I don’t recall having any Christmas Eve traditions when I was a child. We might have wrapped a few gifts, but I can’t remember going to Christmas Eve services, or Christmas caroling, or watching Christmas movies, like we do today. There were no gifts under the tree, because Santa didn’t bring them until the middle of the night. My Dad was always a late Christmas tree shopper, because he would get quite a deal the day before Christmas, so maybe setting up the tree was our Christmas Eve tradition.

And, I believe there was a flurry of activity as gifts were exchanged between friends and family just before the big day. As a city of Butler mail carrier, the day before Christmas was one of Dad’s busiest days. There was no UPS or FedEx, so Dad worked late into the night delivering everyone’s Christmas cards and packages.

How did your family celebrate Christmas Eve? Share a memory you have.