My mom grew up in the mountains of West Virginia during the Depression. During that time, because money was scarce for the entire country, Christmas gifts were few for most folks, so delicious holiday food took the center stage of celebrations.
 
My mother remembers every Christmas Eve day her family would string popcorn and cranberry garland by the warmth of the kitchen's wood stove. They would spend the entire day decorating their small, but fragrant, Christmas tree, and helping my grandmother bake her delicious breads, pies, and cheesecake! She remembers anxiously awaiting for the special Christmas Eve dinner, and was always comforted by hot buttery oyster soup, wedges of Swiss cheese, warm biscuits with orange marmalade, a fresh pineapple, and my grandmother's homemade pecan pie! After dinner, they would play dominoes while my Grandpa would recite poetry and read the Christmas story, from the Bible.
 
The holiday menu was always the same, and marvelously delicious, which was very soothing to a little girl growing up in bleak economic times. Strong family roots and delicious, time-honored, traditional foods truly made my mother feel secure and loved, as did a little visit from Santa each and every holiday season! 

Eat pie, savor timeless, delicious memories!  xoxolinda