Someone recently asked me “What makes Christmas so special to you?” Holding its number one position as my favorite holiday over Halloween, I thought about that question and realized the answer resides in my memories of this holiday as far back as my childhood in the Strange household.

A catchy title, a captivating headline, an attention-grabbing banner-these were the ideas that crossed my mind as I begin my treatise on why Christmas was and still is important to me. Nonetheless describing Christmas as magical is an age old maxim that can’t be beat even today as Christmas takes on its materialistic commercialism earlier and earlier each year. 

As a child, we were not only regularly guaranteed a white Christmas living in Indiana, but we also celebrated the possibility along with freezing temperatures that would solidify any body of water within our neighborhood, and even more importantly, within the property of Woodmere, the state mental hospital, where numerous ponds were open to the public throughout the year, and behind which we lived. So perhaps the weather itself was the reason for the ubiquitous listing of new ice skates on Santa’s list almost every year as we skated graciously across frozen ponds year after year. 

The Christmas season didn’t officially start until after Thanksgiving back in the fifties, but once the holiday kicked off, the Strange household celebrated with gusto in all of the usual traditions of the season. Visiting Santa at his igloo hut stationed at Lawndale shopping center in the cold was an annual outing and continued for many years as we too held the belief that he would fulfill our dreams with all the gifts we listed in our request. Innocently believing that he would travel across the world on one night with a sleigh and reindeer to deliver the wishes of all children who believed in the magic of Christmas was part of the tradition.

The celebration of the season actually began a few days before Christmas as Mother and Daddy celebrated their wedding anniversary in December when they eloped in 1946. Mother always received an anniversary present on that day and a Christmas present on Christmas morning. Often paired, the gift might be a necklace on their anniversary and matching earrings on Christmas. Regardless of the gift, the package was always wrapped and graced with a bow. Daddy was a bit of a romantic and he never failed to remember Mother on their special day. 

We often waited until the last minute to purchase our tree, waiting for the prices to drop, which resulted in the tree inventory being limited because of the price reduction. I remember one year, when the tree was so spindly and bare, I was embarrassed to let my friends see the tree. However, once decorated the tree was as magical as any we ever saw or purchased. 

Sissy and I had our special ornaments to grace our Christmas tree along with brightly colored orbs and homemade ornaments. Our glass candy canes which were religiously unwrapped each year and then carefully packed away at the end of the season to prevent breakage, survived many years. Nevertheless, as each year went on, the long stem of the cane became shorter and more jagged from breakage. One candy cane was red and silver, the other blue and silver. I don’t remember which one I claimed as my own, and I don’t recall when the canes were finally retired or completely shattered during storage, but I have often searched for replicas even to this day, but to no avail. Replaced by plastic replicas and at times even real candy canes, our glass candy canes of the fifties were lost forever to the world of broken ornaments. 

Other favorite tree ornaments were the brightly colored, candle-like ornaments that held a liquid which bubbled up through the lights, when plugged in. These were the modern take on actual lighted candles which were placed on Christmas trees beginning in the 16^th century to symbolize the light of Christ into a world of darkness. Of course, fire hazards prompted the demise of lighted candles on a tree once electric lights were invented, and the bubbling replicas fell by the wayside at some point as well. 

One main ingredient of the decorated Christmas tree was tinsel—a must in our household and most other homes in the 50s. We would stand a foot or so away from the tree and throw a clump of tinsel hoping the individual pieces would fly apart and land artistically on the tree.* When undecorating the tree we would leave the tinsel on as we disposed of our tree only to buy new packages of tinsel the following year. 

Occasionally we might have strung popcorn and raw cranberries to hang on the tree. These looked great on any tree, but after so many needle pricks from trying to string the popcorn and cranberries, we opted to forgo this old tradition. 

By Christmas morning the state of the tree was forgotten. Mother and Daddy did their best to fill our small living room with a cadre of presents under and around the tree; some of these gifts included those on our Santa list, and others I’m certain fulfilled a current need; A new set of hat and gloves, a sweater, a new pea jacket; waterproof boots—any cold weather apparel needed during those cold Indiana winters was usually included regardless of our asks.  

Part of our  celebration during the month of December also centered on the preparation of food and Christmas treats. Sugar cookies cut into shapes of reindeer, Santa, Christmas trees, stockings, holly, elves and gingerbread cookies were baked and ate throughout the month. Red and green divinity were Mother’s specialties, and chocolate and peanut butter fudge were Daddy’s specialties. It was a family affair. Turkey or ham or both for Christmas dinner and lots of canned vegetables and potatoes every which way they could be prepared. Pecan or pumpkin pie and Mother’s clover leaf yeast rolls. We did not lack for food at Christmas. 

As Sissy and me aged out of belief in Santa, we had BQ and Yordy to keep the magic of Christmas alive. Having younger siblings, was part of the magic we experienced as we held the great secret of Santa and his journey through the night on Christmas Eve. Waking as early as 5 or 6 AM, and as the celebration progressed, the four Strange kids would carefully step around the opened packages, torn wrapping paper, and discarded ribbons surveying the magic of Christmas enveloping our home. Mother and Daddy observed the chaos from the sidelines, drinking their coffee, and enjoying the joy and surprise on their children’s faces. 

As the years have passed and my children are adults with families of their own, Christmas still holds a special place for me. I continue to buy a “real” tree and bake “real” cookies and buy “real” presents for the people I love and care about. I send out Christmas cards, I leave a gift for the mailman, and I bake often and furiously for friends, neighbors, and the firemen throughout the month of December. I care little what I receive in return as I feel the most important magic of Christmas is the feeling of giving without an expectation of a gift in return. And if I do receive a Christmas gift or a gift any other time of the year, I only ask this one thing. Please wrap it and grace it with a bow just like Daddy always did. Like him, I tend to be a romantic. Even if it’s a piece of coal-don’t forget to wrap it and put a bow on it. It will be graciously accepted with the joy that giving to others delivers from one’s heart. 

Merry Christmas to my friends and family! 

Felice Navidad!

Joyeux Noel!

December 25, 2025.* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tinsel Originally created in the 17^th century in Germany, tinsel was made of actual extruded strands of silver. By the 20^th century and after many substitutes, tinsel was made of lead, which was discontinued in the 60s due to safety concerns. Today tinsel is made of PVC (polyvinyl chloride) and is considered safe.