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SON Newsletters
will be available on a bimonthly basis. For the electronic newsletter, please send your email and contact info to: jlrud@cinergymetro.net JERRY RUD If you would like to receive a printed version of the newsletter, please send your contact info to: burtonbittner@att.net BURT BITTNER
V.29 DECEMBER 2020
THIS ISSUE IS FULL OF HOLIDAY MEMORIES
ONE CHRISTMAS MEMORY AMONG SO MANY I grew up in Oslo, Norway, just after WW II. Even in the post war standard, I believe my family was called “poor”. I can remember well the shame I felt not to have winter boots like the others, not to have what was “modern” like everyone else, always to bring the cheapest gifts to birthday parties! Our CHRISTmas tree was always a natural spruce, so “natural” that it appeared quite “handicapped” with a mix of long and short branches. (It has occurred to me that our CHRISTmas tree could be the cheapest which no one else wanted.) It was always decorated by mom and dad on Little CHRISTmas Eve, and we could not see it before the next morning. CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE
Berit Skaare
On CHRISTmas Eve we had a certain ritual to go through– at 4pm to put up the sheaf for the birds, then church, put candles on the graves in the cemetery, then dinner at home (always RIBBE and SAUERKRAUT!!), clean up, and circle around the tree and sing carols. But that was difficult, because mom, dad, my little sister and I, we couldn’t reach completely around the tree! We ran to get our dolls to hold hands with, and if that was not enough, we used a scarf to hold on to each end. - and after caroling with dolls and parents and scarves …then…… we could have gifts! We always had many gifts under the CHRISTmas tree! Many! The genius’ idea of my father was to buy “what we will need anyway”, wrap it nicely, and make a pile under the tree! For us children it looked like a lot of gifts!! My sister and I did not think much of it! – then! But later in life we understood my father’s trick. We were given one gift at the time, and all had to see what you got. My dad always wrote down who it was from. When we grew older, we were given the list of gifts and where they came from. Between CHRISTmas and New Year we all wrote thank you notes to our friends.
THE LUREN / V29 HOLIDAY ISSUE / PAGE 2
Unwrapping gifts on CHRISTmas Eve, my father may find a much needed bicycle tire, a bundle of envelopes and stationary, or a pack of band aid (needed when teaching ME how to ride a bike!). If my mom could manage to save for it, a small wooden box with six Havana cigars! Ohhhh, it smelt good! (-but not the next day!) My mother was excited to unwrap a box of candles, a stack of canned sardines, or even 2 ld of a red, round Edam Cheese, which my sister snapped away from her and threw in the wall, thinking it was a ball! It shook the house!
FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL 1952 7 YEARS OLD
Of course we children had a toy or two, but mostly it was “what we will need anyway”. Not bad when you think of it today! Maybe this experience of limitation gave me a better understanding for people who had difficulties in life. As 8-10 years old, I was drawn to older people who looked sad or struggled with a cane or shopping bags they could not maneuver. There were certain “grandmas” and “grandpas” I recognized in our neighborhood, and I often offered to help carry their shopping bags home. They were Miss Bertnzen, Mr. Lauritzen, and Mrs Langeland. My parents did not know them. In my opinion, they were very old, old! – maybe 60 or so. ust before CHRISTmas one year I decided to ask them all three to celebrate CHRISTmas in my home, with my sister, my mom and my dad! No, no, I had not asked my parents first, that did not even occur to me. Of course they asked if my parents had given me permission to invite them, and I believe that question surprised me, as we always had “some people extra” for dinner. We sorted it out, however. So we had three extra guests that year! It was a jolly good CHRISTmas, I tell you! Mam, Dad, my little sister, and the old people, Langeland, Lauritzen, and Bertnzen. And that CHRISTmas Eve we did not need dolls and scarves when we caroled around the tree! It was not the last time these three seniors came to my family for CHRISTmas. Year after year we had these extra grandpa and grandmas – until they really became “family”.
Berit Skaare
WINTER IN NORWAY
The temperatures in Oslo in December are significantly low averaging -2°C (28°F) and when the sun does come out, it will be only for one hour. The average rainfall is 63mm with a relative humidity of 86%.There is much snow at this time and nights are freezing. However, this does not impede on the events and festivals planned for the month. It is a period when the Scandinavian capital sees an influx of tourists from all over the world. It is also a time when locals prepare for Christmas celebrations and there is often much to do. One of the most prestigious events taking place this month is The Nobel Peace Prize Awards.
