DAY 89 • 89 DAYS TO CHRISTMAS The Advent Calendar — Opening a Little Door to Christmas

🎄 DAY 89 • 89 DAYS TO CHRISTMAS

The Advent Calendar — Opening a Little Door to Christmas

By Mary Lourdes Bonnici

A Tradition of Patience, Anticipation and Daily Joy

Christmas Traditions, Stories & Festive Living

A celebration of tradition, memory, culture, kindness and the timeless magic of Christmas.

After yesterday’s journey into the Christmas Nativity Scene, Day 89 turns to another beloved tradition—one that transforms waiting into a daily ritual.

The Advent calendar may look simple: twenty-four numbered doors, pockets, boxes or envelopes. Yet behind this familiar Christmas tradition lies a fascinating story about anticipation, childhood, faith and the human desire to make the journey toward Christmas meaningful.

1. What Is an Advent Calendar?

An Advent calendar is traditionally used to count the days from 1 December to Christmas Eve, 24 December.

Each day, one numbered section is opened. Depending on the calendar, it might reveal a picture, Bible verse, chocolate, small gift, activity or message.

Although modern calendars can be elaborate, their fundamental idea remains beautifully simple:

Christmas is not only a destination. The days of preparation can also have meaning.

In Germany, where the custom developed, Advent calendars remain a major part of the pre-Christmas season, and handmade versions with twenty-four small packages or pouches are still popular.

2. Before the Little Doors

The earliest Advent countdown customs did not necessarily involve calendars at all.

During the nineteenth century, some Protestant families in Germany developed simple ways of helping children mark the approach of Christmas.

One practice involved making twenty-four chalk marks on a wall or door and removing one each day. Other families used religious pictures or daily Biblical messages.

These practices turned something abstract—waiting—into something children could see and understand.

Imagine the excitement: another mark disappears, another day passes, and Christmas comes a little closer.

3. From Homemade Tradition to Printed Calendar

By the beginning of the twentieth century, printed Advent calendars began appearing in Germany.

One early form consisted of illustrations that could be attached to a separate sheet. German publisher Gerhard Lang subsequently became closely associated with the commercial development of the printed Advent calendar. Accounts of his childhood describe his mother creating a countdown involving twenty-four treats, an idea that later helped inspire his work.

Eventually, calendars featuring small opening doors developed, bringing the tradition closer to the form many of us recognise today.

The little door changed the experience.

Now there was not simply something to count—there was something to discover.

4. Why Twenty-Four Doors?

Many modern Advent calendars run from 1 December until 24 December, Christmas Eve.

Germany’s official tourism information describes the familiar custom as twenty-four little doors leading towards Christmas Eve, with one surprise opened each day.

This is worth distinguishing from the liturgical season of Advent, whose beginning changes from year to year and is structured around the Sundays before Christmas.

The commercial or family Advent calendar therefore does not always correspond exactly to the full liturgical Advent season.

Its twenty-four-day format has become a practical Christmas countdown of its own.

5. From Pictures to Chocolate

Early calendars could contain religious pictures, illustrations or verses.

As the tradition evolved, manufacturers introduced new surprises.

Chocolate eventually became one of the most familiar versions, while today's Advent calendars may contain almost anything—tea, toys, cosmetics, jewellery, stationery or small gifts.

Yet bigger and more expensive does not necessarily mean more meaningful.

A handwritten message can sometimes create a stronger Christmas memory than an expensive object.

6. The Psychology of Anticipation

Part of the magic of an Advent calendar comes from delayed gratification.

Only one door is opened each day.

For children especially, this creates a gentle rhythm:

wait → open → discover → wait again.

In a world in which entertainment, shopping and information are increasingly available instantly, this old Christmas tradition quietly teaches something different.

It teaches that we do not always need everything immediately.

There can be pleasure in anticipation.

There can be meaning in preparation.

And there can be joy in something very small.

7. More Than Chocolate

An Advent calendar does not need to be based on sweets or presents.

Families can create calendars centred on kindness, gratitude, learning or togetherness.

Behind each door might be a small action:

telephone someone who may be lonely;

write down something you are grateful for;

donate something useful;

read a Christmas story together;

help someone without expecting anything in return;

share a family memory;

prepare something for another person;

spend an evening together without phones.

Suddenly, the calendar becomes more than a countdown.

It becomes twenty-four opportunities to live Christmas values before Christmas Day even arrives.

