Kwanzaa key concepts: the kinara, a candelabra with seven spots for candles to be lit each night. the cup, from which everyone shares a drink in unity, the seven principles which represent ideals to live by all year round. For more, check out the Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kwanzaa

I love the idea of Kwanzaa. I have mixed feelings about its founder after I heard negative things about him. I also have trouble with the seven principles, since they seem not particularly specific to people of African heritage.But now that my objections have been aired, I will tell you what I love about it.

It's multicultural - the idea has developed that Kwanzaa is a way to learn about African heritage and share it with others. The children's books I have seen that teach about Kwanzaa often have people of all heritages participating in the festivities.

It's non-commercial - or it's supposed to be. With it's highlight on storytelling, music, food and homemade gifts, Kwanzaa is an opportunity to celebrate without the onus of finding the "best" or most expensive gift. Unfortunately, there are greedy people of in all cultures, and I have begun to see a proliferation of "African" products to assist in the celebration of this holiday. On the commercial side, since we celebrate Kwanzaa instead of Christmas, I get to take advantage of the after Christmas sales to get Kwanzaa gifts - I like to get people those food baskets and right after Christmas, they go down to 50 or 75% off.

Seven days of food! Of course, my family doesn't do seven days, but when I can, I do, and I find all the good food (some of it, like eggnog, decidedly NOT African) I can lay my hands on and celebrate right through the new year. That is the other thing I like, a nice quiet New Year's celebration - Kwanzaa goes from Dec 26 through Jan 1.

One year I made plaques for people with the seven principles and an African symbol next to each one - I bought one dollar cutting boards and woodburned the writing and the symbols into them. Another year I made baked clay ornaments with african designs. One of the best years was the year I walked into a store and saw Father Christmas as a Black man all dressed in white. The storekeeper told me that this was Kwanzaa Dada. I was inspired! By that year's Kwanzaa I had written the story of Kwanzaa Dada and that was my gift. People thought I ought to publish it, but after one rejection I chickened out.

Another good year was the year I borrowed an idea from my cousin's law firm - that year each person had to tell why they thought someone else deserved a gift from Kwanzaa Dada - and I dressed up to play the part in my kufi (hat) and dashiki (shirt)! It was awesome to see the children coming up with reasons why their parents were deserving! I gave each person a gift from my sack and somehow there was just the right thing for each person.

If you are looking for another excuse to be merry this season, check out Kwanzaa and come up with some ways that you can take part. If I can figure out how to do it, I will have my celebrations online and you are all invited!

The video below is a nice and thorough explanation of kwanzaa and its symbols, and the children did a great job!