My mother used to set the Christmas tree on a bed of cotton wool to represent snow, and then surround it with a little tableau consisting of reindeers, Santa Clauses, pine trees and so on. And the whole thing was illuminated by the lights on the tree. It was a bit of magic that went on throughout the Christmas period.
It was also a common practice to write one’s gift requests on a piece of paper and release them into the fireplace, so that they disappeared up the chimney. That was the way to send them to Santa, I was told. Bloody silly idea! I wonder how many chimney fires were caused that way. Humbug!
I’m expecting the first visit when the clock strikes twelve...
5 comments:
happy holidays, jj!
cool way of communicating to santa! ^^ wanna try that but no chimneys in the tropics... haha.
Happy christmas eve, Jeff! And happy christmas, too :)
Your mum sounds lovely. And what a magical way to decorate the Christmas tree :)
I should think a tornado would work even better, Ace. You wouldn't even need to let the paper go! Have a good Christmas. Hope you're feeling better now. And BE GOOD!
Where ya bin, Lu? Missed you. I'm sure you'll have a good Christmas, 'cos you're that type. Stay as sweet as you are, eh? Humbughumbughumbug.
BTW, it was meant to say cotton wool. Bugger!
You just reminded me that I used to write a letter to my "fairy" and then burned it in the fireplace. We had a Sears Catalog (which is so tacky here) that was full of crappy toys for kids and was really pushed pre-holiday time, so writing a letter for our present wishes was already taken care of. Do you decorate for the holidays btw? Wishing you a "holiday" (bah humbug ;) that will bring you prosperity for all that you create, health so that you can keep up with your crazy neighbors and a good sense of humour to stay sane.
Burning the letter is more magical, Wendy, more mystical even. Throwing it up the chimney is rather more pragmatic. I swear if I'd been told to burn the paper, I probably would have believed in Santa Claus longer, since it was the practical questions around the Santa myth that most troubled me.
I do decorate, yes. I don't deny that I find the sight of tinsel, baubles and fairy lights pleasing around the darkest time of year. And there's still a bit of a feel for Christmas lurking in here somewhere. the humanistic and pagan side of it is rather nice.
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