8. Advent Calendars Around the World

What began as a German tradition has travelled far beyond Germany.

Advent calendars are now familiar across Europe and many other parts of the world, taking religious, secular, homemade and commercial forms.

Some communities have even transformed buildings into enormous Advent calendars.

Germany Travel describes the famous example in Gengenbach, where the town hall's twenty-four windows are used as a giant Advent calendar, with another window revealed each evening during the season.

9. The Advent Calendar in Modern Christmas Life

Today's Advent calendar exists in almost every imaginable form.

There are reusable wooden houses, fabric pockets, miniature drawers, digital calendars and luxury editions.

This variety demonstrates how successfully an old tradition has adapted to modern life.

But it also raises an interesting question:

What are we actually counting down to?

If the twenty-four days become simply twenty-four opportunities to receive something, we can easily lose the deeper beauty of the tradition.

The calendar becomes more meaningful when each opened door reminds us not simply that Christmas is approaching, but that we are preparing for it.

10. Create a Meaningful Advent Calendar

A beautiful modern version could combine several traditions.

Imagine twenty-four elegant envelopes.

Inside each one is a different experience:

Day 1: Write something you are thankful for.

Day 2: Play a favourite Christmas song.

Day 3: Contact someone you have not spoken to recently.

Day 4: Give a small act of kindness.

Day 5: Read about a Christmas tradition from another country.

Continue until Christmas Eve.

By 24 December, instead of accumulating twenty-four objects, you may have accumulated something more valuable:

twenty-four memories.

💭 Reflection Questions & Answers

Why has the Advent calendar remained popular?

Because it makes the passage of time visible and transforms anticipation into a small daily ritual.

Does an Advent calendar need gifts or chocolate?

No. It can contain messages, activities, prayers, memories, acts of kindness or family traditions.

What can children learn from the tradition?

Among other things, they can experience patience, anticipation and the pleasure of receiving something gradually rather than immediately.

Can adults have Advent calendars too?

Certainly. Modern calendars are enjoyed by adults as well as children, and Germany Travel notes that the tradition continues across generations.

How can we make an Advent calendar more meaningful?

By making at least some of its twenty-four surprises about giving, gratitude, learning and spending time with others.

🎄 Conclusion

The Advent calendar has travelled a remarkable journey—from simple nineteenth-century German countdown practices to printed pictures, opening doors, chocolates and today's countless creative versions.

Yet its most beautiful element has never really changed.

It teaches us how to wait.

Every little door reminds us that Christmas does not need to arrive all at once.

We can approach it gradually—with expectation, preparation, kindness and wonder.

And perhaps that is why opening one tiny door can still feel magical.

✨ Final Lesson

The greatest gift of an Advent calendar is not necessarily what is hidden behind the door—it is learning to appreciate the journey towards Christmas.

In a world that encourages us to hurry, Christmas can invite us to do something different:

wait, notice, appreciate and prepare.

Twenty-four little doors can therefore become twenty-four reminders that joy does not always need to be large.

Sometimes, it arrives one small moment at a time. 🎄

📚 References & Useful Links

Smithsonian Institution. Christmas Reflections from Electric Railway Journal.
Useful for the symbolism of the circular wreath as representing eternity or everlasting life and its later association with Christmas, welcome and holiday cheer.
Smithsonian Institution — Christmas Reflections and Wreath Symbolism

Smithsonian Gardens. Wire Frames, Wreath — Horticultural Artifacts Collection.
Provides historical context on wreaths, including nineteenth-century floral traditions, evergreen materials, holly wreaths and the symbolism associated with the unbroken circular form.
Smithsonian Gardens — History and Symbolism of Wreaths

Smithsonian Gardens. Christmas Wreaths and Holly: Balsam Fir Christmas Wreath.
An archival example documenting the use of balsam fir, evergreens, holly and pine cones in Christmas wreath traditions during the early twentieth century.
Smithsonian Gardens — Christmas Wreaths and Holly Collection

Original Educational Content, Outfit Concepts, Scarf Designs, Styling & Creative Direction by Mary Lourdes Bonnici MBA.

This original educational article and its associated creative concepts, scripts, visual concepts, styling direction and educational presentation are protected as original creative content. No unauthorised reproduction, redistribution, adaptation or commercial use is permitted.

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Mary Lourdes Bonnici MBA

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