Best channel on UA-cam, seriously love all the joy, positivity, and education you put into the world Thank you for making the world a better place, and happy holidays!!!!!
This is the last place I expected to see Circle Toons! So cool to know you appreciate this kind of thing. So funny how even as an adult, I can still have those "Wait, you're telling me my teacher DOESN'T live at school?!" kinds of moments. 😂
Thank you, Jon, for this perspective. I am an only child and my parents both passed away in 2022. My kids are grown and I’ve felt so empty around the holidays that I haven’t decorated since 2021. Haven’t even opened the storage boxes. It’s interesting to hear that people had gotten away from Christmas traditions in times past. Sort of like nowadays. But carrying on traditions is important - whether we feel like it or not. My kids will think I’ve gone mad - but I’m dusting off those old storage bins today and dressing the house up. Thanks for the motivation ❤
I’m in a similar boat. Lost my Dad unexpectedly in July, and I live 500+ miles away from the rest of my folks, and have done for most of my life. So whilst I’m now well used to a disconnected Christmas, this one is kicking up a gear. Thankfully I’ve close friends around me, and have had their help to get me in the Christmas spirit. Just last Sunday we had a collective crafternoon, where we made candles and tree baubles. I’m not a religious person, but it’s still important to have your friends around you at this time of year, because it can be very lonely.
Might it be possible that along with this change of heart, you might be changing your UA-cam name also to reflect perhaps a new leg of your journey of life? Best wishes on your journey! ❤
@Grumpy, aww, I love this!! There is nothing wrong with decorating for yourself! It’s a magical time of year. Maybe find a good, cozy Christmas book too, and sit by your tree or fireplace with some apple cider or hot chocolate as you read and perhaps the Nutcracker Suite playing in the background. I’m reading The White Christmas Inn and am really enjoying it-it’s very cozy and Christmassy. 🥰🎄 ENJOY putting up your decorations today! And even if you don’t, keep going! YOU are still here, and that’s worth a lot. And I agree it’s the other poster that perhaps a new YT name is in order to reflect this new positive outlook and joy for life! I hope you’ll also cook some yummy foods for yourself! Maybe find a good movie-or that book! Holidays can be wonderfully peaceful and magical celebrated alone. 🥰 Many blessings to you!! I’m rooting for you, and I hope you end up having a special Christmas! 🤗🎄🌟❤️
@ericv00 they're called nutmeg trees and they seem to be keeping up pretty well over the last however many hundreds of years they be a global commodity.
We all have those from time to time. Hoping for that Christmas spirit to enter you. Just watched my daughter's high school Christmas Carol play a week or two ago - that always gets me - The Fezziwig party gets me emotional every time!
Oh my gosh, I love it!!! 😂 “Oh what a guyyyyyy!! Gasssstonnnn!!!” My sister and I were literally singing to this song in the kitchen over Thanksgiving!! 😂😂
He will eventually and that's okay I hope the channel continues on though and someone else becomes host, and it would be nice if he popped in once in a while
When Washington Irving wrote "Old Christmas," in 1819, he was absolutely trying to resurrect the customs and feelings of Christmas he had had as a child. He had to go to England to find those traditions and write about them in detail!
@@clogs4956 Aww, that’s so sweet of you to mention! I read it last year and really enjoyed it! 🥰 It’s a tradition of mine to always watch the movie too on either Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. Merry Christmas to you!!! 🎄❤️
My Sicilian-American family's tradition is to get together and make ravioli according to Great-Grandma's recipe on one of the weekends before Christmas. The family is scattered all over now, but my nephew sent a sweet picture of himself teaching his toddler how to crimp the ravioli edges with a fork, just the way we did as children. (And she was just as covered in flour as we always were!) I'll be making a batch probably next weekend.
As I’ve gotten more into Townsends, I’ve learned to have much more respect for those that came before and the hardships they endured on the home front. It was hard. The ingenuity of those before always amazes me, what they did to survive harsh winters and the letters they sent depicting what they have gone through, I still cannot fathom most of it. Having never grown up without these modern conveniences, it’s amazing to see what they did. And now, all these years later, we’re looking back at what they were doing and implementing their genius practices. I hope anyone and everyone reading this has a great Christmas, hold those people close and be thankful for what we’ve been able to accomplish in what is really not that long of a time.
My brother reminded me yesterday to not to dread of what may come, but enjoy the promise of the season and the hope it brings. Happy Holidays everyone, Peace on Earth, Goodwill to all.
You always have wise words for us Jon. This past 20 months has been very hard, and you have helped more than once to ground me. Today more than ever. Thank you.
Thank you for mentioning the Washington Irving stories. I will look for them. A very Merry Christmas to you and yours and everyone connected to your channel.
I've been thinking about Christmas on the farm when I was a kid, and I want to create some of that magic this Christmas and into the New Year. Merry Christmas! 🎄
Excellent perspective. I actually had no idea how much Charles Dickens novel influenced modern Christmas (aside from all the movie and TV show adaptations of it, obviously), but it makes sense in light of what you shared. It is always a great tragedy, at least in my mind, for a tradition to be passed down but its meaning lost, and thus the lessons that tradition was supposed to teach us are never learned. One of the things I note about Christmas where people are so far removed from the understanding of the traditions, is the Christmas season is confused, or swapped for Advent. We celebrate Christmas for 1 day with a month long lead up to it, but it is originally a 12 day long festival that starts on Christmas and ends with Epiphany.
I've been subbed to Townsend for years. I don't always get to watch every video but this channel is far too valuable to our society to let go of. I will never unsub from Townsend. Wishing you all and your loved ones a Merry Christmas. Thank you for always reminding us of our connection to history.
I always consider this time of year a chance to slow down and relax, reflect and undertake new opportunities the season brings, like inside projects or staying cozy and reading. I love the cold and shorter days as much as the other seasons 🎄
I loved this message. I wasn’t going to put up any decorations at all this year. Your message helped remind me of the magic and wonder of Christmas I remember from childhood. I’m glad you shared your thoughts. ❤️🤗
I’ve been enjoying & learning from the channel for two years now but never commented. I lost my father a month ago and my wife is battling a terminal disease. I really needed some perspective and relief this morning, just a little time to slow down and remember the good and beautiful. Thank you!
A Christmas Carol is such a good story. I recommend reading it around this time. And if you can't make time to read it, then watch the Muppet version of the movie. Michael Cane does a phenomenal job as Scrooge.
I think consumerism has harmed the holiday a lot. Instead of being grateful for what we have, and our family and friends. It has been turned into a cesspit of 'If you don't give your family and friends the most expensive gifts...well then, you just don't love them.' Yes, gifts are nice and much appreciated. But, those material things should never ever replace our loved ones. Sorry for being so long-winded.
