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The long and short of Christmas

By David Haworth - InsideSources.com | Nov 30, 2022

David Haworth

Not the least delight for a foreigner going to live in the United States for the first time was the seasonal proximity of Thanksgiving to Christmas. Winter months were ballasted by two turkey feasts, moments of greed and glory for this newly arrived European. What luxury — “with all the trimmings” — it was like stepping into a Norman Rockwell dining room tableau.

It was therefore a jolt to realize most of the celebrants would go back to work the very next day, Dec. 26. This is Boxing Day in Britain, Ireland and the Commonwealth nations, which has its own rituals and traditions enjoyed while most Americans return to their toils immediately.

Surely Christmas should last longer than that?

Reverse my experience for a U.S. citizen: Such a traveler spending their first Christmas in Europe might puzzle over the meaning of “Little Christmas” in some countries, especially in Scandinavia. For those nations, such a Christmas paradoxically means more or less any social event between early December and mid-January, stealthily prolonging the season to a boisterous five weeks — if you can still stand up.

Already there have been casualties. The editor of a leading Nordic newspaper was fired the other day when a DUI charge followed a “Little Christmas” celebration. Yeah, it’s the Gotcha Season, and the cops are busy.

Cue direct international flights to Lapland (Finland), up 10 percent on last year’s season, with tourists arriving from places as distant as Turkey and Italy to meet Santa Claus at his “official” home above the Arctic Circle.

It’s best to see him during sub-zero temperatures, of course, but the inexhaustible old boy can actually be visited every day of the year — which stretches the definition of “Little Christmas” more than somewhat — and he sells twinkling, unseasonal souvenirs even during the mosquito months. (Reindeer meat is the year-round delicacy up there; this is rather underplayed by the locals, mindful that “eating Bambi” is a quick way to upset the kids.)

Anyway, an invitation labeled “Little Christmas” doubles the obligation to accept; it turns Advent into a party fever epidemic hosted and promoted by businesses, clubs, institutions, anyone hoping to fracture the longest nights of the year. Mailboxes are stuffed with competitive, date-clashing temptations that keep the carousel spinning well into January.

The final jollifications could be an “Ox Kick” — that is, a party to propel guests into the New Year’ s chilly realism. By contrast, Little Christmas in Ireland means just that: an innocent one-day public holiday to mark the arrival in Bethlehem of the Three Wise Men bearing gifts.

The Irish event is sometimes known as “Women’s Christmas” in which womenfolk dump domestic duties, theoretically leaving them for the males to perform, while hen parties break out in pubs and clubs.

In Spain, Italy, Austria and Germany, trios of robe-wearing kids can be seen with boxes collecting house-to-house for charities. It’s known as Three Kings Day and their effort is rewarded with candies.

No such cute rituals are found in non-Catholic England, where Christmas is steeped in the mercantile. Christmas “tradition” is distilled through television repeats of popular comedy shows or the inevitable “It’s a Wonderful Life” starring James Stewart. TV is the elephant in the room, invasively squashing family rituals.

As in the United States, the Twelfth Night (Epiphany) is not a public holiday although it’s one of the oldest celebrations in the Christian calendar. In New Orleans, they make whoopee with King Cakes, a strictly regional enthusiasm just as are celebrations in the Amish community.

And now the bad news. The background to 2022’s Little Christmases across Europe — large or small — is the largest avian flu outbreak on record. So far, at least 48 million turkeys have been culled in the United Kingdom and the European Union during this critical season and many farms will shut for good.

The disease is also rampant in the United States, as are higher prices on both sides of the Atlantic.

Christmas greetings, nonetheless — especially if you find, and can afford, a turkey.

David Haworth has covered Europe since the early 1970s. He wrote this for InsideSources.com.

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