Share your heart this christmas
The final ornament I hang on my Christmas tree is a red and white woven heart basket or julekurver in Norwegian; it is a symbol of love, unity and a connection to heritage. And so it is for me, as it connects me to my grandfather who immigrated to America as a young man of nineteen. I remember sitting with him at the table at Christmas time, watching him weave delicate julekurver from colorful wrapping paper. He was good at it. He taught us to make all kinds of intricate woven patterns. Each year, our tree was adorned with our grandfather’s woven paper hearts. My siblings and I found a box of his Christmas hearts when we cleaned out our parents estate a few years ago.
I have shared this tradition of weaving Christmas hearts with my children and all of my ESL classes over my many years of teaching. The students often asked why they weren’t made on Valentine’s Day instead of Christmas. I explained, what better time to share from the heart to people you love than at Christmas time? Afterall, isn’t that what Christmas is all about? For God so loved the world that He gave...
Guess who is given credit for weaving the first Christmas heart? Danish children’s author, Hans Christian Andersen, the author of The Little Mermaid and The Ugly Duckling is thought to have woven the first Christmas heart basket in 1860. In Danish, the heart is called the julehjerte, the Christmas heart.
Connecting to my Scandinavian background has always been important to me. Holiday traditions and connection to heritage makes me proud of who I am and where my family comes from. Family traditions bring comfort, unity, and a sense of belonging. I hope you will be purposeful about passing on your family traditions to your children or grandchildren this holiday. Consider welcoming some new traditions, too. Maybe you can start a new tradition and weave some paper hearts to hang on your Christmas tree! Merry Christmas to all and may we share from the Christmas heart this holiday!
*Published in The Facts Dec. 17, 2024
