Polish Christmas Eve family tradition.

Christmas Eve is THE night at Christmas

Christmas Eve family meal together with the breaking of Holy Communion wafer (opłatek). The one family tradition we still follow today.

Christmas Eve has always been special in our family, more so than Christmas Day if I am honest.

Whilst everyone is out getting very drunk because they finished work for a week or 2, the average Polish home will be preparing this special meal.

I could be wrong maybe this is a generational thing but even so it would have been handed down and Poles generally have very close family ties and keep this going.

On Christmas Eve mum and dad would set the table with all sorts of lovely food and cakes. Nuts and dried fruit, juices, soft drink, wine, fish and soup and bread, but no meat. I didn't like fish so I had fish fingers, that's not really fish is it?

Don't forget Polish poppy seed cake which is supposed to ensure you are financially ok for the next year! We don't know if its true but nobody takes any chances and you wont find any in shops the week before Christmas so buy it early!

A candle would be lit and the Holy Communion wafer or opłatek as its called, laid on the table (available from all good Polish churches everywhere).

Dad would put on Kolędy (Polish Carol songs) quietly in the background on the record player.

Before the meal we stand up take a little piece of the opłatek each, offer it to the person across from us.

They would break a little bit off yours and make you a wish for the new year, such as good health, happiness or if you were a bit grumpy say sorry and hope to be better from now on.

The person would then repeat the process with you, breaking your wafer, wishing you the best and so on.

This is repeated until everyone has wished everyone well, its a very nice yet humbling thing to do.

We all then eat the broken off pieces of bread with any bits that drop on the floor must be eaten, this is holy bread very sacred. You are not allowed to chew it with your teeth but let it dissolve in your mouth, it doesn't taste of anything by the way.

Then we all sit down and begin the meal.

Apparently whatever happens on Christmas Eve will be repeated the rest of the new year so be nice people don't argue!

We used to leave an empty place at the table and plate for my dad, now I do the same for my mum too since she passed away. It's the only family tradition I insist on with my family and I hope when my daughter grows up she will continue this also.

It means a lot more now than it ever has to me, but I know mum and dad are there at the table with us too.

Polish Kolędy listen here