Our son, John ( he's the one on the left), is returning from Iraq this week Rondi, Karis and I leave Japan tomorrow, and head for California. It's hard to believe that Johnny has been in Iraq for a year now, and it's so difficult to put words to our feelings during this kind of thing ... but, we are in the military and this has prepared us - somewhat .
All the family will be together again soon, and as I'm so fond of saying, all will, again, be right with the Pelikan Family!

It's Christmas ... Christmas in Japan! If we roll all of the years together, this actually our 10th Christmas stationed in Japan. The first three Christmas's were when we were first married; from 1972-1975. We came to Japan again from 1995-2000, and then again starting in January 2004! Wow - 1/4 of our marriage has been spent here in Japan.
It's not so bad though.
Our first Christmas we experienced here in Japan after coming back in the 1990's, began with surprise music and signage. We are astonished and amused in early December each year, when in practically every store Christmas music is playing—in English! Everything from Nat King Cole - roasting chestnuts on an open fire, to Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, the trance remix. Huge Merry Christmas, Happy Christmas and my personal favorite, Joyful Christmas banners flap in the wind from the sides of the various department stores. Christmas in Japan is a relatively new festivity which is celebrated mainly in the cities ...
For most Japanese people celebrating Christmas, it's a purely secular holiday, however, devoted to the love of their children. They do not have a turkey or plum pudding, rather the day is spent doing nice things for others—especially the elderly. Some decorate hospitals with Christmas trees to lift the spirits of the sick, and children are even chosen to sing Christmas Carols to the patients! Others may even put on plays about the birth of Jesus. Christmas decorations abound through-out the cities. Tinsel and lights are hung, and trees are decorated with paper ornaments, small toys, gold paper fans and lanterns—even little wind chimes. *NOTE: The Christmas trees are usually purchased with the decorations already in place. Artificial trees --- there is no live Christmas tree market.)
Japanese children call Santa, "Santa Ku-roh-su" and he is believed to have eyes in the back of his head so that he can watch the children all year Children often call him "Santa no ojisan," which means "Uncle Santa."
There are two special Japanese Christmas customs: First, is the Daiku, or Great Nine, which refers to Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. This is traditionally performed in many places at Christmas time (though probably as much in conjunction with the New Year), sometimes with huge massed choruses for the famous part with what American Christians sing as a hymn—Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee.
All in all, it doesn't feel a whole lot different for us than being in America. There are crowds of people shopping to help us feel "right at home." (ha ha) With our daughter-in-law and granddaughter here for Christmas this year, new feelings of joy waft from the kitchen of the Japan-Pelikans!
Merry Christmas to all ...

Why is December 24th called "Christmas Eve"?

In old times, days started at sunset, so the evening of the day, the "eve" happened first. Then we changed to days starting at midnight. So now the "eve" is evening of the previous day. So "Christmas Eve" is the day before Christmas.

Is there a way to lessen the feelings of pressure that seem to attach themselves to the Holidays like annoying little flies--ewwww? I believe there is! Here are just a few things to do on the spot to quickly bring the joy of Christmas back to the situation:

1. Look at picutures of your children and/or grandchildren (our newest addition to the Pelikan Family, Misha Rose - born October 17th... are you smiling already?)
2. Listen to happy music
3. Watch a Christmas movie
4. Drink wassail with lots of rum in it! (hee hee)
5. Laugh
6. Sing
7. Take a nap
8. Do something nice for someone
9. Clean something
10. Cook something

What do you do to bring instant Christmas joy to the situation?

I'm thinking ... should I have a distinct title with each entry? It seems like others create blogs that way. hmmmmmmm?

... and if this is a good thing, it will look good too.

Christmas and children just seem to go together, don't they? This is our granddaughter, Karis, when she first saw the Christmas tree. I was commenting recently about the way it seemed like there was three months between Thanksgiving and Christmas when I was a kid. Now, what with deadlines and committments, Christmas is here and gone before ya know it! But, these precious smiles keep shining long after Christmas has passed.

How can we make Christmas memorable for our children and grandchildren? As Rondi and I were talking about today, one of the best ways to do that is by having yearly Christmas traditions. Here are a few that come to mind:

• Build an ornament collection for each child in the family
• Make your own greeting cards
• Invite someone for Christmas dinner that would otherwise be alone
• Read the same special stories each year
• Japanese oranges have a special meaning to the people who live in the Canadian Prairies. A gift from the East, their arrival at the coldest time of the year has brightened many homes and Christmas feasts for 110 years. To many, the festive season begins when Santa Claus welcomes the first major shipment of Japanese mandarin oranges at the Port of Vancouver, accompanied by young Japanese girls dressed in tradition kimonos. On Christmas morning the flavourful fruit find their way into many children's Christmas stockings.

Do you have Christmas traditions in your family? Would you please share a few with me?

The Medieval Pelican
The pelican of the Middle Ages was thought to pierce herself in her breast in order to feed her blood to her young. Alternate stories tell of how the pelican would kill her young in a fit of pique, and then pierce her breast in later remorse. The blood thus brought forth, falling on the dead chicks, brought them back to life.
Generally, depictions of the pelican are meant to indicate Christ the Saviour who shed his blood in a like manner.
In medieval heraldry, a pelican is an eagle-beaked bird always shown plucking at her breast. If shown alone she is blazoned (described in heraldic terms) as "vulning herself". If the young are shown with the parent, she is blazoned as "a pelican in her piety".

The Physiologus, and later Latin Bestiaries of the Middle Ages, found the action of the pelican, so interpreted, as a particularly appropriate symbol of the sacrifice of Christ the Redeemer shedding His blood, and thus the symbol of the pelican grew to have a wide usage in Christian literature and art. Thomas Aquinas did indeed use the figure of the pelican in his beautiful hymn appointed to be sung in Thanksgiving after Communion, the Adoro Te Devote:
"Pie Pellicane, Jesu Domine, Me immundum munda Tuo sanguine. (verse 3) O Loving Pelican, O Jesu Lord, Unclean am I but cleanse me in Thy blood."

In medieval and baroque art, the pelican is often found as an ornament on altars, chalices, and tabernacle doors. The image of the bleeding mother bird appears frequently on coats of arms in heraldry, including the seal of the State of Louisiana.

This was a fun day a few years back. We took our dog, Sherman on a day trip to Hirado Island. Although it was steaming hot, we had a fun day exploring the town, and playing in the ocean. Kyushu Island is lush with green and so very beautiful!


 

It all seems so easy, doesn't it? But learning how to make this Blogger page look the way I want it to, is turning out to be a more difficult task than I first thought. Honestly, it's probably that way for the majority of us, and then in no time we are zooming; just the way we'd hoped! 

King and Queen of the Pelikans we;
No other Birds so grand we see!
None but we have feet like fins!
With lovely leathery throats and chins!
Ploffskin, Pluffskin, Pelicans jee!
We think no Birds so happy as we!
Plumpskin, Ploshkin, Pelikan jill!
We think so then, and we thought so still!

We think no Birds so happy as we!!