It was Christmas of 1942, and I was three and a half years old. My father had just come home from the concentration camp where he had been interned. The time when he was away had been tense and uncertain, but now he was home, and my world was just right. It gets dark early in Norway in December, and there were no street lights nor a glimmer of light from behind the blackout curtains. But inside, our house was warm and aglow with candle lights. The Christmas tree was in the middle of the living room, decorated with colorful glass birds and woven paper baskets. After dinner Mother lit the candles on the tree, and we joined hands; the three of us didn’t reach around the tree, but we sang carols as we walked around it. In the dark night, my parent’s faces were golden in the candle light and my hands were safe in theirs. After we opened the packages under the tree, my father left the room, and when he came back, he was carrying a sled. It had room for an adult and a child, and it had a steering wheel and runner guards for your feet and on the middle plank he had carved my name. I sat on the sled the rest of the evening while my parents told stories and we sang more songs. When it was time to go to bed, I could not understand why they wouldn’t let me take my sled to bed.
THE LUREN / V29 HOLIDAY ISSUE / PAGE 4
Twenty-five years later Bob and I were celebrating Christmas at my parent’s house with our three children. John, the oldest, was three and a half years old. As she did every year, my mother had filled the house with special foods and treats, and she had put up all the familiar decorations. We had no trouble reaching around the tree that year, and holding hands we sang all the traditional songs. There were many colorful packages under the tree, but since my father knew all the verses to all the songs, the children had to be patient. Finally, it was time. After we had opened all the gifts, Bob left the room. He came back in carrying a beautiful blue Grepa pedal car for John. John didn’t say a word as he got in it and very soon figured out how to steer and back up and turn around without squashing the gifts lying all around. He did not get out of it until it was time for bed, and he wanted us to put it by his bed so he could look at it and make sure it was real. God Jul og Godt Nyttår!
Dagrun Bennett
BOB’S SLED
When I had reached the age of four, I was living with my parents in a little town in Iowa. It was winter, and Iowa used to have a lot of snow, so everybody did a lot of sledding and sliding. Christmas was approaching and I wanted a sled. A lot of my friends and other kids all had a sled, and I thought Christmas would be a good time to mention it to my parents. As always the notion came up and was much discussed by everyone whether there was a Santa Claus or not. I mentioned that we always had a lot of snow, but as it almost always happened, the whole world turned to ice. The trees glistened with ice, the streets, cars, sidewalks, everything turned to ice. These were the conditions on Christmas Eve, the target night for the delivery of a sled, if one was coming. It was the middle of the night when I was partially awake and heard what sounded like footfalls and then a sort of thump, a groan, a grunt and some language that I had not ever heard before, along with a clattering sound of wood and steel meeting ice. When morning came and it was Christmas Day, I was gratified at my beautiful new sled. But I was puzzled at its method of delivery and the accompanying use of language that I had never been allowed to use by my Dad. I asked if he had heard what Santa had said and he thought he had, and that it sounded like he said Jumping Jehosephat. This sounded satisfactory because I assumed that Santa had been brought up like I was and that he didn’t cuss either. And to this day I will personally swear to the fact that Santa doesn’t cuss.
Bob Bennett
I don’t have any Norwegian Christmas memories yet, but I did learn from my Sjøstrand sisters in Bergen that to have roasted lamb and root vegetables is common for them for their Christmas dinner with their family. I don’t have any recipes yet though. Not too different from my Payne brother and sister with Newfoundland’s “cooked dinner” of ham (or pork) and root vegetables that are boiled together. Though they are prepared a bit differently from my New Hampshire parents. With the Dodges being from New Hampshire when we would get together with my Dad’s family (about 15+) we would have roast turkey and ham plus root vegetables plus 2 kinds squash, and corn all grown the previous summer in their enormous 1/2 - 1 acre garden.
THE LUREN / V29 HOLIDAY ISSUE / PAGE 6
With my wife’s family being originally from Germany they would treat us to beef brisket plus all the vegetables mentioned already.
