My mother was always one of those parents who embodied the full spirit of Christmas, providing a truly magical experience for us every year. The day after Thanksgiving she morphed into a Christmas elf, decorating every inch of our home with something sparkling and throwing the trees up with ease. The parts of the holidays I always loved the most were the traditions, ones which I have grown to appreciate more with age.
Our first Christmas in Louisiana, I began to notice the subtle differences in holidays in the south. Unsurprisingly the food is different. We grew up with the drier “stuffing” at the Christmas dinner table, and were quickly introduced at a family friend’s party to the miracle of Southern “dressing”. I’ve learned that at many holiday parties you will find candied pecans, sweet potato pie and even Christmas King Cakes. And I always love when people cook big pots of gumbo during the season.
Something I love about Christmas in Louisiana is how tidbits of Cajun culture are woven into the celebrations each year. I remember laughing the first time I saw a light display with Santa being carried away by flying alligators, but I quickly learned about Papa Noel and the Cajun Night Before Christmas.
Growing up in Utah, I had never heard of the Catholic tradition of Midnight Mass or Réveillon dinners. I was also struck by how present the nativity and the cross were in Christmas celebrations everywhere we went. We always had a nativity in our home growing up, and in the South, it felt like nearly every family did as well. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again—I felt like I had made it home, to the place I was meant to live the rest of my life.
It’s funny trying to explain to people out West how we catch beads at Christmas parades or spend Christmas out on the lake because there just isn’t much snow to go around. Sometimes I miss my white Christmases, but I wouldn’t trade them for warmer winters. Or for the bonus holiday season that begins right after New Year’s when Mardi Gras starts.
Despite spending most of their lives above the Mason Dixie line, my parents have embraced many Southern traditions over the past decade or so. It’s special to see a blend of our traditions from my childhood alongside the bits of Louisiana influence we’ve picked up along the way.
I try to give my kids the same sense of magic my mom gave me, like the heart-racing excitement of waking up to check our stockings and the joy of decorating the family tree together. Looking back, I realize that I sure was blessed to be raised the way that I was. I love repeating the traditions I learned from her, and adding new ones to my family each year (maybe even some Cajun inspired ones.)
