Some Christmas Memories

Dec. 1989

In my childhood days, Christmas was truly a religious remembrance.  The four weeks of Advent were the preparation for the coming of the Christ child.  Then on the vigil (or day before) Christmas, no meat was eaten. Christmas morning (using the back door to leave the house) we would walk up in the darkness to church for the 6 a.m. Mass. My non-Catholic father always went to Christmas services with us.   We left church singing Christmas carols such as “Adeste Fidelis.” Back in the 1930’s Mass was said in Latin. We called out “Merry Christmas” to all our friends.

One year when we left church, we were greeted by the miracle of snow quietly falling.     Our footprints left a trail on this untouched  world of white.   How beautiful the trees with a covering of snow! Our childish excitement increased as we neared home, climbed the stairs to the front door and the Living Room. Had Santa left us a tree and presents?  YES  YES  YES

Junior High antics: It was an age of innocence and clean, safe fun. We had no malls to walk around during the pre-holiday to exhibit our excitement, so six of us girls decided to spread Christmas cheer by letting the world hear us caroling.    Down the streets about 4 or 5 pm, we’d stride quickly (it was cold in St. Louis in December), giggling and singing at the top of our voices. I think we knew by memory all of the verses in Latin of ” 0 Come. All Ye Faithful.” I wonder if my memory’s computer still knows the words to all those Christmas Carols? I don’t think our parents ever knew about this escapade. (Mother, quit reading over my shoulder!)

Our first Christmas with 9 month old Kathy was celebrated at the Army base at Fort Ord.  Mother said she and my Dad were sending our gifts to Monterey because they couldn’t come to California until February.  I waited each day and was so disappointed that the presents never arrived. In  some manner the gifts represented “home” to a homesick not so mature wife and mother.  What a thrill  to find the missing gifts had been delivered by Santa not the mailman! (Santa Michael had intercepted the mailman and hidden the presents).  That was the year your father dressed up as Santa using my red bathrobe, a red snow cap and a beard made of cotton.     HO HO HO

Most years Grandmother and Grandpa Krueger visited us for a month over the Christmas – New Year holidays. Christmas Day dinner was usually at the Martini grandparents’ home. After Pop Martini died and Grace moved to Pacific Palisades, she continued the traditional Sicilian Christmas Eve dinner of cod fish, quartered artichokes, cauliflower fried in a special batter and pasta with an anchovy sauce – no meat.   Dessert was usually special cookies – Pinulati (a honey Cookie), fig bars, and a small walnut sized cookie rolled in white powdered sugar.

 

I suspect you children remember a tree surrounded by mounds of presents for six children plus many gifts to “my favorite pediatrician.” Also, Uncle Dick used to send “super toys” to each of you. Remember the year Santa left Eileen’s doll on the roof by the chimney!  Remember, K & B,  when I suggested you give one of your toys to a poor child and then I forgot to give them away and you discovered them in the closet!

Dec. 1990

Memories Of Christmas 1990 and other years

Christmas is wondrous to the eyes of two little girls [ed: Nicole and Bridget] living at  grandma and grandpa’s house. Time to get out the Sears “Wish Book” and let the children dream. Little four-year-old Nicole uses the television commercials as her “dream” machine. “Momma,  can I have that baby doll – the one that wets her diaper?” Her mother cleverly answers, “Yes,  Nicole that is a pretty baby doll.” Now comes the visit to Santa Claus at the Mall and the problem of getting the shy little ones to sit on Santa’s lap long enough to get that memory picture taken. Now it’s time to put up the outdoor Christmas lights. A little voice says, “Please be careful, Grandpa; don’t fall off the ladder” and “Can we ride around at dark and see all the beautifully decorated houses with Rudolph the red nosed reindeer and Santa Claus? Oh look, Mr. Martin has put up his beautiful creche again; can we ride to Santa Monica and see the statues dressed for the story of the Christ child’s birthday?” Deja vu.  Is this 1954 or 1990?  Two little girls and their mommy [ed: Kathy] rolling cookie dough, cutting out Santas & stars while the flour flies about.  Then painting the angels and gingerbread men.  “Bridget, did you really eat all that cookie dough instead of rolling it out!” Little girls helping Momma and Grandpa work at the nice smelling YMCA Christmas tree lot. Nicole insists its really the pumpkin patch (same place – different activity).

