Traditions of Christmas: Snow and Snowflakes

posted in: Christmas, Holidays | 0

Snow has been around since the early days of civilization.

The Bible says, “As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish…”

We are told that each snowflake is different and unique, the same as each person.  One thing all snowflakes have in common is they come in a six-sided structure. 

Wilson Bentley is the first known snowflake photographer.  He wrote, “Under the microscope, I found that snowflakes were miracles of beauty; and it seemed a shame that this beauty should not be seen and appreciated by others. Every crystal was a masterpiece of design and no one design was ever repeated. When a snowflake melted, that design was forever lost. Just that much beauty was gone, without leaving any record behind.”

Charles Dickens popularized the idea of snow in his books, including A Christmas Carol.   Part of this is because of the heavy snows that fell during that time.

In North America, snow is associated with Christmas, because of the numerous snowfalls that occur during the Christmas season in some parts of the country.

Songs such as “I’m dreaming of a White Christmas” has romanticized the idea.

Yet, snow is peaceful, which is one of the themes of Christmas.

Snowmen were first built to scare away evil spirits.  Today, people just enjoy playing in the snow and building Frosty the Snowman.

Snow and ice carvings have also become popular in areas that have a considerable amount of snow and ice.  Festivals have even been created around the world for these artisans.

Snow resorts and skiing have also grown in popularity with the passage of the last century.

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