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Merry Christmas to you and your family. Welcome to my Christmas blog and enjoy your stay. Happy Holidays!

Christmas straw

In Finland straw was customarily spread on the floor for Christmas day. This symbolized the stable and manger where Jesus lay after being born. But it was also a
pagan custom to ensure the crop of next summer, known also in Slavic countries. Thus here we see the Christian rationalizing again when accepting the old and difficult-to-remove folk customs. Many Christmas decorations were (and are) made from straw, too. Most notably the so-called himmeli (an intricate straw mobile hung from the ceiling) and straw goats big and small. Straw sheafs were prepared for cattle and birds.

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