Weihnachten
Weihnachten Growing up, I had never given much thought to how Christmas was celebratedin other areas of the world, but working at a German company for the past fiveyears, I have come to realize that Germans and Americans have different ways of Even though there is no set date, being an American, when I think of thebeginning of the Christmas season, I would say that it starts the day afterThanksgiving. That is when we start to have celebrations, and the shopping seasonbegins. In Germany, the Christmas season has a set date. It starts four weeks beforethe 24th of December, and is marked with an advents wreath placed in the home.Traditionally, the wreath is green with red candles and bows, but these days allcolors are used. Each Sunday, they light a candle until all four are burning. Another cultural difference between Germans and Americans is when and how
TheAmerican Christmas tree usually is taken down by December 26th along with allof the decorations, whereas, in Germany, the tree is left up till January 6th, the dayof the Holy three kings. When the family comes in the room, they do not storm the tree andstart opening the gifts as they do in America when Santa Clause has visited on the25th. Bad children willget a "rute", which is a bundle of twigs for spanking. In Germany, the Christmas tree isput up by the parents on the 24th, and the children are not allowed to be present. In America, the children look forward to Santa Clause coming on the 24th ofDecember. "The father goes in the "Christmas room" and rings a small bell, a sign that theChrist child was there. home, the day after Thanksgiving, we as afamily, choose and decorate our Christmas tree. In the late afternoon, on the 24th, thefamily dresses up and goes to church and then comes home to have "Bescherung. The children wake up early on the 25th and run downstairs in pajamas and sleepy eyes. They will see the tree for the first time that night, lit and in full ornate. After the gifts areopened, they have a formal dinner with just the immediate family. The German tradition is more formal. Christmas, or Weihnachten, is observed in somany ways, and I feel fortunate to be able to have a mixed culture celebrationevery year. The children in America look forward to Christmas Day, when Santa Clausewill come and bring them gifts if they have been "good" all year long.
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Acceptance Essays
