Growing up in Finland, Christmas was a religious, enchanting holiday in the midwinter darkness. Dark nights had been steadily increasing in length from the almost continuous daylight in midsummer. Around the world, Christmas celebrations vary, with increasing emphasis on presents and partying.
When I was little, we used to live in the country, and on Christmas Eve, my father gathered us kids to go to the woods for the Christmas tree, while my mother stayed behind to complete the elaborate cooking and decorations for the traditional meal. Then, and to this day, woods in Finland are freely accessible to everyone. There are privately owned woods, but not many.
The snow was thigh-deep in those silent Finnish pine woods, and we three little girls would scream in fright the minute our dad disappeared behind the few snow-covered spruces with his saw. “I’m here,” came the reassuring, if slightly annoyed voice from behind the tree he’d started to cut. We’d drag the tree back to the porch of our house to thaw a little, and then brought it in for the decorations.
Christmas Eve Traditions in Finland
Going to the sauna on Christmas Eve is a long tradition in Finland, and there’s something mystical about the cleansing on all levels that takes place. An old Finnish saying states, “If booze, tar, or sauna won’t help, your disease is incurable”, loosely translated. There’s something to that, I still believe as a Finn, although I’ve lived abroad for a long time.
My mom worked tirelessly in the kitchen to produce the traditional Christmas ham and trimmings, while the rest of us decorated the tree. After the late-afternoon festive meal, Santa always miraculously timed his visit to deliver his presents just at the right time. Relatives or friends dressed up as Santa, and went around the houses where the parents handed them their bag of presents as I learned later to my intense disappointment. But as a child, it was magical to have Santa deliver your presents to you personally in the glittering candlelight of the tree while sternly asking, “Have you been good?”
It seemed whole Finland closed for this family holiday, and you simply couldn’t find anything open after about midday on Christmas Eve, when the main celebrations take place.
Christmas in London
Imagine my surprise in London when people planned to celebrate Christmas Eve in a pub! Going out was for what used to be a solemn occasion in Finland seemed sacrilegious, especially since my home had strong religious Christmas traditions, including getting up early on Christmas morning to listen to the church service on the radio, although we’d given up on the actual going to church at five in the morning.
In England, it’s common to go out to party with friends and family on Christmas Eve, while people gather around the turkey table on Christmas Day. Unlike in Finland, nobody ever sees Santa, even though the kids try to stay awake in hopes of catching him miraculously delivering his gifts under the tree using the chimney. Opening presents in the morning is something the kids race to do, and there’s much less of a religious component to the celebrations. In London, many outstanding free concerts take place in churches. It is a family holiday, just like in Finland.
USA Christmas Traditions
In the USA, Christmas arrives at the heels of Thanksgiving, that uniquely American feast and I often feel it makes Christmas different over here. Thanksgiving Day itself is called “turkey day” by many, and the traditional meal closely resembles Christmas at least in other parts of the world. Many choose to center their Christmas on ham, or geese, while reserving the bird for the “turkey day”. Gift giving follows the Anglo-Saxon traditions of overnight chimney visits, but in this land of enterprise, gift giving can take on monstrous proportions when wallets are emptied and many spend the rest of the year trying to recover from their credit card debt.
Kids get to see Santa, not in their homes bringing gift, but at the shopping malls and community gatherings.
Coming from Europe, I could not even imagine the after-Christmas shopping frenzy. Most stores open their doors for the returns of unwanted presents and gift cards. General shopping mania takes over; shops slash prices amid stampedes at the doors. It’s a far cry from my childhood in Finland, although the Christmas dinner gathering resembles this family occasion just as in England and Finland.
Macao Christmas Extravaganza
I spent one Christmas in Macao, just outside mainland China. It has centuries old connections with Christianity since the Dutch colonized it, and there are many churches. At midnight, the main square and shopping district in Macao were dangerously full of people in what I can only describe as a frenzied party mood. Party music blasted over the loudspeakers alarmingly loud. I have no idea if the midnight shoppers relentlessly going around the blindingly lit streets and shops knew what Christmas was about and what they were celebrating. It seemed more like a carnival, and I was glad to escape back to the relative calm of my hotel room.
Christmas Message: Peace on Earth
Christmas seems to have become a commercial event with compulsory gift giving. Luckily, the shared family dinner still seems to thrive. Exchanging gifts if a great idea, although sometimes people get a little carried away all over the world. The original Christmas celebrates peace on earth. Hopefully, this won’t be totally forgotten over time. Perhaps, I’m still that starry-eyed little Finnish girl at heart.
Anya Tikka - I was born and grew up in Finland, studied at LSE in London, England, and have lived in USA for the past 15 years. Being interested in ...
Join the Conversation