FEATURE/Acclaimed Artist and Company Founder, Christopher Radko, Reflects Upon the Holidays; Behind Christmas Traditions: Comfort, Continuity and Community by Christopher Radko.

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--(BUSINESS WIRE FEATURES)--Dec. 10, 2001

Every culture has its defining festivals, and without doubt, Christmas is America's predominant holiday.

We can avoid the burnout that often accompanies the season by entering into holiday preparations in a spirit of celebration rather than of customary duty.

Decorating for the holidays is not just about appearance; it is a doorway to deeper meaning. In a very real way, those of us who love the rituals surrounding Christmas are preparing something sacred. The temple for our ceremony is the home.

When fresh greenery and cherished decorations are hung with joy, purpose, and a sense of continuity with the past, they transcend simple decor and feed the soul. They make our homes into places that nurture our own hearts and souls and those of the people we love. Christmas decorations also create a magical environment that speaks to the child in us.

Likewise, if entertaining friends and family at Christmas time were just about satisfying hunger then any meal would suffice. In fact, we are responding to a desire to nurture on another level: to offer what the spirit longs for, in the form of a traditional feast. In our fast-paced culture, our souls often go hungry. Filling our homes with the true spirit of Christmas nurtures the part of us that food or material possessions can't satisfy.

Connecting Past and Present

The traditions of Christmas also offer an antidote to our breakneck pace, providing a place where we can feel centered and secure. Annually celebrating the holiday helps us to connect past and present in an unbroken chain that links us to our forebears. In this way, holidays allow us to transcend time, participate in family traditions, and feel part of a continuous piece of human history. Christmas gives us an opportunity to reflect upon and celebrate what is enduring, even eternal.

Thousands of years ago, our ancestors responded to the cycles of the calendar with festivals and rituals that gave a human dimension to forces greater than themselves. Many of these pagan rituals, such as bringing a Yule log into the house, hanging sprigs of mistletoe, and lighting candles at the window, were eventually absorbed into the Christian holiday. To ancient peoples, evergreen plants signified that light and fertility would rebound. By bringing green boughs into their homes, they honored the spirits that they believed controlled the seasons. Although these customs may no longer be imbued with their original meaning, they still resonate in our hearts.

Portals to the Past

When we celebrate Christmas, we honor our ancestors, keeping open a portal to the past in traditions handed down from one generation to another. The connection may be an ornament passed down by your grandmother, a recipe in your mother's flowery script, or a carol your father loved to sing at the piano. Each generation adds its own flourishes to traditions so that when the strands are woven together, the fabric becomes longer and stronger.

Continuing family customs is very important to me. In 1983, our family tree adorned with more than a thousand cherished ornaments crashed to the ground. Those glass treasures had been collected over decades by four generations of my family, and their destruction also meant the loss of a repository of family memories.

My Polish grandmother was particularly devastated. In my desire to replace the ornaments, make amends to my grandmother, and restore the way our family traditionally celebrated Christmas, I traveled to Poland to find glassblowers who could replicate the vintage mouth-blown ornaments. That is how my ornament business began.

Humanity's Highest Ideals

In addition to the gifts and food and other sensual pleasures that attract us, we are also drawn to the holiday because it symbolizes humanity's highest ideals. The true spirit of the season reminds us to rise above baser instincts and transform ourselves into the people we know we can be.

Our minds tell us that Santa doesn't fly through the sky and squeeze down every chimney in the land, but in our hearts we know his generous spirit is real. His energy is represented in an open heart, in jollity, and in a giving nature.

Everything Santa Claus represents exists in all of us. Santa challenges us to put that goodness back in ourselves, rather like a good spiritual workout. Our society buys into that idea once a year. We don't keep our Christmas trees up 365 days a year, but we can live the Christmas spirit year-round. Just as our ancient forebears came together at winter festivals, let us come together as a community in the face of the unknown and unknowable and rejoice anyway!

About Christopher Radko:

Created of intricately hand-painted, European mouth-blown glass, Christopher Radko ornaments celebrate the special times of our lives -- with ornaments for every holiday and special occasion -- and a wide range of themed ornaments depicting hobbies, professions, memorable occasions, landmarks and more!

Ornament designer Christopher Radko is also the author of Christopher Radko's Heart of Christmas, just published by Clarkson Potter Publishers, New York.

To The Media

-- Interviews with Christopher Radko available by appointment

-- Additional photography of Christopher Radko and his collection

are available

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