@@mewhoelse3554 Title of the video is coincidentally a quote from a character, named Dutch, from a video game titled Red Dead Redemption 2. "Does it pay well?" is a response/question from Arthur to Dutch
Without winter, we wouldn't feel the renewal of spring. I love this time of year, but Jan-early March can be a slog occasionally interrupted by lovely snow.
I love how you put things in perspective. Just putting up my Christmas tree and getting ready to invite the neighbours over for a cuppa. Merry Christmas to you too!
Hello Townsends, Hello random viewer, i hope you guys have a amazing Christmas in this complicated times, and live your life to the fullest. Merry Christmas ⛄
It was nice to have my own light bulb moment to realize the holiday traditions sprouted up to help manage mental health and well-being. The world is dead and dark outside, that spark of the outdoors gone and drowned under a bunch of wet brown mush. What do you do? You get lonely, depressed, and anxious. You start seeking out others in your family or community to share time with. You exchange gifts to show you truly know each other. All that has gotten thrown out the window with commercialization. It's all about sales and profit margins. People start to drift away from the holidays if they don't accept the change. I'm going to be alone again this year. It doesn't get any easier.
@chaosrain, please make this Christmas special for yourself! I know several people who will be alone, and they’re totally fine with it. ❤❤ They have good food, some decor up (can be simple), good music, movies or books and do their own celebration. I’ve been alone for Christmas, and it was one of my favorite Christmases ever. I like being with loved ones, but being alone is really special too-and it can be magical in a way being with others isn’t. It’s felt on a deeper level-at least for me. 🥰 I hope your heart feels full this Christmas. It’s up to you!! 🌟🌟🌟
I know, it's sad to see the hordes of people trampling over each other to get into stores and barrages of ads designed to brainwash everyone into emptying their wallets. I hope you do find some solace and joy on Christmas day whether you're alone or with others, though :)
There are three categories of tradition, community building (Yuletide gifting to ensure everyone has the best chance of surviving the dark winter), Societal steam venting (Saturnalia allowing the underclass to 'safely' vent their frustrations with the ruling class for a week with no repercussions), and Lost Context (cutting the ends off the ham because mom always did, cause grandma always did, not knowing grandma didn't have a pan big enough). And it's important to explore which a given tradition is so you know if you want to revive it!
'I've always thought of Christmas as a good time: a kind, forgiving, generous, pleasant time- a time when men and women seem to open their hearts freely; and so I say, "God Bless Christmas."' ~ Charles Dickens As my health has deteriorated, I had to stop working so hard to decorate our home. The last year I did anything, I put out all of the various representations of The Nativity Scene. My spouse liked it so well, they asked me to leave them up, all year long. Our large family gatherings have dwindled down to four of us. We meet for Thanksgiving and Christmas for a meal and fellowship and small gift exchanges. It is almost anti climatic to have those 2 small meals where most of the traditional favorite foods had to be scrapped for health reasons. We adapted, and found replacement foods, and built new traditions. You do the best you can, with what you are given.
@@Objective-Observer Aww, I love that. My mom has a large nativity scene, and she always leaves it up long after Christmas! 🥰 I’m glad you still keep up some traditions-even if they’ve changed over the years. Merry Christmas to you!! God bless you and your family! ❤️
I need to clarify that not all peoples have the same traditions. Quakers have centuries belonged to the English Dissident churches and kept to a very simple, family centered practice of worship and humility. My family never had ostentatious, consumer driven celebration. We felt that every moment is a celebration and to highlight one moment more and one moment less was a diminution of our belief it all is sacred. Today so many in the offices, schools, shopping demand One Christmas and call anyone who dissents to be evil. I hope people can step back and allow for everyone to do what they feel led to do and avoid treatlerism.
Thank you for another year of amazing videos from Townsends, and this was video was among the best Jon. Truly beautiful and inspiring. I am Jewish, but love Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" a message everyone should hear. Merry Christmas to you and all who celebrate. 🎄 And please join us in lighting a candle for Chanukkah if would like to, celebrating the miracle of hope and light. 🕎 Peace, health, and happiness to all.
Thank you for your perspective, Jon. We do seem to romanticize the old times, and I think Hollywood has a lot to do with that, but I do believe that holiday traditions are important. They keep us in touch with who we were and who we are now. Remembering loved ones who are no longer here is very important also. The turning away from the belief in religion has done a lot of damage to the holiday making it more of a party time and collecting objects, and taking the emphasis off family. I have lost most of the people who made Christmas special to me but I still listen to the old songs and watch the Christmas shows in honor of them and the holiday itself. Merry Christmas to you and your family. You keep us aware of our past and what got us here today.
Much truth here, but I believe the impact of Hollywood might be overstated. For me, it is more nostalgia over family gatherings past, when our families tended to not only be larger, but also to stay in the same region rather than disperse over the whole country. We lived on the 3rd floor of a Chicago three-flat owned by my maternal grandparents; one uncle and his three kids lived in the bottom flat, and Grand Ma and Grand Pa lived in the middle flat. The entire family... all the aunts and uncles, all the cousins, would gather for Christmas and Easter. My grandfather would have to put up plywood boards and saw horses, and wooden bench seats he made, to get everyone seated, and the table extended from the doorway to the kitchen, across the dining room and into the living room. a balsam Christmas tree in the living room, with those bubbling candle lights... popcorn and sticks of chewing gum tied onto the tree. In my earliest recollections, the mid-50s, Grandma was still cooking these feasts over a cast iron coal & wood stove, and they had a manual (no thermostat regulator) hot water heater located right in the kitchen. The apartment was heated with a gas space heater located in the dining room, supplemented by the kitchen stove. That was a long time ago.
Thank you 🙏 for sharing this beautiful message with us!!! Yes!!! We need to reconnect with our friends, family, community… I want to wish you and everyone who watches this channel a very Merry Christmas 🎄 and a Happy New Year 🎆
Thanks Jon. I need help getting in "The Christmas Spirit" this year. I didn't decorate the house or even put up a Christmas tree this year. Usually that is a day after Thanksgiving activity but not this year. I'm not feeling the season's love anymore, just feeling more alone than ever.
Thank you Jon. I'm not religious, but Christmas traditions are still important to me. They are part of culture I was born in, how I was raised. Christmas tree, gifts, carols, dishes, little rituals surrounding the celebrations have a positive effect on my psyche. They are indeed a way to keep ties inside my family tight and secure. Yes, especially today - when members of our families live in different cities, or countries and we are able to see them only for couple of days each year. In such situation any way to stay in touch is doubly important, even if we don't share the same spiritual beliefs.
I think you should reflect on why these celebrations are meaningful you you and why you haven't "grown beyond" them as you might other experiences from childhood.
@@penultimateh766 OK, I will express my sentiments in simpler terms: Decorations pretty. Music fun. Food good. Family nice. Free time awesome. Christmas time = good time. Reflecting on my feelings was done decades ago, when I was growing beyond what I was taught as a child. Which didn't take anyway, because I was curious and read a lot. For example about origins of many of Christmas traditions and customs that had nothing to do with Christianity.
