Happy Christmas! That's what I see and hear all over the country. I don't know if it's always been this way, but it's rare to find a "Merry" Christmas anywhere. I suppose I don't mind, but it's just one of those things that I've noticed is different about Christmas in England than in Florida.
I've been asked by many of the English what differences I've noticed in the Christmas season here as compared to the US. So far, I can't put my finger on too many differences, but will list the main ones for you here:
1.) The weather! It actually FEELS like Christmas here in Nottingham :) It hasn't really snowed yet, but there was a snow flurry once. I was walking to church that night when it started to flurry. I ran into the building with a huge smile on my face proclaiming, "Look everyone, it's SNOWING outside!!!" The response was "aww, poor Florida girl thinks THAT'S snow..." Well, it was enough to get me excited and ready for Christmas!
2.) Mince pies and Christmas Crackers. Everywhere I go these days...church, schools, shopping stores...there are mince pies and Christmas crackers! I was excited about mince pies at first, because I thought it was a meat-based pie. Boy howdy was I wrong! Mince pies, though sometimes referred to as "mincemeat pies," are made of dried fruits in a pastry. I think it's the fruitcake of England, honestly. I definitely prefer the Yule log as a Christmas desert! It's strange to eat a desert that is shaped to look like firewood, but MAN is it good. It's like a giant tree-shaped Little Debby...mmm! Christmas Crackers also hold a misleading name, since they are NOT crackers! You don't even eat them at all, sadly. A Christmas Cracker is a traditional cardboard tube wrapped in festive paper. Two people hold either side of the Cracker, and PULL! The package sort of explodes...and one of the two sides produces a small present for one lucky winner. There are also Christmas jokes and small paper crowns that shoot out. I guess it's a cross between Cracker Jacks and a wishbone!
4.) Christmas Carols. Well, there are a couple of differences when it comes to carols. First of all, some of the traditional carols (like "O Little Town of Bethlehem") have different tunes here! I was told that American colonists changed the tunes to be more receptive to harmonies. But another difference I've noticed in celebrating Christmas in this culture showed up during our after school club Christmas party last week. We had planned a game for the kids to compete against other groups in a yuletide version of "Name that Tune." They were asked to receive their Christmas carol assignment, run back to their team, and GARGLE the tune until their group recognized the song. Sounds like a great game, right? Well, the only hitch was that only a couple of kids in the club recognized even half of the songs on the list. My teammate David since this experience heard on the radio that 77% of the English haven't sang a Christmas carol in 4 years, and that around 46% of the British couldn't sing one Christmas carol if you asked them to. Can you imagine life without "Silent Night"?
I had the opportunity to spend a few days in London last week! The city was beautiful in its Christmas decor. Feel free to check out my pictures on my Flickr website: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sisterhutch
Finally, I have a prayer request. Hope '08 (http://www.hope08.com) is a national effort to pull churches in the UK together for one year in events across the country. I've been going to meetings with local youth ministers to start our own youth effort in Nottingham. We're going to be planning a number of large-scale youth events throughout the year, beginning with our kick-off event on January 25. It has been VERY encouraging to meet with youth workers from 5 VERY different churches. Please pray that our unified efforts will result in some amazing events for kids in this area! I know that God wants to do something awesome in this city, so pray that we will allow God to use us however He can.
I pray that you will all enjoy your time with your family and friends this Christmas season! I miss you all even more during this time :)
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2 comments:
HI CRYSTAL.
Check out www.HopeInfo.co.uk and the evangelistic literature from CPO that features the URL (www.cpo.org.uk)
"Ski-son's Greetings" from the colonies! hehe;) Also, "Happy Christmas" makes me think of Hermione.
Okay, I'm done with pop cultural references...
Hope '08 sounds awesome! I remember a missionary in England once told me that in America you can kind of get away with sticking to your own denomination, but in the U.K., the churches absolutely HAVE to pull together...It's necessary.
Anyway, we'll be praying for you Crystal!
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