family tree for you newsletter new one just altered now

7/30/2019 Family Tree for You Newsletter New One Just Altered Now

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We have nearly come to the end of another year and what a year its been

for a lot of us some of us have had sickness and family troubles and

We think we will all be pleased when a New Year steps in I am sure I

will.

This year the newsletter will not be to large but

We have tried to enclose as many things from the past years for you looking

back at Christmas. We Have all thats Christine and Myself submitted our

own articles this year to the magazine to try and make it a bit moreinteresting for you .

Welcome to this years Christmas Magazine for 2012.As we have a few new

Members in the group this is how it started. FTFY was born in 2007, started by

Vera Brierley, and then she asked her friend, a fellow genealogist, Christine

Conroy to be her assistant and it has snowballed from then! We have regular

newsletters throughout the year but this year, we are having a Christmas

Magazine, full of stories and traditions for this time of the year, all relating to

genealogy and family. We have members scattered all over the world, as far as

Canada & the U.S.A. and Australia. Christmas traditions and rituals, of course

vary from country to country but this one caught my eye.

How Native Indians Forecast a Cold Winter

One day in early September the chief of a Native American tribe wasasked by his tribal elders if the winter of 2011/12 was going to be cold ormild. The chief asked his medicine man, but he too had lost touch withthe reading signs from the natural world around the Great Lakes. In truth,

neither of them had idea about how to predict the coming


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winter. However, the chief decided to take a modern approach, and thechief rang the National Weather Service in Gaylord Michigan.

Yes, it is going to be a cold winter,' the meteorological officer told the

chief. Consequently, he went back to his tribe and told the men to collect plentyoffirewood.

A fortnight later the chief called the Weather Service and asked for anupdate. 'Are you still forecasting a cold winter?' he asked. Yes, very cold',the weather officer told him. As a result of this brief conversation thechief went back to the tribe and told his people to collect every bit ofwood they could find. A month later the chief called the National WeatherService once more and asked about the coming winter. 'Yes,' he was told,'it is

going to be one of the coldest winters ever.'

'How can you be so sure?' the chief asked.

The weatherman replied: Because the Native Americans of the GreatLakes are collecting wood like crazy!

Christines Story

The Xmas Yule Log

The Yule log today, takes the form of either a small wood and holly centerpiece on the

Christmas dinner table, or a delicious cream-filled chocolate roll, shaped like a tree log

and covered with chocolate icing scored to resemble bark. But when did this tradition

start?

The origins of the burning of the yule log

The origin of the Christmas yule log dates back to Yuletide, a pagan winter festival of fire

where the burning of a log on the eve of Winter Solstice ushered in the power of the sun.Winter Solstice falls on or around December 20, and is the shortest day and longest


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night of the year. Our pagan ancestors who lived in the frozen north of Europe and

Scandinavia, went out into the forests to find the biggest log to bring back and set alight.

It was left to burn for the entire 12 days of Yule, the Viking winter feast. This custom was

to keep the winter darkness away and to welcome back the spirits of the families' dearly

departed, every Christmas Eve.

The Yule log tradition in Britain

The Vikings carried the Yule log tradition to Britain but before this time, the Celtics

placed great significance on the oak tree, which was sacred to the ancient Druids. As

part of the Druids' winter solstice fire, this slow-burning tree was used for the perpetual

fire from which people could relight their winter fires. The tradition of burning the Yule log

through the 12 nights of Christmas until Twelfth Night can still be seen in some old

British inns. Pieces of the Yule log were highly prized and often kept as protection for the

house from fire and lightning through the coming year, and the ashes were often

scattered over the fields as a fertilizer. The following Christmas, the yule log would be litfrom remnants of the old one, thus connecting the logs for many years.

The customs of "wassailing" the trees

The druids worshiped, sang and chanted to the Great Trees, symbols of the Gods, and

poured wine on them as an offering. This custom of wassailing" the trees lead to the

tradition of "wassailing" the Yule log . Decorated with mistletoe, holly, ivy, red berries

and bright ribbons, drink was poured over it and people sang around it.

The shift from the hearth to the table

With the introduction of cast-iron stoves and fewer fireplaces, the 19th century French

replaced the yule log by a log-shaped cake, the "buche de Noel" (Christmas Log), to be

served after midnight mass on Christmas Eve at a supper called Le Reveillon.

The Yule Log, though pagan in origin, is thousands of years old but still adorns the

Christmas dinner table in many households.

Here are some ideas on how to decorate your Christmas Cup Cakes.

They make lovely Christmas presents, made up into boxes of 6.

RECIPE FOR CHRISTMAS CUPCAKES


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Ingredients 250g (8oz) unsalted butter, softened

250g (8oz) caster sugar

250g (8oz) self-raising flour

Pinch of salt 4 medium eggs

4 tablespoons milk

Ice-cream scoop (optional)

2 x 12-hole muffin tins, lined with paper cases

MethodSet the oven to 190C or Gas Mark 5.

Tip the butter into a bowl and beat it until softened. Add the sugar, flour, salt, eggs and

milk and whisk until the mixture is smooth.

