All of the above.

=)

What a beautiful post Val! You have a real talent for telling a story in a way that pulls at the heartstrings!

Feliz Navidad to you and all the Babaluers!

My first 14 Nochebuenas took place in Cuba, but I only remember fragments of the last 4-5 of them. In one of them, one of my uncles gave me my first glass of red one --from Rioja, Spain-- and it knocked me for a loop. I went down like a boxer hit on the chin, and collapsed on a bed as I headed for the kitchen with an empty plate. Luckily, the plate didn't break.
Another time, someone allowed me to taste Fundador Brandy. It was like liquid fire, burning all the way down to my stomach. I couldn't for the life of me understand why the adults thought that drinking burning stuff made sense. I recall that moment almost every time I taste brandy nowadays.
What I remember the most, however, were the food feasts: huge throngs of relatives, neighbors and friends gathered around the largest table in our house. On it, we had lech'on asado, plus guanajo, ham, chicken, guineos (the birds, not the bananas, though we had fried green and ripe plantains, too). Plus huge ollas of rice, beans, moros y cristianos, entire loaves of buttered Cuban bread, overflowing bowls of salad, every sort of vegetable that my parents could find at the Mercado Central of Guines, more popularly known as La Plaza. For dessert, cascos de guayaba with cream cheese, and fresh fruits of every kind, particularly grapes, which I found a novelty because they didn't grow very well in Cuba. Plus "nueces y avellanas," as well as turr'on de Alicante y de Jijona.
Every year, my father used to put up a Christmas tree and a huge Nativity scene that included mountains, lakes and dozens and dozens of figurines, including of course, the Three Wise Men visiting the family of baby Jesus. And that's what the holiday season is folks, please keep it in mind.
Thank you, Val, for another great post. It really triggered a lot of beautiful memories. I truly hope that you enjoy your family gathering this Saturday. Don't forget to have a working tape recorder handy, and to have a long chat with Don Jes'us!
Merry Christmas one and all!
JulioZ

My favorite Christmas memory: Having most of my family around to celebrate together, as we had done in Cuba, by Christmas '65; by then all who were going to escape the tropical gulag had done so. My grandmother Maria, with whom we would usually spend Nochebuena, was finally with us, having arrived the previous summer. I now fully realize how much of a gift and a blessing this was, that Christmas. This is what Nochebuena and Navidad is all about - celebrate the Holy Family with your family, friends, and all your loved ones. Nothing else matters.

Thank you for this post - and for all of you, whatever you choose to celebrate, have a Blessed Christmas.

(OOps put this on the wrong thred)My Navidad is memorable for all the right reasons as well as all the wrong reasons. Papi (my dad) died on a Christmas Eve. A few Christmases before Papi’s death fidel presented us with another reminder of his inhumanity. We had been trying to get Abuelita out of Cuba for years to no avail. Just after Christmas we were all sitting in the living room when Western Union came by with a Telegram (this dates me). The letter was from the Cuban government notifying Papi that Abuelita died on Noche Buena and that she now had permission to leave Cuba. So if anyone ever wonders of my passion regarding Cuba you now know why. But through all this fidel has not been able to wipe out my fond memories of preserving our Cuban Christmas through the years. As a typical Cuban family getting re-started in another country all we had was each other. In spite of our modest financial situation Christmas was special. Mami would be bathing the lechon the night before with the mojo. I got to stab the pierna and jam the cloves of garlic in the slits. I remember sitting at the table the day before sorting the stones from the frijolitos. (everyone knows that Black Beans must be cooked a day before so they taste better). The turrones would be at the table. The pudin de pan. It was our annual feast. The smell of mojo filled the house as our mouths watered in anticipation of the meal. I could always see the look of longing in the faces of my parents of spending Navidad with family in Cuba. While the gifts were not elaborate they were special. Papi worked three jobs at a time to provide. He would not accept government assistance because he felt that it was for those who needed it. (now you know why I’m a conservative). Yet through all this we always had the gifts under the tree. I look back now and wonder how he did it. I know that Tata (my sis) had a great hand in it at the time. Many years later the kids (much older now) as well as the grandkids still make our annual pilgrimage from wherever to meet at Mami’s for Noche Buena. The smells are the same and the memories as well as the heartaches are there. We’ll still shed the tears for Papi as well as for Abuelita. But Navidad shall never be stolen from our hearts. I know my story is a common one for many of you as we have all shared the losses, but we also all have the memories as well as the opportunities to make new ones. Maybe next year we can all share a special Navidad in a free Cuba. Que tengan un Feliz Navidad y que se acuerden que principalmente es el día que celebramos el nacimiento de nuestro Salvador.
(hope I didn't run to far with this)

