Tri-Community Christmas Network

This blog is part of the Tri-Community Christmas Network.

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This blog pertains to Christmas facts and stories as it is celebrated in the town of Hills of Hope. Comment on this post and tell us what you would like to see posted in the blog!
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-Simon-Luc

Instructions and Christmas Links to History Book

Use instructions forSt. Albert Christmas (History Book Project)

Also see examples and read about labels on http://sachristmas.blogspot.com/

Pages on Christmas in Hills of Hope edited by
Hills of Hope Historical Committee

41 61 68 78 89 90 97 99 116 117 124 125 130 137 150 154 156 157 169 171 174 175 176 177 181 184 186 192 193 254 255 264 266 267 270 272 280 282 289 296 300 302 310 315 321 329 331 335 336 338 344 352 357 358 360 361 362 363 371 375 377 389 390 393 394 396 398 402 403 405 420 430 431 435 436 447 453 457 460 461 464 475 476 483 485 488 489 490 492 501 503 505 506 512 517 518 519 525 530 537

Links under development

saw cost $4.50 see pg 173

Click on this link to see the catalogue in PDF format.

Auld Lang Syne
Complete lyrics
Burns’ original Scots verse.
Scots pronunciation guide(as Scots speakers would sound

Shid ald akwentans bee firgot,an nivir brocht ti mynd?Shid ald akwentans bee firgot,an ald lang syn?
CHORUS:
Fir ald lang syn, ma deer,
fir ald lang syn,
Wil tak a cup o kyndnes yet,
fir ald lang syn.
An sheerly yil bee yur pynt-staup!an sheerly al bee myn!An will tak a cup o kyndnes yet,fir ald lang syn.
CHORUS
We twa hay rin aboot the braes,an pood the gowans fyn;Bit weev wandert monae a weery fet,sin ald lang syn.
CHORUS
We twa hay pedilt in the burn,fray mornin sun til dyn;But seas between us bred hay roardsin ald lang syn.
CHORUS
An thers a han, my trustee feer!an gees a han o thyn!And we’ll tak a right gude-willie-waught,fir ald lang syn.
CHORUS

English translation(minimalist)

Should old acquaintance be forgot,and never brought to mind ?Should old acquaintance be forgot,and old lang syne ?
CHORUS:
For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we'll take a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.
And surely you’ll buy your pint cup !And surely I’ll buy mine !And we'll take a cup o’ kindness yet,for auld lang syne.
CHORUS
We two have run about the slopes,and picked the daisies fine ;But we’ve wandered many a weary foot,since auld lang syne.
CHORUS
We two have paddled in the stream,from morning sun till dine† ;But seas between us broad have roared since auld lang syne.
CHORUS
And there’s a hand my trusty friend !And give us a hand o’ thine !And we’ll take a right good-will draught,for auld lang syne.
CHORUS
† dine = dinner time

Click here to read more of the history surrounding the song Aulg Lang Syne.

Rose Valley School Christmas Concerts

Christmas Tree With Candles On It (See story below).

(Rose Valley School was near present day Keephills Alberta)
This excerpt from the Memoirs of C. Stuart Ibsen, parts of which are published in the Hills of Hope the Next Generation and the Alberta Centennial Website

Christmas concerts were a big item in the school year. We began to practice and prepare for it in November and by the middle of December much of each school day was spent on the concert. However, I think the time was well spent because we learned many things about speaking orally and acting as well as memorizing.

We also had to construct most of the props and make the costumes. Teachers usually went all out as the type of concert they put on was often the criteria as whether she would be hired again next year. This was a big part of our art and industrial arts course.

Some of the concerts were memorable events. One year my brother Les and I put on a skit. Miss Perry (the teacher) wrote the script , which was an impersonation of the Amos n' Andy radio program. They were a well known coloured pair regularly heard on the radio. I suppose we would now be accused of racism if we put such a play on. We painted our faces with charcoal and practiced talking like them. Andy had a deep voice and Amos had a high squeaky voice. We both enjoyed acting and really got into the parts. The skit was arranged for us to look like dwarfs. We stood behind a table and put shoes and stockings on our arms and hands. Behind us a curtain hung down to our armpits. Behind the curtain stood another pair of kids who put their arms under our armpits and acted as our arms and hands. To the audience it looked like two dwarfs, all arms and legs.

