Licking Valley courier. [volume] (West Liberty, Ky.) 19??-current, 1912-12-26
Why Christmas Should
Be Spent at Home

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Vt is the fashion nowadays, alas, to
cry down Christmas, and 1t is fast
becoming cant be bothered
- with IT, sort of day. 1t is looked
upon as a nuisance because Christmas
tide brings with 1t necessary increase
Of expenditure In the form of tips and
presents.
1t is becoming more and more the
INSTRUMENTATION to be bothered-to
take less notice of Christmas and spend.
1t away from home where there will
be plenty Of fun"
In the good old days spending Christ
mas anywhere but at home was never
for one moment dreamed of. Prepare
tons were made months beforehand.
Geese and turkeys were fattened, plum
puddlngs~ were made, prospective
guests were borne in mind, and the
girls of the home fell to thinking Of
new schemes for decorations. Now,
could anything be more delightful than
making Christmas plans at least two
months beforehand so as to keep the
festive season right royalty? All this
sort Of thing kept the family together,
for when the winter evenings brought
them nearer and nearer to Christmas
day It 1hade them see how necessary
each one was to the other in the way
OF helping and suggesting as. regards
presents for So-and-so, holly for this
room and mistletoe for that Grad
ually it dawned on every one how dear
the home was to all and how. still more
precious were the parents and children
to- one another.
When Christmas day did come 1t
was time of perfect happiness, bar
mony and satisfaction to every guest
and every member of the family: II
Christmas is not spent at home what
becomes Of the family gathering, the
delight of decorating, the care and
thought the happy mother has expend;
ed on the cooking Of the dinner and.
to crown all, the praise Of the Christ
mas pudding. which by the consent
of one and all Invariably Is 1.-THE finest
pudding l have ever eaten?" No
praise of a Christmas pudding ever
comes amiss to housewives heart.
and II Christmas is not spent at home
the dinner will fall fat. There Is no
I family gathering. no noisy, good hu-
mored chaR. and there Is not that sub
tie, Inde6nable something at work
which binds the family closer together,
heals up old sores, opens up new
friendships and wipes away all bitter.
ness, that is SO marked feature In a
good. homely Christmas gathering.
There have been more reconcilia-
lions, more divided houses" brought
together again. more eyes made dim
through a mist of happy tears at some
difference or misunderstanding made
clear by Christmas gathering at home
than at any other season or place.
Charles Dickens. the novelist Of
! Christmas, who did more. for Christ
mas than any one can ever guess. had
!, had a slight difference with Thack.
cray. He met him on the stps Of his
club on Christmas my esitated
their heF out MS hand, which Thack.
cray grksped with all the warmth OF
his great heart. Both men returned to
their family gathering at home. feeling
better and happier men. y
Without q doubt family gathering
! at this festive and joyful'season knits
the bond Of love and good fellowship
closer than at any other time. Old
sights and hurts are forgotten; hard
men of business relax and soften at
the sight Of the children who many O
/ time have drawn, out all that is best
In them after 1t has lain dormant for
1 years until they have forgotten they
had q tender side to their nature al
all. Yes, without doubt home is the
place for Christmas. "0h. It will bt
80 dull and uninteresting at home" II
often the cry. 1t will only be dull to
kuOSt VIII tuhke IL bO.
And II there is vacant chair or two
which. alas. can never be reflled dasl
away the silent tear and be Thankful
that you are spared to taste the JOYS
of still another homely Christmas
Your example OF spending the festlv,
season will most assuredly instill thu
love OF the yearly family gathering
into the younger generation. who will
emulate your ideas In future years
Posterlty will be indebted to you TO
showing how to keep up good oil
Christmas which was suffering from
slump In the twentieth century.
BY all means. then. spend Christmas
at home. decorate your house, remem
Der the postman. the butcher. the serv
ants and even your wife's or husband'
relatives. However poor you are yol
can be rich In mind. thoughts ant
CHEEKY words. When you sit down I,
the tablet don't care whether |
groans with turkey and plum pudding
laid for twenty or thirty or whether l
merely trembles under the weight o
much scantier fare and places laid 70
only three or four-if your heart is Il
the right place you will say:
Heres TO q happy Christmas
Thank God we are at homep-PIctoria
Magazine. ~
An After Dirse.