By Dail Gregory
The Twelve Days of Christmas is one of the most famous Christmas carols ever written. It has been sung for a great many years, and is known the world over. To most it is a delightful hymn, but it was originally created with a very serious intent.
In England between the years of 1558 and 1829, it was illegal to practice Catholicism in public or private. It was essentially a crime to be Catholic in England during those years.
The Twelve Days of Christmas was written to help preserve the traditions of the Catholic faith during the years that Catholicism was banned in England. The song is steeped in symbolism, and the fact that it is so well known throughout the world is a testament to the faith of the followers of the Catholic doctrine. The symbols contained in the song are as follows:
1st verse – "True Love" refers to God.
2nd verse – "2 Turtle Doves" refers to the Old and New Testaments.
3rd verse – "3 French Hens" refers to Faith, Hope, and Charity.
4th verse – "4 Calling Birds" refers to the Four Gospels or the Four Evangelists.
5th verse – "5 Golden Rings" refers to the first five Books of the Old Testament.
6th verse – "6 Geese-a-laying" refers to the six days of creation.
7th verse – "7 Swans-a-swimming" refers to the seven sacraments.
8th verse – "8 Maids-a-milking" refers to the eight beatitudes.
9th verse – "9 Ladies dancing" refers to the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit.
10th verse – "10 Lords-a-leaping" refers to the Ten Commandments.
11th verse – "11 Pipers piping" refers to the eleven faithful apostles.
12th verse – "12 Drummers drumming" refers to the twelve points of the Apostle’s creed.
I love this song. It is, by far, my favorite Christmas carol. I had no idea about the symbols contained in the song, until I googled the song lyrics one afternoon. I find it very interesting that a song we all know so well could contain so many hidden meanings. I would never have guessed that it was anything more than lovely Christmas carol. It’s always nice to learn something new, especially about the wonderful celebration of Christmas. I hope you learned something, too.
From the entire staff at ET, Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!
Filed under Family by 
Eastlake Titan Tony Jefferson is going to the University of Oklahoma.
Earlier this year, Jefferson showed interest to UCLA, but dropped after a visit to the University of Southern California.
The Eastlake, CA student-athlete is a high ranked athlete in the national scale. He had been ranked 49 in the list of the overall national prospects.
He is being considered a four star recruit, and ranks sixth in the list of the most talented outside linebackers in the nation.
He has been scheduled to enroll with the University of Oklahoma in the spring semester of 2010.
Filed under News by
by Diane Cannel
This is a cheesecake that I have been making for over 20 years if you follow the recipe to the “T” you won't have any problem, it is also colorful as well as the most wonderful piece of pastry that you ever put in your mouth.
1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons butter or margarine melted
2 pounds cream cheese
1cup sugar
8 ounces sour cream
2 eggs
1cup flour
¾ cup heavy whipping cream
2 cup in total chopped candied cherries red and green raisins, walnuts, candied pineapple
½ cup small chocolate chips
In a 5 quart mixing bowl place 2 pounds of cream cheese and 1 cup granulated sugar and mix on low speed until cream cheese is softened and smooth, place in bowl 8 ounces sour cream and continue mixing until well blended, at this time add 2 eggs, mix for 2 minutes then add 1 cup flour, and 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream, mix on second speed until your cheesecake batter is smooth and creamy. At this time your cheesecake mixture should be fluffy like ice cream as it comes out of the ice cream machine.
Add the candied fruit, raisins, walnuts, pine apple, chocolate chips, fold everything together.
Prepare your 10 inch x 2 inches spring form pan, in a large bowl place your graham cracker crumbs and 2 tablespoons sugar, and your melted butter or margarine, then with a wire whisk, whisk them together until well combined, brush onto the sides of your spring form pan a little softened butter so the crumbs have something to hold to, place the crumbs on the sides and bottom of the pan.
Now you add slowly to the pan your cheesecake mix as not to disturb the crumbs too much, now you should have a full pan.
The total weight of the cheesecake with the crumbs on the sides should be 5 to 5-1/4 pounds if you have some batter leftover just chill it, put some whip cream on it and enjoy.
Preheat your oven to 275 degrees and not more, when your oven is hot place the cheesecake in it and bake for 55 minutes then shut off the oven and let it in there for 3 hours, at the end of this time you should have the most beautiful cheesecake you ever seen, let the cheesecake on the table for 1 1/2 hours then place it in the refrigerator for about 2-3 hours. Now remove it from the pan and enjoy.
Before serving sprinkle some red and green edible glitter that you can purchase at any store that has decorating supplies.
Filed under Family by
Celebreate EastLake III's annual “Homes for the Holidays Lighting Contest”.
Contest judging will take place on
Thursday evening, December 17, 2009.
Plug in your lights from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
The best dressed homes will be recognized with a unique ornament for showing their holiday spirit.
Four (4) lucky winners will receive a special prize.
Filed under News by
The Otay Ranch Town Center invites families to ice skate to benefit the Make A Wish San Diego.
The hybrid ice rink will be open December 18th, 19th from 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM and 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Sunday, December 20th.
The rink will be located at the Food Pavilion. Skate rentals are $5 for 20 minutes.
For more information: call 619-656-9100
Synthetic ice creates the perfect hybrid-ice® surface, bringing together the fun of skating with the affordability of an energy-save product. Without the need for refrigeration units, or electricity, and made from a non-toxic, recyclable, polymer compound, hybrid-ice® is the eco-friendly, low-cost alternative to real ice.
A non-toxic, enhancer is applied to the surface to facilitate gliding action. The amount of enhancer used, cleanliness of the surface, and sharpness of the skates, combine to create the optimum skating experience, similar to skating on a pond.
Brown Field, CA
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