The Holiday Month

by Nancy Northcott

Is your holiday looking like this? Jo had some interesting comments along this line yesterday. I hope to be done with holiday shopping and parking lots in a day or so, which gives me time to think about other things.

There are actually lots of holidays in December. There's Christmas, of course, the 600-pound gorilla in the room because of its combined religious and commercial significance. Earlier in the month, we had Hanukkah, with the dreidl and the menorah.

My husband comes of combined Swedish Lutheran and Polish Jewish stock, so we try to remember Hanukkah in the midst of the Christmas chaos. Neither of us knew much about Hanukkah and were surprised to learn about it from, of all things, The Rug-Rats' Chanukah video when our son was small. Our son immediately wanted to know more about the holiday. He was especially interested in dreidl games and the menorah. We suspected these had more to do with obtaining gifts and playing with fire than with religious observance, but we figured he'd learn about it and then do with the knowledge as he chose. Friends of ours, who had invited us to a Seder that year, were happy to explain Hanukkah and Passover to him. Of course, they'd tried before, but you have to seize the moment when it arrives. So we had a menorah and a Christmas tree opposite each other in the living room for a few days.

Of course, there's also the Solstice. Some of our friends celebrate that, rather than Christmas. The idea of gathering around bonfires seems to have a universal human appeal. The shortest day of the year will be Saturday. The idea of lighting a fire and sitting in front of it, celebrating the end of winter and the movement of the Earth toward spring, sounds great. Unfortunately, we have a wood stove rather than an open hearth, and unnecessary fires are discouraged because of the drought. So we'll be noting the Solstice more in thought than in deed.

The Roman festival of Saturnalia also took place in December and was a Solstice festival. I doubt they used chili peppers to celebrate, but this photo was cheerful and had the right colors in it. Saturnalia was "the" holiday in the Roman year. Martial wrote Xenia and Apophoreba for it. The poems were published in December and intended to accompany the "guest gifts" common in the day. As the festival grew, it came to include choosing a Lord of Misrule, a custom that continued down through the Tudor 12 Days of Christmas celebrations. Saturnalia celebrations continued until about the 4th century, when Christmas overshadowed it completely.

And, of course, we have Christmas. Trees, gifts, and food. Excited children and anticipation. When I was younger, I looked forward to opening gifts. Now I look forward to seeing others open what I've chosen for them. I'll never forget the Christmas our son came into the living room and saw Tigger peeking out of his stocking. His face just glowed. When he was little, he played with his stocking stuffers for a while before even approaching the tree. Then we'd have breakfast and open a few gifts, pausing to watch him play with his. I still look forward to seeing his face, but the experience has lost some of its magic since he aged out of toys and into electronics.

After Christmas, we have Boxing Day, when we'll have a special post by our own Anna Sugden, and Kwanzaa, the African and Pan-African holiday. Kwanzaa celebrates the community and harvest and the principles of unity, self-determination, collective will and responsibility, comparative economics, purpose, creativity and faith. Then the year comes to an end with New Year's Eve on December 31, and a new year begins.

So what do you enjoy most about the holidays in December? How have your observances changed?

Recipe for Decadent Brownies

Ingredients:
Favorite brownie mix for 8"x8" pan (you'll use 9"x9", though)
8 oz. softened cream cheese
2 eggs
1 tbsp. softened butter
2 tbsp. white flour
1 tsp. almond extract (optional)
3 tbsp. granulated sugar
half of a 12-oz pkg. of chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees;
Grease bottom of 9"x9" pan;
Prepare brownie mix according to package instructions and set aside;
Beat cream cheese and butter together until well combined;
Add eggs, flour, sugar, and optional almond extract to cream cheese mixture and mix until smooth;
Stir in chocolate chips;
Place brownie batter in pan and spread to make an even layer
Spoon cream cheese mixture over the brownie batter;
Using a plastic spatula, swirl cream cheese mixture and brownie batter together but do not completely combine;
Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes or until inserted toothpick comes out clean;
Allow brownies to cool before slicing.

If you want to add a note of decadence, frost cooled brownies with your favorite cream cheese or vanilla frosting (made or purchased).

Pressing craisins or red candied fruit into the frosting and then sprinkling with grated coconut will give you a berries-in-snow effect. Dried cherries will work if you can find ones that are actually red; fresh fruit tends to bleed color into the frosting.

One commenter, chosen at random, will receive a $15.00 Borders gift card. Enjoy the holidays, everyone.