Love and Peace
Christmas as a young girl in
Indiana in the 60s and 70s
will always hold a special
meaning for me. I had two
older sisters, and our
parents always made us feel loved and
cared for all year, but especially at
Christmas time. Our parents would decorate the house from top to bottom both
inside and out with lights, decorations,
keepsakes, and even reindeer on the roof.
Our Christmas tree, decorated with many
ornaments we girls had made, was fresh
and gave off the sweet smell of pine
throughout the house. My mom always
wanted silvery tinsel on our tree. We had
to make sure that we only ever hung one
strand at a time—no bunches clumped
together on our trees! We always made
cookies, fudge, and my favorite, divinity,
around Christmas each year, some for gifts
to neighbors and relatives and some for us
to enjoy.
My sisters and I would excitedly anticipate Christmas morning, but first we
would have to go to bed early on
Christmas Eve. Then, our parents would
awaken us around 11: 30 p.m. for us to get
ready for the midnight service. Early on
Christmas morning, we would run downstairs to get a peek at the wonderful gifts
that our parents had set under the tree for
us. As Christmas carols played on the
turntable in the background, we opened
our gifts individually so that everyone
could see each gift. This made us appreciate the gifts themselves, as well as the
givers.
Love and peace radiated throughout our
home all year, but I will always cherish the
warm memories of my childhood
Christmases in Indiana.
– Betsy Chastain
Homeschool Nations
Coordinator for Tennessee
www.homeschoolblogger.com/Tennessee
www.homeschoolblogger.com/Sweet
HomeTennessee
