Here Come the Holidays..and the History

My family is spread out, both geographically and age-wise, so, like many families, I always look forward to Christmas as a chance to see everyone and catch up on what's been happening over the last 364 days, when we last all saw each other.

We spend Christmas with my dad's side of the family in Michigan. My dad is first-generation Polish, so we always have a traditional Polish meal together. It's not Christmas if our plates (and, subsequently, our arteries) aren't loaded with kapusta, kielbasa, pierogi, and slices of rye bread.

Before my grandfather passed, he'd always start the meal with grace, said entirely in Polish. After stuffing our bellies and opening gifts, we'd spend the rest of the night telling stories and playing cards. My grandfather was a World War II concentration camp survivor -- he had, in fact, escaped the Siberian work camp he had been sent to -- and fought at the battle of Monte Casino, so we'd often end the night sitting cross-legged around him as he described his experiences and courage. He'd show us the brand Russian soldiers had tattooed on his palm to identify him in the camp. Trace the shrapnel scar that wound up his leg. The hole in his heel from an enemy bullet. He could tell these stories and show his scars a million times and I'd never get tired of them; it's been almost two years since his fatal heart attack, but his artifacts are still vividly etched in my memory.

There's history in all of our families. It's impossible for us not to be touched and shaped by current events and the society and eras we've lived in. For me and my family, the holidays have been a time to celebrate not only our Polish heritage and culture, but, essentially, relive the history of World War II and triumph in the courage and strength of its survivors (while, of course, honoring the memory of its victims).

But you don't need to be related to a survivor of a world tragedy to get a history lesson between bites of honey glazed ham and sips of egg nog. Where were you on the morning of 9/11? How did you feel when the Berlin Wall fell? As parents, aunts, uncles and cousins, our stories about even these recent bits of history offer valuable learning opportunities for young people. When history becomes less of a chapter from a textbook and more of a real, emotional experience, we all learn, and we all remember.