Episode Transcript
[00:00:07] From the natural state. This is Public Facing Christmas Edition.
[00:00:14] Hello and welcome to Public Facing, the podcast where culture and community meet.
[00:00:19] Here we share everyday voices and extraordinary stories.
[00:00:24] I'm your host, Joe Holman.
[00:00:26] Extremely delighted that you've come by today at the time of this recording, December 25, 2025.
[00:00:34] It is the early hours of Christmas Day here in the United States.
[00:00:40] Here we're still deciding where and how we want to spend Christmas Day, which I'm likewise asking you how you spend Christmas Day this year.
[00:00:55] Extra question, are you going to be alone for it?
[00:01:01] Now, I'm not trying to minimize or take focus off of Jesus nor his birth. Absolutely not. It's contrary to that. See, I want to emphasize that from around the world.
[00:01:13] Others, they add, you know, they share different ways that Christmas is celebrated where they are.
[00:01:20] So that's not all. I want you to stay tuned.
[00:01:24] Now, there's just seven days until New Year's Day, 2026. So for you, my listener, you probably maybe checked your calendar or you have a sticky note on the fridge.
[00:01:38] You do have a sticky note, right?
[00:01:41] Hey, is your refrigerator running? You better go catch it now because if you do miss the big one that's coming around in seven days, you're going to be sure to make a mistake, a huge one, when it comes around.
[00:02:03] So stay on top of that calendar.
[00:02:06] Have you ever, and I do mean ever, have you ever made the mistake of writing the wrong year on a check or maybe some type of other important paperwork? No, Fibon. Now, have you somehow messed up the year on that paperwork?
[00:02:27] Now, I admit I have done that a lot over the years, as nearby as this year.
[00:02:34] But it's a telltale sign that we're hanging on to the past.
[00:02:39] Now, my family always remembers. It's easy to do when you have a grandchild that comes into the world early early New Year's Day.
[00:02:49] Alright then, so I digress. Now, Christmas at its heart, that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ. And also serving as one of the most widely celebrated cultural holidays in the world to. Over centuries, the spiritual meaning of Christ's birth has blended with local customs and family traditions and even modern commercial influences that are creating a holiday that looks and feels different depending on where you live, how you were raised and what you believe today.
[00:03:27] This episode explores how the story of Jesus birthday connects believers across cultures, how Christmas is observed globally, and how traditions evolve from one generation to the next.
[00:03:43] So Christmas around the world comes down to one birth and many expressions.
[00:03:50] So look at how different cultures celebrate Christmas from everything from Midnight mass on Christmas Eve, or even to the feasts and all the way to processions and gift giving while still centering on Jesus birth.
[00:04:10] Some cultures around the world, they celebrate in different ways.
[00:04:15] Some cultures celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ on a different date than that of others. So what do I mean by that? Well, here in the United States, we celebrate the birth of Jesus on December 24th and end of December 25th with events and services, with some being for midnight mass in certain religious communities.
[00:04:40] And for some, it's the celebration continues into Christmas Day, December 25, the day of Christ's birthday.
[00:04:50] Now, still, there are some who celebrate on a totally different day.
[00:04:56] I did not know this, but I had to look it up. You see, from around the world, Ukraine, Russia and even parts of the Balkans celebrate Christmas on January 7th.
[00:05:13] Let me first say, also give a shout out to my lovely listener there in Chiyoda City, Tokyo, Japan.
[00:05:21] Now, in Japan, where Christianity is considered a minority religion, Christmas is largely secular and is celebrated as a romantic occasion for couples, often involving a meal of, wait for it, KFC Fried Chicken, a tradition that has become iconic.
[00:05:46] Well, praise the birth of a king and give me some of that extra crispy.
[00:05:53] Yeah, I love that.
[00:05:55] So despite how some might view this celebration method, it's a positive that Jesus birth is celebrated at all.
[00:06:04] Many cultures celebrate Christ's birth in different ways.
[00:06:07] Some celebrate it not at all.
[00:06:12] So some countries, like say, Australia, for instance, Christmas falls during their summer.
[00:06:22] So with the celebration comes the mass swimming that's become available to their population at that time.
[00:06:35] So before you crawl back in the water, make sure that you wait at least 30 minutes after getting in the water.
[00:06:45] What are some things that you do when Christmas comes?
[00:06:50] Is it cultural, personal, or somewhere in between?
[00:06:56] I'm going to table this for a bit to allow you to search your memory banks and your photo albums to select your answer.
[00:07:05] Now, I want to move on to our next segment, but I will be coming back to this.
[00:07:10] So Santa Claus or Saint Nick, you know Santa, but what about Saint Nicholas?
[00:07:22] How did these two hear about each other?
[00:07:26] Are they related?
[00:07:27] The answers might surprise you by even acknowledging that these two exist.
[00:07:34] Well, let's just meet them one by one.
[00:07:37] But what if there were more?
[00:07:41] It seems Santa is but an alias.
[00:07:46] Let me show you.
[00:07:50] Meet the man behind the story of Father Christmas, Santa Claus and Saint Nicholas.
