Christmas Decorating.

Mistletoe for Christmas decorating has a special meaning for the holidays today. The hanging of the mistletoe in the doorways creates many plots and diversions to receive a kiss under it. The mistletoe kissing tradition comes from the Norse myths. Frigga, one of the gods, gave her son Balder a charm of mistletoe to protect him from the elements. But because mistletoe grows neither from the water or the earth nor from fire or air, it grows on trees, it held the power to harm him. One of the other god's arrows made of mistletoe struck Balder down, and his mother cried tears of white berries. She brought her son back to life and vowed to kiss anyone who rested beneath the plant. So the mistletoe kissing tradition began. In the early days mistletoe was called the all-healer in Celtic speech and in various European countries mistletoe is believed to possess marvelous powers of healing sickness or even averting misfortune. It was also believed to be the remedy against poisons and to make barren animals fruitful. There are traces in Britain of the sacredness of mistletoe as well as holly.

Holly, with its dark green spiky leaves and red berries, was also believed to have magical powers and the ability to drive demons away. Germans considered holly to be a good luck charm against the hostile forces of nature. A Shropshire custom was to leave the holly and ivy up until Candlemas, while the mistletoes were preserved until the next holiday season and hung so that good fortune would follow till the next holiday season. In the early days food was also central to the holiday decorations. As the Christmas season grew near huge batches of cookies, candies, and sugared fruits were prepared for food and as Christmas decor.

Christmas Decorations History.

Most of the Christmas home decorations we see in the Christmas store have evolved from many different cultures. Charles Dudley Warner wrote about the Christmas holiday in 1884 "We have saved out of the past nearly all that was good in it". The evolution of Christmas as we know it today is no doubt better than the old holidays. At the mere mention of holly, ivy or mistletoe the visions of Christmas with all it's wonderful memories wanders into our minds. We see visions of ornaments on trees, snow covered hills, carolers singing, ringing bells and outdoor lights, lighting up the night. In the winter when most native plants lose their leaves, flowers and fruits, the evergreens, holly, ivy and mistletoe are winter wonders to admire. It is no wonder that these winter delights were used to brighten up the cold dark days of winter.