(Continued from page 6) know they don'tplay with dolls a small ball or pick. up sticks
 neighbors. now...but I was dying to have and the hopes to have better
 Then we all go to the Spoto a doll. luck the following year. I know
 party. My mother-in-law was By the time I was born in this is why my grandmother
 a Spoto. She had 13 brothers Cuba, families no longer had bought me that doll...as big as
 and one sister and the relatives the means to celebrate Noche a 2 year old ...for all the dolls
 from all over the world come Buena, Navidad nor the New both my grandmother and
 to Tampa to spend Christmas Year. My parents could not mother wished they could've
 together. We all have hors .buy my brother and I toys bought me asI was growing up
 d'ouvres and cocktails. We for Christmas or for birth- and they could not.
 all renew acquaintances with days..,much less during any
 these people we don't see for other time of the year, as we Today, 1 thank my mother
 one whole year. Then we come do here. The government had and father for the biggest gift of
 back to our house for a tradi- done away with the holidays. all for bringing me to a country
 tional lasagna Christmas with The only time parents could where we are in charge of our
 Italian sausage and at this buy toys or presents for their own lives. A place where we
 particular Christmas anyone children was during El Dia de are free. During Christmas,
 who does not have a place to los Juguetes" or"Toys Day"....a my family gathers to thank
 eat on Christmas Day comes C: date the government placed in God for the many blessing we
 by and enjoys the festivities. t a t July to brake all ties with the have received duringtheyear.
 with us. religious holidays. Families I've taught my children to rec-
 It's a beautiful day. were given a day and assigned ognize that they are blessed
 a store. With three coupons in and that other children are
 Tom Keating hand, we all madelong lines to not as fortunate as they are.
 My wife comes from a Sicil- go inside the store to buy our It works... for every night be-
 ian family and I come from an three toys. My brother antd 1 fore they go to bed they pray
 Irish family, but we both grew often were assigned the last not only for tleeir family and
 up in families that put a strong few days. We would leave the friends, but also for all the little
 emphasis on midnight mass .store with three small toys like children in the world.
 on Christmas but wanted to
 create a new set of traditions nog in our special Christmas Christmas in which we aren't
 for our children. glasses and then sit around the all together.- Last year my The Legend of the Christmas pider
 We lived in North Florida for fire and read The Night Before daughters both visited us in s-i.
a long time so on Christmas Christmas to our daughters. Ybor but this year will be dif- A long time ago, a mother prepared fdr Christmas v.
Eve day we'd go to a tree farm As we got older we'd have them ferent. One is in California he clea tme and sc d her prepared f,-dr chrma the sp
and pick out lour tree and cut ra to s an th oth er i ouisil She cleaned and scirubbed her home,istia t he spider
and pick out our tree and cut read to us. and the other is in Louisville. from the living room with her broom. Theids .fled to the
it down. We then decorated it, On Christmas morning my My wife and I will head to atti and listnd the excitement belom she Ctristmas tree
 a fa p)}y eattic and listened* ie -excitement o hristmas tree
culminating in my wife and wife and I wanted to make sure Louisville to see one of our as put up and decotated. Whenll ws quet ag the litte
I giving our two daughters it was more than the children daughters, but it won't be the spiders crept back downst.airs to see t again, thetiu l tree. ey
a new Christmas ornament tearing open presents. So we same without both of them by er ed w t appness as t hey crawl e aln ever branh
every year that represented each had to hand one another our sides. wre fid ithe hapines a tey of e ach ornament t alas, by
something we did.as a family their presents and give a hug admiring the glittering beauty of each ornament. But alas, by
something we did as the orfamily their presents and give a hug the time they had finished climbing through the tree, it was
that year. Sometimes the or- after each present was opened. Patsy Feliciano completely draped with their dusty, gray cobwebs.
nament was.of an animal that The stocking stuffers would be I celebrated my first Christ- When the Christ child carne, He smiled as he looked upon
joined our family, other times last. Once all the presents were mas when I arrived in this the happy little spiders, however. He knew the mother.would be
it may have been from a state opened we'd all share creamed country from Cuba in 1980. I heartbroken when she saw the shrouded tree. So he reached out
we visited on vacation, and so eggs the kind you make for was 13 years old. My grand- and touched the webs and, blessing them, turned them into sil-
on. We'd have a fire roaring the Easter. My daughters loved mother bought me a doll at ver and gold. Now the Christmas tree sparkled and shimmered
entire time with the stockings those eggs so much we decided Cress in Ybor City. She was and was even more beautiful than before. Thus the custom to
hanging over the fireplace in a to make them every Christmas the size of a 2 year old infant. have tinsel of silver and gold and a spider ornament amongst
traditional manner as well. 1 don't think 13 year old girls the other decorations on the Christmas tree was born.
 At night we'd all have egg- This year will be the first played with dolls then and I







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