Use a traditional-style ice-cream scoop, or spoon, to divide the mixture between all the

paper cases.Place both muffin tins in the oven and bake for 15 minutes, then swap over the position of

the tins over and bake for a further 3-7 minutes, until both trays of cupcakes are a

light golden colour.

Remove the tins from the oven. Leave the cupcakes to cool in the tins for a few minutes,

then transfer them to a wire rack to cool.

Italian Meringue Buttercream

300g (10oz) caster sugar

5 large egg whites

500g (1lb) unsalted butter, softened Pinch of salt

Few drops of vanilla extract

Paste food colourings in pink, violet, yellow and orange

Sugar/jam/candy thermometer

MethodPour 100ml (3 fl oz) water into a saucepan and add 250g (8oz) caster sugar. Place the

pan on the hob and stir until the sugar dissolves. Bring the mixture to the boil. Use a

damp pastry brush to wash down any sugar crystals on the side of the pan. Boil the

mixture rapidly, without stirring it, until it reaches 121C. Have a large bowl of cold

water ready for step 3.When the syrup reaches over 100C, whisk the egg whites until stiff, preferably using a

table-top mixer. Gradually whisk in the remaining caster sugar.

As soon as the syrup reaches 121C, remove the pan from the heat and plunge the base of

the pan into the bowl of cold water, to prevent the syrup from getting any hotter. Only

leave the pan in the water for a few seconds - if it's left too long, it will be too thick to

pour.

With the food mixer on full speed, gradually pour in the syrup in a thin stream, taking

care to pour it between the edge of the bowl and the whisk - if it's too close to the

edge of the bowl, it will set there and won't get mixed in properly; if it's poured over

the moving whisk, then it will splatter out of the bowl and make a mess. Continue

whisking the mixture for about 8-10 mins until the bowl feels just lukewarm. If thesyrup starts to become too thick to pour, return the pan to the hob very briefly, for the


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heat to thin is slightly.

Gradually whisk in the butter. Then add the salt and vanilla extract. The meringue will

collapse a little, and the mixture may look like it's curdled, but keep whisking it until

it forms a smooth fluffy buttercream. Use paste colour to colour the buttercream to the

desired colour.

From Christine

CHRISTMAS QUIZ

1. Which of these companies was the first to use Santa Clause in an

advertisement?

(a) Pepsi (b) Coca-Cola (c ) 7-Up (d) Fanta

2. Which president was the first to decorate the White House Christmastree?

(a) Franklin Pierce (b) Benjamin Franklin (c ) George Washington (d)

Abraham Lincoln

3. Which country did the gingerbread house come from?

(a)Austria (b) Switzerland (c ) Germany (d)United States

4. What kind of Christmas does Elvis Presley sing about?

(a)White (b) Red (c ) Blue (d) Snowy

5. In what year was "A Christmas Carol", by Charles Dickens, published?

(a) 1765 (b) 1843 (c) 1860 (d) 1906

6. What is the name of the Grinch's dog in the movie "How the Grinch

Stole Christmas"?


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(a) Pete (b) Sam (c ) Ruth (d) Max

7. Where was "A Christmas Carol" written?

(a) Australia (b) United States (c ) Germany (d) United Kingdom

8. Which reindeer helps Rudolph fly at the reindeer games?

(a) Donner (b) Clarice (c ) Dancer (d) Blitzen

9. Which reindeer is Rudolph's dad? a) Dancer (b)Dixon (c ) Donner

(d) Blitzen

10. Which Christmas movie has been played more than any other?

(a) A Christmas Story (b) Frosty The Snowman (c ) Home Alone (d) Its A

Wonderful Life

ANSWERS AT THE END OF NEWSLETTER

From Christine

Genealogist's Christmas Eve

'Twas the night before ChristmasWhen all through the houseNot a creature was stirring,

Not even my spouse.

The dining room table with clutter was spreadWith pedigree charts and with letters which said...

"Too bad about the data for which you wrote;Sank in a storm on an ill-fated boat."

Stacks of old copies of wills and such

Were proof that my work had become too much.Our children were nestled all snug in their beds,

While visions of sugarplums danced in their heads.

And I at my table was ready to dropFrom work on my album with photos to crop.

Christmas was here, and such was my lotThat presents and goodies and toys I'd forgot.

Had I not been busy with grandparents' wills,

I'd not have forgotten to shop for such thrills,

While others bought gifts to bring Christmas cheers,I'd spent time researching those birth dates and years.


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While I was thus musing about my sad plight,A strange noise on the lawn gave me such a great fright.

Away to the window I flew in a flash,Tore open the drapes and yanked up the sash.

When what with my wondering eyes should appear,

But an overstuffed sleigh and eight small reindeer.Up to the house top the reindeer they flew,

With a sleigh full of toys and 'ole Santa Claus, too.

And then in a twinkle, I heard on the roof

The prancing and pawing of thirty-two hoofs.As I drew in my head, and bumped it on the sash,

Down the cold chimney fell Santa--KER-RASH!

"Dear" Santa had come from the roof in a wreck,And tracked soot on the carpet, (I could wring his short neck!)

Spotting my face, good 'ole Santa could see

I had no Christmas spirit you'd have to agree.

