LIMPOPO – For many households in townships and villages, new Christmas clothes remain a cherished tradition, especially for children.
From infancy to the early teen years, youngsters often look forward to Christmas Day not only for the celebrations but for the excitement of wearing something new.
For many families, these clothes carry deep symbolic meaning and form an important part of marking the festive season.
While the tradition has been passed down for decades, some now question its relevance in modern times.
In light of this, the Herald spoke to a few parents to find out whether they believe Christmas clothes are still necessary today.
Nkhensani Nkuna,a mother of one from Nkowankowa says “I think it is necessary, because it can be a symbolic tradition celebrating the birth of Christ. When you wear these Christmas clothes, God brings order out of our chaos. Our lives seems to hold together, our family and friends tend to remain bound together,” she says.Joy Nghondweni, a mother of two says she believes buying new Christmas clothes for youngsters is important. “I believe it is important and still relevant, because this is our tradition, which started way back by our grandparents. Although it might be financially demanding, but most people know that in December they have to buy clothes. There are other cheaper ways of buying clothes such as laybys, which takes the financial stress from parents,” she said.Judith Mnisi-Rikhotso: Believes that new Christmas clothes for kids is a must. “On Christmas Day kids are so happy when they have new clothes and if a child does not have new clothes they feel uncomfortable around their friends. The most important thing for me as a parent is to see my kids happy,” she said. Judith added that even though her child is all grown up and has over grown the Christmas clothing wearing stage, she buys for her nieces and nephews so that they also feel like they belong.”Tumelo Mahasha: Thinks that buying kids Christmas clothes can be a fun way to get them excited about the holiday season. “While it’s not a necessity, it can be a special treat and create wonderful memories. Tumelo says pros; – Creates a festive atmosphere and gets kids in the holiday spirit – Provides an opportunity for cute photo ops and capturing memories – Can be a way to teach kids about the value of dressing up and celebrating special occasions Cons: – Can be an added expense.
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Tintswalo Shipalana, a journalist for the Letaba Herald, has been in the media industry for over a decade. She started her journey in radio, but ended up in print which is her first love. She joined the Herald newspaper as a cadet in 2016, where she graduated with a journalism qualification from the Caxton Training Academy. She also has a qualification in Feature Writing from the University of Cape Town and a Media Management qualification from Wits University. She is completing her BA Communication Science degree with UNISA. She sleeps well at night knowing she is a voice to the voiceless and her work contributes to promoting local talent, businesses and service delivery. Her love for her community keeps her working hard every day.