Next Tuesday is the Optimist Club Children’s Christmas Party. There will be some Hannakuh songs as well as Christmas Carols.  In the 1950’s the Club started the tradition of 7:30 AM Family Breakfast. In the 50’s, wildly trying to dress the children and leave by 7 A.M. WOW! In later years Eileen faithfully brought her little boys.  Kathy would come down from Oxnard with Kristin and Angele.  Now it will be Nicole and Bridget’s turn. Those early family parties were at the Santa Inez Inn on Sunset near PCH. Then they moved to the Riviera Country Club and the past few years it has been at Mort”s Oak Room.

Picking out the Christmas tree – a  time of decision with each child getting a chance to say yea or nay.   During the early lean years the children helped pick out the tree at an Alpha Beta market. Cheap,  but pretty enough. Soon the YMCA got our generous business. Memories of decorations made especially for the tree by little hands and cherished year after year. After an extended family Christmas dinner, my children with 2nd cousins Mark and Ines and close friend Kathy Hicks,would put on a play.  The second generation tries to repeat this tradition but usually gets too giggly. Each year at midnight I watch on TV the Pope”s Christmas Mass from St. Peter’s in Rome.                   Then I fall asleep counting my blessings.

This was my inspirational message to the Women’s Club, 1990:  Last week here in Pacific Palisades, Santa Claus arrived riding in a red fire engine.   Now every time my little two-year-old grandchild [ed: Bridget] hears a fire siren, she shouts happily, “Here comes Santa Claus!” Many of us are busy preparing for the arrival of Jolly Old St. Nicholas.  For Christians this is Advent season, a time for preparation for the birthday of the Christ child. In our preparation, let us remember the poor, the homeless, and the lonely. To those people whose Holiday celebration begins with Chanakkuh, we offer a Happy Holiday wish for Joy and Peace. To our club members who will be travelling to visit their family and friends, we wish you a safe journey. To all you ladies, today, we wish you a very Merry Christmas and may your holidays be filled with Love, Health and Happiness. Now, let us bow our heads and pray: Thank you Lord God for the coming joys of this Christmas season and for this food we enjoy today with our friends. AMEN.

 

Dec. 1992

The Christmas season.. a time to reminisce…

About the happiness of my Mother and Dad’s four week visit with us each year over the Holiday Season. The children would shout loud and clear, “Hooray! The Christmas season is near! Grandma and Grandpa Krueger will soon be here!” When my Mother and Daddy were alive, it meant a wonderful month’s visit from two people we  loved (even their son-in-law).

Dad would enjoy basking in the California sunshine, and going to the races at Santa Anita. Mother and I would catch up on the gossip of the past year. There would be another new grandchild for her to hold and cherish. They never considered retiring out here, but how their grandchildren  would have loved it.  I did bury Mother and Dad in Los Angeles at Holy Cross Catholic Cemetery. Very close to the Martini Sr.’s graves. Mike and I will also be buried there.

Special activities occurred during the grandparents visit.  e.g. a trip to the train station to pick them up; in later years they arrived  by plane. A trip to Knott’s Berry Farm where they served their famous chicken dinner and boysenberry pie and one could look across the orange groves to the snow on the Mountains. Another favorite fun place that no longer exists was P.O.P. (Pacific Ocean Park- an amusement complex in Venice owned by the Moreharts (they had 8 children with names all beginning with “M.”) Another spot we visited was Marineland on Palos Verdes. The new marina in the foggy bottom land between Venice and  Westchester became  a place to watch the boats and visit the shops and restaurants. Then Christmas Eve would arrive with midnight mass and the unwrapping of many presents the next day.