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his workand filled all the stockings, (I felt like a jerk).

Here was Santa, who'd brought us such gladness and joy:When I'd been too busy for even one toy.

He spied my research on the table all spread

"A genealogist!" He cried! (My face was all red!)"Tonight I've met many like you," Santa grinned,

As he pulled from his sack a large book he had penned.

I gazed with amusement--the cover it readGenealogy Lines for Which You Have Plead.

"I know what it's like as a genealogy bug."He said as he gave me a great Santa hug.

"While the elves make the sleighful of toys I now carry,

I do some research in the North Pole Library!

A special treat I am thus able to bring,To genealogy folk who can't find a thing."

"Now off you go to your bed for a rest,I'll clean up the house from this genealogy mess."

As I climbed up the stairs full of gladness and glee,I looked back at Santa who'd brought much to me.

While settling in bed, I heard Santa's clear whistle,

To his team, which then rose like the down of a thistle.And I heard him exclaim as he flew out of sight,

"Family history is Fun! Merry Christmas! Goodnight!"


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-From Christine un known author

History and Tradition of Christmaspudding

Does your Christmas dinner include a Christmas

pudding? If you lived in England, the absence of this

delectable dessert from the holiday table would raise a

few eyebrows. The pudding is the most special part of

the meal, although families alter the way its cooked

and presented to create their own unique traditions.

Originally the Christmas pudding was referred to as

hakin because of its multitude of ingredients.

The first recipes of this pudding came from the middle

Ages. The ingredients for mince pie, as it was then

called, were chopped poultry, pheasant, partridge, and

rabbit. Later sugar, apples, raisins, and candied oranges

and lemons were added. Another form of Christmas pudding calledporridge or frumenty

surfaced in the 14th century. Ingredients included beef, mutton, raisins, currents,

prunes, wine, and mixed spices. It was a soup-like fasting dish eaten before the

Christmas celebrations commenced. In 1595, spirits, dried fruit, eggs, and breadcrumbs

were added to the recipe and it becameplum pudding. In 1664, it was banned by the

Puritans as a lewd custom unfit for people who followed the ways of God.

In 1714, King George I re-established pudding as part of the Christmas feast even

though the Quakers strongly objected. Meat was eliminated from the recipe in the 17th

century in favour of more sweets, and people began sprinkling it with brandy and setting

it aflame when serving it to their guests. The Christmas pudding was not a tradition in

England until it was introduced to the Victorians by Prince Albert. By this time the

pudding looked and tasted as it does today. The traditional cooking time takes about

eight hours, with preparation taking even longer due to extensive marinating. The longer

the fruit is marinated in brandy, cider, or both, the better it tastes and this could take

weeks!

There are many traditions and superstitions surrounding the Christmas pudding. Some

traditions say to make the pudding by the 25th Sunday after Trinity, with 13 ingredients


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to represent Christ and His Disciples. Every member of the family is to take a turn

stirring the pudding with a wooden spoon from east to west, in honour of the three

kings. It is said that setting the brandy aflame represents Christs passion. A sprig of

holly as garnish is a reminder if His Crown of Thorns. Holly supposedly brought good

luck and had special healing powers. It was often planted near houses in the belief that

it protected the inhabitants.

Some families add coins to the pudding for luck. Everyone then stirs the pudding and

makes a wish. Those who get the coins in their serving get wealth, health, happiness,

and their wish will come true. Some people even add gold rings to the mix to indicate

the finder will get married in the coming year. A tradition that died out due to its

depressing nature was the addition of thimbles or buttons to the pudding. This signalled

that the finder would remain a spinster or bachelor forever. One last interesting fact

about Christmas pudding is that the largest batch ever made weighed in at 7,231 pounds

and was made in Aughton, Lancashire on July 11, 1992. Imagine trying to finish that

plate! ---------------From Vera

Mrs Mackie's Christmas Pudding Recipe

A traditional recipe for a rich dark moist pudding. Ideal to be served with a

brandy or whisky sauce.

The Ingredients

To make 2 x 2 pound or 4 x 1 pound puddings

3 ounces of flour

5 ounces of bread crumbs

5 ounces of suet

1 pounds of mixed dried fruit

1 small orange

1 small lemon

1 small cooking apple

2 eggs

1 tablespoonful of treacle

teaspoonful of mixed spice


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teaspoonful of cinnamon

teaspoonful of nutmeg

1 small carrot

6 ounces of sugar (brown or white)

4 ounces of candid peel

From Vera

THE EARLIEST ORNAMENTS - The

1800's

The earliest in the early 1800s, as wevementioned in passing, were fruit

(particularly apples) and nuts. These,

along with the evergreen trees themselves,

represented the certainty that life would return in the spring.

Other fruits began to be added, along with paper streamers and bits of shiny metal

foil. Whether a tree was lighted or not, the idea of reflecting the light in the room

where the tree stood grew in popularity.

Another concept, too, began to take hold with the German families in whose homes

the first popular trees resided. Food, often gingerbread or other hard cookies,would be baked in the shape of fruits, stars, hearts, angels andyesbells.

