I enjoy December! Christmas and New Year are celebrations where we spend lots of lovely time with family and friends. Well in advance, we start to prepare all the stuff for these special occasions and when the days finally arrive… the feeling of being close to people special to us is wonderful.
My family and I are very connected with Scottish traditions, and we like to mix Peruvian traditions into our celebrations as well. My husband and I prepared a traditional “Christmas cake” 18 months ago and we fed it with lots of brandy. When we shared it with our Latino friends, they loved it!!
We prepared a “Peruvian-style turkey” for Christmas eve and for Christmas Day we had a special gammon. The question was what is the difference between ham and gammon?… the difference is the way the meat is presented.
My family really like “Christmas crackers”… this year we had crackers with wind-up penguin toys. After dinner, we had a penguin racing competition!! Amazing!!
Christmas card are special and people take time to choose their cards, write a lovely message and send them to family and friends. I like this because it is a great feeling to receive a card from people who are important for you. Additionally, you can help some charities if you want to by buying their cards, (for example Cancer Research UK or the National Literacy Trust). This year was unusual because there was a postal strike and sending Christmas cards was not easy – we had to buy our postage on the internet. In Peru there are social conflicts and some areas are in a State of Emergency so we did not receive many cards this year.
Being connected with people we love during this time gives us energy and lots of aspirations and hopes for the new year. Every single detail is important, and we take care because “family time” is warm, special and is quality time for OUR family.
Family time stays in our memory for much longer than the routine of everyday life and is the most special gift for people close to our heart. In this celebration take time to care for your family and your friends. The people around you are so special!!
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!!
By María Verónica Paredes