Having come to this country in 1962, i have many fond memories of Noche Buena and plenty of funny, usually involving alcohol, which mixed with hot charcoal could be dangerous or funny. My best one though, is the first Noche Buena attented by my to be wife, you see she is Colombian and the Cuban talent of holding multiple conversations at high decibel levels is something that is apparently, just that..Cuban...after a lovely time, as i was taking her home, she turned to me and said. I have the most amazing headache...how do you people do it?, i don't think i understood a word anybody said, they were all talking at the same time and, my god, they were loud!!!. The good news is after 23 years of marriage she has aquired "The Talent" and she is still with me...and our children are able to circulate amongst Cubans with ease.
To all of you out there.....Merry Christmas and a Happy New year

Pepi,
That's a hoot of a story!
I wasn't even aware that I could do all that "multi-tasking", as it is called today, but it's absolutely true (from personal experience gathered at many family get-togethers).
Feliz Navidad to you and yours!
JulioZ

Feliz Navidad, Val, a tí y a todos los colaboradores-lectores de Babalú.

Un abrazo!
Luis

My most vivid memory of Nochebuena was in Cuba, late 1960's...I remember we all got together at my aunt's house in Guanabacoa every year, she lived in a small farm, so all of us kids ran around, climbed trees and did all those fun things that we could not do since we lived in a building in "La Habana". Noche buena was always special for us.
Owning a pig back then was considered a crime! food was rationed by then, so for months...the entire family had been purchasing "goods for Nochebuena" in the black market...extra beans here, rice there...coffee...eggs etc...
My uncle had negotiated a pig in the black market, but the pig had to be brought to the house in pieces...if you were caught with a dead pig you did jail time!
My uncle and my dad made 4 trips to pick up the pig parts on the other side of town...my aunt and grandparents were marinating the pig in the bathtub, and cooking it in the bathroom to make sure the CDR (comite de defensa de la revolucion) people did not find out or smelled the aroma of the roasting pig...
My poor uncle got caught on his last trip to pick up our pig!! The Cuban Gestapo saw his suitcase with blood stains and had him arrested!!
Long story...In order for my uncle to be released, my grandfather had to bring dinner to the entire police station that night...my grandfather brought in the pig's head, feet, and instestines!!
FELIZ NAVIDAD PARA TODOS!!!

PS:
Thanks Val, that was a beautiful post!!
and to add to that...my grandfather did not have daughters,he had awesome daughters in law,so he always had Cena en Navidad!!

Great Post. My favorit Christmas memory is a trip that we took with my paternal grandparents, aunts, uncels, and cousins, to Colorado. We spent Christmas with my Great Grandmother and then went to Estes Park. That was the first time I saw the Rocky Mountains.

I did the same thing with my wife's engagement ring. I hung it in the tree and she never noticed. Finally, to get her to come look, I asked her to come to the tree because I thought I saw a new ornament. She was busy wrapping presents at the timetime, and I still remember the exasperation on her face after I finally harassed her enough to get up. She tromped over to the tree, and she was in the process of telling me that there was no new ornament and that I was crazy when she stopped in mid-sentence. It was quite a surprise.

My other favorite memory is of Noche Buena when I was 7. My aunt hosted a huge celebration with every family member she could find. My abuelo dug the pit and roasted the lechon. We've never had quite that large a celebration since.

One of my favorite Christmas memories happened over several years and annoyed the hell out of me at the time. My family had moved next door to a family who had a daughter the same age as my sister - I was a couple of years older. When we were in our mid-teens, the woman had a baby daughter.

For a number of years my parents would spend the late hours of Christmas Eve next door allegedly to help put together the little girl's Santa Claus stuff. I would be out doing whatever I could get away with, and would return home and go to bed. Sometime around 2AM Christmas morning, my mother would come to my bedroom and wake me up.

The men needed help putting together the toys, she'd say. I would get dressed, stagger next door, and find all the adults too tipsy to put anything together. I'd spend the early hours of Christmas putting together the little girl's toys while the adults continued to have a good time. I was, of course, too young to imbibe.

As I said, being a bratty teenager at the time, it annoyed me then, but I look back on it fondly now.

