GHOSTS OF CHRISTMAS PAST By Matt Cowan

Christmas is filled with traditions, some actually predating the holiday itself, such as decking the halls with greenery, which originally came from the pagan holiday of Yule. There is the tradition of putting up an evergreen tree and decorating it with ornaments and lights, kissing someone who stands under a sprig of mistletoe, and of course the giving and receiving of gifts. Other traditions such as placing the star atop the Christmas tree relate directly to the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Carrying on these customs help put us in the mood for the festive holiday season, and allow us to feel connected with our ancestors, many of whom performed the exact same rituals. There is one old tradition which seems to have faded into virtual obscurity nowadays, however. I’m talking about the telling of ghost stories. Perhaps it is the fact that the practice is now so strongly associated with Halloween that has caused it to be forgotten during the Christmas season, but despite what some may think, it used to be a common practice.

The custom of the Yule Log also seems to be a dying trend. It used to be a large log, cut from ones own land or a neighbor’s, which was supposed to burn all twelve days of Christmas. While relaxing before the burning log, it was customary for people to gather around and tell ghost stories. Further proof of the existence of the tradition can be found by listening to the popular Christmas song, “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year”. In it you can hear the phrase “there’ll be scary ghost stories and tales of the glories of Christmases long, long ago.”

Charles Dickens is the name most often associated with the writing of the Christmas ghost tale, primarily for his book A Christmas Carol (1843), which he financed himself. In it, a miserly old man, who hates Christmas, is transformed by three ghosts who show him visions of his past, present and future. This tale, although it didn’t make a great profit at first, has since enjoyed amazing success. There have been several movie versions of the story and plays based on it appear in countless cities every Christmas. Dickens wrote several holiday ghost stories other than A Christmas Carol, and although he is the most easily recognized name amongst the Christmas ghost story writers, he is not alone.

The Father of the Modern Ghost Story, M.R. James began writing the yarns that would later gain him so much fame, to read to friends and family at Christmas time. Most of these stories are not set during the Christmas season, but the question remains, would they have ever been written if not for the tradition of telling them during the season?

Here I will list a few of my favorite stories that fall in with the tradition (in no particular order).

*The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall by John Kendrick Bangs (1894) - The ghost of a drowned woman, composed of water, haunts many generations of a family connected with Harrowby Hall every Christmas Eve for one hour, wherever they may be.

* Calling Card by Ramsey Campbell (1980) - A woman receives a mysterious, unsigned Christmas card with a message written on it that reads: A Very Harried Christmas And No New Year. The image of a snowy church hill has a new grave inked upon it. She goes on to receive strange presents which things scuttle out of among other portents of impending doom.

* A Christmas Game by A. N. Munby (1950) - The old friend of the main characters father comes to spend Christmas with them, only to find that a dark ghost from his past has followed him there.

* The Great Staircase at Landover Hall by Frank R. Stockton (1900) – This one is odd that I like it because it doesn’t have an evil ghost in it and is basically the story of a lonely, young man who buys an old house to find that it is haunted by a ghost that appears on the great staircase for one hour every Christmas Eve. He falls in love with the ghost and the story ultimately has a satisfying, happy ending. I usually hate love stories, but whenever I think of Christmas themed tales this one always comes to mind.

I found these stories in a book published in by Dell in 1987 titled, Christmas Ghosts, edited by Kathryn Cramer and David G. Hartwell. You can find used copies at Amazon.com at the following link: Christmas Ghosts