@@FrikInCasualMode True, the date and the trappings have been kind of re-purposed, but nobody is really hiding that. Like wearing your loudest sweater to a party.
Thank you! I love how many people now make the holidays a time to gather and just enjoy what we have and give thanks for our blessings. The frenzied buying feels less for me as all the children have grown up and being together is. More important than presents and spending on things we don’t need or want. I also think the pandemic and all the losses we had not just in people but so much have sobered many to refocus on family, being compassionate and helping others. Cheers to you At Townsend and Sons. I so appreciate your programs. You all bring so much to the table of long life learning. Thank you! Happy holidays
I'm a Christmas-loving atheist. The traditions are great and wonderful, and I love how those who are believers rejoice in their beliefs. Why not? As long as we are all happy and think of all the important and kind actions and things in life that we should prioritize, we will be good. We should all be less cynical and more accepting and caring of others, and I think Christmas traditions help remind us of all that. Merry Christmas, everyone.
Thank you for this message. I'm losing my Boxing Gym I've been going to for 7 years and the saddest part isn't losing a place to train, but the community around the place. Cherish the friends and family around you even when they annoy you!!!
I am agnostic secular. I will say you are very much correct. This is a time of year for family and community to come together. A time to reflect on theyear that passed and a time to be mindful of putting your best foot forward for the new year.... The argument coukd be made that the grinch is the best example of this year... Which of course strongly mirrors charles Dickens
Huge fan of this. Also, a couple suggestions for upcoming material. As we head towards the New Year, health tends to be top of mind for most people. It would be interesting for you to do a video or series on health. Foods believed to be medicinal, foods that were believed to be bad, Washington and his inoculation for small pox, fasting beyond a religious activity, etc. I really like in the "Poor Farmer" series the mention on the time of meals and how farmers had "dinner" (lunch) as their largest meal of the day to avoid heavy digestion that would interrupt sleep. More info llike that would be awesome.
I agree! You HAVE been thinking. I hope that more of us will. Thank you for sharing your insights and thoughts with us through your wonderful channel. I wish you the best of the Christmas season this year. And please continue your mission to help us remember our past. I've truly enjoyed your work and that of your team. D
Check out "the battle for Christmas" by Stephen Nissenbaum. One of the takeaways from that book is Christmas before the decline and revival was more about the community and the poor, whereas post revival it's more about the family and children.
I love your channel its so cathartic to see the calmer antequated life. Makes me envy the Amish people. But it makes me think how far we've come and changed in such a short amount of time. I wonder how itll be in another few centuries. Tangents aside keep the videos comin! Have a great Christmas!
My understanding of "traditional British Christmas" prior to Dickens is something that looks a lot more like Halloween/Mardi Gras/ New years. It wasn't, as I read it, a loving, giving time nor a family time. Historical demographers tell us that a lot of pregnancies happen, almanacs talk about keeping an eye on your servants, and tradition celebrations seem to center being drunk with the Lord of Misrule etc....
Thank you for sharing your thoughts on history as always. As you said: Sometimes the traditions can get so base it spoils the time it was mean to be. I'm happy that my family has come up with our own stress-free traditions. We have great decorations we've used for decades, we know how to make the house look good. As for food: Nothing high pressure. We make fried chicken on Christmas Eve, because... well, fried chicken! And on Christmas: We make grilled steaks because.... STEAK! These are our traditions, and we love them, and it brings us together and we look forward to them every year.
That's awesome. I was pondering how stressful it gets with gigantic gift lists that put a huge financial strain on some families and over-the-top decorations that are more to outdo the neighbors than to show real Christmas spirit. My family now does a name-drawing at Thanksgiving where you pull a name out of a hat, and you buy a gift for that person. Everyone gets one gift and buys one gift - it's less material stuff, but it's SO much less pressure to spend a ton of money and occupy hours of your life shopping. It makes it more enjoyable. Making your own food traditions is nice. Who would complain about steak and fried chicken? Not me! You know what's a great Christmas meal? SOUP. They do it in Guyana. It's a special beef pepperpot with some local ingredients. You can set it up the night before, it only dirties up one pot, and it's ideal for feeding a crowd. I think there are other dishes that are made along with it, but it's still a much simpler affair than most Christmas dinners I've witnessed in the US.
Thank you so much John, this truly was such a beautiful thoughtful message about Christmas. I'm passing it on... just really appreciate you and your gift to our worlds out here, in case no one's told you lately.....But yes, this was a beautiful message. Thank you so much and Merry Christmas to you and yours. Thank you for the rich Gift of your life to us all....Truly meaningful...Merry Christmas (p.s. loved the idea of it being a re-enactment, and also not throwing out the baby [Jesus?] with the bath water ...so brilliant, as always....)
Merry Christmas 🎄 This is my first Christmas without my Mom. This being the 3rd Sunday of Advent, I would normally be at her house helping her decorate. I haven't decorated my own home much since my kids were older teens, and not at all since my daughter married and moved to Canada. I wasn't home at Christmas, between visiting her just across the border and going to both of my parents' respective homes throughout the week of Christmas and New Year. So it never made sense to go to the trouble of decorating here. This year, I'll go visit my daughter and her family for Boxing Day, but I'm going to sit in Mom's house on Christmas Day this year, most likely alone, but I feel like I need that closure. Her home was always noisy on the holidays, until all of our kids grew up and most moved away or traveled for Christmas. But there was always a holiday meal with those who were in town, and for a little while there was noise again. The last few years, as Mom and I sat together after everyone else left, she talked about how quiet it was. And last year she was wondering if it would be her last Christmas, because her health was failing. She could have lived to be 100 and it wouldn't be long enough. But I'm grateful for all the Christmas celebrations I enjoyed with her. Merry Christmas 🎄
How appropriate. This morning, my grandkids did their Christmas pageant at the church my ancestors worshipped at when they came here from Norway almost 200 years ago. You always inspire us.
I think you are so right, this is exactly how I've felt this year. Taking time to look at the traditions and taking the time to decide what is important to each of us is so important.
Thank you for another year of instruction and insight. Only by appreciating the past and where we came from can we truly appreciate the present. Merry Christmas and a wonderful 2025 to the whole Townsends team.
I’ve started home schooling and use your videos to explain things like food and culture to my son. He enjoys the videos as do I (Christmas videos have been a favorite lately 😊). Thank you for this one and I hope you have a wonderful rest of the season!
I think you have the cause and effect backwards, though, and it matters. The loss of a tradition didn't cause the decay of society. The industrial revolution and the greed of those at the top destroyed whole ways of life, tore families apart, and thus traditions, including many holiday traditions, were lost. Yes, we have lost a lot of family and community. Holiday tradition loss is a casualty of the same thing today, not a cause. Commercialization IS the problem, greed is still the problem.
