Hazelnut Viennese cakes, two kinds of pierogi, a 12-course Christmas Eve meal, midnight mass, kutia on the ceiling (and many other beloved traditions)—this Ukrainian/not-yet-American family Celebrated Christmas with a capital C.

My partner and I have lit candles in the largest park in Bogotá, surrounded by hundreds of other families, lovers, and friends.

Our Women's Voices contributors are global citizens. Here are their stories about how they've celebrated the Christmas season in France, Tanzania, Denmark, and as close by as Minnesota and New York.

To my surprise, her papers contained carbon copies of letters that she often wrote. What an amazing gift for me to find. I discovered one particular letter she wrote after delivering me to my college campus in 1972. At the time, my mother was 42 and I was the oldest of her three children, her first she saw off to college. The letter is typewritten on onion skin paper and dotted with white out. She never mailed it.