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Holiday spirit will stay alive without tree
It may be a white Christmas this
year, but I don’t think it’s going to be
very green.
See, there’s not going to be a Christ
mas tree at my house this year. Kind of
a disappointing prospect, don’t you
think?
We’ll still have decorations, cards
and such, but no tree.
No tree means no reminiscing about
past decorating endeavors. No tree
means no pine for this year’s batch of
potpourri. No tree means no Hallmark
style gushing over keepsake orna
ments.
So why no tree?
His name’s Mike, he’s 11 months
old and he’s a slobbering, holy terror.
My parents’ black lab is 90 pounds
of exuberant, life-loving puppy who
has a penchant for chewing wood —
among many, many other things.
But my holiday spirit shall not be
dampened by doggie slobber!
After all, the holidays should be
about family and community, not just
the hustle and bustle of the mall. It’s a
wonderful time to reconnect with the
things which really matter in life.
They’re also a time for
remembering...remembering how dam
gullible I was as a kid.
I don’t know how many years in a
row I fell for the old “ahhh shucks, you
just missed Santa” routine. Every year
they’d rush me to the back door—just
in time to see the vanishing light of
Rudolph’s nose.
Jessica Kennedy
I was so gullible, I bought the story
every year. Heck, I was probably one
of the oldest believers.
And was my family good at pro
curing evidence of the jolly one’s ex
istence. One year my aunt and dad con
vinced me that there were reindeer
paw-prints'on my grandparent’s roof.
To this day, I’m not entirely convinced
it wasn’t Dasher and Dancer and com
pany.
Heck, one time my grandparents
even brought the neighbors in on the
Santa-facade. We were told that Santa
was going to be stopping by our grand
parents’ house Christmas Eve. True to
form, the doorbell rang, we opened the
door and magically, there were bags of
presents for all.
Years later, I’m still not completely
convinced that Santa isn’t out there
somewhere.
Who knows for sure?
What I do know is that the spirit of
St. Nicholas is everywhere this time of
year. It can be found in the men and
women who dedicate their holidays to
helping others.
They’re the bell-ringers and the
soup-kitchen workers; the people who
donate food and distribute warm
clothes to the needy.
Forget, for a moment or two, the
crushing commerciality of the season
and selflessly help those in need. It’d
be great if we could Find a little Santa
in ourselves.
This year, there’s probably not go
ing to be the traditional tree. This may
be the First Christmas I don’t see a
Christmas ornament or the Christmas
elFin my house.
So this year I’m going to rally my
Christmas spirit around the little Santas
and the memories. I’ll take time to re
connect with the important people in
my life and say the things I’ve been
meaning to say.
And maybe I’11 break down and buy
my parents a miniature tree to put on
top of the TV — out of Mike’s reach.
Kennedy is a senior advertising and
broadcasting major and a Daily Ne
braskan columnist.
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International students find reasons
to celebrate the Christmas season
By Chad Lorenz
Senior Reporter
Most UNL students spend the holidays with
family or friends, but international students
rarely are able to go home during winter break.
While students in the United States typically
celebrate Christian or Judaic traditions, some
international students’ religions don’t have holi
days in December.
So, many international students lode for al
ternatives for celebrating during the American
holiday season.
Koichi Miyajima, a junior economics major
from Japan, will celebrate his first Christmas in
the United States this year. He said the Japa
nese have a different take on Christmas tradi
tions.
“We import many things from the U.S.,”
Miyajima said. “Also, the Christmas celebration
is imported from America.”
Although most people in Japan are Buddhist,
they celebrate Christmas without the religious
meaning, he said. Instead of celebrating with
friends and family, Christmas is a holiday for
lovers in Japan, Miyajima said.
Boyfriends typically buy their sweethearts
extravagant gifts for Christmas — sometimes
costing up to $1,000, he said.
“That’s why a guy woks hard before Christ
mas because he wants to get an expensive gift,”
Miyajima said.
Miyajima said he was going to spend Christ
mas with his girlfriend on a Colorado doing trip.
He would not specify what gifts he had in mind
for her.
Christmas is also a common holiday for boy
friends to propose marriage to their girlfriends,
he said.
Japanese families also spend time together
during Christmas, Miyajima said. He said par
ents usually buy presents for their children un
der 12 years old.
The Japanese also have adopted the tradi
tion of Christmas trees, but trees aren’t so easy
to find, he said. Artificial trees sometimes cost
tt
The Christmas celebra
tion is imported from
America.”
Koichi Miywima
junior economics major from Japan
i
more than $1,000 and live trees are rare,
Miyajima said.
Saad Alavi, a senior finance major from Pa
kistan, said he probably won’t be able to see his
family during winter break this year.
During his four years in the United States,
Alavi sometimes has been able to return to Pa
kistan during the winter break. His family usu
ally gets together for a big meal when he’s home,
he said.
Alavi has family members in other states who
sometimes take him in during the holidays.
“If I’m not with my family, I have friends
over here I’ll celebrate the holiday with,” he said.
Because of his Muslim faith, he celebrates
the holiday more in the United States than in
Pakistan. Muslims recognize Jesus as a spiri
tual figure, but not as the Messiah.
Some of his friends are Christians, so Alavi
celebrates some traditions with them, he said.
He and his friends usually give Christmas pre
sents to each other, he said.
Alavi said he doesn’t mind celebrating
Christmas, even though it’s not traditionally a
part of his religion, fie celebrates it as part of
American culture, not as a true religious holi
day, Alavi said.
“Nobody’s stopping me, so why not enjoy
it?” he said. “There’s nothing wrong with that.”