THE 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS
Christmas season traditionally is a time to gather round with family and friends. We attend concerts
of joy, restaurants … oh, boy! … and places where hummingbird sounds serenade us with beautiful
heartwarming Christmas carols. Sometimes we sing along and other times we just enjoy the music,
always with eggnog and maybe by a fire next to a glistening Christmas tree. In Southern California
we sit by a Palm tree, next to a spa, with a margarita in hand. But I digress.
Carols commemorating the nativity, or birth of Jesus Christ, were purportedly first written in Latin in
the 4th and 5th centuries, but didn't become associated with Christmas until the 13th century when
St. Francis of Assisi introduced carols to his nativity plays and Christmas masses. The tradition
continued in homes and private parties and grew over the years with many people singing as
individuals or groups in the streets to raise money for the holidays. Thus began what we now refer to
as ‘Christmas Carolers. ‘
‘The Twelve Days of Christmas’ was probably written in England between the 16th and 18th
centuries. It was conceived as a catechism and memory aid to Christians to sing in public to show
and practice their faith without retribution. The twelve days of Christmas are the twelve days
between Christmas Day, Dec. 25th, the birth of Jesus, and the Epiphany, Jan. 6th, the traditional
day of the arrival of the Magi (Wise Men). Each verse refers to a certain teaching of Christianity.
OUR VALLEY SANTA CLARITA
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