Christmas Customs Crisis?

In the 1971 movie Fiddler on the Roof, the musical numbers are familiar even fifty years after the fact. Songs like “Matchmaker, Matchmaker” and “Sunrise, Sunset” play in my head in the voices of those long-ago performers. But it’s the opening number – “Tradition” – I hear most clearly, in the robust voice of actor Topol. The lyrics, covering the expected roles of father, mother, son, and daughter, speak to maintaining things as they always were. Which brings me to Christmas, and my family’s somewhat threatened traditions.

The easy way out here would be to list mine and ask you for yours.  We’d probably have some traditions in common and others we’d be hearing about for the first time.  Instead let me ask, are any of them robust enough to make it through the long haul?  As fast as the world is changing, you have to wonder what Christmas celebrations will look like ten and twenty years from now.  Seriously, do you expect hard-copy Christmas cards in the 2030s?  (Will you even have a mailbox?)

The Christmas tree is a good place to start.  As I’ve blogged about before, our tree is always real (versus artificial), purchased from a nearby lot after choosing the best fit for the house and budget.  This year however, I admit to a pause when I saw the price tags on the branches.  I swear the cost of Christmas trees doubled from 2022.  Economics says it’s a case of supply and demand, but in this case both are declining.  Tree farms surrender to developers.  The preference for artificial trees has risen steadily over the past fifteen years (to 77% of us now).  So less trees and less demand.  My 2030 Christmas may include an artificial tree whether I like it or not.

Christmas dinner faces a similar challenge.  The beef tenderloin we prefer for our celebration is a once-a-year luxury but it’s about to become a never-a-year purchase.  Even at a big box like Costco a trimmed tenderloin sets you back $40 a serving.  You start to wonder if burgers wouldn’t be just as satisfying simply for the money saved.  Even better – snacking throughout the day, and then your Christmas dinner appetite will be satisfied by a few side dishes and dessert?

Christmas (Eve) church already faced its toughest test (COVID) but did it really survive?  I remember the service we attended in 2020… from the “comfort” of our car with the preacher and the choir at the edge of the church parking lot.  The next two Christmases brought parishioners back indoors… but in far fewer numbers.  I admit to getting comfortable with “laptop church” every now and then, but Christmas Eve will be in person as long as there are sanctuaries and services.

Christmas carols may be the one tradition where serious change is in order.  Maybe you heard; Brenda Lee’s 1958 version of “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 this year .  That’s “staying power” (maybe staying a little too long) but it also suggests we’re not creating enough new music.  And how many versions of “Baby It’s Cold Outside” are we going to make before we decide not to change the lyrics but rather to ditch the song once and for all?  Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, and Karen Carpenter will always have a place on Christmas playlists. The rest are getting old and it’s time for more “new”.

Christmas lights don’t leave much room for debate.  Not only will they be shining brighter than ever in the 2030s, they’ll be holographic, animatronic, and experiential.  Instead of a drive-thru Christmas display, the display will probably drive through you.  You’ll also have the option of enjoying your neighbors’ displays from the comfort of your living room (using the “mixed reality” headset you got for Christmas).

Finally, Christmas movies have pretty much run their course because you can only spin so many stories around the holiday (and anything on the Hallmark Channel doesn’t qualify as a movie).  Having said that, I’ll go to my grave watching It’s A Wonderful Life every December.  Even if there are no Christmas cards, tree, or dinner, and I’m tortured with yet another version of “Baby It’s Cold Outside”, I know I can always find tradition and the true meaning of Christmas alongside Jimmy Stewart, in a little town called Bedford Falls.

Merry Christmas!

Some content sourced from Wikipedia, “the free encyclopedia”.

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Author: Dave

Five hundred posts would suggest I have something to say… This blog was born from a desire to elevate the English language, highlighting eloquent words from days gone by. The stories I share are snippets of life itself, and each comes with a bonus: a dusted-off word I hope you’ll go on to use more often. Read “Deutschland-ish Improvements” to learn about my backyard European wish list. Try “Slush Fun” for the throwback years of the 7-Eleven convenience store. Or drink in "Iced Coffee" to discover the plight of the rural French cafe. On the lighter side, read "Late Night Racquet Sports" for my adventures with our latest moth invasion. As Walt Whitman said, “That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.” Here then, my verse. Welcome to Life In A Word.

24 thoughts on “Christmas Customs Crisis?”

  1. One of our traditions is finding the pickle ornament on the tree. I am not sure if it is a Polish or German thing. When my sisters and I got older my mom started hiding the pickle around the house so the hunt would last longer than a minute. Now the pickle is about an inch and hidden around the house, it can take up to 20. My dad also always read Twas The Night Before Christmas before we went to bed every year, and still does even though we are around old. I am sure I will pass those traditions onto my kids one day. Hope you have a Merry Christmas!

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    1. “Oh what fun” traditions your family has, Lyssy. Hiding the pickle reminds me of “Elf on a Shelf”, and I wonder if it was the inspiration. Someone sure made a lot of money over it. And your dad reading “Twas…” – esp. today – is simply charming. Whatever changes with Christmas celebrations, you can never take these two traditions away from your family.