As the idea of decorated Christmas trees spread, various countries added their own

variations. Americans, for instance, would string long strands of cranberries or

popcorn to circle their trees. Small gifts began to be used to decorate the tree,

sometimes contained in little intricately woven baskets, sometimes nestled in the

crook of a bough, sometimes just hanging by a thread or piece of yarn. In the UK,

creative ornaments of lace, paper or other materials showed the variety of interests

and talents of their makers. Small scraps cut out of newspaper or magazine

illustrations also found their way to the familys tree and after a few years it

became harder and harder to actually see the tree beneath the ornaments.


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The Victorians

During the nearly seventy years of her reign, Queen Victoria

presided over a resurgence of the Christmas celebration. The

illustration of her family around their Christmas tree that

appeared in Godey's Lady's Book in December, 1860, inspired

Americans as well as their British cousins to follow her example

with a decorated tree of their own. Many customs of Christmastime

past had faded during the early part of the Nineteenth century, but her

adoption of the season (if not the actual day of present-givingshe

continued to follow an older tradition of giving gifts on January One)encouraged the rediscovery of Christmas carols, charitable giving at

the season, and, of course, hearty meals of roast beef, goose or turkey

followed by plum pudding.

Many of the ornaments decorating the trees of Victorian households

were of the handmade craft variety and instructions for their

construction were included inpopular magazines. One example

includes an early light bulb, encased in a tatted net, with an observers

woven basket suspended from the bottom: a perfect hot-air balloon.

The ornaments that were commercially available tended to be a bit on

the gaudy, well, colourful, and side. They might include brightly

illustrated figures of cute angels, cute children, cute animals, and cute

elveswell, you can see the trend here. They would also include

fanciful creations of airships and other imaginative craft captained by

Father Christmas or even Santa Clausdepending on which side of the

Atlantic you resided.

There was an abundance of lace, delicate curly wire decoration,beadwork, tinsel and other materials often on the same ornament.


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From Vera

The first Christmas Tree

The first known Christmas Tree waserected at Queen's Lodge, Windsor, by

Queen Charlotte, the German bornwife of George III, for a party she held

on Christmas Day, 1800, for thechildren of the leading families inWindsor. Herbiographer Dr John

Watkins describes the scene:

In the middle of the room stood animmense tub with a yew tree placed in it, from the branches ofwhich hung bunches of sweetmeats, almonds, and raisins in

papers, fruits and toys, most tastefully arranged, and the whole

illuminated by small wax candles. After the company hadwalked around and admired the tree, each child obtained aportion of the sweets which it bore together with a toy and then

all returned home, quite delighted.

Christmas trees were an established Royal institution in Britain

long before the custom spread to the general populace. Queen

Adelaide always had one and the young Princess Victoria

recorded her delight at the Christmas tree at Kensington Palace

in 1832.Prince Albert, who is often wrongly credited with having

brought the Christmas tree to Britain, certainly did most to

encourage its general adoption, The Christmas Tree at Windsor

Castle was featured in The Illustrated London News of 1848 and

this inspired the imitation. Albert also presented large numbers

of trees to schools and Army barracks at Christmas.

In the USA despite strong German influence there is no record

of the Christmas tree before 1855 while the French only adoptedthe idea after 1870.


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The first Christmas tree lit with electric bulbs was installed in

New York City by Edward H Johnston an associate of Thomas

Edison in December 1882. The latter's company manufactured

the first commercially produced Christmas tree lamps and

advertised them in the December 1901 issue of Ladies Home

Journal.

The first communal Christmas tree was instituted by the town of

Pasadena, California, where an illuminated tree

Windsor's Tree, Castle Hill

Here in Windsor, every December, a 25 ft. high decorated

Christmas Tree from the Crown Estates; Windsor Great Park iserected immediately behind the Queen Victoria statue whichstands at the entrance to Windsor Castle. The custom datesfrom 1947, the first year that Oslo's gift tree was erected in

Trafalgar Square, London, as a thank you for Britain'sassistance to Norway in the second World War.

On an evening a few days before Christmas a Carol Service isheld around the tree. The Choir of St. George's Chapel and localchurches with a Regimental Band from the Guards combine to

make this a memorable annual event.

Has been set up annually since 1909.

From Vera


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Christmas Story, (in the 1800s)

In the very early 1800s, a young boy about 14 years

old named John lived in an orphanage in Old England

along with several other children. Orphanages were

dreaded. Orphan meant unwanted and unloved. The

orphanage was administered by a master and his wife who

were results of meager backgrounds themselves and were

short on love but high on discipline. No childlikeplay, no expression of compassion, no understanding.

Every day of the year was spent working. They worked in

gardens, cleaned, sewed, and cooked sometimes for

wealthy children. They were up at dawn and worked until

dark and usually received only one meal a day. However,

they were very grateful because they were taught to be

hard workers. John had absolutely nothing to call hisown. None of the children did.

Christmas was the one day of the year when the children

did not work and received a gift. A gift for each child- something to call their own.

