Thankful Thursday ~ Christmas

This week for Thankful Thursday we were asked to share a memory from childhood Christmases. My family did not really celebrate the meaning of Christmas and it was largely a secular and stressful holiday, even so there are many memories of joy. One of the memories from my childhood was the making of pirags. Pirags are a traditional Latvian pastry baked with onion and bacon inside. They are delicious but a lot of work. Somehow the work did not seem like work though. My Omi (grandmother) was Latvian and she lived with us... and she was such a blessing. She had such gentle love. And making pirags with her felt like Christmas to me. Our family would gather at the kitchen counter and make the pirags for hours. We would play Christmas music, the tree was lit, and there was always much laughter. And afterward, the delicious pirags to eat.

Today I celebrate a Christmas that in many ways is very different from what I had growing up. We try to always look to Christ. One thing I continued was the making of pirags with my children. Earlier this month in an attempt to simplify Christmas, I asked the kids what things meant the most to them. Pirags was a top answer for both children. It made me so glad. And yesterday our family sat around the kitchen table forming the dough and filling them with the bacon mixture. Just as during my childhood, Christmas carols were playing. There was much laughter. And soon the smell of baking pirags tantalized us.. and when the first batch came out of the oven we struggled to wait until they would not burn our mouths to taste the first bite. Then we joyfully went back to making the rest. Christmas wouldn't seem like Christmas here without this traditional food.

Merry Christmas to all my friends at Thankful Thursday!