;
Welcome, Santa Claus!
To the Christmas tree, comes near
Santa Claus—oh my, oh dear!
Santa, Santa, there he goes—
With those cheeks and with that nose!
His beard’s growing, down and down,
Away from his studded crown.
On his nose rest glasses big
But his eyes are Grandpa’s!
– A. Shibaev
So we meet again, my dear reader! My grandchildren gave me the task of telling the story of how our family celebrates our favorite holiday: New Year’s. So, I started recalling these events—which, of course, were logged deep in my memory.
In the days of my youth (and not long before my wedding), my then-fianc; and I celebrated New Year’s in the Kharkov Youth Club [Ed. note: a recreation center with a library, theater, gymnasium, and more.].
Since then, more than 50 years have passed, but I still remember these cheerful times—the excitement of these wonderful nights is hard to forget! Smart people, wonderful music, toasts, tables with food, dancing to the orchestra with one’s beloved—oh, how wonderful! In the morning, we’d show up at home, well-rested and happy! Good memories last a lifetime!
Our family moved to Columbia, South Carolina. We arrived in June, when the city was extremely hot—we were suffocating from the hot air, drenched in sweat and recalling the temperate climate of Ukraine. We couldn’t wait for autumn and winter. Of course, we admired the colorful trees and bushes, the green foliage, and the well-groomed grass. And we were looking forward to when the leaves would fall and it would be cold!
After some time, it became a little cooler outside, and we gazed at the calendar with hope. New Year’s was coming!
Oh, the New Year. The clock strikes twelve!
A new year comes upon us,
May we have a happy new year with much success!
Time whisks us along,
But last year’s gone.
Let everyone sing
And their smiles ring.
The New Year draws near—
It is time to sing and cheer!
A happy, fruitful new year is here!
Each morning, we gaze longingly out the window, hoping that suddenly it would snow, or a strong wind would bring a blizzard! But, alas, no snow comes our way. Oh, but the heat is intense! We walk around in light clothes and flip-flops on our bare feet, and we stare out the window day after day, wondering, “what if?” Unfortunately for us, there is no cold, no snowflakes! What a pity. We Ukrainians are used to the real winter!
We decided to celebrate our favorite holiday together with a few Russian and Ukranian families whom we knew. We prepared traditional dishes and couldn’t wait for the evening…New Year’s was coming!
Our family consisted of six people—most importantly, we had a baby named Zhenya [Eugene], about 10 months old, who was supposed to sleep soundly in his crib at night. But, as is usually the case with babies, Eugene took a long nap before we left for the celebration, woke up well-rested, and waited eagerly for others to talk to him. We thought, “How would New Year’s go?” There was no snow; far from it—it was hot! We had never celebrated this winter holiday with summer clothes and slippers on our bare feet!
But there was no way out. All together, we set the table, bid farewell to the outgoing year, waited in anticipation for the new one to roll around, and talked. The young people are dancing, while the child in his stroller waits to be played with. All anyone wanted to do was to truly celebrate—chat with neighbors, speak in Russian, and finally relax! It was a difficult time for us—we had arrived with practically no knowledge of English and had grown exhausted from the stress of constantly being in unfamiliar surroundings with grueling heat.
The child was babbling away, playing with his toys, throwing them on the floor, and waiting for others to give him a kiss! His parents were young—and my husband and I were not quite “old people” yet, either. We, too, wanted to speak in our native language, dance, and even sip a little champagne! But there I was, having to watch my grandson, to let the young parents have a good time and relax. Oh-oh!
So, how would I rectify the situation? I needed to come up with something… and, finally, I found a way out! The baby must sleep at night—but how was he to do this amidst the noise and din, amidst people excited by their drinks, and amidst all of the fun, loud conversations and dancing?And what does the loving granny do? My gaze fell on the table with alcohol. I remembered that even children sometimes sip kosher, red wine… so why not try a little?! I poured a few drops into a small glass of wine and let my grandson have a little drink!
So: what, dear reader, do you think about this? What can one even think about this??
A) the child became ill and was taken to the hospital
B) the child was not fazed by the alcohol and continued to play merrily
C) the child fell asleep until the morning
Which of my readers guessed it correctly? Of course, the answer is C!
Hurrah Hurrah! Thank goodness! The child let us rest and have fun! The only thing missing was snow and cold!
But we forgot that we were celebrating New Year’s in a country that does not especially celebrate this holiday—Americans’ main winter holiday is Christmas!
Our men needed to go to work the day after the celebration! And this was very important for our family, since it was difficult to work without speaking English—this opportunity could not be missed!
This is how we spent our first New Year’s in America!
We did not know, having lived in Ukraine, that Americans put up fir trees (Christmas trees) before Christmas, and that the day after, these trees are thrown out into the street. Some leave them in their home for a few more days.