New Years Eve was extra special for the children. They would decorate the house with streamers and party with Grandma and Grandpa.   This meant much crazy fun because Mike and I were gone partying elsewhere.  They wore funny hats, shook noisemakers, and could stay up until midnight and shout to the sky. “HAPPY NEW YEAR!” and the same greeting to all my friends here. HAPPY NEW YEAR 1993.

 

St. Patrick’s Day and St. Joseph’s Day

My mother’s name was Ruth Dunphy. Her Dunphy grandparents were born in County West Meath, Ireland. So all my children are 1/4 Irish; even you, grandson Vincent Gonzales are 1/8 Irish. Naturally, we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by the wearing of the green and a nip of Irish whiskey. Dinner is either Irish stew or corned beef and cabbage. Our Church and School usually had a St. Paddy’s Day party. With Irish nuns and priests what else but a happy celebration; the  Irish jig was danced and we all topped off the evening with some Irish coffee.

March 19, St. Joseph’s Day, called for another celebration in our family. Italians celebrate this day. My children are 1/2 Italian/Sicilian and yes, Vincent Gonzales, you are 1/4 Italian!  Do any of you children remember Aunt Josephine’s St. Joseph table when she lived in Newport Beach? It was loaded with special pastas and sauces, and artichokes and other delicacies. You could taste and then the food was given to the poor.

Oct. 1992

Bits and Pieces About Halloween

In Medieval times Halloween was celebrated as All Hallows or the eve of the festival of All Saints.  As a pagan Celtic festival, it was the pastoral flip side of May Day – the beginning of spring and the end of autumn. Since November ushers in the darkest and most barren half of the year, this autumn festival acquired sinister significance – ghosts, etc. Also divination of the future took place.  Young women sowed hemp seed and chanted, “Hemp seed I sow, who will my husband be? Let him come – and mow.” The Jack-o-Lantern tradition began in Scotland (with turnips) and changed to pumpkins in the United States. Irish immigrants to the USA introduced  secular Halloween customs that became popular in the late 19th century. Mischief making by boys usually took such forms as knocking over outhouses.  In later years children in costumes went door to door “trick or treating” for candy.

Last Saturday with my daughter Barbara, her husband, Buzz, four-year-old Christopher and his big and little brothers, we headed out to a real pumpkin patch in the Oxnard area. We rode in a hay wagon (memories of high school parties in St. Louis) drove all  around the large fields to decide where we’d find Chris and Michael’s pumpkins. Then Grandpa Mike, aided by big brother T. J. age 11, got a wheelbarrow and we all walked over that soft marvelous Oxnard soil to the perfect pumpkins; loaded two into the wheelbarrow and headed back to the check stand. Chris was so excited; little Michael just fell asleep on the ride home.

 

April 1993

Easter Memories

Today is a beautiful sunny Spring day. Lent is nearly over and the Christian Holy Week soon will be here. Easter was always a memorable day. When I was a young girl in St. Louis, our attendance at  the Mass of Christ’s Resurrection was the jewel of Easter Day.  People dressed up in pastel colors, light weight coats and suits, and pretty Spring hats adorned with artificial flowers.  Dressing for Church in the 1920’s must have been our grandparents “Easter Parade. ” Look in our family scrapbooks about 1950-60’s and you’ll see how adorable my children looked dressed for Easter Day.

 

Our table held a bowl of hard boiled decorated eggs. Much creativity and fun went into these eggs. My Mother and Dad always sent solid chocolate Easter bunnies from Mavrakos Candy Store in St. Louis. We often had dinner at Grandma and Grandpa Martini’s house. Then sometimes at Frank and Lina Ricciardi’s home with  “adopted” cousins Mark and Ines. The Easter egg hunt was such a happy time. Anyone remember the egg hunt at old Mayfair market (now Gelsons)? Now all my children have their own family celebrations and we drive around to visit and share.