Christmas Cut-Outs
By Leslie Shuman
My extended family
journeys home to Pittsburgh each year for Christmas, to our family home. In my parent’s kitchen is an electronic picture
frame that scrolls through over 8,000 digitized photos chronicling our
family. As you can imagine, many of
these photos depict Christmases over the years. One of my favorites is of my brother and I decorating Christmas cut-out
cookies.
This one photograph
captures one of my very favorite family traditions. As most children, I first encountered
Christmas cut-outs as a finished product: colorful and delicious. By the time of the photo, I realized that
preparation is required for making the cut-outs. First, my Mom would make the dough, then
refrigerate it to get it to the proper consistency. Then, a day or two later, we would roll them
out and carefully press in the cookie cutters. We also baked the cookies that day. Next, my Mother always froze them as they iced much easier when
frozen. Finally came the decorating
where we carefully selected the best colors for each cookie: red icing for Santa and the poinsettia, chocolate for the reindeer, green for the
trees, and white for the angels and snowmen. This activity is what the picture snapped: my brother and I elbow deep
in icing and me probably discouraging his use of non-traditional colors!
When we moved away, my Mom
stopped making Christmas cut-outs, citing they were too much work for one
person. After I saw that photo, I
decided to resurrect the tradition. Now
I make the dough, bake the cookies and
freeze them. A few days later, my sister
in law and nieces come over and we decorate
them together. We have a lot of laughs
at the familiar shapes and, of course debate the best colors for each
cookie. It was the picture that prompted
me to resurrect this tradition and I am very glad I did.
Advent is a lot like
making those cut-outs – it is the daily preparation on the journey to Bethlehem
each year that makes the miracle of Christmas all the richer. Keeping traditions like
Christmas cut-out cookies can be a strong reminder of the importance of
preparation and patience as each step makes the final product better.
The Book of Isaiah is
frequently studied during Advent as it foretells
Jesus’ birth. Isaiah, chapter 11, verses 1-5 say:
A shoot will come up from
the stump of Jesse;
from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.
The Spirit of the Lord
will rest upon him –
The Spirit of wisdom and
of understanding,
The Spirit of counsel and
of power,
The Spirit of knowledge
and of the fear of the Lord –
And he will delight in the
fear of the Lord.
He will not judge by what
he sees with his eyes,
Or decide by what he hears
with his ears,
But with righteousness he
will judge the needy,
With justice he will give
decisions for the poor of the earth.
He will strike the earth
with the rod of his mouth;
And with the breath of his
lips he will slay the wicked.
Righteousness will be his
belt and faithfulness the sash around
his waist.
Amidst your long list of To-Do's this Advent, here's hoping you find joy in the preparation as well as the destination that is Christmas.
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