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  2. I’m with you, Dave on “It’s a Wonderful Life ““ but I will add to that the “Muppet Christmas Carol”, which for us is always the start of the Christmas season. Ric

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    1. But of course! 🙂 I’m guessing most families have a particular favorite. “MCC” surely has as meaningful a message as “It’s a Wonderful Life”. I need to watch it.

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    1. I believe the answer to your question is a resounding “no”, Neil. I also believe the movie didn’t do well in early releases. Took a long time to catch on as a Christmas classic. I keep telling myself to watch more Jimmy Stewart movies after every viewing. He’s such a likeable actor.

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  5. We’ve seen the decrease in Christmas cards this year. Last year we did a real tree, but this year we’re back to our fake tree. And I’m working on those holographic Christmas lights – just a little problem with the power supply right now …

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    1. Thumbs up (meaning, I concur) to the decrease in Christmas cards. Before we know it people will refer to them as a “quaint seasonal gesture” from days gone by. I just read where nuclear fusion (or is it fission?) tests are going well as a future energy alternative. Hang in there – the power supply for your over-the-top display is on the way.

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  6. Dave, I like how you celebrate this wonderful holiday. I feel the magic has gone out of Christmas. When I heard that a virtual meet-and-greet with Santa was an option, I thought to myself “why bother?” Isn’t the joy supposed to be a child going to sit on Santa’s lap to share their wish list? I only sent out a couple of Christmas cards this year, to my nun friends, whom I don’t think care for the Jacquie Lawson e-cards. My friends are scattered around the U.S., so I started using e-cards a while back. Sadly, I have not put up a tree again this year – I plan to next year as I will be retired and the house will be decluttered at last.

    It was just my parents and me for dinner once we moved to the States, except twice when my mom and I spent Christmas at my grandmother’s house in Toronto because the weather forecast was clear and snow-free for that 500-mile round trip. I went to one Midnight Mass with my grandmother and it was memorable.

    Your holiday dinner sounds wonderful … we didn’t really have elaborate Christmas dinners, Rock Cornish Hens or Chicken Cordon Bleu, even before my father announced he was leaving our family for a new life on Christmas Day 1983.

    The old songs are the best – I don’t like the modern, loud Christmas songs or parodies. I don’t like the inflatables and prefer sedate lights and lighted decor. I have a wreath on the door at least.

    Have a blessed Christmas Dave – enjoy your traditions because the world spins so quickly that traditions are indeed lost in the wind anymore.

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    1. Perhaps our Christmas campaign should be promoting the “physical” (ex. real cards) and the “in person” (ex. Santa’s lap), Linda. Now that I think about it, I think that’s the underlying point of my post. If we’re not going to exchange something “real” (versus electronic) or come together face-to-face (versus virtual), well then, what’s the point?

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  9. Oh my gosh, the paragraph about Christmas lights was a hoot! Sad. Scary. But also funny. 🙂

    I’m afraid to ask. How much were the trees? Hubby and I also swore we would never go artificial, but when we saw some fake trees half-priced after Christmas one year, coupled with the price and hassle of a real tree every year, we caved. To be honest, we haven’t looked back. So much more convenient and affordable. But, as our kids may be too young to remember when we last picked out a real tree, we might have to one of these days to give them the experience.

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    1. We paid $260 for an eight-foot Fraser Fir, Betsy. It’s all we could ask for in a live tree but I swear we were paying mid-$100s just a few years ago. Then again, it may have to do with locale, since we used to live in CO and now live in SC. The artificial trees have come a long way but even if we have to resort to a Charlie Brown tree, I think ours will always be live.

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      1. More power to you, Dave! And that’s a giant tree! I have no doubt it is/was spectacular.

        My parents had a little evergreen in a pot in their living room for years. At Christmas time, they threw tinsel on it. When it died, the leaves somehow didn’t fall off, so they spray painted it green again! Lasted for years! The cheap, clever b*stards! Lol. That’s my parentage for you!

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  10. Hi Dave,
    Great post about traditions!
    I normally don’t have any traditions. This year we went to a Broadway musical and dinner in NYC, on December 23rd. It was so much fun that we decided to make that a tradition. Let’s see if I remember that next year.
    I hope your Christmas was amazing and wishing you a 2024 full of blessings!

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    1. Our New Years Eve tradition for many years now has been an early dinner reservation (i.e. 5pm) so that we’re off the streets before the crazies get behind the wheel. At least in Colorado, there were plenty of drivers you didn’t want to share the road with late on New Years Eve 😦

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  11. We splurged on the beef tenderloin this year and I have been hoping it will become a tradition, but yikes was it pricey! But not paying for a Christmas tree since maybe 1991 makes the cost of the tenderloin go down a little better.

    Fruitcake and egg nog is one other tradition at our house!

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      2. You sold fruitcake as a Boy Scout? Huh. I wonder how well that would’ve gone over on the West Coast. My troop sold light bulbs, a considerably lighter load to lug around neighborhoods than fruitcakes. Also, you haven’t missed this year’s edition of the fruitcake toss in Manitou Springs, CO if you want to go (just outside of Colorado Springs where we used to live). Safe to say not much eating goes on though 🙂 https://manitousprings.org/events/fruitcake-toss/

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