Do you remember this anecdote?
Two men are walking.
One says to the other, “I have such a grumpy wife, she’s always nagging and grumbling.”
“What do you mean?” asks the other.
“Well, look. On May 1, people are out in the streets, celebrating the holiday, but she just keeps nagging me: ‘Throw out the Christmas tree!… Throw it out!… Get rid of the tree!’”
The other answers, “Well, I hid a gift for my wife under the Christmas tree for our New Year’s.”
“And how did she respond?”
“She’s still looking for it…the taiga is big, after all.”
So for our first few years living in Columbia, we set up and decorated a small Christmas tree, for which we bought many beautiful ornaments. Our grandchildren would come over to us (or we to them) and would hide gifts under the tree. These gifts were nice souvenirs from our holidays.
A year after having moved to America, I went to work in a kindergarten. I liked that daycare workers in English are called teachers—it was as though I had continued working in my field. I began to improve my weak English. I tried to talk to my colleagues as much as possible. Sometimes, they asked me to tell them what impressions we had of America. One day, during our lunch break, the other caretakers asked me about my experiences in America and what the differences there were between celebrating New Year’s in Ukraine and in America.
I told them about how we celebrated New Year’s for the first time in America with our whole family—how I gave a little kosher wine to my grandchild and after that he slept tightly. And then I added that we drank “shampoo” from our wine glasses! My listeners froze at first, and then began to laugh! They hadn’t understood that I’d meant to say champagne! This is how my poor knowledge of a foreign language let me down! My colleagues made fun of me for this for a long time afterwards, laughing especially when I’d say the word “six” (I pronounced it as “sex”). Knowing a foreign language will always come in handy!
Our grandchildren continue to love this wonderful holiday and its gifts. They would look out their windows with excitement looking for Santa Claus!
Who drops in on every house,
Bearing gifts for child, cat, mouse?
All in red—hat, coat, and nose
It’s the lovely Santa…
Answer: You might think the answer is “Claus!” But you’d be wrong. Because after a while, our grandchildren realized that grandfather Kim was dressing up in Santa’s clothes and bringing gifts wrapped by their parents!
All children believe in miracles. When Santa Claus comes, the house fills with magic and joy. In America, Santa Claus comes to children—but in Russia, it’s Father Frost! Our grandchildren told us that they didn’t immediately recognize who it was under the costume. Our youngest grandchild said that he had been waiting impatiently for the special guest to arrive—and until about age five he didn’t recognize the elderly man who’d come in a red robe, with a stick and a large bag! The child had been excitedly preparing for Santa’s visit for a long time, writing letters with wishlists, practicing poems to recite and children’s songs about the Christmas tree.
He had heard that Santa Claus was arriving and would enter the house through the fireplace, as expected. Danichka (Daniel) kept peering into the room with the fireplace to ensure that it was open, so that it would be easier for Santa to enter the home. This happened until Daniel was five years old.
And on that solemn evening, he noticed that grandmother had arrived alone, and grandfather had run late somewhere. They would usually go everywhere together… strange! Finally, there was a very loud knock on the door, and an old man in a familiar red robe entered. Danya recognized these clothes as being of his grandmother. The man’s white beard and mustache covered his face, but his large glasses were familiar to the child! Could it be that Grandpa Kim had come, instead of Santa Claus? Behind him was a large red sack, and in his hand, a stick. What is in the bag?! Probably gifts! We’ll see!
And we would receive gifts, and we would eat delicious food! And so it happened! Hooray! Daniel remembers these New Year’s holidays and is grateful to his family for these pleasant memories.
Our grandchildren remember how impatiently they would wait for the arrival of Santa and his gifts—they would prepare for his arrival and anxiously learn poetry by heart. How wonderful!
My husband and I arrived ahead of schedule; he would change into a robe in the car and glue on his mustache and beard while I distracted the children, talking with them and preparing the home for the holiday. At home, we would keep a special bag with Santa’s clothes. I must say that our grandfather was very similar to this fairytale hero! So, our grandchildren looked at him with great pleasure and joy, even if they knew who it really was in front of them! The grandchildren were always excited to receive their gifts and trinkets! Everyone was happy. On top of that, the parents of the children enjoyed when Santa would come, too! What beauty and pleasure. Moreover, the Christmas tree was beautifully decorated and sparkled with lights!
I must say that before Christmas, many houses and courtyards were beautifully decorated. Entire mansions and animal figurines were built out of multi-colored Christmas lights, and all of this would be lit up until late in the evening. We took our grandchildren to see this beauty. It was festive and fun! But it was strange for us that, the day after Christmas, many residents turned off the lights and threw away the Christmas trees, sometimes along with the toys!