Ive heard stories about Christmas in Finland, or Norway. Or maybe it was Sweden or something, where the og Kris Kringle stories come from. The people would go walking about in the fresh snow looking for the aminita mushrooms (or something more volatile, come to think of it) which would grow out of the tops of the snow, underneath the trees where it was better covered. The ancient trees tended to grow alot larger, before we started our 'modern' practices of mass deforestation and harvesting all of the grandfather/mother trees for our own purposes.
They would take these mushrooms and hang them from the pine trees so that the reindeer would be able to come up and eat them at a reasonable level. The reindeer's stomach has a special enzyme in it that helps detoxify the mushrooms to a certain point that we humans aren't able to process. Potentially highly toxic, and fatal when consumed by us. So, the people of the land would run around and follow those reindeer and scoop up the little yellow piles of snow that the reindeer would leave behind. Knowing that they would contain other more suitable levels of the toxins, our bodies would be able to process.
The people would then eat up that snow, and fly away to distant lands where the elves and other majestical spirits were known to dwell. And spread good cheer through other practices.
This was likely a pagan tradition, celebrated on the solstice. Now, if you know anything about christianity. They've got a history of taking several of these old world practices and repurposing them to their own belief systems. Hence, the virgin birth of christ concieved of by the angel spirit from above. The wisemen guided by the north star from far distant lands. and Many other ancient (supposed) pagan beliefs. Turning them into one mega holiday of their own. Mind you, the historians have found that Jesus was in fact born somewhere closer to the middle of summer. But, this was apparently more convenient in the re-appropriation tactics that were being employed by the new authorities.
Here's some other stuff to read.
http://atheistcamel.blogspot.ca/2009/12/reflections-on-atheist-christmas.html