Christmas in the bayou

In Lutcher, Louisiana, (which is where I am originally from,) we have a special Christmas tradition for lighting Santa's way on Christmas Eve. We build huge unique Bon fires on our levees that boarder the Mississippi River. The construction of these elaborate Bon fires begin at the end of November. The residents build Bon fires in the form of swamp cabins, castles, tanks, or whatever floats their boat. On Christmas Eve night around 7:00 pm we light the Bon fires to light papa Noel's way through the bayous. In the bayou papa Noel doesn't have a sleigh of reindeer instead he arrives in a pirogue driven by gators. Papa Noel uses this method of transportation in the swamps and bayous of Louisiana because according to legend and history the reindeer refused to go through swamps and his sleigh was too big to navigate the swamps. Many of the original settlers would build homes in the swamps and lived on whatever food the swamps provided. There are still homes and camps in our bayous and swamps that are very much inhabitable and to many living in the swamps as their anscetors did is still very much apart of every day life as well as tradition. With the lighting of the Bon fires to light the way there is yet another tradition, the festival of the Bon fire. Being Louisiana we tend to find any reason to throw a party. So the festival of the Bon fires began. On this night everyone and their families come out to do a little celebrating while lighting the Bon fires on the levee. We come together as a community andput differences aside and pass on the tradition to our kids.