I do not remember anything of my very first Christmas. I only have a vague memory of the earliest Christmases I can recall. And Christmas was always celebrated in the same way.
The Family Home and a Study Room Transformed for Christmas
The Christmas celebration took place at home, in the house where we lived, which was my grandmother’s house, the mother of Doña Lucilia. It was an old house with a high basement, and there was a room that served as my sister’s study room and mine. On Christmas Day, this study room was completely transformed.
The Christmas Tree from the Outskirts of São Paulo
Doña Lucilia would buy a pine tree on the outskirts of São Paulo, a real tree, tall enough to fit inside the room. She and our German governess, Fräulein Mathilde, decorated it. The children were strictly forbidden to enter while the tree was being decorated.
They adorned the Christmas tree with little figurines of angels and saints, lit candles, and ornaments in bright colours, gold, red, blue, and others. And what I liked most of all were the sweets, chocolates, and candies hanging directly from the branches.
The Scent of Christmas and the Tables of Treats
Because there were so many small candles, they sometimes caused tiny flames at the tips of the pine needles. But this produced a fragrance, a very pleasant perfume, which for me became the true Christmas scent.
In the four corners of the room, there were tables filled with sweets and savoury treats as well. The children would come down around nine o’clock in the evening. We all gathered first in an upstairs room, then went outside, where there was a marble staircase leading down to the garden, and from there we entered the study room.
Christmas Carols and a German Order
We all came down holding hands and singing Christmas carols, usually German ones, because my governess was German and the nurse of my cousins, who were there that same evening, was also German. Everything followed a very proper German order.
Above all, there was one song which in English is translated as Silent Night, and in German is Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht. Stille Nacht means Silent Night, heilige Nacht means Holy Night. Alles schläft means everyone sleeps. Eisam wacht means only one is awake. Nur das traute hoch heilige Paar refers to the venerable and most holy pair, Our Lady and Saint Joseph. And then the song continued, telling the story of Christmas night, all in German.
The Circle Around the Tree and the Nativity Scene
The staircases were large. We went down, crossed the garden, entered the room, and formed a circle around the Christmas tree. The circle continued singing and slowly turning.
At the foot of the tree there was a kind of crib that Doña Lucilia had prepared, with the Child Jesus lying there with His little arms open. There were also other figures, shepherds, images, Our Lady, and others, as is customary in a nativity scene.
She placed the figures, said a few prayers that the children repeated, and then, once the prayers were finished, the celebration began. The celebration meant advancing steadily on the edible decorations of the Christmas tree and on the tables in the four corners of the room, where the children could eat freely.
The End of the Christmas Eve Celebration
Naturally, there was a great deal of conversation, laughter, and jokes, very much in the Brazilian style.
At a certain moment, when everything was finished, we all went upstairs again and sang once more. This time it was a farewell song, and then everyone dispersed.
You might think that Christmas Eve ended there. You would be mistaken.
Toy Shops, Lead Soldiers, and Childhood Wonder
At that time, São Paulo was much smaller. Today there must be hundreds of large stores selling excellent toys. Back then, there were only four or five. But they sold imported toys from Europe, especially German toys, at Casa Fuchs. Fuchs means fox. There were splendid toys.
I do not need to tell you that there were many lead soldiers, which were my absolute favourite. Soldiers on horseback, cavalry in steel armour, with steel helmets, holding swords or blowing horns. They were the finest toys imaginable.
There were German soldiers, French soldiers, English soldiers, English sailors, all kinds. I loved them tremendously.
Saint Nicholas and the Gifts Left During the Night
The belief was that Saint Nicholas brought the toys. Saint Nicholas was a bishop in Asia Minor. He felt great compassion for a certain kind of poor people, families whose father had failed in business and fallen into poverty.
Saint Nicholas would find a way to help them secretly, sending assistance without letting them know who had given it. Thus, on Christmas Eve, he was said to pass by houses, throw the gift through an open window, and run away.
So the tradition arose that in Catholic homes throughout the world, Saint Nicholas would visit the children. At first, we truly believed in Saint Nicholas.
When we went to bed, we were told that during the night, Saint Nicholas would enter the house and leave gifts at the foot of our beds.
The Joy of Christmas Morning
Sometimes I would wake up during the night and feel the weight of Saint Nicholas’s gift against my feet. I preferred not to open it then, knowing that the joy would be greater in the morning.
That was one of the greatest Christmas joys. In the morning, I would untie the strings, open the package, and discover what Saint Nicholas had really brought.
That is how a Christmas Day was lived.
