Holiday Traditions: Delectable Food, Bright Costumes, and Family Unity
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Family and Holiday Traditions
Holiday traditions make life worth living! We anxiously await that special day when we can celebrate with our loved ones. These traditions help to create a bond with one another. Each holiday has a special nostalgia that tugs at our hearts. We think of our stomachs and delectable food on Thanksgiving Day. Memories of fancy costumes and treats come to mind with Halloween. Valentine's Day is full of romance, chocolate candies, heart-shaped cookies, and that special kiss from a sweetheart. We all have our traditions during this festive time. Have you ever wondered how these traditions began?
How about Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Valentine's Day?
What incident inspired Valentine's Day?
Valentine's Day has been around much longer than most people realize. In A.D. 269, Claudius was the Emperor of Rome. He wanted to have a huge army, but the Roman men were not interested in joining. They did not want to leave their wives and children. This upset Claudius, and as a result, he outlawed marriage so the men would join his army. Saint Valentine was a priest and didn't agree with the almighty ruler. He continued to marry couples in secret. Eventually he was caught and thrown in jail. While in prison, he fell in love with the daughter of the prison guard who would visit him regularly. They would sit and talk for hours. The day of his execution, February 14th, Valentine left a note, thanking her for her friendship. He signed it, "Love, from your Valentine."
Thanksgiving! Yum!
Thanksgiving Day!
When we think of mouth-watering turkey, scrumptious yams and mashed potatoes, cranberries, luscious pecan and pumpkin pies with ice cream on top, we think of Thanksgiving. How did this tradition begin? It all started with a desire to be liberated from religious persecution. The Pilgrims fled their homeland in England and arrived in America on December 11, 1620. The first winter was devastating. They lost 46 of the original 102 settlers. The Indians helped the Pilgrims survive the following year, so the remaining colonists decided to celebrate with a huge feast. There were ninety-one Indians who attended the celebration and the feast lasted for three days. They had ducks, fish, lobster, clams, venison, dried fruit, berries, and plums. In 1789, George Washington wanted to make a National Day of celebration in honor of the first pilgrims. Thomas Jefferson scoffed at the idea. It brought a lot of discord because many felt that the hardships of a few Pilgrims did not warrant a national holiday. In1863, Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday in November as a National Day of Thanksgiving.
Halloween! Who are these little pirates at my door?
Halloween!
The custom of Halloween started in Europe during the harvest season. The Europeans would celebrate the end of summer by having a harvest feast the last day of October. They would build bonfires to cook the feast and also to keep the ghosts away. They were superstitious people and believed that ghosts roamed about on the last day of October. "Hallow" meant holy and "e'en" was short for evening. Because this celebration was the evening before All Hallows Day or All Saints Day, they decided to call it Halloween. But how did this holiday get to America? Irish immigrants brought the tradition here in the 1800s. In Ireland, Irish beggars would go to the homes of the rich on Halloween night and ask for food or money. If they refused, then evil spirits would destroy their homes for their inhospitable behavior. Once the tradition came to America, families and neighbors got together, dressed up in festive costumes, ate foods of the season and played games. It wasn't until the mid 1900s that children began to knock on doors and ask for treats.
How about Christmas?
Is Christmas your favorite time of year? Do you begin your celebrations the day before Christmas or the day of Christmas? When do you have your main meal, on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day? We all celebrate Christmas in different ways.
Some people begin celebrations nine days before Christmas. In the evening, friends and neighbors get together, and they act out the journey of Joseph and Mary going to Bethlehem. Afterwards they hang a piñata for the children.
Family is Forever!
Families that celebrate together ... stay together!
Holidays unite families. We celebrate, eat, laugh, dance, and play together. Family traditions are important and create a bond. I enjoy learning about holidays and how they originated. When I write my novels, I try to educate my readers and include facts of interest. Because of my love for holidays, I have included them in my series of novels, "A Family Saga in Bear Lake, Idaho." Each story in this family saga has adventure, romance, history, and courage. Intertwining fact and fiction, these novels entertain as well as educate my readers.
Goofing off!
Christmas in the Desert!
Enjoying the Holidays!
Make Believe
- Make Believe
- The official website of Author Linda Weaver Clarke where short stories and sample chapters may be read: historical fiction, adventure, romance, and non-fiction. The books on this site are good Christian fiction.
Books!
