19th of December, 2014, is St. Nicholas Day here in the village. It is a very important day that is celebrated.
St. Nicholas was born sometime in 280 in Patara, Lycia, known today as Turkey. Both of his parents passed away when St. Nicholas was very young. It was documented that he used his inheritance to help those who were in need, who were poor, and who were sick.
There are many legends about St. Nicholas of Myra. One story goes on to tell us how a father was struggling to make ends meet. He was not able to provide for his family, which included his three daughters. He could not provide their doweries and was going to have to sell to servitude in order to provide for them. Three times St. Nicholas secretly went to their house at night and put a bag of money inside. The father used the money so that one of his daughters could marry. On the third visit, the man saw St. Nicholas and thanked him for his kindness. He also reportedly saved three men who were falsely imprisoned and sentenced to death.
Several sources state St. Nicholas is believed to have died on December 6, 343. Over the years, stories of his miracles and work for those in need in all parts of the world have come to the surface. He became known as the protector of children and sailors and was associated with gift-giving.
The Dutch continued to celebrate the feast day of St. Nicholas on December 6. It was a common practice for children to put out their shoes the night before. In the morning, they would discover the gifts that St. Nicholas had left there for them. Dutch immigrants brought St. Nicholas, known to them as Saint Nicholas, and his gift-giving ways to America in the 1700s.
In America, St. Nicholas went through many transformations and eventually becoming Santa Claus. Instead of giving gifts on December 6, he became a part of the Christmas holiday. In a poem written in 1820, St. Nicholas' story was told in "An Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas" by Clement Clarke Moore. He was later described as a jolly, heavy man who comes down the chimney to leave presents for deserving children and drives a sleigh pulled by flying reindeer. This is where the idea was born.
Here in the village everyone gathered into the community room, shared delicious foods and sang several songs about St. Nicholas. Then St. Nicholas would come for all the children to sit on his knee and answer the famous question, “Have you been good this year?” Then each child, adult, and elder that took their turn to check in with St. Nicholas received a bag of an apple or orange and full shelled nuts.
Watching each child sit on his knee reminded me of all the times that we would go to see Santa. Especially last year as Solstice got her picture taken with Mr. and Mrs. Clause in Fresno...Such beautiful memories.
I hope everyone has a truly beautiful Christmas with family, friends, and strangers...Continuing old traditions, and starting new ones. I want to thank everyone again for all your help, not only for this Alaskan adventure, but for everything. Being here and having time to reflect is just another reminder on how truly blessed I am to have all of you in my corner.