This special gift was an orange. John had been in the

orphanage long enough to look forward with delight and

anticipation of this special day of Christmas and to

the orange he would receive. In Old England, and to

John and his orphan companions, an orange was a rareand special gift. It had an unusual aroma of something

they smelled only at Christmas. The children prized it

so much that they kept it for several days, weeks, and

even monthsprotecting it, smelling it, touching it

and loving it. Usually they tried to savor and

preserve it for so long that it often rotted beforethey ever peeled it to enjoy the sweet juice.

Many thought were expressed this year as Christmas time

approached. The children would say, I will keep minethe longest. They always talked about how big their


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growth to manhood was rewarded by wealth and success.

In memory of that day every year he would send orangesall over the world to children everywhere. His desire

was that no child would ever spend Christmas without aspecial Christmas fruit

From Vera

The time draws near the birth of Christ:

The moon is hid, the night is still;

The Christmas bells from hill to hill

Answer each other in the mist.

Four voices of four hamlets round,

From far and near, on mead and moor,

Swell out and fail, as if a door

Were shut between me and the sound;

Each voice four changes on the wind,

That now dilate, and now decrease;

Peace and good will, good will and peace;

The time draws near the birth of Christ:

The moon is hid, the night is still;

The Christmas bells from hill to hill

Answer each other in the mist.

Four voices of four hamlets round,From far and near, on mead and moor,


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Swell out and fail, as if a door

Were shut between me and the sound;

Each voice four changes on the wind,

That now dilate, and now decrease;Peace and good will, good will and peace;

Peace and good will, to all mankind

From Vera

-In both England and America, Victorian writers did their share in fostering holiday

spirit, but the one writer who obviously contributed the moss

t was Charles Dickens. With the publication ofA Christmas Carolin 1843, he

defined the Victorian Christmas as a a family-oriented occasion.

His touching description of the Cratchits celebrating the holiday together at home is

the heart of the classic story. The portrait still influences us today with its view of

Christmas as a time for giving and sharing, and for home and family.

At last the dinner was all done, the cloth was cleared, the hearth swept, and the fire

made up. Then all the Crachit family drew round the hearth, in

what Bob Crachit called a circle, meaning half a one, and at Bob's elbow stood thefamily display of glass-two tumblers and a a custard-cup without a handle.


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On Christmas eve it was great fun Nan who lived round the corner with

her un married daughter would be stood making pastry for the mince

pies and when I popped my head round the door she would say I hope

you have not come to play I am very busy she would let me sit at the

table and watch her and she would talk away to me Can I have some

pasty nan I would ask and she would break a little of her big piece I

would try and copy what she did I ended up lots of flour all over my

face but it was fun .

On the night of Christmas eve My sister and I would go to bed and lay

there I was so excited she would always say now dont expect all you

have asked for will you he may leave a few and nans house I said I

would be pleased ,We must have been laid there for a long time as thechurch bells would start ringing that did mean it was midnight all the

carol singers went all through the village and snow sometimes would be

just falling it was a wonderful sight as we would look out of our window

I will never forget that I dont think it was so magical small things like

that stay with a child

From Vera


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A walk down memory lane at Christmastime most oftenbrings to mind; Snowflakes gently falling on a farmhouse

surrounded by towering oaks in a huge yard, a snow-covered red barn, fenced fields, and pine trees in the

distance covered in white. And insidea warm cracklingfire, the home and Christmas tree beautifully decorated

and glowing with lights inside and out, smells of pies,cakes, and candies baking while stacks of presents wait

under the tree to be opened. A Christmas filled with fairytales, Santa Claus, a world at peace, cards andletters from friends and family, and

cheery greetings from everyone youmeet on the streets of your town. Its

church choirs and people singingcarols down wintry lanes. And its silver

bells, eggnog, and apple cider with cinnamon sticks, happyfaces on pink-cheeked children anxious and delighted with

all the excitement and wonder of the holiday. Who

wouldnt love Christmas?

Yes, Im at that stage in life where remembering andcomparing the Good Old Days to today just seem alwaysto be better, and this most definitely includes Christmasholidays and how we celebrated them way back when. Ido so miss the family closeness and traditions of earliertimes; how being without much money jingling in yourpocket made very little difference in the excitement of

Christmas and the ways families celebrated it. Traditions

were a great part of the celebrations then, and it makes


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When the snow let up a little, he ventured outside to see what could have

been beating on his window. In the field near his house he saw a flock of

wild geese. Apparently they had been flying south for the winter when theygot caught in the snowstorm and could not go on. They were lost and

stranded on his farm, with no food or shelter. They just flapped their wings

and flew around the field in low circles, blindly and aimlessly. A couple of

them had flown into his window, it seemed. The man felt sorry for the geese

and wanted to help them. The barn would be a great place for them to stay,

he thought. It is warm and safe; surely they could spend the night and wait

out the storm. So he walked over to the barn and opened the doors wide,

then watched and waited, hoping they would notice the open barn and goinside. But the geese just fluttered around aimlessly and did not seem to

notice the barn or realize what it could mean for them.

The man tried to get their attention, but that just seemed to scare them and

they moved further away. He went into the house and came back out with

some bread, broke it up, and made a breadcrumbs trail leading to the barn.

They still didn't catch on. Now he was getting frustrated. He got behind

them and tried to shoo them toward the barn, but they only got more scaredand scattered in every direction except toward the barn. Nothing he did

could get them to go into the barn where they would be warm and safe.

