THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, December 24, 2021 Page 7 MALDEN: TODAY | FROM PAGE 6 loved it also: “My fondest Christmas memories will always be my grandparents’ (Anthony & Alice Spadafora) home on Emerald Street, Christmas Eve in particular. As a child with a big extended family, I looked forward to this annual tradition. This night brought myself and my many cousins, aunts, and uncles together under one roof with love, joy, and anticipation on the eve of the most magical day of the year. Each child always received gifts from aunts and uncles chosen at random. It was a house full of laughter, food, and a tree stocked with presents. And now, the food; baked, stuff ed, boiled, fried, cured – we had it all. The Christmas season always begins with a baking marathon of delicious Italian cakes and cookies. The aroma fi lls the home for weeks on end. A few samples of pastries created for the season might include taralli, pizzelle, ciambelle, mostaccioli, biscotti, struff oli, panettone, crostoli, cannoli and so much more. And of course, the simple pasta and fi shes on Christmas Eve. Our family enjoyed a gourmet spread of baked, fried, and sautéed aquatic delicacies, known as ‘The Seven Fishes.’ The older I got, the harder it was to leave my grandparents’ house on Christmas Eve, as I quickly realized it was this day that supplied the real holiday magic. Looking back on it now in my adult mind is like watching my favorite Christmas movie. A true classic. My grandparents’ tree couldn’t have been more perfect, my grandmother’s smile more sincere, their house even had the traditional Christmas smell! I am no longer able to create any new Christmas memories with my grandfather ‘Papa Tony,’ but now have had the responsibility bestowed upon me of fathering crucial early holiday memories in my kids’ minds. I am so thankful that I can draw upon my own blessed experiences and realize how important it has been in the development of my character. Thank you, Tony, and Alice for teaching me the true meaning of a Merry Christmas!” Fifteen Christmas/Holiday songs for 15 nights in December. All guaranteed to get you in the Holiday spirit. You Tube them. You’ll like ’em! In no particular order for 2021: 1. Extreme – “Christmas Time Again” 2. Hoist the Colors – “O Holy Night” 3. Ella Fitzgerald – “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” 4. Booker T & The MG’s – “Sweet Little Jesus Boy (In the Christmas Spirit)” 5. Nat King Cole – “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” 6. The Blackstone Valley Sinners – “C-H-R-I-S-T-M-A-S” 7. Ramsey Lewis Trio – “Sound of Christmas”/B4-“Sleigh Ride” 8. The Band – “Christmas Must Be Tonight” 9. The Hollyberries – “(I Wanna Go) Surfi n’ with Santa” 10. Satan’s Pilgrims – “Greensleeves” 11. The Chesterfi eld Kings – “Hey Santa Claus” 12. Emmylou Harris – “Light of the Stable” 13. Los Straitjackets – “Marshmallow World” 14. Bad Religion – “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” 15. Art Carney – “’Twas The Night Before Christmas” “This is the end, beautiful friend, this is the end, my only friend, the end” – my late mother (Dorothy) – a huge hole in our hearts six years now – loved this quote so much when I originally printed it that I am once again bringing it back to life for this holiday season, the Christmas season that she so much loved. As I have written in the past, my treasured mom was a very special woman. Strong, protective, loving – she was admired by all and had a way of making each and every person feel special (whether she liked them or not!). Our friends became her friends over the years, and she just might have fed every single one of them growing up. The Facebook posts honoring her life were what makes social media special in tragic times as we experienced. She would have loved to have read them and would have bragged unabashedly about one particular photo of her shoveling snow reaching almost 300 likes – my saint of a mother shoveling her sidewalk on Charles Street as her four big strong boys slept through the morning. They don’t make them like Dorothy Drago Levine anymore. For mom, her favorite Christmas quote coming from the beloved Dr. Seuss: “And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet icecold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling: how could it be so? It came without ribbons! It came without tags! It came without packages, boxes or bags! And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before! Maybe Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. Maybe Christmas … perhaps … means a little bit more!” Postscript 1: Proofreading this, there’s a common theme: how important our mothers and grandmothers were to our childhood holiday memories. Gary’s mom Josephine and grandmother Rocky, Craig’s mom and grandmother Franny and Alice, and my mother and nonni. Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and all the best in 2022! Phở Hởa Restaurant opens on Eastern Avenue Mayor Gary Christenson recently attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony of Phở Hòa Restaurant at 655 Eastern Ave., the site of the former Jack’s Ristorante. Following seven months of extensive renovations, the new owners opened their doors this month. Owner My Nguyen is proud of his family-owned and -operated business, which off ers authentic Vietnamese cuisine, such as Pho noodle soups with 22 varieties to choose from. They also off er a great selection of rice, meat and vegetarian dishes. For more information, including hours of operation, please call 781-605-0509 or visit phohoamaldenrt60.com. (Photo Courtesy of the City of Malden) 100 years of cigar experience OPEN & READY TO SERVE YOU! Happy Holidays! Buy Cigars by the Box & Save! Competitive Prices On All Brands, Good Selection Come On Down - Save Money & Time! R.Y.O. TOBACCO ----------TUBES WE SELL CIGARS & ACCESSORIES PLUS: * Travel Humidors * Desk Top Humidors * Many Types of Lighters * Ash Trays * Juuls * Vapes * Glass Pipes * Rewards Program * CBD Infused Products * VARIOUS GIFTS UNDER $30 - GIFT CERTIFICATES A.B.C. CIGAR 170 REVERE ST., REVERE (781) 289-4959 STORE HOURS: Mon. - Wed.: 8 AM - 7 PM Thurs., Fri. - Sat.: 8 AM - 8 PM Sunday & Holidays: 8 AM-6 PM
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