What a great message, thank you. I’ve been heavily contemplating and discussing this very subject in some depth lately. My take has been much more towards the negative side, but you bring up many great points that counter what my thoughts have been. The discussion about why we have and keep these traditions, has helped me to look at old things in a very new light. Merry Christmas!
Ancient man understood we humans needed a celebration during this time of year to keep going until spring. Some enjoyed certain aspects more than others and I think those became family traditions. I agree, we NEED to bring back the celebration part to entertain ourselves.....for our own mental health.
As a descendent of German Palatines and German Hessians. Tanditions are alive and well. Although this year may have a few challenges. I hope you and your family have a very merry and joyous Christmas 🎄
Same mix of heritage for me, too. Bought the farm from William Penn's children in May 1723. I am happy Germans kept such meticulous records, made the research easy.
I know the holiday season in north America is predominantly Christian, but personally not being of that faith I think there's still a lot there. Friendship, family, relationships, helping your neighbour, and so on. It's right around the time of the Winter Solstice, when the sun is at it's lowest and the night is the longest and darkest of the year in the northern hemisphere. People rely on each other and help each other through, and even though the worst of the winter is still ahead, you can see for yourself the promise of better times ahead and that's worth celebrating in of itself.
Its really only a Christian tradition in name only. The vast majority of the pageantry and activities are much much older and come from many different walks and religious groups. Even in Eastern cultures, they have different celebrations and activities. I think it comes from universal feelings of being stuck in the dulldrums and melancholy of nasty winters and having an artificial time of joy and hope for the spring. I think Seasonal depression effects alot more people and it has for millenia.
@@5isalivegaming72 Common argument, but there's no historicity to it. All the cultures people claim (usually on the internet) to have originated these traditions, either have no original sources, or came along long after we have sources of European Christians celebrating them. It's really in the last few centuries we've seen them become decoupled and represent secular ideals- but their import to the common man still speaks to their relevance regardless!
My Jewish grandfather loved Christmas! Even though he didn't actually share the belief behind it, he loved the joy and kindness people expressed during this time of year.
@@SoybeanAK Nobody is talking about representing secular ideas. We're talking about a religion stealing and absorbing other religious practices, traditions, celebrations, and themes. Christmas apes from the Winter Solstice and harvest festivals which were celebrated long before Christians absorbed it. There are millions and millions of people who still believe Christmas is about "celebrating Jesus' birthday" despite the canon having him being born in mid-late Spring. For these things to be decoupled they had to be coupled first which is what Christians did to absorb and overtake other cultures. We know this explicitly with the Vikings where Christians would regularly refuse trade or marriages with them unless they converted, which the Vikings did, sometimes earnestly, usually just because. There's actually a ton of historicity to the fact that Christianity has taken and taken and taken from other people and places and absorbed and morphed it into itself. We have concrete evidence of this going back millennia. Hell, the whole religion is an offshoot of an older religion that worships what that older religion would have considered a heretic that took a lot of ITS ideas from even older cultures in the region. No, the ideas that Christmas supposedly employs are older than Christmas and older than Christianity's assimilation of them.
This video gave me such a warmth. Like a cup of hot cocoa by the fire. Thanks, Jon.
Oh hi max
I can hear you saying this in my head.
*clack clack*
Truth. The man is that, always; and somehow, here even more than usual.
Fancy seeing you here!
😂😂😂😂
Love ya, Max, and I hope you are well.
❤❤❤😊😊😊
Best channel on UA-cam, seriously love all the joy, positivity, and education you put into the world
Thank you for making the world a better place, and happy holidays!!!!!
This is the last place I expected to see Circle Toons! So cool to know you appreciate this kind of thing. So funny how even as an adult, I can still have those "Wait, you're telling me my teacher DOESN'T live at school?!" kinds of moments. 😂
Ikr
oh didnt expect seeing u here
100%🙏🏻
Respectfully, why are you here? Do you watch his videos?
Thank you, Jon, for this perspective. I am an only child and my parents both passed away in 2022. My kids are grown and I’ve felt so empty around the holidays that I haven’t decorated since 2021. Haven’t even opened the storage boxes.
It’s interesting to hear that people had gotten away from Christmas traditions in times past. Sort of like nowadays. But carrying on traditions is important - whether we feel like it or not. My kids will think I’ve gone mad - but I’m dusting off those old storage bins today and dressing the house up. Thanks for the motivation ❤
I’m in a similar boat. Lost my Dad unexpectedly in July, and I live 500+ miles away from the rest of my folks, and have done for most of my life. So whilst I’m now well used to a disconnected Christmas, this one is kicking up a gear.
Thankfully I’ve close friends around me, and have had their help to get me in the Christmas spirit. Just last Sunday we had a collective crafternoon, where we made candles and tree baubles.
I’m not a religious person, but it’s still important to have your friends around you at this time of year, because it can be very lonely.
Might it be possible that along with this change of heart, you might be changing your UA-cam name also to reflect perhaps a new leg of your journey of life? Best wishes on your journey! ❤
You say carrying on traditions is important. Why?
@Grumpy, aww, I love this!! There is nothing wrong with decorating for yourself! It’s a magical time of year. Maybe find a good, cozy Christmas book too, and sit by your tree or fireplace with some apple cider or hot chocolate as you read and perhaps the Nutcracker Suite playing in the background. I’m reading The White Christmas Inn and am really enjoying it-it’s very cozy and Christmassy. 🥰🎄
ENJOY putting up your decorations today! And even if you don’t, keep going! YOU are still here, and that’s worth a lot.
And I agree it’s the other poster that perhaps a new YT name is in order to reflect this new positive outlook and joy for life!
I hope you’ll also cook some yummy foods for yourself! Maybe find a good movie-or that book! Holidays can be wonderfully peaceful and magical celebrated alone. 🥰
Many blessings to you!! I’m rooting for you, and I hope you end up having a special Christmas! 🤗🎄🌟❤️
❤
When I saw the title, I thought Jon had figured out how to get an unlimited source of nutmeg.
😂
I wish!
Perpetual nutmeg machines are physically impossible. The closest thing we could have is nutmeg fusion... IF we can get nutmeg reactors to work.
🤣😂
@ericv00 they're called nutmeg trees and they seem to be keeping up pretty well over the last however many hundreds of years they be a global commodity.
I'm so here for more fireside wonderings, please don't hesitate to do more of them. Having a rough weekend but this helped a lot.
🤗💕💕💕
We all have those from time to time. Hoping for that Christmas spirit to enter you. Just watched my daughter's high school Christmas Carol play a week or two ago - that always gets me - The Fezziwig party gets me emotional every time!
A prayer for you right now BluJean
Love and prayers from Oklahoma.
I agree!
"Lefou I'm afraid I've been thinking."
"A dangerous pastime-"
"I know." 😅😅😅
Careful Gaston...
Oh my gosh, I love it!!! 😂
“Oh what a guyyyyyy!! Gasssstonnnn!!!”