"Why don't they follow me?!" he exclaimed. "Can't they see this is the only

place where they can survive the storm?" He thought for a moment and

realized that they just wouldn't follow a human. "If only I were a goose,

then I could save them," he said out loud. Then he had an idea. He went

into barn, got one of his own geese, and carried it in his arms as he circled

around behind the flock of wild geese. He then released it. His goose flew


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through the flock and straight into the barn -- and one by one the other

geese followed it to safety.

He stood silently for a moment as the words he had spoken a few minutesearlier replayed in his mind:

Then he thought about what he had said to his wife earlier.

Suddenly it all made sense. That is what God had done.

We were like the geese -- blind, lost, perishing. God had His Son becomelike us so He could show us the way and save us.

That was the meaning of Christmas, he realized. As the winds and blindingsnow died down, his soul became quiet and pondered this wonderfulthought. Suddenly he understood what Christmas was all about, why Christhad come. Years of doubt and disbelief vanished like the passing storm. Hefell to his knees in the snow, and prayed his first prayer:

From Vera


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Still downMemory lane

The English Clog Maker

or Clogger


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For clogsolemaking thecraftsman

requires atimber thatdoes notsplit easily,but on theotherhand, itmust berelativelyeasy to shape. As clogs are used on wet factory floors, mines andmuddy fields, the sole must be durable in water and completely

waterproof. Tough, resilient willow which lasts indefinitely in moistconditions is occasionally used by north country craftsmen as is birchand beech, but in that area as well as in Wales nearly all the clogs areequipped with alder or sycamore soles. While many village clog makersutilise sycamore, the itinerant cloggers, by tradition are craftsmen inalder. Alder, a riverside tree, grows best in good fertile soil, withrunning water near the roots. It grows profusely in favoured conditions,its seed being carried from one place to the other by the streams. Thetimber it produces is soft and perishable under ordinary conditions, forit contains a great deal of moisture. In wet places, however, it isextremely durable and for this reason alder is widely used for suchspecialised tasks as riveting river banks. It can only be harvested in thespring and summer months and must be left to season for at least ninemonths before it can be used. Clogging was therefore a seasonableoccupation and gangs of a dozen or more craftsmen wandered fromgrove to grove, living a hard, tough life in roughly built temporaryshelters. In Wales the clogger reckoned that the amount of moneymade from selling waste material as pea-sticks and firewood should beenough to buy all the food the gang needed while they worked in thewoods.

After felling alder trees no more than twenty-four inches in girth, theclogger sawed the tree trunks into logs of fixed lengths of four sizes -'men's,' 'women's,' 'middle's,' and 'children's.' Each log was then splitwith a beetle and wedge or with axe and mallet into blocks, whichwere cut with the cloggers knife into the rough shape and sizes of theclog soles. This process was known as 'breaking up.' If the alder treesused were small nine year coppice trees, their girth would beconsiderably smaller, and the splitting process with beetle and wedgewas unnecessary.

The work with the cloggers stock knife was highly skilled and intricate.

The knife itself is made of one piece of steel, some thirty inches in


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length, bent toan obtuse anglein the middle.The blade is

some fourinches deep andthirteen incheslong and thewhole knifeterminates in ahook. This hookwas fastened toa ring on awooden post driven firmly into the ground and forming one of thesupports of a low bench. The clogger grasped the wooden handle,

which is at right angles to the shank, while with his left hand he heldan alder billet, resting on the bench and moving it as required. Thelarge cloggers knife known as a 'Bench,' or 'Paring knife,' is stillproduced by some large-scale manufacturers, and with its stout hookand long handle it gives play to the craftsman who wishes to makerapid cuts at different angles. As such it is still used for some purposeson factories along with a variety of modern machinery. The clogger,stooping over the knife, cut an alder billet into the rough shape of asole with great certainty and speed. A deep notch was cut in the blockat a point where heel and sole were designed to meet, and the clogblocks were built into small conical stacks. These stacks, which had toremain in the open air for some weeks if not months were built in sucha way that air could circulate freely between the blocks to hasten thedrying process, for 'breaking up' was undertaken while the timber wasstill green and moist. The rough blocks were then sent to north countryclog factories where they were finally shaped in workshops.

The Village Clog maker


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A craft closely related to that ofboot making is that of clog-making. Indeed in some parts ofthe country one craftsman was

responsible for making both typesof footwear. In others, however,the clog maker was a specialisedcraftsman, concerned only withmaking wooden soled clogs. Inaddition to itinerant cloggersalmost every village and rurallocality, particularly in the northand west, had its clog maker, whomade footwear for each individualbuyer, measuring the feet and

making clogs to fit those feet.

Unlike the clogger, the villagecraftsman used a great deal ofsycamore. In the past Welsh clog makers reckoned that a sycamore treecut from the hedgerow produced far superior soles to those cut from aforest or plantation. The trees are felled and immediately convertedinto sole blocks; first with beetle and wedge, then with an axe andfinally with the large stock knife.

