Features by Stephen Gorham Carolyn Stent Kelli Finnestad "We kept the traditions. We just changed houses."

Back to Table of Contents | Back to Main Index Previous Features | Send mail to The Voice MBC Stafff share holiday memories Joe Slavens receives a hug from his younger sister, Julie. -Joe Slavens, photo At Christmas, families pull tangled lights, faded tinsel and worn stockings from attics or closets. Holiday memories emerge to be laughed over, sighed at or quietly treasured. Some memories revolve around special people, others around unforgettable gifts. Members of Multnomah Bible College's staff share some of their holiday memories with The Voice in this story. Family Keeps Traditions But Changes House Waves pounded the coast. Salty sea air permeated the house. Joe Slavens' family celebrated Christmas in a house by the sea for the first time. Something had changed in their family, and this year they came together in a different way. 1988 had taken an unexpected turn. Their beloved Grandma had died on Thanksgiving of that year. Christmas would not be the same without her. She had made Christmas happen for the family for many years. Each year they gathered at her house for the holiday. A giant Christmas tree hung with lights and handmade decorations sat in a corner of the living room. Christmas had always felt festive at Grandma's house. The family opened gifts on Christmas Eve. They ate the big Christmas feast Grandma served. Slavens had always known Christmas to be a light and joyful time. But he knew that this year would be different. Instead of going to their grandparents' place, the Slavens family rented a house on the coast in Waldport, Ore. Aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters and cousins all packed into the house for the holiday. Despite a somber mood, the family congregated in one room and listened as Grandpa read the Christmas story from Luke. He also dressed up as Santa, just like he always did. "We kept the traditions. We just changed houses," Slavens said. After Grandpa finished reading, the family decorated the tree. Grandma had made ornaments with styrofoam and cloth. Grandpa hung one on the tree as a symbol of her. Grandpa passed out the gifts Grandma had bought before she got sick. Slaven's sister, Julie, 6, always got an angel figureine. Slavens always got sweaters. This year he received a brown one. At the Christmas dinner and party time, the family lit two candles at the table. One represented Grandma and the other represented Aunt LaDonna who had also passed away. The candles' soft light reminded the family that Grandma and Aunt LaDonna were still part of the family. Slavens said Christmas 1988 was a special time of celebration and remembrance. Stashed Memorabilia Makes Priceless Gifts Shirley Mai stood at the kitchen window and stared at the rain. Only a year earlier, she and her husband, Bob, had bought property near Nehalem, Ore., and developed it into a trout farm. They lived there alone, but in a few weeks they would join their six adult children in Portland, Ore., to celebrate Christmas. Every year since her children were young, Mrs. Mai has tried to find the perfect gift for each of them. This year, because the trout farm was still a young venture, Mrs. Mai knew she and her husband could not afford to buy gifts for their children. Then she remembered a box stashed in a bedroom cupboard that held memorabilia she had collected from her children's baby years through their high school graduations. She had thought about making scrapbooks for her children for several years. Now seemed the time to start, when she had more time than money. Mrs. Mai bought six scrapbooks from Fred Meyer in Portland and rolls of tape. She set up a table in the living room and dragged out the box from its hiding place. She sifted through the memories. Day after day she trimmed and taped. A week later, she placed six identical packages in a brown paper bag. On Christmas day, Mrs. Mai and her husband climbed out of their car outside their daughter Janet's house in Portland. Janet opened the door and welcomed them inside. The tantalizing smell of turkey mixed with the sweet scent of cranberry and the spicy tang of pine. Mrs. Mai placed six identical packages under the tree and joined her daughter in the kitchen. After Christmas dinner, Mr. and Mrs. Mai, their six children and one son-in-law made themselves comfortable in the living room. They waited until every person held a package before opening each gift. When the wrapping fell away from the first scrapbook, everyone stopped to look through it. Soon Kathe, Judi, Bob, Rod, Janet and Cheryl each held a scrapbook. Memories surfaced and they discovered new things as they turned each page. The books held report cards, art projects and photographs of gymnastics meets. Kathe's book contained memorabilia from her year as rose queen of her high school. Two scrapbooks held birth receipts from a small hospital in Minnesota. The receipts only showed the small amount of the birth costs that the Mai's insurance had not covered. "Wow, we weren't worth very much, were we?" one child exclaimed in surprise. But no receipts could reflect the value of the gifts Mrs. Mai gave her children that year. Christmas Dolls Bring Childhood Joy When Linda Taylor was 4 years old, she was told that Christmas would be sparse that year. Her parents didn't have much money. Mrs.Taylor looked forward to Christmas but didn't expect much. She thought one gift would be great. Mrs. Taylor woke up Christmas morning expecting to find night clothes that her mother had sewn for her. Instead she found two dolls. "I was so excited I couldn't stand it," she said. Mrs. Taylor's father had found the dolls during a trip to the dump and brought them home. "My mother took their heads off and made cloth bodies for the dolls; one doll had a black body and the other was white cloth," Mrs. Taylor said. "I was so excited to have one of each; I had grown up playing with black children." Mrs. Taylor's mother had sewn a coat, dress and nightgown for each of the dolls. Those dolls were Taylor's favorites. After she married, she passed them on to her younger sister. "She doesn't really take care of things, so she doesn't know where they went," Mrs. Taylor said. "I wish I still had them." Back to Table of Contents | Back to Main Index Previous Features | Top Of Page Send mail to The Voice| Journalism department website © 2001 The Voice. No part of this publication may be reproduced in written or electronic form without prior written consent from the journalism adviser of Multnomah Bible College. All rights reserved.