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I grew up celebrating Hanukah, I’ve always been lucky to have friends and family who celebrate other faiths and traditions. We enjoy lighting our menorah, spinning the dreidel and eating fried foods like latkes and donuts in our own home. We also have fun at my best friend’s house every Christmas Eve listening to carols, eating party fare and exchanging presents. Like me, my kids grew up having the privilege of seeing, and respecting, many different traditions.
While Hanukah is not one of the major Jewish holidays, celebrating it as a family is always a delight. The menorah, a nine-candle holder, is used to hold the burning candles; we light one for each of the eight nights and add one more the next until the entire candelabra is burning bright. The ninth candle, the Shammas, is used to light all of the other candles. I’ve always given my kids eight presents each and even now, as adults, they still get a present for each night – some may be as small as a scratch off lottery ticket. The most beautiful aspect of all though is watching my daughter and her husband, and my son and his girlfriend, standing around the table as their father chants the prayers and kindles each light; even with everyone’s busy schedule we still manage to have at least of the eight nights together.
By the way, I often use the all-inclusive “Happy Holidays” greeting. While I am never offended by specific holiday greetings such as Merry Christmas or Happy Hanukah, I don’t always know what an individual celebrates. In December alone, some of the holidays observed are: Ashura, Las Posadas, Bodhi, Hanukkah, Festivus, Yule, Santa Lucia Day, Winter Solstice, Christmas, Boxing Day, Kwanzaa, and New Year’s Eve…whew. And that doesn’t even begin to include January’s festivals.
I included a Christmas celebration in my novel Courage of the Heart, it starts Christmas Eve with an Episcopalian church service and follows through with the family celebration and dinner on Christmas Day. I will give away a .PDF copy of Courage of the Heart to one person who shares a favorite holiday tradition in the comments below – please be sure to include your email as well. The winner will be announced no later than midnight on December 19th.
Whatever you do celebrate, I hope you have a holiday that fills your heart with joy.
