One of my favorite memories of Christmas would be listening to our Dzarjew (grandfather in Polish) singing "Silent Night" as he sat by the Christmas tree.
He was a very sweet and sentimental man who loved Christmas and his many grand children. There were 6 in our family.
He would tell us about the old country and begin to well up with tears. The same as he did while singing "Silent Night" to us.
Christmas Eve was a special night for him because my mother would always prepare all of the foods he loved and grew up having in the Ukraine. My mother was of French decent but enjoyed cooking these foods because it kept us close to our roots and traditions as a family.
We still celebrate Christmas Eve in the same way we did since I can remember and I’m 64. Our children and their families all look forward to sharing Christmas Eve together with these traditions. If any one of my siblings and I had to sing "Silent Night" by ourselves or together, I dare say we would all be in tears. The pine cone doesn’t fall far from the Christmas tree.
