In recent years Christmas has become increasingly more commercialized with an emphasis on buying expensive gifts instead of celebrating the reason for the season. Last year, holiday retail sales surpassed the trillion-dollar mark. American households spent an average of $1,536 during the Christmas season.
When I was growing up people bought gifts, of course, however, there was more focus on faith, family, and traditions. Go back in time with me to relive those traditions.
While artificial trees have become the norm for many, They were far and few between in the 1950s and 1960s. Most were not very realistic, and the most popular of those was the aluminum Christmas tree with foil needles. And of course, no aluminum tree would be complete without illumination from a rotating color wheel placed at the base of the tree. Personally, I found these monstrosities hideous.
Ceramic Christmas trees sitting on shelves and tables adorned many homes. They were green ceramic with multicolored glass faux bulbs that were illuminated by a light bulb inside the tree. The tiny “bottlebrush” tree was a cheap alternative to a ceramic table-top tree.
One of my favorite childhood shopping trips was going out with my father to pick out a Christmas tree. Just as in the now-classic movie, “A Christmas Story,” my dad would haggle with the owner of the Christmas tree lot to get a better deal. Afterward, instead of tying it to a sedan, My dad would throw it in the back of our 1955 Chevy pickup.
Decorating the tree was a family affair and I remember making popcorn garland to place around the tree, the beautiful glass ornaments, the foil icicles, and the artificial snow Mom sprayed on the tree, and the windows as well. It should be pointed out that much of the artificial snow was actually toxic since it contained asbestos.
Caroling in the neighborhoods was a common Christmas tradition when I was a little boy. Nothing sets the tone for this festive season like your friends and neighbors singing classic Christmas carols outside your house.
Then there was Mistletoe. This ubiquitous parasite—which by the way, is the Oklahoma State Flower—was hung over doorways in hopes of garnering a kiss. I made extra money by climbing up trees and harvesting mistletoe and selling it.
We had two pecan trees and starting in late fall, I would shake our trees, pick up pecans, and sell them. I sold the most during the Christmas season.
My dad’s relatives in Tulsa celebrated the 12 Days of Christmas. The 12 Days of Christmas begins on Christmas Day and runs through January 6, which is the Feast of the Epiphany. They would open a small gift every day of the 12 days, along with family activities.
Christmas Eve was filled with anticipation and family festivities. Mom would make hot cocoa, Dad would read me Christmas stories until I was old enough to watch Christmas movies on TV. We were not allowed to open gifts until Christmas Day, partly because my father would wait until I was asleep and place most of my gifts under the tree, saying the next day, “Let’s see what Santa brought you.” As I grew older, my parents would palace all of my gifts under the tree weeks ahead of time. I would always pick up boxes and shake them to try to determine what the box contained. One year, my father got wise and places bricks in a large box, along with a pen and pencil set. The TV and radio stations would give official tracking reports from NORAD. I would eagerly scan the skies looking for Santa’s sleigh.
Until I was in the second grade, we would go to Midnight Mass, which was a dazzling display of pageantry.
There were no “high tech gifts back then. The closest comparison would be my chemistry set, telescope, and microscope. However low-tech items were among my favorites. Two of the most-used presents I ever received were my Huffy bicycle with twin headlights and my Flexible Flyer sled.
The Christmas holiday from school was also a vacation time when my parents would drive to Texas to see my maternal grandparents, aunts, and uncles. One of the more memorable trips was when my brother was one-year-old and we traveled in a 1961 Corvair Monza, sharing the backseat with my baby brother in his car seat.
Christmas back then was more thoughtful and definitely more meditative.