My sister and I were literally singing to this song in the kitchen over Thanksgiving!! 😂😂
"Lefou I'm afraid I've been noodling."
"A dangerous pastime-"
"MMMYES" 🎣
@@PeaceIsJesusChrist 😂😂😂 It may be one of my favorite, funny, Disney quotes!
@@ElizabethAnne-l7c
Indeed!!!! 😂🤣🤣
Notification: "I've been thinking.."
Me: *panic* RETIREMENT!
P.S please don't retire guys we love you!
I thought the same thing!! Thank goodness that is not what we heard!!
He will eventually and that's okay I hope the channel continues on though and someone else becomes host, and it would be nice if he popped in once in a while
Same here
Omg same ii clicked right away
That was the point, clickbait
When Washington Irving wrote "Old Christmas," in 1819, he was absolutely trying to resurrect the customs and feelings of Christmas he had had as a child. He had to go to England to find those traditions and write about them in detail!
I love those stories. Our family really enjoys The Fir Tree by Hans Christian Andersen as well, so good. Such good messages.
Aww, I’m going to look up, *”OLD CHRISTMAS,”* by Washington Irving and *”THE FIR TREE”* by Hans Christian Anderson. Thank you both! ❤
@PeaceIsYeshua don’t forget to read A Christmas Carol!
@@clogs4956
Aww, that’s so sweet of you to mention! I read it last year and really enjoyed it! 🥰 It’s a tradition of mine to always watch the movie too on either Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. Merry Christmas to you!!! 🎄❤️
Man… imagine how soul shattering today’s world would be to Washington Irving.
My Sicilian-American family's tradition is to get together and make ravioli according to Great-Grandma's recipe on one of the weekends before Christmas. The family is scattered all over now, but my nephew sent a sweet picture of himself teaching his toddler how to crimp the ravioli edges with a fork, just the way we did as children. (And she was just as covered in flour as we always were!) I'll be making a batch probably next weekend.
We do lasagna and cannolis
Love this, thanks for sharing!
As I’ve gotten more into Townsends, I’ve learned to have much more respect for those that came before and the hardships they endured on the home front. It was hard.
The ingenuity of those before always amazes me, what they did to survive harsh winters and the letters they sent depicting what they have gone through, I still cannot fathom most of it. Having never grown up without these modern conveniences, it’s amazing to see what they did. And now, all these years later, we’re looking back at what they were doing and implementing their genius practices.
I hope anyone and everyone reading this has a great Christmas, hold those people close and be thankful for what we’ve been able to accomplish in what is really not that long of a time.
Merry Christmas to all of the Townsends family and friends. 🎄
Merry Christmas to all of the Nutmegers. 🎄
Thank you, Jon. Best wishes to you and your family for Yuletide and the New Year.
Jon - may you and your family have a very blessed Christmas and a happy and prosperous 2025.
Jon, thank you, from the bottom of my heart. I needed this perspective this week. I love your quiet, thoughtful videos.
My brother reminded me yesterday to not to dread of what may come, but enjoy the promise of the season and the hope it brings. Happy Holidays everyone, Peace on Earth, Goodwill to all.
Your channel is so very much needed right now. Thank you for the calm, interesting, mesmerizing, and wholesome spot on the internet.
One of the best channels on UA-cam. Top tier.
Amen
You always have wise words for us Jon. This past 20 months has been very hard, and you have helped more than once to ground me. Today more than ever. Thank you.
Thank you for mentioning the Washington Irving stories. I will look for them. A very Merry Christmas to you and yours and everyone connected to your channel.
I've been thinking about Christmas on the farm when I was a kid, and I want to create some of that magic
this Christmas and into the New Year. Merry Christmas! 🎄
Aww, what special memories you must have!! Perhaps you can find a cozy Christmas book that takes place on a farm. 🥰🎄
Excellent perspective. I actually had no idea how much Charles Dickens novel influenced modern Christmas (aside from all the movie and TV show adaptations of it, obviously), but it makes sense in light of what you shared. It is always a great tragedy, at least in my mind, for a tradition to be passed down but its meaning lost, and thus the lessons that tradition was supposed to teach us are never learned. One of the things I note about Christmas where people are so far removed from the understanding of the traditions, is the Christmas season is confused, or swapped for Advent. We celebrate Christmas for 1 day with a month long lead up to it, but it is originally a 12 day long festival that starts on Christmas and ends with Epiphany.
Teaching the traditions of men, and disregarding the stumbling block.
I've been subbed to Townsend for years. I don't always get to watch every video but this channel is far too valuable to our society to let go of. I will never unsub from Townsend. Wishing you all and your loved ones a Merry Christmas. Thank you for always reminding us of our connection to history.
A very well thought-out perspective
Merry Christmas!
I always consider this time of year a chance to slow down and relax, reflect and undertake new opportunities the season brings, like inside projects or staying cozy and reading. I love the cold and shorter days as much as the other seasons 🎄
I loved this message. I wasn’t going to put up any decorations at all this year.
Your message helped remind me of the magic and wonder of Christmas I remember from childhood.
I’m glad you shared your thoughts. ❤️🤗
I’ve been enjoying & learning from the channel for two years now but never commented. I lost my father a month ago and my wife is battling a terminal disease. I really needed some perspective and relief this morning, just a little time to slow down and remember the good and beautiful. Thank you!
I'm sorry for what you're going through.
May comfort be your blessing for you and your wife.
A Christmas Carol is such a good story. I recommend reading it around this time. And if you can't make time to read it, then watch the Muppet version of the movie. Michael Cane does a phenomenal job as Scrooge.
Light and life and love. Merry Christmas, everyone!
I think consumerism has harmed the holiday a lot. Instead of being grateful for what we have, and our family and friends. It has been turned into a cesspit of 'If you don't give your family and friends the most expensive gifts...well then, you just don't love them.' Yes, gifts are nice and much appreciated. But, those material things should never ever replace our loved ones. Sorry for being so long-winded.
"Does it pay well?" ~ Arthur Morgan
MY FIRST THOUGHTS, MY WHOLE FAMILY HAS BEEN LAUGHING AT THIS CROSSOVER THIS MORNING 😭😭😭
"Eventually..."
What are you implying?
We just need one more big score, and we're off to Tahiti!
@@mewhoelse3554 Title of the video is coincidentally a quote from a character, named Dutch, from a video game titled Red Dead Redemption 2. "Does it pay well?" is a response/question from Arthur to Dutch
Appreciate the sentiment and perspective. Happy Holidays all. Cheers and Bless 🙌
Looooove the work you all do.
🍻🙏
A very Merry Christmas to you and yours too.
Without winter, we wouldn't feel the renewal of spring. I love this time of year, but Jan-early March can be a slog occasionally interrupted by lovely snow.
I love how you put things in perspective. Just putting up my Christmas tree and getting ready to invite the neighbours over for a cuppa.