The process so far, is similar to that adopted by itinerant cloggers, anda few deft strokes with this guillotine-like stock knife soon reduces theblocks of wood to nearly the correct shape. In the case of the villageclog maker, however, measurements that are more accurate than thecloggers 'men's', 'women's', 'middles' and 'children's' are adopted, for the

clog maker measures thecustomer's feet accurately andtransfers those measurements to apaper pattern. In many clogmakers workshops, patternsrepresenting the feet of

generations of local inhabitantsmay still be found.


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are ready for wear. I thought you would be interested in this not mywork

From Vera

Christmas Fudge

1 cup sugar1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup heavy cream1/8 tsp. salt

2 cups powdered sugar1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 cup red candied cherries, chopped1/2 cup green candied cherries, chopped

Spray an 8x8" baking dish with cooking spray.In a large saucepan, bring the sugar, butter, cream and salt to

a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently.

Let boil for 5 minutes, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and slowly add the powdered sugar andvanilla, stirring until smooth and well combined.

Stir in the cherries until evenly distributed.

Spoon Christmas Fudge into a baking dish and chill for 1 houror until firm.

Cut into squares.


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Store in an airtight container.

From VERA

30 marshmallows (large)1/2 cup butter

reen paste food colouring1/2 teaspoon vanilla4-1/2 cup corn flakes, Granola or rice cerealcinnamon red hotsred liquorice (optional)

Microwave marshmallows, butter, and food colouring on 1/2ower for 2 minutes, or until melted.

Add vanilla and mix thoroughly.Fold in corn flakes or granola until completely covered withcooked mixture.Form into holly shapes on waxed paper.Add candy for berries and tie on red liquorice while stillwarm.Once the Christmas Holly Cookies cool the candy will not stick.Can use a red ribbon instead of liquorice for a tie.


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The Scottish people have their big celebrations

on New Year's Day, called Hogmanay. A longtime ago There is a superstition that it is badluck for the fire to go out on Christmas Eve,since it is at this time that the elves are abroadand only a raging fire will keep them from

coming down the chimney.

On Christmas day, people sometimes make bigbonfires and dance around them to the playing

of bagpipes. Bannock cakes made of oatmeal aretraditionally eaten at Christmas.

In Scotland, Christmas had traditionally been celebrated veryquietly, because the Church of Scotland - the PresbyterianChurch - has never placed any great emphasis on theChristmas festival, However, the Scots are members of theChurch of England or other churches generally celebrateChristmas in the same way as the English people disapproved

of Christmas for they believed that there was too much riotousfestivity that went on. Nowadays these things are held atHogmanay, but they do celebrate Christmas with some very

interesting customs.

Australia - Christmas traditions & customs


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In Australia, the holiday comes in the

middle of summer--it's not unusual for some

parts of Australia to hit 100 degrees

Fahrenheit on Christmas day. In Sydney,thousands of families prepare their

Christmas dinner and take it to Bondi

Beach for a picnic. Australians decorate with Christmas Bushes, plants

with little red-flowered leaves that are native to Australia.

Ireland - Christmas traditions & customs

Christmas in Ireland lasts from ChristmasEve to the feast of the Epiphany on January6, which is referred to Little Christmas.Ireland's Christmas is more religious than atime of fun.Lighted candles are placed in windows on

Christmas Eve, as a guide that Joseph and Mary might belooking for shelter. The candles are usually red in colour,and decorated with sprigs of holly.

Irish women bake a seed cake for each person in thehouse. They also make three puddings, one for each dayof the Epiphany such as Christmas, New Year's Day andthe Twelfth Night.

After the Christmas evening meal, bread and milk areleft out and the door unlatched as a symbol ofhospitality.

St Stephen's Day, the day after Christmas, is almost asimportant, with football matches and meetings going on.

For children, the Wren Boys Procession is their bigevent. Boys go from door to door with a fake wren on astick, singing, with violins, accordions, harmonicas and

horns to accompany them. The reason for the ceremony


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is to ask for money 'for the starving wren', that is, fortheir own pockets.

From Vera

Story I Just Heard

This morning I heard a story on the radio of a woman who

was out Christmas shopping with her two children; after

many hours of looking at row after row of toys and

everything else imaginable, and after hours of hearing both

her children asking for everything they saw on those many

shelves, she finally made it to the elevator with her two kids.

She was feeling what so many of us feel during the holiday

season time of the year - overwhelming pressure to go to every

party, every housewarming, taste all the holiday food and

treats, get that perfect gift for every single person on our

shopping list, make sure we don't forget anyone on our card

list, and the pressure of making sure we respond to everyonewho sent us a card.


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Finally the elevator doors opened and there

was already a crowd in the elevator She

pushed her way into the elevator and draggedher two kids in with her and all the bags of

stuff. When the doors closed she couldn't take it anymore and

stated, "Whoever started this whole Christmas thing should be

found, strung up and shot."

From the back of the car everyone heard a quiet, calm voice

respond,

"Don't worry.We already crucified him."

For the rest of the trip down the elevator it was so quiet you

could have heard a pin drop.

I laughed when I heard this what children will say

I n December 1940, the Oxford Mail boldly declared: Therell always be a

Christmas but the festive season was never quite the

Same in wartime. Families were scattered, people were understandablyanxious about the future and the delights which formed a key feature of the

traditional Christmas were in short supply.

