Christmas is less than two weeks away, and while some are scrambling to finish holiday gift shopping, others are anxiously preparing to take part in time honored holiday traditions.
Whether it’s caroling at a local nursing home, a mother allowing her children to open one gift on Christmas Eve, watching basketball all Christmas day or a family playing a new card game after Christmas dinner, many families have that “thing” that makes the holidays complete.
Following are holiday traditions shared by several local residents and their families.
DeShong Perry-Smitherman, public relations manager, Eiteljorg Museum – “Our holiday traditions include taking our two toddlers to the Jingle Rails exhibit at the Eiteljorg Museum.
“Since my son and daughter love the ‘Thomas and Friends’ show on PBS, they get so excited to come to the museum to check out the trains running all over the exhibit hall. The toughest thing is pulling them away and begging them to stop trying to grab the fake snow surrounding the very, very expensive trains and national landmark replicas.
“We then head to Chicago for the ‘Very Perry Christmas Party’ at my mom and dad’s South side home. On Christmas day, my family hosts 80 – 120 people at our Chicago home. We help clean, serve, pray and feast together and then we put on the ‘Very Perry Power Hour.’ That’s our ridiculous talent show that embraces everyone with – and especially without – talent. No one is turned away from singing, stepping, performing spoken word, shadow boxing, doing pushups, you name it! We end the evening by 11 p.m. and finally open gifts.”
D. Wesley Poythress, consultant for AWH Consulting LLC – “We don’t celebrate Christmas, per say. Over the past few years, our family tradition has been going out on Christmas day and feeding the homeless. Our daughters don’t get into the gifts and things. They know come that morning, we eat as a family and then serve others. They know this is something we do together – help others. Serving others has become a big thing and we are looking forward to doing it again this year.”
Sen. Jean Breaux, D-Indianapolis – “We always attend a special service at North United Methodist Church, then we come home and have dinner with lots of Christmas music and enjoy the decorations inside the house. We also go to ‘Handel’s Messiah’ every year at Clowes Hall and that’s in honor of my father, who used to sing the ‘Messiah’ growing up. We always had the ‘Messiah’ playing during the holidays.”
Derek King, associate professor at Martin University – “I’m a frustrated gourmet cook. (Laughs) Generally, my Christmas holiday is making rounds to different homes bearing a dish. Everybody wants me to cook something. This year my son, daughter-in-law and grand-baby are visiting me. We’ll just be eating and enjoying one another’s company.”