With Romance and Hope
Melinda and the Wild West
A Family Saga in Bear Lake, Idaho
In 1896 Melinda Gamble, a very elegant young woman from Boston, is desperately trying to help a rebellious student through acceptance and love, and at the same time, she is trying to understand her own heart. Driven by her intense desire to make a difference in the world, Melinda takes a job as a schoolteacher in the small town of Paris, Idaho, where she comes face-to-face with a bank robber, a vicious grizzly bear, and an intense blizzard that leaves her clinging to her life. But it is a ruggedly handsome rancher who challenges Melinda with the one thing for which she was least prepared-love. Edith and the Mysterious Stranger
A Family Saga in Bear Lake, Idaho
With mysterious letters, cattle rustlers, a spunky woman, the liar's fire, Halloween, and young love, there is always something happening. It is 1904 and Melinda is "with child" and threatening to miscarry. Her cousin Edith, a nurse, moves to Paris to care for her. Edith has wonderful qualities but never gives a man a second chance because her expectations are so high. However, all that changes when a mysterious stranger begins to write to her. For the first time, she gets to know a man's inner soul before making any harsh judgments. Whoever he is, this man is a mystery and the best thing that has ever happened to her. The question that puzzles her is whether or not he's as wonderful in person as he is in his letters. Jenny's Dream
A Family Saga in Bear Lake, Idaho
Jenny Roberts is home from college and is restless. She feels a need to spread her wings and fly away. She has dreams of becoming a writer and wants to pursue it. After she realizes that Will, her kindred friend, means more to her than she thought, she must now choose between a career and romance. Which dream should she pursue? The only thing standing in her way is an unpleasant memory from her past, which has haunted her since childhood. She must learn to forgive before she can choose which dream to follow.A ten-foot grizzly bear is seen in the area and its boldness has frightened the community. There is one man with the courage and determination to protect his family and neighbors. Gilbert Roberts! He attempts to defy this great beast but Melinda will not have her husband be part of it. Gilbert has other ideas. Old Half Paw must be stopped.
David and the Bear Lake Monster
A Family Saga in Bear Lake, Idaho
Deep-rooted legends, long family traditions, and a few mysterious events! Once again the Roberts family is reunited with David trying to solve personal issues and overcome his troubles! David quickly becomes one with the town and its folk and finds himself entranced with one very special lady and ends up defending her honor several times. She isn't like the average woman. Sarah is different. This beautiful and dainty woman has a disability that no one seems to notice. He finds out that Sarah has gone through more trials than the average person. She teaches him the importance of not dwelling on the past and how to love life. After a few teases, tricks, and mischievous deeds, David begins to overcome his troubles, but will it be too late? Will he lose the one woman he adores? And how about the Bear Lake Monster? Does it really exist? Elena, Woman of Courage
A Family Saga in Bear Lake, Idaho
When a woman settles into a strict conservative town as the newest doctor, a slew of problems begin to arise. The town is not ready for a female doctor, let alone one so strong and independent. Elena Yeates, the town's newest doctor, must struggle to prove herself in this western town, while keeping her composure, poise, and femininity. As she fights to prove herself, the town's most eligible bachelor finds it a challenge to see if he can win her heart. With the 1920's rise of women's rights, this novel gives you great insight at the struggles women had to go through, all the while watching a young love blossom! Books by Linda Weaver Clarke
A Family Saga in Bear Lake Valley
When I write my novels, I try to include fun facts such as holidays and how the people celebrated in the late 1800s and early 1900s. It's fun to research holidays and include them in my novels.
Jenny's Dream: A Family's Saga in Bear Lake, Idaho
Amazon Price: $19.95 (as of 12/17/2009) 
Melinda and the Wild West: A Family Saga in Bear Lake, Idaho
Amazon Price: $22.00 (as of 12/17/2009)
Elena, Woman of Courage: A Family Saga in Bear Lake, Idaho
Amazon Price: $19.95 (as of 12/17/2009)
David and the Bear Lake Monster: A Family Saga in Bear Lake, Idaho
Amazon Price: $19.95 (as of 12/17/2009)
Edith and the Mysterious Stranger
Amazon Price: $22.00 (as of 12/17/2009)
What is your favorite holiday?
I love Thanksgiving.
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- Pariah2012 Pariah2012 Dec 6, 2008 @ 3:43 am
- Damn I miss the Holidays with my family the way it use to be....you brought a tear to my eye....just 1 tear lol but in my book that's a lot thank you!
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- OhMe OhMe Nov 21, 2008 @ 11:34 am
- I love all holidays and loved this lens. Great job.
by Family-Legacy-Mom
Linda Weaver Clarke was raised on a farm surrounded by the rolling hills of southern Idaho and has made her home in southern Utah among the beautiful... (more)
