Celebrating Christmas Away from Home

The first time I spend Christmas away from home I was only 14 and it was absolutely horrific. Since then my Christmases in Europe has been far and in between. And I am now married and live in the US. So the prospects of going home for Christmas are slim. I am able now to get through Christmas with some moments of joy:

1. First thing to do is search your area for stores that carry items from your home country or town. Buy food, candles etc. that means something to you.

2. Hold on to the traditions from your home that you think are important even if other people think they are stupid. But keep in mind to be open for new traditions from where ever you might be cause those traditions are as important to those people around you as yours are to you. For me that includes celebrating Christmas on the 24th. At night .

3. Call, write Christmas cards, buy gifts and mail them to loved ones. Just as if you were there. If you try to pretend like the holiday doesn't exist you are just going to make it worse.

4. Introduce your traditions to your loved ones esp. your kids, it will only enrich their celebration of the holiday to have some unique traditions in their home. Little by little it will be their tradition and its fun for them to try something new.

5. Find clubs, churches or organization's that are from your home country chances are they are having some kind of celebration with some of your traditions where you can join in.

6. Food is one of the most important factors in any kind of tradition. Find the recipe of that cake your grandmother did and now make it your tradition to bake that one particular cake or any kind of food.

7. Call up your parents and get them to send you, some of your favorite childhood ornaments for your tree.

8. Embrace new traditions, talk to your family about which ones you want to make your own and stick with them.

Christmas can never be the same as you lived it with the traditions you are used to, if you are far away from home, but its important to remember that traditions because they are new does not mean they are bad. Keep an open mind and find a compromise between old and new traditions.