Season’s Greetings from Gary;
This is obviously a photo of a huge Santa Claus, right? Sorry, wrong answer. This, in Russian, is “Ded Moros” the literal translation of which is “Grandpa Frost”. When this symbol is brought out it signifies the season of New Year’s preparations. In Russian culture, New Years is the day of gifting and 3 days of huge celebrations. Following New Years are several weeks of special holidays celebrated by feasting and relaxation. For January is the month of extreme low temperatures and most people find a way to stay close to home and spend time with family and friends. For children, school is very abbreviated. Most workers, unless involved with essential services, will stay home during this period of intensely cold weather.
Christmas is celebrated but not until January 6, and not as a gifting day, but as 2 days of feasting on specially prepared treats and goodies. (In Orthodox Christianity, Easter, not Christmas, is the primary day of religious observation). Following Christmas, on January 13, starts another New Years celebration of 2 days. This is to celebrate according to the old calendar system before the 1917 October Revolution and adoption of the Gregorian calendar system. (Gee, why didn’t we think of that? Imagine back to back Times Square countdowns, complete with fireworks, champagne, and confetti - LOL).
Then on January 19 begins 3 days of celebration for “Christening Day” which is the recognized day for performing the equivalence to baptism. And finally on January 25 is the “day of students” and back to school time.
Interestingly, during this period of special days and celebrations, a tree is brought into the house and decorated. But even though gifts are placed under it, it is not referred to as a Christmas tree. It is a New Years tree.
So what does all this mean? Well, when you marry a Russian woman it means you get to “double-dip” on holidays. Our grandchildren here in America don’t know about “Ded Moros” and Gregorian/Julian calendars. They know about Santa Claus and December 25 is Christmas. So we celebrate American style Christmas with family. And we’ll have a nice dinner on January 6, followed by a day of relaxation on January 7 for Russian Christmas. And New Years is New Years. But as coincidence has it, our wedding anniversary is January 13 so we get another celebration for another “Happy New Year”.
That’s all for now. May the upcoming holidays bring you joy, love, and prosperity.
Gary.
