THE ORANGE IN THE STOCKING
THE ORANGE IN THE STOCKING FOUND IN THE FOOTNOTES
Todays’s story: I called The Orange In The Stocking… and of course, my question to you is..did you get one IJN YOURS ? After the recent episode we did titled Christmas in Appalachia we received lots of feedback about this old tradition- it seemed that every one in the story recvalled getting that orange in the stocking- and to them it meant so very much~! Actually, there’s more to the story of the orange that turned up - In Christmas inn Appalachia we covered the - the hard times- the meager christmasses- and SHARED some celebrity mekories -but,the real story of the oranges was found in the footnotes-
Its Christmas morning,and you’re unloading your stocking..
At the very bottom of the stocking—
past the candy canes, the small toys, the notes written in careful handwriting—
there it is.
An orange.
Bright. Simple. Almost out of place.
For many families, it’s a small tradition. A curious one.
Why an orange?
Why the toe of the stocking?
And why has this humble piece of fruit survived centuries of changing Christmas customs?
Today, we’re telling the story of the orange in the stocking—
a tradition that stretches from Saint Nicholas in Europe,
through immigrant homes,
and into the hard years of the Great Depression,
when an orange wasn’t ordinary at all.
This is a story about generosity, scarcity, and how small things can carry enormous meaning.