We did a tap dance to the tune of "I'll be down to get you in a taxi honey. " It was a big hit. I was quite shy at that age and went on stage with a lump in my throat and fast beating heart but once I got out there I enjoyed acting a part. There was always plenty of comedy but the real meaning of Christmas came through clearly too.

There were plays with the nativity scene and reading from Matthew and Luke. There were also star drills with elaborate tinsel costumes and angels and shepherds.

For the concert a plank stage was set up on saw horses by some of the parents. Since it was only temporary and would be removed immediately after the concert so they could dance it was not too solid. One concert, the last song called for the whole school to be on the stage and to join hands and sing "Auld Lang Syne" and as we sang we were to sway back and forth to the music. As we neared the end of the song the stage began to sway and collapsed flat on the floor. That was quite a finale.

The lighting for the stage was a gas lantern or lamp suspended by a wire at the middle of the stage. A tin can cut in half acted as a shade so that the audience was in the shadow. Usually about half way through the concert the lamp had to be taken down and pumped up with air.

One year, one of the parents, who was quite a handy man, rigged up electric footlights. He had a gas washing machine motor hooked up to a car generator for power, which he set up outside the window. He set auto headlight bulbs in half tin can reflectors and nailed them to the front of the stage. We really thought we were in the limelight then.

Across the front of the stage curtains hung on a wire. These were opened and closed by a couple of kids in between each item. The chairman of the school board usually acted as MC. The Christmas tree sat at one end of the stage. It had real candles on it which were lit near the end of the concert. Someone was delegated to watch it carefully in case of fire. The arrival of Santa Claus was announced by sleigh bells ringing and he came in through the window with lots of Ho, Ho, Ho's.

Everyone tried to guess his identity. Often he was the teacher's boyfriend. He handed out the gifts. We usually bought gifts for each other. The names were drawn from a hat and you took your chances on who you bought a gift for. Sometimes we weren't too happy with the name we drew. Each child got a candy bag with an orange, some candy and peanuts in it. The money to buy the candy bags was often raised by a box social or dance, often organized by the teacher. That was the only time we saw oranges during the year. Santa usually gave the teacher a kiss before he disappeared back out the window. Then the tree came down and the stage was dismantled and pitched out the window so that dancing could begin. The place was usually crowded but an orchestra set up in one corner and soon the dancers were whirling around the floor jostling each other. The school in those days was the centre of the community. The concerts in adjoining school districts were usually spaced throughout one week so that people could come from other districts too. Rose Valley had the reputation of putting on one of the best concerts in the area.

http://www.archive.org/details/amosandy1

• Episode #42 This episode is a good example of a Christmas radio broadcast.
  
• Entire show for grades 4 and up
• May only want to use the delivery of packages only part for grades 3 and under
• Other episodes of Amos n' Andy make fun of African Americans. This needs to be pointed out as an historical fact and that we should not do that any more. Below are some links about the show:

• http://xroads.virginia.edu/~1930s/RADIO/amos/home.html

  http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/A/htmlA/amosnandy/amosnandy.htm

  http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/~mfreeman/images/Amos.pdf - this person is somewhat defending the show

  http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/25853/blatant_racism_present_in_amos_n_andy.html?cat=37 – not sure what kind of authority this person has

Sheet Music For The Darktown Strutters Ball( I'll Be Down to Get You In a Taxi Honey)


Auld Lang Syne

Should old acquaintance be forgot,and never brought to mind ?Should old acquaintance be forgot,and old lang syne ?
CHORUS:
For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we'll take a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.
And surely you’ll buy your pint cup !And surely I’ll buy mine !And we'll take a cup o’ kindness yet,for auld lang syne.
CHORUS
We two have run about the slopes,and picked the daisies fine ;But we’ve wandered many a weary foot,since auld lang syne.
CHORUS
We two have paddled in the stream,from morning sun till dine† ;But seas between us broad have roaredsince auld lang syne.
CHORUS
And there’s a hand my trusty friend !And give us a hand o’ thine !And we’ll take a right good-will draught,for auld lang syne.
CHORUS

See link for more about Auld Lang Syne

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auld_Lang_Syne

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