A Story of Community | My Aiken Christmas

Lyddie Hansen

December 3, 2019

I LOVE Christmas in Aiken! This may seem a little strange as I have rarely spent Christmas Day here. During a typical year, my husband and I travel to several states to celebrate Christmas with our adult children and their families. Nonetheless, our holiday spirit starts by enjoying the best of Aiken during the days and nights leading up to the big day.

When I see our hardworking city workers putting up the seasonal decorations, I get excited. Walking on Laurens Street and through the Alley during the holiday season makes me feel like I am on the set of a Hallmark Christmas movie. Our town is truly beautiful.

As an added bonus, there are wonderful shopping and dining opportunities in downtown Aiken. I can shop a little, eat a little, and maybe enjoy a glass of wine with friends too. This is far better than any mall experience I have had in other cities.

Aiken at night during this time is special too. When the luminaria line our beautiful downtown during the Night of 1000 Lights, you can count on a festive shopping night with refreshments and entertainment. Could there be anything better than walking through our glorious Hopelands Gardens with hot chocolate when it is set ablaze with multicolor lights and holiday music?

Each year our arts community is busy bringing Christmas front and center. The Aiken Center for the Arts always offers a wide variety of classes that include creating holiday crafts that are fun and unique. This year I want to sign up for the Holiday Gift Making Workshop, and maybe I can squeeze in the Fresh Wreath Making Class too. The December gallery opening will feature art with “A Partridge in a Pear Tree” theme. The Gallery Opening will take place December 12 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm with wine, light hors d’oeuvres, and entertainment, all at no cost.

It has been more than 30 years since I last saw my daughter dance in a production of The Nutcracker, but I still enjoy this Christmas classic. Whether they are angels, mice, or toy soldiers, our young Aikenites always impress me with their talent. The Aiken Civic Ballet Company’s Nutcracker Tea at the Aiken County Historical Museum is another very special treat.

Our Christmas spirit glows even brighter when we attend the seasonal production by the Aiken Community Theatre. This year’s play is an absolute must because it is based on my husband’s favorite holiday movie, A Christmas Story. After all, who doesn’t feel for Ralphie as he longs for and plots to get his Red Ryder BB gun?

Last but not least, our spirits are elevated by the Aiken Symphony Orchestra’s December productions. This year we will attend Handel’s Messiah on December 10. I have a feeling we will try to include the Symphony’s production of Christmas and Broadway Favorites and Classic Holiday Selections on December 14 as well.

Of course, the real reason for the excitement of this season is deeply rooted in our faith. All Christians celebrate the coming of the infant Jesus into the world. We are humbled by that gift, and Christmas hymns celebrating His birth are among my favorites. We have a wonderful home church, but over the years we have occasionally visited neighboring churches to enjoy their Christmas music programs as well. We have felt welcomed and inspired by every church we have visited.

Aiken may be a small town but it is large in spirit. I am constantly amazed by how many talented people live in our beautiful city. If this is your first Christmas in Aiken, savor every moment. We are truly blessed to live here and enjoy the South’s Best Small Town year-round.

December 12
Night of 1000 Lights

December 14-23, 26
Hopelands Gardens

November 23
Holiday Gift Making Workshop

December 7
Fresh Wreath Making Class

December 12
“A Partridge in a Pear Tree”
Gallery Opening

December 20-22
Aiken Civic Ballet presents
“The Nutcracker”

December 7
Aiken Civic Ballet Nutcracker Tea

December 5 – 8, 12 – 14
Aiken Community Theatre presents
“A Christmas Story”

December 10
Aiken Symphony Orchestra presents
Handel’s Messiah

December 14
Aiken Symphony Orchestra presents
“Home for the Holidays”

Lyddie Hansen

Lyddie is an active community volunteer. She retired from SRNS in 2013 and enjoys Aiken year around with her husband, Charlie.

Lyddie Hansen

Lyddie is an active community volunteer. She retired from SRNS in 2013 and enjoys Aiken year around with her husband, Charlie.

In the know

The Ancient Traditions of Yule

Yule, also known as Yuletide, Yulefest, and Winter Solstice, has many traditions that are present in current day religions. If you like history as much as I do, come on an exploration journey with me. First, what is Yule or the Winter Solstice? Solstice is derived from the Latin words sol (sun) and sistere (to stand still). During this time of declination, the sun appears to be standing still. This year, that the solstice occurs on December 21. After this day, the days get longer until we reach the Summer Solstice. In ancient times, Yule was celebrated by the Germanic tribes of Northern Europe in anticipation of the return of

Holidays and the Gathering Spirit

Celebrations have social and emotional motivators Grandma Anderson made delicious meatballs with a secret ingredient called Rusk that is no longer found in stores. She taught my brothers and me to play Rook, which may explain why I still get the creeps when black birds soar overhead. Grandma Harper made prize-winning potato pancakes and stuffed cabbage. She taught us how to play pinochle and we would dance around the table if someone got what she called “a thousand aces.” My mamma was the most creative in the kitchen. She ventured away from traditional meat and potatoes and delighted us with recipes from our South American lifestyle. Gold Coast Stew served

Fall of the Berlin Wall, Part II | First Person Account

My sister Ursula lived in Berlin. By 1989 she was chief oboist in the Theater des Westens, taught a number of oboe students, substituted at the Berlin Opera, and owned a woodwind repair shop. And she was in Berlin during the time when the Iron Curtain separating East from West began to crumble. The fall of the Berlin Wall was a foregone conclusion once Hungary opened its borders to Austria, which permitted more than 13,000 East Germans to board trains and flee to the West. On Thursday evening, November 9, 1989, the Wall “fell” when the border between East and West Berlin opened. In her words, continued: Nov 12 Sunday

Traditions!

“But it’s a tradition … because of our traditions, everyone knows who he is and what God expects him to do.” Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof Traditions are funny things. They occur one moment at a time over a lifetime, and often we don’t even realize they are happening. I remember our granddaughter’s face crumbling into tears one Thanksgiving Day when I mentioned that I had prepared a different sweet potato casserole than our usual. The 4-year-old sobbed, “But Mimi! We always have the one with marshmallows on top!” Guess whose Mimi beat a path to the kitchen to make a real sweet potato casserole! Traditions are nothing to