Merry Christmas to you too!
Merry Christmas everyone! God bless you all and I hope everyone has a beautiful Christmas season ❤️✝️
Townsends . . You moved me. You are a stand up guy! Merry Christmas.
Hello Townsends, Hello random viewer, i hope you guys have a amazing Christmas in this complicated times, and live your life to the fullest. Merry Christmas ⛄
Merry Christmas 😺
Merry Christmas!
Thank you, to you as well, may you allways have faith, hope and love in your heart.
This year has been a wild ride for my family. Jesus spared my wife and my son. I'm very grateful. God bless you. Hope you have a Merry Christmas ✝️
Merry Christmas!
And a very Merry Christmas to you and thank you for a the great videos.
It was nice to have my own light bulb moment to realize the holiday traditions sprouted up to help manage mental health and well-being. The world is dead and dark outside, that spark of the outdoors gone and drowned under a bunch of wet brown mush. What do you do? You get lonely, depressed, and anxious. You start seeking out others in your family or community to share time with. You exchange gifts to show you truly know each other. All that has gotten thrown out the window with commercialization. It's all about sales and profit margins. People start to drift away from the holidays if they don't accept the change.
I'm going to be alone again this year. It doesn't get any easier.
@chaosrain, please make this Christmas special for yourself! I know several people who will be alone, and they’re totally fine with it. ❤❤
They have good food, some decor up (can be simple), good music, movies or books and do their own celebration.
I’ve been alone for Christmas, and it was one of my favorite Christmases ever. I like being with loved ones, but being alone is really special too-and it can be magical in a way being with others isn’t. It’s felt on a deeper level-at least for me. 🥰
I hope your heart feels full this Christmas. It’s up to you!! 🌟🌟🌟
I know, it's sad to see the hordes of people trampling over each other to get into stores and barrages of ads designed to brainwash everyone into emptying their wallets.
I hope you do find some solace and joy on Christmas day whether you're alone or with others, though :)
There are three categories of tradition, community building (Yuletide gifting to ensure everyone has the best chance of surviving the dark winter), Societal steam venting (Saturnalia allowing the underclass to 'safely' vent their frustrations with the ruling class for a week with no repercussions), and Lost Context (cutting the ends off the ham because mom always did, cause grandma always did, not knowing grandma didn't have a pan big enough). And it's important to explore which a given tradition is so you know if you want to revive it!
'I've always thought of Christmas as a good time: a kind, forgiving, generous, pleasant time- a time when men and women seem to open their hearts freely; and so I say, "God Bless Christmas."' ~ Charles Dickens
As my health has deteriorated, I had to stop working so hard to decorate our home. The last year I did anything, I put out all of the various representations of The Nativity Scene. My spouse liked it so well, they asked me to leave them up, all year long.
Our large family gatherings have dwindled down to four of us. We meet for Thanksgiving and Christmas for a meal and fellowship and small gift exchanges.
It is almost anti climatic to have those 2 small meals where most of the traditional favorite foods had to be scrapped for health reasons. We adapted, and found replacement foods, and built new traditions. You do the best you can, with what you are given.
@@Objective-Observer
Aww, I love that. My mom has a large nativity scene, and she always leaves it up long after Christmas! 🥰
I’m glad you still keep up some traditions-even if they’ve changed over the years.
Merry Christmas to you!! God bless you and your family! ❤️
@@PeaceIsJesusChrist May He bless you and your's, as well. Merry Christmas!
@@Objective-Observer
Thank you so much!! 🤗❤️
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all.
Merry Christmas!
I need to clarify that not all peoples have the same traditions. Quakers have centuries belonged to the English Dissident churches and kept to a very simple, family centered practice of worship and humility. My family never had ostentatious, consumer driven celebration. We felt that every moment is a celebration and to highlight one moment more and one moment less was a diminution of our belief it all is sacred. Today so many in the offices, schools, shopping demand One Christmas and call anyone who dissents to be evil. I hope people can step back and allow for everyone to do what they feel led to do and avoid treatlerism.
Thank you for another year of amazing videos from Townsends, and this was video was among the best Jon. Truly beautiful and inspiring. I am Jewish, but love Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" a message everyone should hear. Merry Christmas to you and all who celebrate. 🎄 And please join us in lighting a candle for Chanukkah if would like to, celebrating the miracle of hope and light. 🕎 Peace, health, and happiness to all.
I've been thinking...
... about nutmeg. (5 minute ode to nutmeg)
You sniffing around my nutmeg jar again?? Oh how dare you! It is mine. My own. My... Precious!
Merry Christmas, Jon and the team! x 🎅
Thank you for your perspective, Jon. We do seem to romanticize the old times, and I think Hollywood has a lot to do with that, but I do believe that holiday traditions are important. They keep us in touch with who we were and who we are now. Remembering loved ones who are no longer here is very important also. The turning away from the belief in religion has done a lot of damage to the holiday making it more of a party time and collecting objects, and taking the emphasis off family. I have lost most of the people who made Christmas special to me but I still listen to the old songs and watch the Christmas shows in honor of them and the holiday itself. Merry Christmas to you and your family. You keep us aware of our past and what got us here today.
Much truth here, but I believe the impact of Hollywood might be overstated. For me, it is more nostalgia over family gatherings past, when our families tended to not only be larger, but also to stay in the same region rather than disperse over the whole country. We lived on the 3rd floor of a Chicago three-flat owned by my maternal grandparents; one uncle and his three kids lived in the bottom flat, and Grand Ma and Grand Pa lived in the middle flat. The entire family... all the aunts and uncles, all the cousins, would gather for Christmas and Easter. My grandfather would have to put up plywood boards and saw horses, and wooden bench seats he made, to get everyone seated, and the table extended from the doorway to the kitchen, across the dining room and into the living room. a balsam Christmas tree in the living room, with those bubbling candle lights... popcorn and sticks of chewing gum tied onto the tree. In my earliest recollections, the mid-50s, Grandma was still cooking these feasts over a cast iron coal & wood stove, and they had a manual (no thermostat regulator) hot water heater located right in the kitchen. The apartment was heated with a gas space heater located in the dining room, supplemented by the kitchen stove. That was a long time ago.
Thank you 🙏 for sharing this beautiful message with us!!! Yes!!! We need to reconnect with our friends, family, community… I want to wish you and everyone who watches this channel a very Merry Christmas 🎄 and a Happy New Year 🎆
Thanks Jon. I need help getting in "The Christmas Spirit" this year. I didn't decorate the house or even put up a Christmas tree this year. Usually that is a day after Thanksgiving activity but not this year. I'm not feeling the season's love anymore, just feeling more alone than ever.
Sending love your way, over UA-cam comments, for what it is worth. ❤
Mark, you are not alone. Praying for you during this tough time. I just got through this myself.
