Culinary traditions, special childhood memories, feelings towards loved ones and conversations and relationships at the table – these were the topics discussed by the guests in the New Year's edition of “Facti po factach”. Magda Gessler admitted that she always tries to “make this whole big celebration perfectly harmonious”. Michelle Moran shared the customs that prevail in her hometown. Father Pawel Gujinski recalled certain holidays since “he has never been as close to others as he was then.”
The restaurateur, host of the program “Kitchen Revolutions” and judge of “MasterChef” Magda Gessler, as well as another judge of “MasterChef” and chef Michele Moran and Dominican father Pawel Gudzunski talked about in the Christmas Eve edition of “Facti po Factach” on TVN24. how they spend their time at Christmas and about the values and feelings that arise between loved ones during this period.
Gessler: I have a lot of pressure and I want everyone to find something for themselves
Gessler admitted that he “wants this big celebration to be completely harmonious” during the holidays. – In my opinion, this is a kind of evening, perhaps the only night in the world (…). Christmas Eve is, surprisingly, a holiday celebrated mainly in Poland and in a strange way. The ceremony may have changed a bit, but everyone is nervous when they sit down on Christmas Eve, he said.
In his house, he also recalled, preparations for Christmas Eve begin a week in advance so that “everything is ready in time.” -There are things that need time, such as cabbage with quince, apples and porcini mushrooms. (…) I always help a little, because it's Christmas night for 13-15 people, but honestly, I'm very stressed and I want it to be very tasty, very beautiful and everyone can find something for themselves. themselves – she said.
Gessler talks about how to prepare for Christmas Eve in his home TVN24
Slightly different from Poland. “Everybody eats something on this day that they don't eat all year.”
Moran talked about what Christmas was like in his native France and Spain. He said that there is a different issue of food preparation, which has a rich tradition in Poland.
We prepare the best things we have at home. The best wine or champagne, or something special, maybe oysters, shrimp, squid. There is no set diet that every household should eat the same way. There is a diet where everyone eats on that day what they don't eat all year. It's a financial and even mental effort, he said.
He admitted that “these are different holidays, but they are also family, beautiful and magical.”
Moran: In France, the menu is a financial and intellectual endeavorTVN24
“Three Chances” for Christmas Eve
Father Gujinski said there are “basically three options” for spending Christmas Eve. – At least during the last 10-15 years, they were implemented, – he added.
– I was either preparing Christmas dinner in the kitchen, or I was talking with my brothers at the table, or I was looking for a moment to leave the table and call my family and wish them well. These are three things that I always remember that I have to do, and I am full of pressure and tension, because each of them is important, – he noted.
As he said, “this is a special evening, nothing can be spoiled, everything must be balanced.” – But I still remember that in the years when I was less burdened with some work, I could also hide a little and listen to my favorite Christmas trumpets. I have to listen to Handel for Christmas, because if I didn't do it – it's my personal tradition – I'd miss something, like borscht, dumplings or gingerbread – he added.
Gużyński on “three possibilities” for Christmas Eve TVN24
A charcoal stove, a fragrant fir tree, visiting relatives and a plastic guitar
The guests also recalled holidays from their childhood. Gessler emphasized that he is like a fairy. – Because I was fed by beauty, taste, something special, smell, such great care and love, – he said.
He told about the Christmas Eve he spent in Komorov when he was a few years old. His grandfather wrapped matchboxes in colorful paper and there were surprises – chocolates. – This Christmas night was crazy, not to mention the smell of the Christmas tree in the room. (…) It was so magical, so silly, full of love and care. (…) This love is in me and I have been giving it every day since then. It's something I've been conditioned to, something I've been taught as a child, he noted.
Moran said that in France and Spain, Christmas is a lot of fun, not just at the table. After finishing the meal, he said, the family went to visit other relatives. – One uncle went around the other uncle and it continued all night. My father took the plastic guitar that I had in the room and we had fun, they joked, it was fun – he assured.
Because, as he said, “the truth is that Christmas should also be happy, because it is a beautiful day, it is the birthday of Jesus.”
The Dominican said that “what he remembers most from the past is Christmas Eve after martial law was imposed.” – To this day, I am so deeply convinced that I have never been so close to others as it happened when we did not know what would happen next and we only had each other, – he explained.
– It brought us closer together, united us so much, I don't remember having such a strong experience in previous years, – he added.
– However, my monastic years were, above all, an experience of such incredible simplicity, Gujinsky said, noting that simplicity “creates a distance from all unnecessary things that can distract.”
Family conversations. “The things that make us different as people are not important”
What and how to talk at the table?
– In my opinion, difficult topics should be worked out before Christmas Eve, Christmas night cannot be psychotherapy, which is not available all year round. (….) Because Christmas Eve should be about compromise and getting closer to someone you don't even agree with, who has different opinions than you. It should be with love, it should be with respect, if not love – said Magda Gessler.
In his opinion, in conversation you can praise someone's achievements or focus on building new hope if someone has faced failure.
“Christmas Eve should be about fitting in and getting close to someone you don't even agree with”TVN24
Moran said the conversation could be “about any topic” but should be fun. – I remember my father, who never tolerated us – brothers, sisters, there were six of us, of different ages, you know how he works – he used to argue at the table. He said that when we sit at the table together, we have no right to argue. This is not the moment – it was like the old times.
He also said that this special day is not the time to clarify family disputes or resolve some issues. As he said, we have one year to do this.
“I remember my father who never tolerated our discussion at the table”TVN24
Father Gudjunski emphasized that if something is sacred, “it is, among other things, shelter, security, peace, it is a part completely separated from secular time and space.” – The sacred is not secular, therefore everything that is related to the ritual of the celebration should be free of all dreams, even the deepest dreams that we have, – he said.
– All the things that distinguish us as human beings are not important, they cannot be important. The only important thing is that God became a man and we are also human, he added.
Gujinski: The things that differentiate us as people don't matter” TVN24
Main photo source: TVN24
