Common Talk Weeklyshuang yu zhou kan
issue date

Christmas drawing near
December 24, 2003
By Vivian Zhang and Toni Mueller
Photos by Yao Fan

Christmas decorations
圣诞饰品

When entering the yard, we instantly caught sight of a large evergreen wreath on the front-door of a house in the middle. It turned out to be the home of the Muellers, who warmly showed us in.

The two-storey house was decked out in Christmas ornaments and decorations. There was a splendid Christmas tree by the living room window, a nativity scene on a stool, lit candles upon the coffee table, flashy paper chains tied to the banisters, and soft Christmas music flowing in the background.

"When we celebrated our first Christmas in Xiamen in 2000, we could only find ourselves a Christmas tree, but no decorations could be found. We had to make them, even my little Emily contributed by knitting these four socks on the tree." Mrs. Mueller pointed to us the name of each family member on the socks, including her son who is now a university freshman in America. "But things are changing quickly here. Amazingly we find there are so many stores selling Christmas stuff this year."

According to the Muellers, red, green, white and gold are the main colors of Christmas, which represent life, growth, purity and royalty. The most common decorations are bells, stars, candles, lights, angels and doves. Each family usually buys an evergreen tree and decorates it. The evergreen tree is a symbol of eternal life. "It is a pity that we can only get an artificial tree here. I really miss the home flourished with the fragrance of real evergreen back in America." Mr. Mueller said.

According to the custom, the decorations will be kept up until 12 days after Christmas.

Christmas cards and gifts
圣诞卡和圣诞礼物

"We begin preparing for the Christmas season after the Thanksgiving holiday (the last Thursday in November) ends. People send Christmas greeting cards to friends and family. These cards often express the themes of the spirit of Christmas: faith, hope, love, joy, peace, light and life." The couple said.

Sending cards through email, which causes less hassle and is more efficient, is now strongly favored by youth. However, Mrs. Mueller sticks to the traditional way. "It shows real care on the part of the sender. And we can keep the cards we receive and even use them for decorations. Sometimes we hang cards on a string hung in the doorway, sometimes we cut out the card covers and paste them on a board, which is then used as a decoration on the wall." Mrs. Mueller said, "Wherever I go, I always bring some of them with me, such as the one from my grandma, who is still alive." She showed us the handwriting on her grandma's card. "It is meaningful to me, for which is the reason I shall always keep it."

As for Christmas gifts, it is anticipation that counts the most. The gift doesn't need to be very expensive, but it is better if it is something the person wants. So for weeks before each Christmas, the Mueller family rack their brains about what would be fit for their loved ones. "We send gifts to our friends days before Christmas, whilst the presents for family members are kept under the Christmas tree and are not allowed to be opened till Christmas arrives. Sometimes children are so curious about their gifts they shake them a lot, but they still have to wait till Christmas morning when their father has finished telling them a Christmas story." Mrs. Mueller said.

Christmas food
圣诞节食品

Mrs. Mueller is an expert with cooking. She told us she inherited the talent from her mother and grandmother. The following is some experiences she wants to share with our readers about Christmas food.

"Christmas time is yet another opportunity to celebrate our love for each other with food. Christmas means parties with family and friends while we share the joy of this special season. And of course every party includes lots of good eating!

Even the smallest of children can learn to help and have fun. We have metal shapes that look like Christmas trees, angels, stars and other Christmas symbols. These shapes are pressed into the cookie dough before baking. Then after they come out of the oven, we put food coloring into the frosting (a mixture of powdered sugar and milk) and decorate the cookies to look very colorful and beautiful. We often make little houses made of ginger cookies and decorated with frosting and small candies. Many children look forward to making a birthday cake for the baby Jesus as they are taught that Christmas is the time that we celebrate the birth of our Savior.

My mother's specialty was sweet breads. She could make bread from cranberries, carrots, squash as well as bananas and raisins. We often spent days making all kinds of breads and candies in order to give away as gifts. The mailman, the man who delivered juice, the boy who shoveled our snow, the old man who lived next door as well as co-workers all got a loaf of my mother's special bread every year. This was our way of sharing the gifts of Christmas; peace, hope and love to those who help us all year."