The separation of families had a profound effect. Over three million British

men and women were in the armed forces and those serving overseas might

be away from home for years.

Silk stockings ceased to be available from December 1940, causing chaos in

Oxford as women rushed to buy up the last supplies. At Ellistons, the


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counter had to be closed for two hours to allow shop assistants to recover.

Many servicemen and women were based in the United Kingdom for much of

the war but only a small proportion could hope to get Christmas leave.

War workers and evacuees might also be living miles from home and eventhose who were notionally free to travel faced all the difficulties of wartime

travel with petrol rationing and crowded trains.

On the Home Front, the celebration of Christmas took on almost a

patriotic note.

In December 1939, the editor of the Oxford Monthly looked forward to

Christmas as Usual, arguing that it remains an important part of our war

effort that we should carry on and so help to maintain the morale of ourpopulation. Tradesmen took up this theme and Millwards in Oxford urged

customers to Brighten the Blackout Give Everyone Cosy Colourful

Slippers; in Thame, John Walker Ltd., trusted that buying the firms fruit,

nuts, mistletoe and Christmas trees would have the same effect.

Wiblins in Oxford offered a good range of English, Irish and imported turkeys

and Morrells Brewery advertised its traditional College Ale for Christmas

cheer. Badcocks suggested that Stockings solve the Gift Problem . . . in themost pleasing manner and Nurse the Furrier advised that A Fur Coat is a

Real Economy and Necessity in these days. Capes and Wards had plenty of

toys and Ellistons boasted a grand collection of the very latest Toys, Games

and Gifts. Later in the war, the rationing of food, sweets and clothes and

concentration on vital war production seriously diminished the supply of

Christmas goodies.

Turkey became an expensive rarity and mutton pie was one recommendedalternative for Christmas dinner. Hardly any fruit was imported and

making Christmas pudding with carrots was suggested in 1944.

Sweets became scarce in 1940 when sugar was rationed and

sweet rationing was introduced in July 1942, limiting each adult

and child to eight ounces of sweets every four weeks. Ice cream

vanished, although strange concoctions were made using substitute

materials.


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Silk stockings ceased to be available from December 1940, causing chaos in

Oxford as women rushed to buy up the last supplies. At Ellistons, the

counter had to be closed for two hours to allow shop assistants to recover

Many women subsequently painted their legs with coffee or suntan lotionand asked a friend with a steady hand to apply the seam with an eyebrow

pencil.

In 1944, Millwardsin Henley offered women warm, comfortable, sturdy

and very stylish wood-soled shoes, cheerfully explaining that Allied airmen

were flying to victory in the material previously used for fleece-lined

booties!

Christmas trees became scarce and, although people continued to send

Christmas cards, regimental greetings cards like those offered byPankhursts in Bicester in 1943 were often preferred to traditional stage-

coach and snow scenes.

A flood of military toys appeared at the beginning of the warlead

soldiers, uniformed dolls, model air raid precautions units, even toy bombs

on a stringbut most toys vanished from the shops by 1941.

Local papers were crammed with advertisements for second-hand toys and

one woman commented that At Christmas our home resembled Santa

Clauss workshop as members of the family busied themselves as amateur

toymakers. One little girl simply asked Santa for any little thing you can

spare. The blackout forced churches to abandon Midnight Mass at

Christmas and required carol singers to direct the light from their lanterns

towards the ground to avoid signalling to enemy planes.

Even air raid wardens in Oxford had their Christmas tea postponed until

the following spring because the venue was insufficiently blacked out!

Hartwells in December 1940 sent Seasons Greetings to their customers andremarked that We live in interestingly difficult times. It was an apt

description of both wartime Christmases and the wider struggle


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Frequently just before Christmas my mother would eagerly peer out of the

kitchen window, step outside and standing in front of the old mill she would

scan the skies for a change in the wind to the north or east, to see if snow

was coming our way. She would often say to herself: I wonder if this will

be a white Christmas.

Walking around Norwich on any Saturday in December you would always

see the Salvation Army singing Christmas carols on a street corner trying

to attract the attention of passers-by to help fill their collection tins. Many

stopped to admire their dark blue costumes and to listen to their singing

accompanied by percussion instruments.

All the People seemed to spend a lot of time going from shop to shop. They

spent in particular a lot of time in Woolworths and Marks and Spencers,

the main two stores for shopping in the 1950s. As you walked around thebags got heavier and heavier and we was always told in certain shops to

look the other way. We usually had a cup of drink in Woolworths and a

well-deserved rest before spending a penny (which did actually cost a

penny in those days) and continuing with the shopping.

What wonderful Memories those days was

We hope you have enjoyed this small Christmas newsletter it is

only small but some nice reading


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Christine and myself would like to wish all our members a very

happy Christmas and a happy New Year and thank you for being

with us yet another year x

Answers to the quiz

1 Coca Cola

2 Franklin Pierce

3 Germans

4 Blue

5 1843

6 Max

7 UK

8 Clarice

9 Donner

10 Its a wonderful Life

Now did you get them all correct

family tree for you newsletter new one just altered now

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