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Merry Christmas Wodnesday Dae 19 1979 C3 Origin of Christmas tree The selecting and purchasing of a tree plays a key role in today Christmas festivities Though the Christmas tree Is an integral part of the modern day celebration this was not always the The earliest historical reference of the Christmas tree was made in sixteenth century in Latvia and Estonia In both countries members of ihe local merchants guild earned an ever green tree decorated with roses to the market place There they would dance around tree and eventually set fire to it Him ever it was many Latvia or Estonia which Introduced the Christmas tree In North America By the seventeenth century it was a common sight to see German homes with an evergreen placed in the centre of a table decorated with apples As time passed on the Global yuletide customs Mistletoe Santa Claus letters to Santa Christ mas customs galore where did they all begin The customs of Christ mas come from many lands and many eras They evolve from pagan ceremonies into Chris Han rituals And they si retch from West to Last from North to South as each country contributes something special and traditional to the celebrations of the holiday When seasonal gaiety rings out in Canada merriment is echoed in Mexico When North or South Americans gather for Christmas festivities Ihc people of Sweden are doing the same and so are the peoples of Hoi land and France and Italy and Spain and countless other European countries Great gift idea make Yule candles Here is a bright idea Make your own candles as gifts or table decora lions Christmas All you need is a half gallon cardboard milk carton a 10inch candle I fibs of paraffin three trays of ice cubes Cut the top from the carton and rinse thor oughly Crack the Ice cubes into medium and Carolling mass are tradition In the mountain regions of Western Australia entire villages Join In carol singing on Chris I mas Eve Begin ning with the family living farthest from the village church form a procession At each house along the way greetings of ore ex changed and the inhabit ants fall in line Even unity the whole popula lion is part of the parade as it arrives at the church steps in lime for Mid night Mass Christmas Eve carol singing and Midnight Mass are also a part of the British holiday trad ition The custom of hanging up mistletoe dales back to the Druids vho used the plant in re ligious rites Burning the Yule log is another custom borrowed by the British from the Vikings large pieces drain off any water and return to the freezer Melt the paraffin in a double boiler Wlien all Ihe wax hot centre the candle In he carton and surround it loosely with cracked tee Quickly pour all the hot paraffin over ice Let it cool for half an hour Cut the carton down the sides and peel it away The carton plastic coating keeps it from slicking There your candle ready to decorate for festive season In the Tar Bast Christian communities spread the customs of Christmas which mingle the yearend cere monies observed by those of other faiths That the legend and lore of Christmas knows no boundaries Is illus trated in the following roundup of Yuletide cus toms based on informs tion provided by Ihe editors of the Encyclo pedia International From the north of land tomes the happy custom of the Kissing bough A large hoop twined with greens is decorated with apples and candles And in the centre there mistle toesignal for ex changing kisses Custom of writing lei era to Santa Claus may have begun in Austria where long ago it was an Advent tradition for children to write letters containing lists of what they like to receive on St Nicholas Day Italy comes a most poetic addition to Christmas lore For three weeks during Ihc Christ season children traditionally go from place to place reciting Christmas poems They expect coins in return to buy holiday goodies In An ancient custom that is still observed in some Swedish households today is that of dipping bread into the pot Each person dips a piece of bread into pork and saus age drippings and eats it for good luck A procession which blends pagan and Christ mas customs is part of the legend and lore of the holiday in many A rider on a white horse symbolizing Ihc horse of the pagan god ra t a warm Cv graMul fpr kind Earl Van Norman Electrician Acton leads the parade He is followed by Father Christmas who is decked with ribbons and carries candy and fruit A Swiss custom that dates back to Middle Ages is to start the New Year free of debts the feast of St Nicholas of the first Santa Claus is the day set to meet all mone tary obligations such as rents and mortgages Holland custom For St Nicholas sea son its traditional in Holland to make flat cakes called Klassjes Once exclusively made in the form of the bishop St Nicholas now take any form of bird beast fish popular I of Christmas trees increased bringing with a variety of decorations and ac cessories The Cliristmas tree tradition spread across America via the German immigrants The first tree on record was in 1747 in Pennsylvania and from there the idea ex tended across Philadelphia Massac- husettes Illinois Virginia and New York In 1860 the Americans developed the first floor toceiling Christmas tree By the beginning of the twentieth century one family in five had their own tree and over next ten years the tradition became a universal part of the North American Christ mas celebration With the numerous and easily available evergreens in Canada Canadian families soon adopted this age old tradition and before long the Christmas tree was a familiar part of the festive season Today the natural lifelike Christmas trees found in many homes are artificial Almost one out ever four Canadian families shopping for trees now chooses artificial kind The Christmas Council estimates Christmas tree sales will surpass 1 this year and that of these trees will be ar tificial Beauty con vcnlence economy and safety are some of the many reasons why trees have become so popular across North America There is a wide and varied collection of Christ as trees available designed to meet the desires of even the most discriminating consumer From the 12 inch table top mode to the eight foot giant there is a style and size for everyone With minimal core these trees should last anywhere between to 15 years When storing Ihem after holiday season dace the bran In layers in the box to prevent them from being crushed The artificial tree is easy to assemble and decorate It comes complete stand trunk and adjustable branches for individual shaping opening up a host of decorating Ideas for the purchaser Wise consumers look Tor artificial trees that are Ire and that list heir lighting specifications For energy conscious buyer there is a vast array of attractive and festive and watt regular size Indoor light With all the advantages associated with artificial trees It is lit lie wonder that many people are buying more than one of these trees for their homes feto6te ml far Im f Pom ACTON WELDING and glitter turkey and treats love and laughter thats what holidays are made of Hope your Christmas is the best MANAGEMENT AND STAFF STATION HOTEL Sound the trumpet for a holiday that a merry round of pleasures We Bend a full measure of thanks to our loyal friends BOB HART nd DAVE SWETMAN Agent Of MUTUAL UFE OF CANADA ACTON ONTARIO