Its beginning to look a lot a lot like Christmas! While other countries and continents tell by the cold and snowy winter season, in my country Kenya we have the Flamboyant tree. I mean this tree only produces flowers in December, that’s when you know the Christmas vibes are catching up.
I noticed in these recent years Christmas is not Christmasing like the other Christmases Christmased back when we were young, (we blame the government). Christmas was Christmas, and not just another “offers season” on Jumia.
Back in the day everything changed as December rolled around: the air got that “December vibe”, moms became decorators and chefs, and kids became professional performers practicing Christmas carols. It wasn’t just another holiday, it was an event and I mean the whole of December not just 25th. When I say Christmas ilikuwa Christmas, I mean it. Those were the days when the entire neighborhood smelled of chapati and chicken stew, and TV adverts sang to us about Merry Christmas, complete with jingles and snowy landscapes that we all aspired to experience someday.
The Preparations
Christmas prep started weeks in advance. Parents suddenly became mathematicians, calculating budgets tighter than a KRA audit.
Sukuma wiki? Out of the question. I mean aha! we are not goats.
Mums were suddenly possessed by a cleaning spirit. For some reason, everything had to be spotless, including things that had never been dirty. Walls were scrubbed. (Yes, walls!) Sofas got flipped. It didn’t matter that nobody would look under them; mother insisted. Once the house passed the inspection, it was time for shopping to hunt for the perfect outfits.
This one deserves a standing ovation. New clothes on Christmas were a national rule. If your parents didn’t buy you new outfits, you’d low-key question their love. Remember those matching outfits? Eh, huko ndio tulikuwa! And the shiny shoes, plus gloves weweee! Malls weren’t a thing, so the entire family would head to the local Market, or your local tailor for custom fits.
The Décor
Forget fancy imported decorations. We had our local touch, and it was perfect. Mshaino garlands draped the living room like a colorful parade. For those who don’t know mshaino, it’s those shiny materials used for decoration especially during celebrations (a must for graduations too); also known as Tinsels.
Getting a tree was another hustle. I remember one time we went ‘tree-hunting’ with my cousins just to get a pine tree for the decoration. There was mshaino again, strategically tied to the tree to add volume.
The Christmas tree lights? Oh! They flickered like disco lights. Half the time, one bulb refused to light, and everyone would squint trying to figure out which one was the culprit. But hey, it was all part of the fun!
Christmas Day
The morning of December 25th was not for the faint-hearted. For starters, girls were dressed in oversized dresses with bows big enough to take flight and shiny shoes that pinched, and boys in brand-new safari boots and not forgetting the legendary Christmas goggles.
Breakfast was usually light, chai na mahamri, because the real feasting began after church. Speaking of church, this was the ultimate runway. Everyone would walk into church that Christmas morning strutting like they were modeling for Vogue.
The Food
The highlight of the day? Lunch. Christmas lunch was a feast fit for royalty. The smell of chapati was everywhere, mixing deliciously with chicken stew and beef pilau. If you weren’t eating nyama choma, kienyeji chicken or pilau, then were you even celebrating? You’d eat pilau, stew and chapati until you couldn’t move but there was always that one uncle who demanded another round of chapati hata kama alishiba. And just when you thought you were done, if your family had really saved up, you’d also have soda. Coke, Fanta, or Sprite; the Holy Trinity of Kenyan cold sodas, for some reason, tasted better when sipped from the glass bottle. When the soda finally ran out? Water tasted different (Ugh!)
TV Time: Those Christmas Classics
After lunch, the TV marathon began. Back then, Christmas wasn’t Christmas without the holiday movies. From Home Alone to Bible movies, we watched them every year as if we didn’t know how they ended. And oh, the adverts! Especially Coca-Cola commercials, knew how to tug at our hearts with jingles about sharing and love. December meant TV stations stopped their usual boring programming to bring in real cinema: Christmas movies. If you didn’t know the plot of Home Alone by heart, were you even living? Kevin McCallister was basically one of us.
The Spirit: Christmas Was a Feeling
Back then, Christmas was about community. Houses were open, and neighbors were family for the day. You’d eat in three different homes, still find space for pilau, and have enough energy to run off outside barefoot to join other kids who were playing football with a ball made of plastic bags tied together. Kids were usually chasing each other outside, ruining their clothes.
By sunset, everyone had congregated outside, showing off clothes, playing games, and just soaking in the joy. There was laughter, food, and music on replay until the day felt endless. The feast slowed down, but that didn’t mean the fun ended. The day would end with a kamukunji in the living room, everyone laughing at exaggerated village gossip or aunties gossiping about whose son had come home driving.
A Gentle Reminder: Christmas is Still Christmas
Christmas today is still special, but let’s be honest, something has changed. Maybe it’s the fast-paced life, or maybe it’s the commercialization of the season. But those old Christmases? They were the real deal. It was about community, family, and shared joy.
So, this Christmas, channel your inner child, dance to Boney M feliz navidad, and enjoy your chapati like it’s 2005. Buy mshaino garlands, make that chicken stew, and re-watch Home Alone. Let’s remind ourselves and the younger generation what Christmas used to feel like. Because when Christmas was Christmas, it was about the moments we created. Here’s to the good old days. If you relate, go ahead, sip your tea, and tell your kids how “huko nyuma, vitu zilikuwa tofauti.”
Merry Christmas, and may your soda always be cold!
Happy Holidays from your favorite Storyteller!
Comment your favorite Christmas memory.
