smile.  (The food wasn’t bad, either.)

(When my kids were younger, we’d volunteer to work the night before (aka Christmas Eve) serving the homeless at a local shelter [the Carpenter’s Shelter]. Our efforts (and those of our fellow synagogue congregants) made it possible for the regular staff to celebrate their holiday night with their own families.  Since we replaced them that night.)

But, today is  Christmas.  So, after our breakfast, we’d head home and gather up the rest of the tribe to enjoy a movie. We’d pretty much have the whole theater to ourselves, so we could kibitz and laugh and enjoy the movie.

This year, my son is hightailing it to Maryland  (only because he has been out of town for a week already, just arriving back in New York) to continue another tradition that he has developed.  He takes his mom over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, heading to the Eastern Shore, to celebrate at my ex-wife’s family Christmas celebration. I am guessing he will bring a tuna fish sandwich, since I won’t be cooking the [kosher] turkey (which afforded us the ability to enjoy the food at this celebration).

Moreover, my step-son celebrates his birthday tomorrow.  But at the family celebration, they will include his special occasion.   (Happy birthday, Matt! He was excited once he joined our family, since the celebration of his birthday was no longer subsumed by the Christmas rush. Not so anymore.)

 

Me? What will I do today?  I will pig out on streaming movies- Netflix, Paramount, Amazon, Acorn, Peacock, among others.  And, I will probably make popcorn a few times.  (You know, real kernels, air popped, a drop of margarine.  YUM!).  I might even add a sufganiya (a Chanuka-inspired donut) with black cherry filling to my snacking.  Or, make Sfardi versions (which don’t have the filling- but are replete with cinnamon and ginger.)

Then, I will have to start cooking.  I am preparing a feast for my friends who celebrate the holiday.  Soup, salad, turkey, asparagus, stir-fried vegetables,  rice,  and dessert.

For all of you? I wish you the very best of what you need, for health and contentedness, to be surrounded by those you love and revel in same the whole year through.

(By the way… You notice how you celebrate Christmas EVE????? And New Year’s EVE???? As opposed to your other holidays that are only day long celebrations? Well, when the 25th of December was chosen as the holiday date, it related to a replacement for the 25th of Kislev (Chanuka). And, just like Chanuka is the Festival of Lights, where we want to bring joy, light, and happiness to the world- so is Christmas. Of course, ALL Jewish holidays (from Shabat to our New Year’s [Rosh Hashana], from Chanuka to the three festivals) ALL start in the evening. Because the Supreme Being decreed- it was evening, it was morning…one day. So, our “days” start the evening before.