Christmas

Going home

Going home for Christmas is a most cherished tradition of the holiday season. No matter where you may be the rest of the year, being at "home" with your family and friends for Christmas is "a must." The Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays are the busiest times of the year at airports, train stations and bus depots. It seems that all America is on the move and Americans are on their way to spend the holidays with their loved ones.

This means that the house will be full of cousins, aunts and uncles that might not see each other during the year. Everyone joins in to help in the preparation of the festivities. Some family members go to choose a Christmas tree to buy and bring home. Others decorate the house or wrap presents. And of course, each household needs to make lots of food!

On Christmas Eve, there are evening church services. Attention is focused on the nativity scene, while all join in singing carols. On Christmas Day, there are other religious ceremonies at churches which families attend before they make their rounds to visit friends and relatives.

The Christmas table looks much like a Thanksgiving feast of turkey or ham, potatoes and pie. No Christmas is complete without lots of desserts, and nothing symbolizes Christmas more than baked breads and cookies hot from the oven. Many American traditional desserts, like other Christmas customs, were started long ago in other parts of theworld. Guests bring English fruit cake or plum pudding as presents to their hosts. "Crostoli," a fried bread spiced with orange peel, is made in Italian-American communities. As an ending for the Christmas banquet, Americans of German background eat "Pfeffernuesse," a bread full of sweet spices. Doughnuts are a holiday offering in many Ukrainian-American homes. Norwegian "Berlinerkranser" is a wreath-shaped cookie, dozens are made, but few are left by Christmas morning! Candy doesn't remain for long, either, during the holiday weeks. Hard candies such as peppermint candy canes and curly green and red ribbon（丝带） candy are traditional gifts and goodies.

At Christmas Eve gatherings adults drink eggnog, a drink made of cream, milk, sugar, beaten eggs and brandy or rum（朗姆酒）. Plenty of eggnog or hot cocoa is on hand in colder climates for carolers, or people who go from house to house to sing Christmas carols to their neighbors.

Long ago, each child hung a stocking, or sock, over the fireplace. Santa entered down the chimney and left candy and presents inside the socks for the children. Today the tradition is carried on, but the socks are now large red sock-shaped fabric bags （编织袋）still called stockings. Each child can't wait to open his or her eyes to see what Santa has left in the stocking.

Giving gifts is a Christmas tradition. However, in recent years, more and more people have complained that Christmas is too commercialized （商业化） especially in large cities. Store owners begin advertising and decorating very early in hopes of selling more goods. Children demand more and more from Santa Claus because manufacturers and retailers （批发商和零售商） saturate （与with连用，使饱和）television with advertising. Some people believe that the origin of Christmas has been lost. Commemorating （纪念）the birth of Jesus Christ is the very reason for Christmas and should be central to the celebration.

Every year human interest newspaper articles remind readers of the origin of Christmas. Shelters for the homeless and hungry appeal through the newspaper to send money or gifts to those who are less fortunate. Members of organization such as the Salvation Army （救世军）dress up as Santa Claus and stand on the sidewalks outside stores to collect money for their own soup kitchens（施舍处）. City police forces （警察机关）supervise a "Toys for Tots（孩子）" donation（捐赠）, in which people contribute new or used toys for children in hospitals and orphanages（孤儿）. Employees give a small part of their paychecks as a donation to a favorite charity（慈善团体）. Such groups and organizations try to emphasize the true message of Christmas- to share what you have with others.