FarmWife Answers: Christmas Edition

Welcome to the first every Ask FarmWife: Christmas Edition. I'm here to answer all your holiday questions! Zann begins the fun with a wonderful question: if you could choose a celebrity chef to cook your Christmas dinner and desserts who would you choose?

Hands down, no doubt about it, Alton Brown. I love Alton Brown. He is, by far, my favorite "celebrity chef." And to top it off, he's southern. A southern boy who can make his Nana's biscuits. I'm all about that. I would love to spend a day watching him whip up wonderful, home cooking in my kitchen while he' explains all the technical aspects of corn starch to me.

Inkling starts off with: What story intrigues you more about the origins of our Christmas trees and Yule logs....Boniface or Martin Luther? Why? Do you believe one more than the other?

Um...yeah...what? OK, this is when I admit, I know little about either. Heard the names before. Can't say I've ever heard the Christmas tree credited to Martin Luther. I'm off to google. Be back in a jiff.

*Pause*

OK, I'm now up to date on Christmas Tree Legend. I have to admit, Boniface has the better story. According to one telling he stumbled upon a group of pagans (Thor worshipers) about to sacrifice a child in front of a sacred oak tree. In his anger he (this is where the story differs a bit) either knocked the tree down with a single blow or was assisted in toppling the giant oak by a strong, miraculous wind. As soon as the tree was down, an evergreen sprung up in it's roots & Boniface made the connection between an evergreen & everlasting life.

Martin Luther, on the other hand, was wandering through a woods on a snow Christmas Eve. He was dazzled by the snow on the branches & starlight shining through so he went home & erected a small evergreen in his home & decorated it to show his children.

Boniface has it all. Child sacrifice, a dark night, pagans, a rescue, miracles, the works. Martin Luther's is a much tamer legend. Can't say I really believe either one were the definitive way Christmas trees came to be used to celebrate the birth of Christ. They had been used by non-Christian cultures for years to represent eternal life. I think they are a fitting way to symbolize the birth of the One who has given us the promise of eternal life with God...but I also figure it was a way to "Christianize" a pagan ritual much like having Christmas in place of Winter Solstice & Easter in place of Spring Solstice (although with Passover being there to mark the actual time of the Resurrection, I'm pretty sure it's happening at the right time each year).

Next Inkling asks: What one tradition do you work hard to keep going, even when you do Christmas away from extended family?

The Christmas Story read from the book of Luke. Even if we don't get to it until after the gifts are opened, I have to hear it read aloud every year. It just isn't Christmas without, "In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world."

And she finished off with: What do you do when you don't feel in the Christmas mood? What helps you get in the mood for celebrating the season? Do you ever fake it until you make it?

I'll start off answering the last question first. Yes, I often have to fake it until I make it. I've had many years when being away from family or illness or financial strain has kept me from really feeling the Christmas Spirit. There are a few things I do to kick start myself if even just to make the days happier for the FarmHands (but it usually rubs off on me). #1. Listen to old Christmas carols. Nothing new or contemporary. QM has enough Christmas music to play for days, so I've inherited some of that. I put on a CD & blare it while I clean the kitchen. #2. Bake something. It really doesn't matter what, but something with cinnamon in it helps. #3. Watch It's a Wonderful Life, White Christmas, or the Charlie Brown Christmas Special with the lights down, a big bowl of popcorn, a fluffy blanket, and the phone shut off. After all that, I'm usually in the mood...if that doesn't cut it, read that passage in Luke aloud, pull out your hidden bottle of Tabu & take a sniff, then have a good cry. You'll get there. I touched on this last year during a tough day.

Kork wants to know: If you absolutely had to choose, what would your Christmas dinner consist of, why, and this is absolutely a "bad-stuff" free meal - meaning, you could have whatever you wanted, and you'd have no ill effects from ingredients containing fat, sugar, cholesterol, etc...

First off, plates and plates of Grandma M&M's fudge, then lots deep fried turkey, roasted chicken, ham, and chicken and noodles, Mountains of mashed potatoes & sweet corn with butter floating in it, pans of cranberry salad, bowls of green beans with ham & onions mixed in, Beef House rolls, Apple salad, Aunt Anita's broccoli casserole, and blackberry cobbler with half & half, pecan pie, chess pie, apple crisp, and gallons of sweet tea. Now I'm homesick.

Art asks: What is your favorite carol and why?

I have to say I adore traditional carols. I could go Christmas caroling & never need a song book. There are very few I don't love. But there's one, and it's much more contemporary than I'd like to admit, that really speaks to me no matter how many times I hear it. I'll save some space & post a link to the lyrics here. It's called Still Her Little Child & it was written by Ray Boltz & Steve Millikan. The song talks about Mary & that no matter what Jesus grew to be, he was always her child. I was listening to it a few days ago in the car & started to cry. As a mother, it hits me hard every time I hear it.

Art's second question is a bit harder to answer. What is your favorite Christmas memory?

That's a tough one. I think in all fairness I have to admit to a few favorite memories. One I posted about 2 years ago. Another involves the other side of my family. Christmas day was normally spent at Busha & Bucka's when I was little. They lived 2 1/2 hours to our north. Things there were normally a bit more rambunctious than they were at Grandma M&M's. There were more cousins my age and more aunts & uncles & they are just a louder bunch in general.

One year my aunt (QM's little sister) had asked me what I wanted for Christmas. I think I was about 7 years old & my heart's desire was a wedding bouquet. She promised to make me one & much to my delight, there was a huge box under the tree with my name on it. Not only did she make me a beautiful giant silk bouquet, but she also made a smaller one for the bridesmaid to carry. After we all opened our gifts, she took me in the back bedroom & gave me her wedding dress & a bridesmaid dress from a wedding she'd been in. I could have died from happiness right then & there. My little seven year old heart was bursting.

I quickly wrangled all my cousins up & we spent the entire day playing wedding. We each took turns being the bride, groom, and preacher complete with some of Bucka's shirts, ties, and sports coats. I don't know how many weddings we had or how long we played, but it seemed like hours. At one point one of my cousins was hesitant to play the groom & Uncle Gick came out with an (unloaded) shot gun to persuade him to walk down the aisle. My main memory of that day is laughter & joy for everyone from the youngest to the oldest.

So that's it. I have now answered all your questions to the best of my ability. I hope you have a very Merry Christmas!