LAS CRUCES – The spicy aroma of piñon fires. Bright red
ristras on front doors and in kitchens. The colorful swirling skirts of
folklorico dancers and the bright notes of mariachis. Massed choirs singing “Hallelujah Chorus” from Handel’s “Messiah,”and
little kids forming an impromptu neighborhood caroling group. Lightings of
Christmas trees and a giant Chanukah menorah on an picturesque adobe plaza.
And luminarias, thousands of candles, nestled in beds of
desert sand in little brown bags, flickering on plazas and in villages and
university campuses and lining driveways.
One of my relatives recently asked me what it’s like to
spend Christmas and December holidays in New Mexico. I told her to get
comfortable: This’ll take a while.
There’s a lot more than I can cover in a single column, but
this busy weekend is just the start of some of our favorite things about
December celebrations in New Mexico.
Three cultures blend at Our Lady of Guadalupe Festival at
Tortugas Pueblo, with sacred ceremonies, dancing and a pilgrimage up Tortugas
Mountain. Read more about the festival, always held Dec. 10, 11 and 12, in
today’s SunLife section.
Some years, we’ve been able to see Joseph and Mary and a
donkey on loan from the New Mexico Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum, looking
for shelter on what was once the Las Cruces Downtown Mall, all part of La Posada,
an ancient re-enactment as old as the first Spanish colonies here.
Newcomers may confuse it with Los Pastores, an equally
ancient morality play featuring intense, creatively costumed and sometimes humorous
clashes between good and evil. (Spoiler alert: good always triumphs.)
Generations of the same regional families have kept the tradition alive in
annual presentations by Los Pastores del Valle de Mesilla. Good news: you can
still catch it this year. Performances will be at 7 p.m. Thursday Dec. 10 and
7:30 p.m. Saturday Dec. 12 at the Basilica of San Albino on the Mesilla Plaza.
Admission is free.
And by the by, if you have a chance to see any of our
holiday pageantry, big or small, make it a priority.
On the big side, there is the annual Living Christmas Tree, featuring a large choir and orchestra, plus 65,000
computer-controlled lights coordinated with a program of traditional and
contemporary Christmas carols, this year at 1 and 7 p.m. Dec. 12, and 7 p.m.
Dec. 13, 14 and 15, at First Baptist Church, 106 S. Miranda St. It’s $5 and
thousands attend. For tickets, call 575-524-3691.
And don’t miss the lighted nine-foot menorah on
the Mesilla Plaza. Chabad Jewish Center de Las Cruces is sponsoring the free
event with a grand concert and menorah lighting at 5 p.m. today, to celebrate
the Dec. 6 first night of Chanukah. Rogers Park Band, an award-winning Hassidic
folk/pop duo from Chicago will perform and there will be hot cocoa, gelt, hot
latkes, jelly donuts and candles. It’s part of a world-wide celebration. Check
out JewishLC.com for more information.
“The menorah serves as a symbol of Las Cruces’
dedication to preserve and encourage the right and liberty of all its citizens
to worship God freely, openly, and with pride,” said Chabad Rabbi Bery
Schmukler.
For a sampling of Christmas traditions, Bellas Artes Sin Fronteras, a brand new
nonprofit cultural organization, will present “Feliz Navidad: Christmas in Song
and Dance” at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 12 and 2 p.m. Dec. 13 at the Rio Grande, with
mariachis, folklorico dance, Los Pastores and La Posada, piñatas for kids, and
traditional food treats. For tickets, at $30, visit riograndetheatre.com.
And back to those luminarias. There will be about 6,000 of them on the
NMSU campus for Noche de Luminarias from 6 to 9 p.m. today Dec. 6, along a horse-drawn
trolley ride, crafts for kids and adults, photo booths and entertainment at
Corbett Center. Corbett’s Aggie Underground is also the site of a brand new
feature, an ice rink which will continue from 5 to 9 p.m. Monday. Skates will
be available and it’s all free.
Among
other luminaria displays, all on Dec. 12, are Fort Selden’s annual luminaria
tour, from 5 to 9 p.m., with military re-enactors, cocoa and cookies; Las
Esperanzas’ Christmas on Mesquite Street Winterfest from 2 to 6 p.m. Saturday at
Klein Park, featuring a visit from Santa and Mrs. Claus, hay rides, piñatas,
hot dogs and lots of fun for kids; and Elephant Butte Lake State Park’s annual
Luminaria Beachwalk from 5 to 8 p.m.
Finally,
caroling and luminarias on the Mesilla Plaza (beginning at 6 p.m. Dec. 24) is a
Christmas Eve tradition for many. Happy holidays!
S. Derrickson Moore may be reached at dmoore@lcsun-news.com, @derricksonmoore
on Twitter and Tout, or call 575-541-5450.
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