The kids are out of school for the Christmas holidays for the next 12 days. I’ve been told that’s because Christmas Day is only the start of all the days of Christmas. Advent and all of the Christmas festivities are so much fun that surely it can last forever!
No - really - it can’t. But in an attempt to keep a small child occupied over the rest of the school break we are going to celebrate the 12 Days of Christmas. But not with extravagant gifts like French Hens, Turtle Dove and Partridges in Pear Trees - although the 5 golden rings would be cool.
If you want, you can play along with us.
The second day of Christmas is Dec 26th and is the Feast of St. Stephen. St. Stephen was one of the 7 deacons chosen by the Apostles to minister to the poor. He was also the first person to give his life for the sake of Christ. Some people celebrate Boxing Day or St. Wenceslaus on this day.
All these traditions have generosity to those who are less fortunate than yourself as the focus of the day. The day after Christmas seems like a particularly good day to express your gratitude for all the wonderful gifts you’ve received by performing some act of charity. Charity can take many forms…you could write out your end-of-the-year gifts to your favorite charities, donate blood, help someone in your neighborhood, donate to the food bank. There are so many options here.
Today we decorated a box and filled it with goodies to be dropped off at our local food bank.
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