When I was a child, people in Cyprus celebrated Christmas quite differently from the way they celebrate today. In my family, just like in most Cypriot families, we'd put up our tree on Christmas Eve. Soon after lunch, on December 24, Dad would bring THE Christmas Tree - a pine tree. In those days, there were hardly any artificial Christmas trees in Cyprus or, if there were any, they were terribly expensive. In those days, fir trees were protected and no one had the right to cut them down for Christmas! There was a severe fine of 15 €, which was a lot of money then! Nowadays, fir trees are still protected and few are cut and sold for Christmas. And they're very expensive!
Christmas in Cyprus is traditionally a solemn, religious holiday. Throughout the festivities, there is no doubt that Cyprus honours our Lord. Beautiful carols called "kalanda" have been handed down from Byzantine times and add to the reverent quality of the celebration. On Christmas Eve, children go from door to door with "triangles" and sometimes flutes and sing: "Christos Gennatai Simeron" (Christ is born today) They usually get some money or candies . Turkeys and the Christmas cake have invaded Greek Cypriot Christmas traditions since the British rule in the 1950s. For many Cypriots the holiday is preceded by a time of fasting.
Christmas has always been very special to me. As a child, on Christmas Eve, I'd sit on the front door perch at night and look at the stars. The brightest was the star of Bethlehem. Then dad would come outside and say: "If you don't go to bed right now, Santa won't come. He wants all the good children of the world to be asleep by the time he visits." And then , in a panic, I'd go inside and make sure mum's homemade biscuits and some milk were nicely placed next to the Christmas tree for Santa. And then I'd go to sleep. On Christmas Day, I got up early and rushed to the living room anxious to see if Santa had come. He had drunk the milk, eaten some of the biscuits and put his presents under the tree.
As an adult, I've always been under the spell of the magic at Christmas. I still look at the sky on Christmas Eve trying to guess which one of all the bright stars is the star of Bethlehem, the star of wonder. The star which led the three wise men to the humble manger where the King of Kings was born. I also look forward to shopping, partying, singing Christmas Carols and being lazy and self-indulgent.
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