Season’s Greetings, Christmas

Season’s Greetings friends and family!

We were fortunate to be invited to several Christmas gatherings; each one of them had a different flavor. At our Danish friends’ home, we ate a curried dish and afterwards Lars tried to show me and another colleague, Sam, how to make a Danish Christmas star from paper strips. I brought home a wonderful creation, like a Moravian Star, that was probably 25% mine and 75% Lars.

The Mennogroup gathering was at Bob and Jo Yoder’s with a potluck fellowship. The food was familiar with chicken, ham, mashed potatoes, gravy, green bean casserole and much more. There was singing of Christmas carols and a White Elephant gift exchange for the adults which turned out to be a real hit (the children all got a stocking stuffed with small gifts). At our Canadian friends’ home on Christmas Eve there was food and the meeting of new people, friends and neighbours of Sam and Kathy’s. We had gone to the Christmas Eve service at ‘our’ church, International Lutheran Church, and had sung the Huron Carol with the other Canadians in the congregation. Now we were staying up late, past 11 p.m. and everyone was tired but happy. Christmas Day was soon here.

Christmas morning broke with sunshine through the windows, slowly waking us up. The girls were ready to open presents and we spent time opening all the gifts from loved ones; Grandpa & Grandma Amstutz (the girls had opened gifts from the Roth Grandparents a couple of weeks earlier), Aunts & Uncles and cousins from both sides.

Tamara Hayes, our MCC worker, neighbor and friend arrived in time to join in on the end of the gift opening, which included Christmas stockings for each of us. Then we put together a brunch of coffee, eggs and toast, cinnamon rolls and fruit. It was wonderfully relaxing to move leisurely from the scene around the Christmas tree to our table then back to the dining room to watch the girls enjoy their new gifts. I will keep warm memories of our first Christmas in Ethiopia, opening gifts with Christmas music in the background, sunshine pouring in on a quiet day in our peaceful house. We missed our family, yes, but a new family tradition was begun on that day. And it was gratifying to see Amani, Abby and Sophia enjoying the day so much.

That evening, as dusk settled outside we gathered in front of the tree and fireplace, where the lights and candles are, and I began reading Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol to the family. The power went out but no matter, I used a flashlight. I didn’t get through the whole book but no matter, it was enough to sit in a semi-circle of chairs doing something that doesn’t happen often, gathering together to read and be read to. It ended a relaxed day, Christmas Day 2007.