BY LOU ANN GOOD
NEW HOLLAND Home
maker and craft enthusiast Rose
Sharp advocates creating family
holiday traditions because “they’re
one of the things that hold families
together by giving them a sense of
security and happy memories.”
This rural New Holland mother
with husband Norman and four
daughters Tina. 18; Tonya, 17;
Diana, 11 and Nellie, 9; draws
from childhood memories and
establishes some new traditions to
create family togetherness.
Snow blankets the Sharp’s log cabin home adding to the
Jldi ' touches of red bows and candles.
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New Holland log cabin.
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Holidays Sparkle With Tradition
For New Holland Family
She said, “There were 12 child
ren in my mother’s family and they
were always close and had so
much fun together.” Rose comes
from of family of eight siblings
and lamented that as the family
size grew larger and more spread
out, it became harder to stay in
contact Not one to sit back and let
extended family togetherness die.
Rose and her aunt Mabel Stotzfus
of Hatville came up with some
unique activities to create family
togetherness.
For example, one Christmas, ten
•se greets
■tors to her rural
family members hosted a family
Holiday Trail by opening their
homes for family viewing. “It gave
us a chance to visit each other’s
homes and see the way each family
celebrates the holiday,” Rose said.
Every year Rose hosts a candy
making day for aunts, cousins and
sisters. Each one leaves with boxes
,of chocolate candy from recipes
handed down through the years.
Decorating traditions are a part
of creating family enjoyment The
Sharp’s live in a log cabin nestled
in the Welsh Mountains east of
Lancaster. Evergreen branches
with Hugh red bows decorate the
outside windowsills, the woodpile
and a tree stump. Inside, a tall
Christmas tree reaches towards the
rafters of the A-frame living room.
Stuffed teddy bears and a various
assortment of other animals line
the stair steps. An antique covalet
drapes the loft railing. Visitors
often remark over the cozy atmo
sphere that creates a warm, invit
ing feeling. Rose said, “That’s
what I strive for—to have visitors
feel welcome.”
Rose prefers using natural
materials for her holiday decora
tions. She intergrates her year
round accesories with Christmas
greenery and bows. “I don’t like to
put everything away,” she said, “I
just like to add holiday touches.”
To give those touches. Rose
incorporates her daughters’
belongings like dolls and wooden
blocks to invoke an old-fashioned
country Christmas. Her kitchen
and dining room windows boast
gingerbread cutouts hung from rib
bons attached to grapevine
valances.
The Sharp’s carry the Yuletide
message throughout their house
with charming arrangements, fra
grant greenery and plaid ribbons
by the yard. Rose likes creating
original ideas using things she
already owns. For example she
punched holes in a can decorated
with a country scene where the
windows, a lampost and moon
appear. A lighted candle nestled
inside the can brings the scene
alive with light that twinkles in the
windows, lampost and moon.
The whole family gets into the
act of trimming the Christmas tree
with handmade ornaments from
friends and family members. Rose
said, “Every year I make or buy
each of the children a special orna
ment so that by the time they have
their own homes, they’ll have a
nice collection to decorate their
tree.”
Traditions don’t slop with holi
day preparation. Part of the Christ
mas Eve ritual always includes
Rose reading aloud ‘The Best
Christmas Pageant Ever.” On
Christmas day, Rose’s husband
reads the Biblical account of the
first Christmas. And when the
story is finished, her youngest
daughter Nellie will place the
nativity Christ child in the manger.
Then the family sings “Silent
Night” with verses in both German
and English. After that, everyone
wishes each other a Merry Christ
mas and gifts are' distributed.
Even in gift giving, traditions
are observed. In keeping with the
family’s Swiss German ancestry,
children are given five symbolic
gifts: Both a food and a clothing
item signify essentials for life. The
third gift is a coin to save for the
future, the fourth is a gift to be used
for pleasure, and the fifth shows
Trimming the Christmas tree evokes memories as Rose
recalls the special ocasslons when the ornaments were
made or purchased.
the value of education.
“Traditions are often lost along
the way,” Rose admits. She recalls
that her mother’s family always
received a plate with one orange
and some candy on it Rose would
like to return that tradition to her
own family to remind them of past
relatives who felt fortunate in
receiving what most children of
today would snub.
Rose credits her aunt Mabel
Stolzfus with ideas and organiza
tion to keep family togetherness
alive among the aunts, uncles and
cousins. Last year, 150 Stoltzfus
family members gathered to cele
brate an old-fashioned holiday by
eating hand-breaded fried oysters,
ham, potatoes, filling, gravy and
other traditional dishes. To keep
the tables laden with food, two
assembly lines of relatives served
as cooks. Mabel, a stauch defender
Joys jrking In her country kitchen that over
looks acres of woodlands and several ponds. Typical of
Rose’s decorating touches are the homespun fabric hearts
and swans that line the window.
of family togetherness, finds satis
faction and upbuilding family rela
tions resulting from family gather
ings. She said, ‘Traditions pass on
faith and a spirit of togetherness. It
makes good memories.”
In this generation, when psy
chologists report that many people
suffer from holiday stress, Mabel
and Rose offer their method of
dealing with stress. They said,
“People who try to please others
with expensive gifts are bothered
with stress. But if you concentrate
on bringing happiness to others by
sharing part of yourself, that brings
joy and contentment without
stress.”
While the Sharp’s holiday
observations reflect the past, the
present, md the future, Rose said,
“Most ot all, we try to instill in
each of our children that Jesus is
the reason for the season. That’s
what Christmas is all about.”