Jeff Dodge
Take care,
JEAN’S MEMORIES The first Christmas I remember was in my fourth year. It was a year of sadness – leaving beautiful Norway, my best friend and relatives. We arrived in New York City - April 1940. Christmas was the best holiday then and still remains my favorite. It began when one afternoon we drove to Brooklyn and attended a Sons of Norway Julefest. I remember tossing my coat and hat aside and was in awe of the sights and smells of Christmas. Everyone wore their best attire – music filled the air from Walter Ericson’s Live Band! I was invited to make decorations to take home, a long paper chain with many colors – and a heart shaped paper basket for our tree – filled with a cookie. A wonderful ball room filled with more people than I had ever seen. Tables were decorated, and the food in abundance. I especially remember the krumkaker and fattigmann. Still my favorite. A Norwegian march was played and almost everyone joined in a march around the room, up and down aisles – and double circles concluded around a Christmas tree. Wonderful songs and dances went on for a long time. Then it was dancing for the grown-ups! It was then that my Dad walked me to the floor and placed my feet on top of his and we twirled around and around. My love for norsk dans og music still abides in my heart and soul. The evening concluded with a Julenissen and St Nick giving the children a red felt stocking filled with an orange, almonds, chocolates and a red yarn doll pin. Christmas morning I was in awe when I came down to the living room…….. There stood the most beautiful tree IN the house, it was adorned with electric candle lights in many colors – not like the bubble lights that appeared in the US years later. Also single strands of tinsel, glass birds with feathered tails – and a beautiful angel at the top. How magical this all was. For several years, actually all my life, it occurs but not so intense or magical as that in 1940. May Christmas bring you joy, love and a healthy New Year – With love,
Jean Bittner
Growing up we always spent Christmas Eve at one grandparent home, and Christmas Day at the other. We would usually attend candlelight (11:00pm) Christmas Eve service and stay overnight at that grandparents’, then drive the 10 miles to the other grandparents’ in time for Christmas Day services at 10:00am. Both hosted a Christmas meal that included mashed potatoes, meatballs and gravy, cranberry relish, and of course, lutefisk and lefse. And desert included rosettes, krumkaka and other sweet treats. Many years we would extend the stay at our maternal grandparents’ home, along with 2 sets of cousins, so that there were 10 or 12 kids lined up in sleeping bags and blankets across the living room floor, and stay even through the parades of New Year’s Day. Eating, games and puzzles filled our days and nights. As we got older and grandparents passed and we got married and had our own children, the situation was different. Many of my in-laws were in church work and unable to get away for Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, so the tradition became spending Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with my family, and the 27-30th with my wife’s family. My mother was widowed with 5 children, and she married a widower with 5 children, 6 of whom were still in school at the time they were married. So as we all got older with children, the numbers grew. When they celebrated their 10th anniversary, they had 10 children and 10 grandchildren. Before they passed we were 45 with parents, children and spouses, and grandchildren. And my in-laws (6 siblings) quickly outgrew individual homes. We were fortunate to find a camp in central Wisconsin where we returned for 27 years with cross country ski trails, broom ball rinks, horses, an inner tubing hill, a gym for volleyball and basketball, recently adding climbing walls, and puzzles in the lodge. With that clan now at 50, and the parents passing 90 years old, we made the decision to not return this year. But there are many wonderful memories for our children and grandchildren of spending time with cousins and aunts and uncles who are spread across the country.
Paul Brakke
Christmas time on a farm in western Minnesota was much like some of the ones I have read from other Sons of Norway lodge members as we all share our Juleminne (Christmas memories).
