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Our residents often find comfort in celebrating the same Christmas traditions year after year. However, it’s also fun to introduce a few new activities each year. We especially enjoy exploring the customs of other countries. Today I’m sharing five ideas I know your residents will enjoy. I hope you’ll also ask your residents to share their family Christmas traditions.
KFC Christmas Dinner
Does it surprise you to hear that the most popular Christmas meal in Japan comes from Kentucky Fried Chicken? A few stories explain the origin of the tradition. The most popular says it began in the 1970s after a KFC manager heard foreign visitors complain about not being able to find turkey to serve for Christmas in Japan. KFC quickly identified this as an opportunity to market chicken as the next best thing.
I hope you’ll choose a day prior to Christmas and offer your residents an opportunity to order food from KFC or another local chicken restaurant. I suspect they’ll enjoy the change at a time of year when we’re surrounded by so many sweets.
Himmeli Ornaments
A popular tradition in Finland involves making Himmeli ornaments. While usually made from straw, you can also use coffee stirring sticks. Check out this article from acraftedpassion.com for all the details.
What I love about Himmeli ornaments is the endless variety and complexity of the designs you can create. While traditionally suspended from the ceiling, the ornaments can also decorate a tree, dinner table, or fireplace mantle.
Hide The Pickle
I find this tradition fascinating because many controversies exist about where it originated. When we think about pickle ornaments, Germany usually comes to mind. However, some people say the tradition of hiding pickle ornaments originated in Spain. Others claim it came from the United States.
Regardless of who started it, I think it’s a fun way to involve your staff in a Christmas tradition. Simply hide a few pickle ornaments around the nursing home and offer a small prize for any staff who discover them. You can also ask residents to help come up with hiding places.
Spiders In The Christmas Tree
In a Ukrainian home, you might find spider webs and spiders decorating the Christmas tree. Many people believe the decorations bring good fortune in the new year.
The tradition stems from the story of a poor widow who couldn’t afford to buy ornaments for the Christmas tree. Spiders living in the family’s hut recognized the sadness of her children.
During the night, the spiders covered the tree with their webs. The next morning, the sun shining in through the window transformed the spider webs into sparkling threads of silver and gold. Some people believe this was also the beginning of the tradition of hanging tinsel on a Christmas tree.
Your residents can try their hand at making their own spider ornaments with these instructions from Soloveimagazine.
Shoes Filled With Treats
The tradition of filling shoes with treats during Christmas exists in several countries, including France. French children historically left their shoes by the fireplace, hoping Father Christmas would leave gifts if they had been good.
While you probably don’t want to place treats inside your residents’ shoes, you can still invite residents to leave a shoe outside their door. Then tie a little bag of treats to the door handle for any resident wishing to take part.
I would love to hear about Christmas traditions from your native countries. Please share in the comment section!
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