North Myrtle Beach Times Serving our Community and the Grand Strand for over 50 years
By Kaye Collins
The core of Christmas is celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. It wasn’t until the 19th century that Americans began to embrace Christmas by reinventing Christmas from a loud carnival holiday into a family-centered day of peace and nostalgia.
Old family Christmas photos often show simple joys, like kids with new toys (Barbies, teddy bears), families in matching outfits or paper crowns, decorating trees with tinsel, opening presents and gathering for festive dinners, evoking wistfulness for simpler times.
Bonnie Young recounted the Christmas Day traditions her family celebrated over the years. “My daddy would head into the den to start a fire to keep us warm,” she shared. “We made him promise not to sneak a peek at what Santa had brought.” As a young girl, she was filled with excitement, eagerly awaiting the moment when the doors would open, allowing her, her sister and their mom to rush in with squeals and laughter upon discovering a new doll in their designated spot along with other delightful gifts Santa had left beneath the tree. This cherished tradition remains a beloved memory for her each year. Bonnie also shared that they had their Christmas dinner at noon and had leftovers for supper.
Toni Jones shared her memory where she wanted a doll. “Each Christmas, I received a doll and I would ask for three items, with a doll always being one of them” she continued. “Every year, we would dress our dolls and clean them up so that Santa could see how well we took care of them and deserved another one. Christmas used to feel so enchanting.”
Brad reminisced about Christmas mornings when he would sneak down the stairs to check under the tree for the gifts Santa had left for him. One year, his parents outsmarted him by concealing his presents from Santa in the hall closet. “I thought Santa had forgotten to visit my house,” he recounted. “When my parents finally woke up around 6 a.m., I was still asleep in my room, so they quietly entered the living room and placed the toys, books and model car kits under the tree.” My mom was busy cooking in the kitchen when I finally made my way downstairs. “I dreaded looking under the Christmas tree, but I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I had been a good boy that year.” He went on to say, “As an adult, my parents were unaware of the torment I experienced that particular year and years to follow they continued hid my Santa gifts in increasingly challenging locations.” He mentioned that he did not realize as a child that his parents looked forward to seeing the excitement on his face, which brought them joy on Christmas morning.
We always gathered at my great-grandmother’s house every year on Christmas Eve for our family reunion. All the great-grandparents, grandparents, sons, daughters, aunts, uncles and cousins would be there.