[00:08:00] Saint Nicholas was a bishop who lived in the 4th century and in a place called Myra in the area of the Asia Minor.
[00:08:10] Now, Nicholas was a very rich man because his parents had died when he was very young and they left him a lot of money.
[00:08:17] He was a Christian and loved God. Nicholas was also a very kind man who had a reputation for helping the poor and giving secret gifts to people who needed it.
[00:08:28] There are several stories and legends about St Nicholas, although we don't know if any of them are true.
[00:08:38] Now, I'm going to stop there for just a moment.
[00:08:41] This, this is how he made it to a turning point in this story.
[00:08:47] You see, because of his kindness, Nicholas was made a saint.
[00:08:54] So Saint Nicholas is not only the saint of children, but also of sailors.
[00:08:59] One story tells of him helping some sailors who were caught in a bad storm off the coast of Turkey.
[00:09:06] The storm was raging around them and all the men were terrified that their ship would sink beneath the giant waves.
[00:09:13] Then prayed St Nicholas to help them.
[00:09:16] Suddenly he was standing on the deck before them. He ordered the sea to be calm. The storm died away and they were able to sail their ship safely to the port.
[00:09:29] But someone had to deliver presents to children at Christmas.
[00:09:34] So in the uk, particularly in England, he became Saint Christmas, Father Christmas or Old Man Christmas, which is an old character from story plays that were being passed during the Middle Ages in the UK and parts of northern Europe.
[00:09:57] He had more names though.
[00:09:59] See, Dutch settlers in the US took the stories of St Nicholas or, or Sinterklaas and he'd as he come to be known in those parts of northern Europe with them.
[00:10:14] German settlers in the USA also brought their stories of the Christ Kindle and became known as Kris Kringle.
[00:10:26] As Sinterklaus became known as Santa Claus, the name Kris Kringle was added as another name for Santa.
[00:10:34] Now y', all, I'm truly feeling the burn.
[00:10:38] There are just, these are just some of the names from around the world that point to St. Nicholas or are used interchangeably to equate like say, say Santa Claus.
[00:10:58] And I feel like just with so many names and so many aliases, I feel like the BOLO the, you know, be on the lookout. I feel like the BOLO results just dropped and now there's three full pages of wants and warrants across Andy Sipowitz desk and he had not even had his coffee yet.
[00:11:21] That says a whole lot right there.
[00:11:24] I will share link to some of this information on our x.com/forward/public facing pod.
[00:11:35] Now, speaking of wants and such, what do you want for Christmas?
[00:11:43] You know, a lot of retailers hold after Christmas sales, Black Friday, whatever.
[00:11:50] If, if you're left wanting or needing more, what would it take to come through for you?
[00:11:59] Perhaps it's a package filled with a hard to find item. Or maybe it's not something tangible. Maybe you're hoping for a visit from someone or a phone call from somebody.
[00:12:13] Or maybe the gift really isn't for you.
[00:12:17] Maybe it's you that drops in for a gift.
[00:12:20] Excuse me? A visit, drops in for a visit, picks up that phone.
[00:12:26] Maybe it's just you.
[00:12:28] Maybe it's just you extending kindness, comfort and joy to another, even to a perfect stranger.
[00:12:37] What if you are that gift?
[00:12:43] When it comes to Christmas traditions, what does that look like for you?
[00:12:49] As you've heard earlier, different countries and cultures are, well, different from different ways or places to join in on the celebration, to food choices. And, you know, the list goes on and on.
[00:13:05] So where are you, what are some of your Christmas traditions?
[00:13:12] Are there similarities to the ways that Americans create meals for Thanksgiving and Christmas gatherings and the meal choices?
[00:13:24] As a for instance, in my home, our celebration meal at Christmas is mostly similar. It's, you know, for Thanksgiving we have turkey and the usual dishes associated with Thanksgiving meal.
[00:13:39] But for Christmas, that's a little bit different.
[00:13:42] For Christmas, our entree is ham. We have mashed potatoes and a bunch of other things I can't quite remember off top of my head. But we, we have it now. I want to go back, back to holiday traditions. Let's go there.
[00:14:00] So for traditions from around the world, like right now, there's a thing that is all the craze in a certain place and it wasn't even a thing from the USA at all.
[00:14:18] Of all things, it's rocking around the Christmas tree. Yep. That's a real thing.
[00:14:26] It's real because. Because Brenda Lee sang a song about it in 1958.
[00:14:32] Super catchy.
[00:14:35] No, it's real because in Denmark, families do rock around the Christmas tree. It's a tradition in Danish houses to dance around the Christmas tree holding hands as a family while you sing Christmas songs before you start opening presents.
[00:14:54] And speaking of around the world, check out what I call the Icelandic days. Because Iceland, they celebrate the traditional twelve days of Christmas beginning on Christmas Day and end on the epiphany.
[00:15:14] But in ICELAND, there are 13 extra days of Christmas and they lead up to Christmas Eve.
[00:15:24] Why? Well, so each of the Yule lads, as they're called, can have their own day. And this is according to a travel agency guide in Iceland.
