CHRISTMAS IN ITALY – 2017

By Larry & Arlene on Dec 18, 2017 in Blog | 3 comments

Christmas in Italy – 2017 We are currently enjoying our fifth Christmas seasonal festivities in Ascoli Piceno, Italy. The very long and complex history of Christianity in European culture gives the holiday season, particularly here in Italy, a nuanced experience of great depth. Although Christianity may not have the contemporary, fervent commitment it may have once enjoyed, Italians are never-the-less steeped in the traditions of community participation in rituals celebrating the seasonal cycles. Participation in community observances is a means to express and reinforce a sense of identity and solidarity. Even the most cynical and committed secularist will be seen mingling in the holiday decorated piazzas. With each year we have been here, the inevitable, gradual increase in holiday commercialism becomes more apparent. Retail displays seem to start appearing earlier each year but nowhere near to the extent that they do in the U.S. But the economic situation here in Italy, as in much of the world, tends to dampen excessive consumption exuberance. Even more significant, when comparing our former lives in the U.S., holidays here are still strongly associated with family bonding augmented by enthusiastic socializing with friends. Italian gregariousness is never too far under the surface any time of the year but special holiday observances seem to add steroids to the mix. The more outwardly expressive nature of the Italian personality seems to add more depth to interpersonal connectivity. The traditional physical embrace with the kiss on each cheek (right-to-left here in Italy by the way) makes it difficult to not sense the presence of someone else. As we have commented on many times, an aspect of our transition into retirement has been a gradual adjustment away from material accumulation to more one of savoring experience. We are at a point where our pre-Christmas experience is no longer dominated in a frenetic, buying preoccupation. We may be establishing a pre-Christmas tradition for ourselves by going somewhere just after the official start of the Christmas observance with the Feast of the Immaculate Conception on the 8th of December. We want to experience the festive decorations elsewhere and then return to Ascoli in time to participate in the community events here and to join in the round of dinners...