HomeMy WebLinkAboutZurich Citizens News, 1972-12-21, Page 3moiPRY, .m
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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1972
ZURICH CITIZENS NEWS 9AOg 3
Smiling Spirit
Of Christmas
Enters IN
By ANNA MANG
Christmas is: A time for sharing and surprises, a time
for magic and merriment, and a time to say, "Glad greet-
ings, one and all."
Christmas is: The season of song and celebration, the
season of little children and love and laughter, and the
season of worship and rejoicing.
Christmas is: For fellowship and feasting, for family and
friends, for home and happiness. But Christmas, too, is for
remembering the stranger within the gates! for cheering the
lonely, comforting the sorrowful, befriending the needy.
Christmas is: For everyone — for those of Christian faith
who celebrate the Day as a holy time of highest importance,
and for those of other faiths, who love and observe the Yule-
tide as a holiday dedicated to good will and good cheer.
Best of all, Christmas is: Here! Throughout this commu-
nity, plans and preparations reach their peak. Every joyous
surprise is at the point of revelation. The tree lights go on,
the carols ring out, the gaily -wrapped gifts are delivered.
With gleeful smiles, the children welcome Santa's bounty,
while the grown-ups greet one another, and talk and laugh
and even shed a happy tear or two, rejoicing in the deep and
tender meaning of the Christmas spirit.
If there was a bit of hustle — and even some hassle — about
the getting -ready process, all is now forgotten in the glow
and glory of Christmas. The quickened pace of modern liv-
ing seems to make it almost impossible to prepare for the
holiday without setting, at times, a somewhat hectic pace.
• Be that as it may, the glad, true spirit of the season in-
spires this Christmas planning, and Christmas realities, in
all their wonder and warmth, more than make up for the
t. t:alE�
At this joyous time of year, we extend
our greetings to our friends, whose confidence
we highly value. Thank you.
DRYSDALE CREST HARDWARE
HENSALL
To our friends, a hearty
holiday wish that you may
enjoy all the best the season offers.
pre -holiday hurry and scurry,
It's Traditional
The tree may be aluminum
instead of spruce or fir. San-
ta may arrive by helicopter
instead of reindeer -drawn
sleigh. And the children's
gifts will probably reflect the
space age and the wonders
of electronics.
No matter. However mod-
ern the celebration of Christ-
mas may seem to be, its spirit
is still old-fashioned, anti
though customs may appear
in contemporary guise, they
are still the cherished tradi-
tions from the past.
These treasured customs
are the heart of Christmas,
growing dearer year by year,
as memories of "what we did
last Christmas" add to every
family's own special, tradi-
tional way of celebrating
Christmas.
Naming Santa
Santa Claus is a tradition
— a pleasant one, indeed.
And, traditionally, he owes
his name to a gift -giver of
the past.
St. Nicholas, a fourth cen-
tury bishop who became the
patron saint of children, was
noted for his generosity. His
Dutch name was "Sinter
Niklass," which gradually
changed to Santa Claus.
Even today, Santa is also
known as "St. Nick."
Sending Greetings
"We wish you a merry
Christmas."
Perhaps the most enduring
of holiday traditions is that
of exchanging greetings.
Christmas cards are a rela-
tively new part of a holiday
that has been celebrated for
centuries. In fact, this year .
marks only the 95th anniver-
sary of Christmas cards in
America.
But the custom of greeting
friends and neighbors and
wishing then good cheer is
as old as the holiday season
Piiiata Fun
Gets Break
A joyous Christmas
mas tradition for Mex-
ican boys and girls is
the breaking of the
pinata, a decorated
earthen jar.
Sometimes, the pin-
ata may be acaricature
of people or animals.
The pinata is sus-
pended by a rope that
can raise or lower it.
Each child is blind-
folded and usually giv-
en three chances to
poke at the pinata with'
a stick.
When it's broken,
the pinata releases a
bounty of delicious
fruits, sweets, nuts and
toys.
The children scrab-
ble to claim as many
goodies as possible.
Decorating with Cards
Can Be Yule Project
When children need a
change from the toys on
Christmas day, a promising
project could be to let them
see what they can do with
the family greeting cards.
itself.
Today brings a special kind
of "Christmas card." This
edition of this newspaper
is a community greeting card,
with special greetings from
businessmen of the commu-
nity who offer their good
wishes and their apprecia-
tion to all.
W here Tree Grew
The first Christmas tree
was a palm from Egypt. Or
it was a huge tree in a forest,
symbolic, of mankind. Or it
was the Paradise Tree of
medieval miracle plays.
Though holiday legend and
lore offers many an explana-
tion for the origin of the
Christmas tree, nobody
knows for sure exactly when
and where the first decorated
tree appeared.
And who cares? It's fun to
hear the legends of the past,
with all their mystery and
magic, but the thing that
matters most is that the tra-
dition of the tree is here,
adding joy to Christmas.
SoZiAceotec
Santa's on
the job relaying
good wishes and thanks to our friends.
GRAND BEND CLEANERS
Thelma and Jack Waldron and Staff
AY
we join those
who sing out the
praises of
this joyful season
to thank you
for your continued
patronage.
Merry
Christmas.
C. A. McDOWELL READY -MIX
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