[00:15:36] Now, Icelandic folklore, there is no Santa, but there is the ogress Grian and her lazy troll husband, Leflow. I probably messed that up. Sorry.
[00:15:55] Their 13 children being the Yule lads and their cat, Gelaturin, the Christmas cat.
[00:16:05] You know what I love really about the festivities of all this is that there's so much to celebrate and so many more ways to do that.
[00:16:18] Our cultures and our beliefs and traditions, they're not cookie cutter or imprints. It's not one size fits all. From around the world, it's so apparent that we can come together on such an honorable occasion.
[00:16:36] And through our individual cultures, we can honor the birth of Jesus in our collective way. We can show through faith, hope and love that good things can happen. Regardless of whose border that may cross, we can know peace.
[00:16:59] You've heard my story, my voice.
[00:17:02] Now let me hear yours.
[00:17:05] Email me at hello at Public Facing Pod dot stream.
[00:17:14] We'll have links to portions of this Christmas Day episode relocated on our X account at x.com forward/public facing pod.
[00:17:25] You're listening to Public Facing, the talk show that deep dives into the true stories, sharing the everyday voices and shedding light on the positive issues that shape our world.
[00:17:38] We openly welcome the conversations, testimonies and personal stories that impact the lives of so many from all locations and all walks of life.
[00:17:49] Because these stories should always be public facing, our episodes are that of a scripted yet unscripted program.
[00:18:01] So regardless of what you might have heard shared during our time together, it's my sincere hope is that you can find truth and hope inside the stories that we share.
[00:18:15] Did you really think that I was going to hold back my Christmas tradition?
[00:18:21] Now keep in mind, I primarily grew up in the great state of Minnesota.
[00:18:29] Now this is my story on Christmas tradition.
[00:18:37] Now when I was in sixth grade, that's really when it all began.
[00:18:41] That's how every good story should start to think.
[00:18:45] It was no band camp, but it was the best Christmas tradition ever.
[00:18:51] I mean, it's no gold, frankincense, myrrh.
[00:18:55] What it was to me means so much more.
[00:19:00] Christmas morning we would gather in the living room and we would each open our presents.
[00:19:06] Then one year my parents asked me to go get something by the basement.
[00:19:12] Seemingly, I went to fetch a broom.
[00:19:15] What I found in that stairway was a brand new set of downhill skis.
[00:19:22] Plus boots, goggles and other accessories that I may have missed. But I did. I had it all.
[00:19:31] Now I had to tell you all of that in order to tell you this.
[00:19:38] I told you about opening gifts.
[00:19:41] The other side of that story is that it is a family.
[00:19:45] We drove to my favorite ski resort and we proceeded to ski the day away as a family.
[00:19:53] I can't tell you how many times I rolled the chair lift or even use the tow rope.
[00:20:01] My face said it all.
[00:20:03] Out on the slopes all day and barely come in to the lodge for hot chocolate or a meal.
[00:20:12] Then came time to leave. It was dark and it was cold.
[00:20:16] Once home, we were able to see the bright look on my face.
[00:20:22] Still smiling.
[00:20:24] No one could have prepared me for what was next.
[00:20:29] My entire face and under chin was severely sunburned and windburn.
[00:20:37] I had a fat face with squinty eyes for almost a week.
[00:20:43] Well, almost six days now. No cheating.
[00:20:49] What comes right at a week after Christmas?
[00:20:55] That's right back on the slopes for New Year's Day.
[00:20:59] Christmas played out this way for several more years.
[00:21:04] If I had to give a hint or a takeaway from that, I would say use sunscreen, cover your exposed areas.
[00:21:16] That would pretty much be it.
[00:21:18] However, this was my best Christmas and my best New Year's memory of my whole life.
[00:21:27] I miss you Wild Mountain.
[00:21:30] I do.
[00:21:32] Wild Mountain, Excellent ski resort in Taylor's Falls, Minnesota.
[00:21:40] So back to you, my friend. Tell me, what is your most memorable Christmas?
[00:21:48] And if I may, honestly, did you spend that day alone?
[00:21:54] I'm curious now. I am so very grateful for you being here with me for the ongoing next parts of my journey, and I'm hopeful that this episode has inspired a deeper sense of gratefulness and of joy in your life.
[00:22:17] So Christmas Eve has passed, but we're about five hours, almost six into Christmas Day.
[00:22:26] Do something fun today.
[00:22:29] You don't have to keep doing traditions that are not serving you well.
[00:22:33] You see, the key for you and your tribe is to just say, hey, let's make a new Christmas tradition.
[00:22:41] And then just outline that tradition that you want to make and then just do it. And then just do it repeatedly on whatever scale of frequency that you all agree on.
[00:22:54] It's really that simple. Keep going. You're doing great.
[00:22:59] You're listening to Public Facing, the podcast where culture and community meet.
[00:23:05] Know this, you are my best part of Public Facing.
[00:23:13] I want you to connect with us x.compublic facing pod or send me your comments. Or just say hello at hello at Public Facing Pod Stream.
[00:23:28] Thanks for listening. Until next time, share those everyday voices and extraordinary stories. Keep things upright and Public Facing.
[00:23:45] Sa.