Thank you Jon. I'm not religious, but Christmas traditions are still important to me. They are part of culture I was born in, how I was raised. Christmas tree, gifts, carols, dishes, little rituals surrounding the celebrations have a positive effect on my psyche. They are indeed a way to keep ties inside my family tight and secure. Yes, especially today - when members of our families live in different cities, or countries and we are able to see them only for couple of days each year. In such situation any way to stay in touch is doubly important, even if we don't share the same spiritual beliefs.
Solstice celebrations help everyone through the dark time of the year. 😊
I think you should reflect on why these celebrations are meaningful you you and why you haven't "grown beyond" them as you might other experiences from childhood.
@@penultimateh766 OK, I will express my sentiments in simpler terms: Decorations pretty. Music fun. Food good. Family nice. Free time awesome.
Christmas time = good time.
Reflecting on my feelings was done decades ago, when I was growing beyond what I was taught as a child. Which didn't take anyway, because I was curious and read a lot. For example about origins of many of Christmas traditions and customs that had nothing to do with Christianity.
That's Yule baby!
@@FrikInCasualMode True, the date and the trappings have been kind of re-purposed, but nobody is really hiding that. Like wearing your loudest sweater to a party.
I dont think its depressing at all. I love winter. No sweat, no bugs, snow looks nice. The forest is dead quiet. Warm fires.
It gets nice and cloudy where I live, so no sun directly in my eyes either! Very nice season.
Thank you! I love how many people now make the holidays a time to gather and just enjoy what we have and give thanks for our blessings. The frenzied buying feels less for me as all the children have grown up and being together is. More important than presents and spending on things we don’t need or want. I also think the pandemic and all the losses we had not just in people but so much have sobered many to refocus on family, being compassionate and helping others. Cheers to you At Townsend and Sons. I so appreciate your programs. You all bring so much to the table of long life learning. Thank you! Happy holidays
Merry Christmas 🎄🎉🇦🇺🦘🥵
Happy Holidays to all 🩷
You have the happiest of Christmases and the greatest of New Years, Mr. Townsend!
I'm a Christmas-loving atheist. The traditions are great and wonderful, and I love how those who are believers rejoice in their beliefs. Why not? As long as we are all happy and think of all the important and kind actions and things in life that we should prioritize, we will be good.
We should all be less cynical and more accepting and caring of others, and I think Christmas traditions help remind us of all that.
Merry Christmas, everyone.
Same to you I'm agnostic myself.
💯 - I'm also a Christmas loving atheist. Merry Christmas! 🎄🧑🎄🦌♥️
An absolutely wonderful beautiful statement on tradition and the celebration of this time. Thank you so much for this gift!
Thank you for this message. I'm losing my Boxing Gym I've been going to for 7 years and the saddest part isn't losing a place to train, but the community around the place. Cherish the friends and family around you even when they annoy you!!!
I am agnostic secular. I will say you are very much correct. This is a time of year for family and community to come together. A time to reflect on theyear that passed and a time to be mindful of putting your best foot forward for the new year.... The argument coukd be made that the grinch is the best example of this year... Which of course strongly mirrors charles Dickens
Huge fan of this. Also, a couple suggestions for upcoming material. As we head towards the New Year, health tends to be top of mind for most people. It would be interesting for you to do a video or series on health. Foods believed to be medicinal, foods that were believed to be bad, Washington and his inoculation for small pox, fasting beyond a religious activity, etc. I really like in the "Poor Farmer" series the mention on the time of meals and how farmers had "dinner" (lunch) as their largest meal of the day to avoid heavy digestion that would interrupt sleep. More info llike that would be awesome.
Three years into the channel and i still love it! Merry Christmas, Townsends family!
I agree! You HAVE been thinking. I hope that more of us will. Thank you for sharing your insights and thoughts with us through your wonderful channel. I wish you the best of the Christmas season this year. And please continue your mission to help us remember our past. I've truly enjoyed your work and that of your team. D
Check out "the battle for Christmas" by Stephen Nissenbaum. One of the takeaways from that book is Christmas before the decline and revival was more about the community and the poor, whereas post revival it's more about the family and children.
Oh wow, that sounds like a good one. ❤ Thank you!
I love your channel its so cathartic to see the calmer antequated life. Makes me envy the Amish people. But it makes me think how far we've come and changed in such a short amount of time. I wonder how itll be in another few centuries. Tangents aside keep the videos comin! Have a great Christmas!
My understanding of "traditional British Christmas" prior to Dickens is something that looks a lot more like Halloween/Mardi Gras/ New years. It wasn't, as I read it, a loving, giving time nor a family time. Historical demographers tell us that a lot of pregnancies happen, almanacs talk about keeping an eye on your servants, and tradition celebrations seem to center being drunk with the Lord of Misrule etc....
Sounds exactly like modern Christmas!
Merry Christmas to you and a Happy New Year. ❤❤❤
Thank you for sharing your thoughts on history as always. As you said: Sometimes the traditions can get so base it spoils the time it was mean to be. I'm happy that my family has come up with our own stress-free traditions. We have great decorations we've used for decades, we know how to make the house look good. As for food: Nothing high pressure. We make fried chicken on Christmas Eve, because... well, fried chicken! And on Christmas: We make grilled steaks because.... STEAK! These are our traditions, and we love them, and it brings us together and we look forward to them every year.
That's awesome. I was pondering how stressful it gets with gigantic gift lists that put a huge financial strain on some families and over-the-top decorations that are more to outdo the neighbors than to show real Christmas spirit. My family now does a name-drawing at Thanksgiving where you pull a name out of a hat, and you buy a gift for that person. Everyone gets one gift and buys one gift - it's less material stuff, but it's SO much less pressure to spend a ton of money and occupy hours of your life shopping. It makes it more enjoyable.
Making your own food traditions is nice. Who would complain about steak and fried chicken? Not me! You know what's a great Christmas meal? SOUP. They do it in Guyana. It's a special beef pepperpot with some local ingredients. You can set it up the night before, it only dirties up one pot, and it's ideal for feeding a crowd. I think there are other dishes that are made along with it, but it's still a much simpler affair than most Christmas dinners I've witnessed in the US.
Thank you so much John, this truly was such a beautiful thoughtful message about Christmas. I'm passing it on... just really appreciate you and your gift to our worlds out here, in case no one's told you lately.....But yes, this was a beautiful message. Thank you so much and Merry Christmas to you and yours. Thank you for the rich Gift of your life to us all....Truly meaningful...Merry Christmas (p.s. loved the idea of it being a re-enactment, and also not throwing out the baby [Jesus?] with the bath water ...so brilliant, as always....)
Thank you sir, for your perspective! Merry Christmas to you and your family! God bless :)
Good chat, Jon. Thanks and Merry Christmas to you and your family.
