Celebrating La Befana!

 The story of La Befana may or may not be well known to all Italians but it is one well known in my family. Befana, or The Christmas Witch, coincides with the Feast of Epiphany, or Three King's Day, on Jan. 6th which is the visiting of the three wiseman to the newly born Christ. 

Celebrations of Befana vary depending on the region on resides in Italy but the main themes, are begging for food, small gifts to children, and bonfires.

The legend of Befana begins with a peasant woman so engrossed in her cleaning chores that she declined to travel with the three wiseman who stopped by her home on their way to Bethlehem. She gave them food for the trip but stayed to sweep. And she swept and swept and thought more about it.... Finally, she decided that perhaps if a savior had been born, she should've gone herself to see and bring gifts as well. 

She finished her cleaning and tried to catch up with the three wisemen but they had gotten too far ahead. She ran to catch up and bring presents to the Baby Jesus. She still had her broom in hand and somehow ran so fast she began to fly on her broomstick but was unable to find the three wisemen. Poor old Befana never saw the baby Jesus and presented her gifts. So, each year children are presented with offerings from Befana to replace the gifts she could not deliver to the baby Jesus. It is the flying on the broom that now has her depicted as a witch. 

We celebrate Befana as the ending of the Christmas season and a reminder to always make time for Jesus no matter how busy we may be. It is a simpler celebration for us only sharing in an Italian meal to celebrate.

Comment below.... how do you end your holidays? Do you celebrate Befana? Also be sure to subscribe to receive notices of future posts. 

Christmas Traditions that Matter

 Well we have made it through the season and it is now Christmas Eve. I hope you have all found your own joy throughout the month and will be seeing friends and family over the next 2 days. I thought today I would share with you the Christmas traditions that no matter what the year brings I simply could not celebrate Christmas without....

1. The Manger

Even if I could not put up a tree or any other decor, it would simply not be Christmas without having a manger up. Jesus is after all the reason for the season and it is important to remember this during the holidays. We can get so wrapped up in the festivities and shopping that in this modern age it can become easy to forget. 

My manger set is one of the first things I put out every year when I begin to decorate. This particular manger set also holds importance to me as it was my parents. They bought it the first year they were married and painted it together. When I moved to my own home, my mom passed it on to me and I ahve used it every year since. 

2. Family and Friends

Remembering Jesus and his birth leads into also remembering what is important in life and that is family. I know many would list the foods they cook and the gatherings they attend as important in their lists of holiday traditions, and those are important. Think about it though, in every culture there are main dishes prepared for the holidays or any time really, especially in Italian culture.... but why? It's not about the food.... food is what brings the family together. This is true not only at the holidays but at any time.

 

3. Baking

Which leads me into my third favorite tradition of the holidays..... the cookies! OH how I love the Christmas cookies! I enjoy baking and we do all know that calories at Christmas just don't count right? But its not the act of having cookies that puts baking on my list. It is the delivering of the boxed up cookies to elderly relatives and friends that I may not see during the holidays otherwise. It is yet another act to bring family and friends together through the holiday season.

4. Charity

Every year it is not only important to make sure to remember and appreciate our family and friends but also to remember those less fortunate than us. There is always something to be thankful for and our worst moments may be the hopes and dreams of someone else. In remembering that Christmas is in fact Jesus's birthday, I make sure to donate to charity every year as well. Sometimes that means time and sometimes it means money or Toys for Tots. Regardless though, I could not go through a holiday season without making some charitable contribution.

5. The Tree

If I had to chose a fifth tradition to round the list out, I would then add the tree to the list. Christmas is about a season and enjoying it with those we love. There is nothing better than doing that on Christmas morning around the tree. It's not about gifts but having them to me is another way of celebrating family and friends more than material items we are receiving. Having a tree up also just adds to the joy and anticipation for me of the celebrations to come. 

I hope you all have the Merriest of Christmases this year! Comment below... what are your traditions that you could not imagine having the holidays without? Also make sure to hit the subscribe button to the right to be alerted of new posts. 

Merry Christmas from Coco, Dante, and Myself!