THE LUREN / V29 HOLIDAY ISSUE /PAGE 8
At Jevnaker Lutheran Church (rural Montevideo, Minnesota) the Christmas celebration was a two-day event. On the night before Christmas Eve (Dec. 23) a pageant was held with children enacting the manager scene in full dress and a doll in the manager. All other youth sang carols in choir form with white robes and huge red cloth bows and told the Christmas story by reading or reciting their parts. For a time, a small gift was received either from one’s Sunday School teacher or by drawing names for classmates, but that was not continued during my entire youth. Maybe it was felt that gift giving in church was a somewhat of a distraction from the true meaning of Christmas. The Christmas Eve service was a candlelight service which created a solemn mood. All the traditional songs were sung including “Jeg er så glad hver Julekveld” (“I am so glad each Christmas Eve”). After the service everyone received a small brown lunch-type bag filled with an apple, peanuts-in-the-shell, and a few pieces of candy (chocolate drops with white cream centers, hard candy wrapped in plastic, and hard candy in tight back-and-forth waves). Excitement continued to build as we went home to a fine meal of meatballs, lutefisk, lefse, mashed potatoes with gravy, various vegetables including yams, yeast rolls, and pies for dessert. While my maternal grandparents were living, we would go to their home for our meal. After they passed away, our Christmas Eve was just our immediate family at our home. We three children (my sisters Jane, Judy, and I) were so very eager to help clear the table and do dishes that night because we wanted to get to the next phase - the exciting gift unwrapping. We three handed out all the gifts and then all took turns opening one gift at a time. We played with our toys late into the night. On Christmas Day we went to our paternal grandparent’s home with three of Dad’s four siblings and their families. All arrived for a noon meal which was a pitch-in meal of the same types of food as we had eaten the night before. Desserts included all the Norwegian cookies (such as sandbakkels, rosettes, etc.) as well as American-type cookies, cakes, and pies. Between Christmas and New Year’s Day we were often surprised in the evening by Julebukks. As we were quietly watching TV or playing cards or a board game there would be a banging on the windows and masked people visible outside. Yes, it was scary! Of course, all these folks were well-meaning neighbors, so they were let in and spoke in altered voices until they were identified. Some were old bid overalls stuffed with pillows so their true size would
not give them away. They wore Halloween-type masks or the cutup leg of winter underwear with holes cut for the eyes and mouth. Mom and Dad were usually able to guess who they were and then gave them a treat of an apple, a popcorn ball, or whatever sweet was on hand. I do remember when I was around 6 years old, they scared me so much that I ran to my bedroom and hid under the bed until they left. Later, in my college years especially, I went Julebukking with friends, many of whom were my cousins. What is amazing is that none of the people who were shocked out of their chairs died of a heart attack! I remember people jumping out of their comfortable chairs as if they had been catapulted. Special memory: One year I was given an electric train which I think Dad enjoyed as much as I did. A few days later Steve Myhre came over to play at our home and we were mesmerized by the train chugging around a simple oval with the high-tech track switching capability. The on-off switch was a black box with a lever that functioned more like a rheostat. When the lever was at the far left it was off, but as it was moved to the right the train would go increasingly faster. After playing for a while, he and I were ready for other play. We went outside the house, but when we returned to the room, we were shocked to find the black box smoking slightly and the carpet with a black mark under its perimeter. We had not turned it completely to the left to shut it off and it had overheated. We were lucky we didn’t have a house fire!
Jerry Rud
Marian Colvin, who lived in Salisbury, MD until she moved to Indiana to be close to her daughter, and became a member of our lodge: Many family members stopped by our house on Christmas Eve to wish us a Merry Christmas. There was no set menu for the meal that evening, but it was always special. Christmas Eve was also the time when we opened the family gifts. They had been wrapped and put under the tree. Christmas Day was Santa’s day. Bonnie would wake up early, but she had to be patient until my parents came over to our house. They lived across town, so she had to wait a long time before she could get Santa’s presents. Santa didn’t wrap anything, he just put his presents under the tree. We all had breakfast together, and later in the day we would go to my parents’ house for a big family dinner. There was turkey and dressing and mashed potatoes and candied yams and cranberry sauce and a green vegetable or two (but no green bean casserole), and for dessert we had sweet potato pie and mince pie.
BURT’S MEMORIES Recalling childhood Christmas memories brings to mind three different ones. The surprise of a red two-wheel bicycle was one of these treasures. The gift of a wall mounted pencil sharpener by my Grandmother was very special to a little boy. It was mounted at the foot of the basement stairs at a height I could reach. When I sold this family home twenty years ago, I removed it and mounted it at a similar place in our current home. After attending the candlelight Christmas service, we would visit my Mother’s cousin, Mildred. Mildred would always have a special book for me. These children’s classics included Tom Sawyer and Tom Brown’s School Days. I realize now that it is not the value of a gift, but how meaningful it is. These are just three of many memories that remind me that gifts given with love and caring are most memorable.
Burt Bittner
509 OAK LEAF DR., GREENCASTLE, IN 46135