Thank you! I needed this talk… it’s been a little difficult lately. I think I might actually decorate this year. I haven’t for at least five.❤
@JJ, oh, please do!!! It’s so worth it, and it doesn’t have to be a lot either. I’d love to hear what you put up! We are rooting for you!!! 🎄❤️
Merry Christmas 🎄 This is my first Christmas without my Mom. This being the 3rd Sunday of Advent, I would normally be at her house helping her decorate. I haven't decorated my own home much since my kids were older teens, and not at all since my daughter married and moved to Canada. I wasn't home at Christmas, between visiting her just across the border and going to both of my parents' respective homes throughout the week of Christmas and New Year. So it never made sense to go to the trouble of decorating here. This year, I'll go visit my daughter and her family for Boxing Day, but I'm going to sit in Mom's house on Christmas Day this year, most likely alone, but I feel like I need that closure. Her home was always noisy on the holidays, until all of our kids grew up and most moved away or traveled for Christmas. But there was always a holiday meal with those who were in town, and for a little while there was noise again. The last few years, as Mom and I sat together after everyone else left, she talked about how quiet it was. And last year she was wondering if it would be her last Christmas, because her health was failing. She could have lived to be 100 and it wouldn't be long enough. But I'm grateful for all the Christmas celebrations I enjoyed with her. Merry Christmas 🎄
How appropriate. This morning, my grandkids did their Christmas pageant at the church my ancestors worshipped at when they came here from Norway almost 200 years ago. You always inspire us.
What a wonderful message. Thank you and Merry Christmas!
Morning coffee with Jon telling a story by a fire. Nice
I think you are so right, this is exactly how I've felt this year. Taking time to look at the traditions and taking the time to decide what is important to each of us is so important.
And so, as Tiny Tim observed, God Bless Us, Every One!
Thank you for another year of instruction and insight. Only by appreciating the past and where we came from can we truly appreciate the present. Merry Christmas and a wonderful 2025 to the whole Townsends team.
Look into your levels of Vitamin D if you have Winter time depression. The sun isn't enough to produce it if you live north of Atlanta GA
I’ve started home schooling and use your videos to explain things like food and culture to my son. He enjoys the videos as do I (Christmas videos have been a favorite lately 😊). Thank you for this one and I hope you have a wonderful rest of the season!
I think you have the cause and effect backwards, though, and it matters. The loss of a tradition didn't cause the decay of society. The industrial revolution and the greed of those at the top destroyed whole ways of life, tore families apart, and thus traditions, including many holiday traditions, were lost.
Yes, we have lost a lot of family and community. Holiday tradition loss is a casualty of the same thing today, not a cause. Commercialization IS the problem, greed is still the problem.
Yeah. Greed and bad people didn't exist before machinery and the Industrial Revolution, don't cha know!
Thank you for this refreshing perspective. It is very helpful. I hope you have the best of the best this new year too.
And a Happy Hanukkah as well. 🙂
And to you, Jon. I really appreciate your content (and the products you offer). Happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year!
Well said! Thank you, and Merry Christmas!🎄
Dickens ruined it at the end of his life by publishing a scathing piece about his wife, a loving mother to his children, to explain his affair.
Merry Christmas, Jon, Townsend's families, and friends. 🎄
Amen! Well said. 👏 I always appreciate these little videos. Thank you and Merry Christmas! 🎄
What a great message, thank you. I’ve been heavily contemplating and discussing this very subject in some depth lately. My take has been much more towards the negative side, but you bring up many great points that counter what my thoughts have been. The discussion about why we have and keep these traditions, has helped me to look at old things in a very new light. Merry Christmas!
Ancient man understood we humans needed a celebration during this time of year to keep going until spring.
Some enjoyed certain aspects more than others and I think those became family traditions.
I agree, we NEED to bring back the celebration part to entertain ourselves.....for our own mental health.
As a descendent of German Palatines and German Hessians. Tanditions are alive and well. Although this year may have a few challenges. I hope you and your family have a very merry and joyous Christmas 🎄
Same mix of heritage for me, too. Bought the farm from William Penn's children in May 1723. I am happy Germans kept such meticulous records, made the research easy.
Christmas is when my family tires to get together. The last few years we've had to put Christmas aside though, and it feels sad as a result.
Life of Brian - Three Wise Men _ You Tube
Thank you. I hope you and your family and all of the folks at Townsend's have a great year as well. Merry Christmas and God bless you.
Well said, and thanks for all the great videos you share!
Your personality on your channel is very consistent and most welcome, have a merry Christmas time this year.
I know the holiday season in north America is predominantly Christian, but personally not being of that faith I think there's still a lot there. Friendship, family, relationships, helping your neighbour, and so on. It's right around the time of the Winter Solstice, when the sun is at it's lowest and the night is the longest and darkest of the year in the northern hemisphere. People rely on each other and help each other through, and even though the worst of the winter is still ahead, you can see for yourself the promise of better times ahead and that's worth celebrating in of itself.
It's all about finding light in the darkness, no matter your beliefs.
Its really only a Christian tradition in name only.
The vast majority of the pageantry and activities are much much older and come from many different walks and religious groups.
Even in Eastern cultures, they have different celebrations and activities. I think it comes from universal feelings of being stuck in the dulldrums and melancholy of nasty winters and having an artificial time of joy and hope for the spring.
I think Seasonal depression effects alot more people and it has for millenia.
@@5isalivegaming72 Common argument, but there's no historicity to it. All the cultures people claim (usually on the internet) to have originated these traditions, either have no original sources, or came along long after we have sources of European Christians celebrating them. It's really in the last few centuries we've seen them become decoupled and represent secular ideals- but their import to the common man still speaks to their relevance regardless!
My Jewish grandfather loved Christmas! Even though he didn't actually share the belief behind it, he loved the joy and kindness people expressed during this time of year.
@@SoybeanAK Nobody is talking about representing secular ideas. We're talking about a religion stealing and absorbing other religious practices, traditions, celebrations, and themes. Christmas apes from the Winter Solstice and harvest festivals which were celebrated long before Christians absorbed it. There are millions and millions of people who still believe Christmas is about "celebrating Jesus' birthday" despite the canon having him being born in mid-late Spring. For these things to be decoupled they had to be coupled first which is what Christians did to absorb and overtake other cultures. We know this explicitly with the Vikings where Christians would regularly refuse trade or marriages with them unless they converted, which the Vikings did, sometimes earnestly, usually just because. There's actually a ton of historicity to the fact that Christianity has taken and taken and taken from other people and places and absorbed and morphed it into itself. We have concrete evidence of this going back millennia. Hell, the whole religion is an offshoot of an older religion that worships what that older religion would have considered a heretic that took a lot of ITS ideas from even older cultures in the region.
No, the ideas that Christmas supposedly employs are older than Christmas and older than Christianity's assimilation of them.
May the warmth of the holidays stay with you till spring
The Puritans outlawed Christmas and they hanged people just on accusation of Witchcraft. Coincidence??
Merry Christmas 🎄🎁🎄🌎
Indeed, Merry Christmas. Focus on the goodness