by fauxfawn » Tue Dec 22, 2015 1:50 pm
Ayy! christmas traditions! I love reading about the weird (but cool!) stuff people do this time of year.
My family is from Ukraine, and even though my primarily Russian speaking family members have passed away almost a decade ago, we still try to keep their traditions alive. We do this bread and honey passing, where the eldest man (either married or blood related) in the family passes a bowl of blessed bread and a bowl of honey around to everyone in the family, from youngest to oldest. It's supposed to give us good luck in the new year, I think. Then we do a small chant in russian that wishes everyone a merry christmas. We also have a tradition of leaving one chair empty at the dining table for all the family member we have lost in the past years, so they can sit with us in spirit. I think that one is the sweetest tradition we do. Also the most impressive one, because of how many people we have come to dinner each year. (More than some people have to sit on the floor to eat, lol0ololol) My family is huuuuge, and we loose many people every year, and every time a big family get-together happens, there are always a few tears shed to the ones who sit in the empty chair. Is anyone else from Russian/Ukrainian descent that does this stuff too? Maybe you can clear up the chant we do. I usually mumble it because I honestly don't know the words and I'm too embarrassed to ask my grandma. LOL I'm sorry gram!
