PUCKER UP AND KISS YOUR SWEETHEART UNDER THE MISTLETOE By Cheri Kay Clifton

Mistletoe … what kind of plant is it and where does it come from? And where did the holiday tradition of kissing under the mistletoe originate?

Other than seeing mistletoe for sale in the stores at Christmas time, I’d never known much about it until after I was married and my husband pointed out the plants growing in the tops of oak trees along the roadsides. He reminisced about how in his youth, he’d climb trees to cut down the mistletoe and sell it on the street corners for extra money during the holidays. Because of that bit of nostalgia, we’ve always had a sprig of mistletoe hanging over a doorway at Christmas time.

Mistletoe is commonly found growing as a parasitic plant. There are two types of mistletoe. The mistletoe that is commonly used as a Christmas decoration (Phoradendron flavescens) is native to North America and grows as a parasite on trees from New Jersey to Florida. The other type of mistletoe, (Viscum Album) is of European origin.

The use of Mistletoe goes back to the times of ancient Druids. They didn’t kiss under it, but they believed the plant, especially a rare species that grew on oak trees, to have sacred powers including the ability to heal illnesses, protect against nightmares, and even predict the future. The Druids would hang the plant in their houses hoping it would bring them good luck and ward off evil spirits.

 Mistletoe was also used as a sign of love and friendship in Norse mythology and that’s where it’s believed the custom of kissing under Mistletoe comes from. Mistletoe continued to be associated with fertility and vitality through the Middle Ages, and by the 18^th century it had also become incorporated into Christmas celebrations around the world.

 Victorian England is credited with perpetuating the tradition of kissing under the mistletoe. The custom dictated that a man was allowed to kiss any woman standing underneath mistletoe and that bad luck would befall any woman who refused the kiss. One variation on the tradition was with each kiss a berry was to be plucked from the mistletoe and the kissing must stop after all the berries had been removed. Thus, the traditions which began with the European mistletoe were transferred to the similar American plant with the process of immigration and settlement.

So, how many of you decorate your homes with a sprig of mistletoe (real or artificial) and follow the romantic tradition of couples kissing when caught standing under it? Oh, by the way, I should mention that the plant is poisonous, so please, don’t eat it. Just Kiss!

Christmas Then and Now

 

I grew up in a city - Minneapolis - an only child living in an apartment with my folks. I remember trudging along snowy aisles between rows of Christmas trees at the lot down the street, my toes and fingers freezing in temps that sometimes dropped to minus 10 or 20 degrees. We never chose a very big tree because we didn't have much room in our living room. Later, when I was in my teens, the folks bought a shiny aluminum tree. Remember those? They placed it on my mom's cedar chest and set an electric wheel thingy nearby that turned, casting bright colors on the tree. I thought it was pretty cool back then. But so fake!

Now, compare that to what a Christmas tree looked like in a settler's cabin, if they had one. Remember, trees were scarce on the prairies. In those regions, a few leafy boughs might have to suffice. But if the settler dad did manage to find and cut down a tree, and drag it into his family's small, crowded shelter, it would probably be decorated with bits of ribbon, yarn, berries, popcorn or paper chains. There might also be homemade decorations such as figures made of straw or yarn, cookie dough ornaments or gingerbread men.

Old-fashioned Christmas; wikipedia, public domain

Underneath the tree you’d see homemade gifts like corn husk dolls, sachets, carved wooden toys, pillows, footstools, and embroidered hankies. Members of the family might have worked on some of these gifts for months ahead of Christmas. Others knitted scarves, hats, mittens and socks. If the year had been good, the children might find candies, small gifts, cookies, fruit or shiny new coins in their stockings.

Christmas Eve would generally find most families singing carols around the tree or fireplace. Children undoubtedly went to bed dreaming of what gifts they would find under the tree come morning. Did they believe in Santa Claus? Perhaps. Santa was part of holiday traditions in the eastern U.S. by then, but whether he'd made it into Christmas lore on the western frontier is debatable.

On Christmas Day, if there was a church within a reasonable distance, the family would attend services. Then they’d return home for the Christmas meal, which might feature venison stew, deer chili, and canned homegrown veggies. For those who could afford it, they might have beef or ham. Some possible desserts were molasses cookies, vinegar pie or dried apple pie.

In pioneer days, Christmas was a lonely time for many a mountain man, explorer, or lone cowboy. This was often true for settlers as well, cut off from family and friends “back home.” No different, really, from this year when many of us will forego traditional family gatherings for fear of catching the covid virus. Let's hope and pray that 2021 will be a much kinder year.

If you would like to sample a Christmas of yesteryear on a Texas ranch, you might enjoy this novella set in 1885. Young love is budding and a special surprise awaits the youthful heroine.

getBook.at/Perfect-Gift