This is going to be a tough post but yours brought back to me the last Christmas in Habana. It was December 25, 1958. I remember back then you use to put your shoes in front of the door of your bedroom, I put shoes in front of every door in the house, and Santa would leave you presents. I remember waking up that year and right in front of my door was a shiny new 3 speed Niagara bike that I had really wanted. All the other doors where I had put the shoes had presents too. But that bike I can clearly remember and riding it at the parque, letting my best friend ride it and racing around like kids do, (when I finally was able to get it into third gear I left all the other kids in the dust as it was the only 3 speed in el parque). Unfortunately my favorite bike and all the other presents were only mine until January 1, 1959. On that day my mom told me we had to leave the house because it had to be painted. I told her but mami it was just painted but she said it had to be repainted and we had to leave. On that day, the people (el pueblo) decided that they had to ramsack our house because my grandfather was a Senator of the Republic of Cuba. They took everything including las rejas from las ventanas as plunder from La Revolucion.Yes, I went by the house a few days later with some friends and there were all the empty toy boxes in the house and yard, of course no bike. Our family went into hiding (no toys for me at 8 years old, no Reyes either on el Dia de los Reyes Magos 1959)and we eventually surreptitiously left over the next few months. My papi in April under false ID, me in July with a student visa and mami much later in 1961 (still cant say how). That last Christmas in Cuba put all the other coming Christmases in perspective as the experience makes an 8 year old grow up really fast. Every Christmas I remember that really joyful feeling I felt still being in my Almendares home, in my Cuba, with the bike that was so important to the 8 year old. I hope to someday be able to have Christmas in a free Cuba where the threat of a Revolucion will not take away any child's Santa presents away. Wonder which kid got the Bike? fidelito?!?

You all have wonderful stories! Pepi, my husband (Chile) actually finds somewhat disrespectful this "Talent" as you so aptly call it...it makes him feel I'm not paying attention to what he says.

Unfortunately, I don't have any good Noche Buena memories to share...Abuelo died May 78, I was 8, and Abuela never celebrated the Holidays again - it reminded her too much of him. You see, Abuela lived for Thanksgiving and Christams - the decoration, the tree, the lights, and hosting as many people as she could to show off her culinary talents, as well as the fact that she could set a table to spec of Etiquette. From 78 on we were invited to our neighbors house (also Cuban). They had quite a large family so it was quite a party, but you know, we didn't belong there. I loved Abuelita very much, as much as I love Mami probably, so for me Thanksgiving and Christmas have a lot of meaning - I too live for the season, the decorations, the lights, the hosting.....so my most memorable Noche Buena, was the first one with my now husband, December 24th 2001, when unknown to us, we started a tradition when decorating the Xmas tree. Every "ristra" of lights we put on the tree, we take a picture holding out the number of "ristras". This year we went to our highest, 6. Another very good memory was last year, our first Xmas with no family, just my best friend and her husband (both from PR). 2004 was the year of the "cut down your own Xmas tree", that was an entirely American experience for us.

I've enjoyed all your stories, and as I sit here waiting for tomorrow to cook the frijoles negros (day before they taste best as someone said), the flan, and adobar el lechon (with those garlic cloves in the holes) I can't help but smile....and think Abuela would be so proud.

Feliz Navidad to all of you, may you have a wonderful nochebuena with all your family and friends.

I was about 5 or 6, so it was about 1961 or '62 when a Christmas Eve snowstorm hit. Everyone was happy about having a white Christmas, but it came down incredibly fast.

As we were winding down the Christmas Eve festivities, there was a knock on the door. A family had become stuck in the snow across the street from our house. So my folks took them in for the night.

While visions of sugarplums were apparently dancing through my head, I forgot that we had guests. So when I woke up, all excited about Christmas morning, I went running downstairs and into my parents' room to wake them up, only to see strangers sleeping in their bed.

For a moment it was like one of those terrible dreams you have when you're a kid about your parents moving away while you're at school - I totally panicked. I ran out into the living room, and there were my parents, asleep on the old fold-out couch we had.

So we opened our presents and had breakfast with this other family, and then by father and older brother shoveled out their car, and they went on their way.

I am at work reading this and crying because this is so beautiful yet painful at the same time - painful because of the people like my parents and all of you who had to leave Cuba and never experience a noche buena there again!

I don't have a memory per se but what sticks out in my mind is the roast pork smells, the black beans, mojo, warm bread, and turrones. The smell of my mom roasting a green pepper on the stove and the headaches it gave me! I have never had a Noche Buena in Miami - I want to so bad - I have always had them in cold New York. My prayer is to be in a free Cuba for Christmas one day - or if I can't go there for the island of Cuba to be free - that is the best Christmas present - but the ultimate xmas present was given to me by my parents when I wasn't even born but when they decided to flee the gulag and I and my sister were born in freedom!

I pray for a Cuba with out communism and without the Castro family and for a new years were we are not reminded of another year for the monster of the Carib to go off on his 100 hour speeches of the de-volution. Man - how this post and your posts have reaffrimed my hatred towards castro and his supporters!

Thanks Val for this beautiful post!