Boxing Day

"Boxing Day dates back to past centuries when it was the custom for the wealthy to give gifts to employees or to people in a lower social class, most especially to household servants and other service personne. As with Christmas itself, some elements of Boxing Day are also likely related to, and ultimately derived from, the ancient Roman Saturnalia, which also had elements of gift giving and social role reversal."

you know
Dasher and Dancer, and Prancer and Vixen;
Comet and Cupid, and Donner and Blitzen?

well, did you know:

“The famous Christmas song Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer started life as a poem created by an American advertising executive called Robert May. He was requested to produce a poem that could be given away to children by the Santa Claus employed by Department Stores at Christmas! Working as an Advertising Executive, Robert May had a natural flair with words and was able to compose the Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer poem which was specifically designed to appeal to children. This marketing ploy was a massive success and approximately 2.5 million Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer poems were given away in the first year of its publication! In 1949 the singer Gene Autry recorded a musical version of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer composed by Johnny Marks."

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so, now you know. . .

let's all sing!

"rudolph the red nosed reindeer. . ."

crackers are odd -
the silly paper hat, the silly joke,
the silly motto, the silly toy. . .
but we pull them,
we love the BANG!
and we enjoy them all the same

crackers were invented by a guy called Tom Smith (find the history here) and I'm glad for that - they are so silly and trite, but it is quite wonderful to have crackers at Christmas. . .
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. . .and I like them with cheese too

Christmas for me has always included foil covered chocolate money. . .

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. . . a few coins in the toe of my childhood Christmas stocking (usually my largest sock); a bag each in the toe of my children's Christmas stockings (always beautifully handmade by moi, out of lovely seasonal fabrics with ric rac and sparkles and and and and) and some more hung on the tree in the deepest darkest middlest parts; I often undergo a chocolate money quest - hunting down the different varieties each year so there was a good selection. . .
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. . .this year I've sourced a seletion of varying sizes of individual coins, bags of Imperial coins, bags of "new" money, and - for the first time - Euros (the bags of which also contain small slabs of chocolate notes) (inflation, eh). . .

a little history:

"Chocolate money, chocolate coins, consists of small disks of chocolate moulded into the shape of coins, and wrapped in gold or silver foil for added effect. It has no value as currency, but is sometimes used as "play money" by children as well as being consumed as a snack. Chocolate coins were likely invented to be a substitute for Hanukkah gelt or rededication money and are often used in place of real money in dreidel games. For use by observant Jews, Hanukkah Gelt should be certified Kosher."

so, for anyone who would like this calendar
to contain some chocolate - here it is. . .

. . .chocolate. . .

(-:

the 12 days of Christmas

not that anyone's counting. . .

on the first day of Christmas
my true love gave to me. . .
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a little history:

...

"The Twelve Days of Christmas, and the associated evenings of those twelve days (Twelve-tide), are the festive days beginning the evening of Christmas Day through the morning of Epiphany(January 6). The associated evenings of the twelve days begin on the evening before the specified day. Thus, the first night of Christmas is December 25–26, and Twelfth Night is January 5–6.

"Over the centuries, differing churches and sects of Christianity have changed the actual traditions, time frame, and their interpretations. St. Stephen's Day, for example, is December 26 in the Western Church and December 27 in the Eastern Church. December 26 is Boxing Day in the United Kingdom and some of its former colonies; December 28 is Childermas or the Feast of the Innocents. Currently, the twelve days and nights are celebrated in widely varying ways around the world. For example, some give gifts only on Christmas night, some only on Twelfth Night, and some each of the 12 nights.

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"In the Middle Ages, this period was one of continuous feasting and merrymaking, which climaxed on Twelfth Night, the traditional end of the Christmas season. Twelfth Night itself was forever solidified in popular culture when William Shakespeare used it as setting for one of his most famous stage plays - Twelfth Night.

"Some of these traditions were adapted from the older pagan customs, including the Roman Saturnalia. Some also have an echo in modern day pantomime where traditionally authority is mocked and the principal male lead is played by a woman, while the leading older female character, or 'Dame', is played by a man."
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and a little something else:

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"1 True Love refers to God
2 Turtle Doves refers to the Old and New Testaments
3 French Hens refers to Faith, Hope and Charity, the theological virtues
4 Calling Birds refers to the Four Gospels and/or the Four Evangelists
5 Golden Rings refers to the first Five Books of the Old Testament, the "Pentateuch", which gives the history of man's fall from grace
6 Geese A-laying refers to the six days of creation
7 Swans A-swimming refers to the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, the seven sacraments
8 Maids A-milking refers to the eight beatitudes
9 Ladies Dancing refers to the nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit
10 Lords A-leaping refers to the ten commandments
11 Pipers Piping refers to the eleven faithful apostles
12 Drummers Drumming refers to the twelve points of doctrine in the Apostle's Creed"

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so there we have it
- apparently -
and I thought it was
just another Christmas song!

Mistletoe (viscum album)

The evergreen mistletoe plant with its succulent white berries is a parasite most commonly found growing on apple trees but also on other deciduous trees such as hawthorn and rowan. The word mistletoe comes from the Old English words "mistel" and "tang" – meaning "dung" and "twig" – because people had noticed that mistletoe grew on trees where there were plenty of bird droppings.
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Mistletoe was recognized by the Druids as a magical plant. According to tradition they would only cut the mistletoe with a golden sickle and made sure it never touched the ground by placing a white cloth under the tree to catch the magic prunings. Oak trees also featured in Druidic ceremonies and when a mistletoe plant was found growing in an oak it was thought to have especially strong magical powers. Unfortunately we now have no idea what the druids thought the mistletoe plant was capable of.

Mistletoe’s traditional magical properties include the ability to drive away witches, get rid of fleas in your bed and prevent faeries from stealing your children. Norse legends also celebrated mistletoe as a plant that brings love into a household. The story goes that the goddess Freya had a baby boy called Balder whom she loved deeply. She became obsessed by his safety and made all the plants and animals in the world swear they would never harm him. Unfortunately she forgot to ask the mistletoe. Only one god, named Loki, noticed the omission and he stored the information away for the future. As Baldur grew older the gods were amused by the way missiles thrown at Baldur would swerve away and miss him. It became a game to throw things at the growing lad and watch them fall harmlessly to the ground.
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One god was not amused by the boy’s popularity. Loki was jealous and looked around for a way to do the boy harm. He carved a spear tip from the mistletoe plant and mounted it on a stout ash stave then placed the spear in the hands of Baldur’s blind brother Hadr and encouraged him to throw the spear at Baldur. Hadr at first refused to throw the spear saying that he had no wish to throw anything at Baldur whom he loved dearly. Loki wore him down with his persistence and eventually the blind lad threw the spear which struck Baldur and killed him instantly. Freya was horrified and commanded that the world would turn to winter and stay that way for ever. She only relented when the other gods brought Baldur back to life.

The mistletoe was then banished to grow only in high places away from the meddling hands of dangerous fools like Loki. Freya then commanded that henceforth it would always bring love rather than death to the world and that people passing underneath the plant should embrace.

It became a custom in the middle ages for soldiers seeking a truce to meet under a sprig of mistletoe to discuss terms.

The tradition of kissing under the mistletoe is much later in origin and has some strange quirks that need to be observed if you want to get the best from your sprig of mistletoe. It is important that the first kiss under the mistletoe is not between a man and his wife. Traditionally the first kiss should always be between people with different hair colour and like holly and ivy, in some places it is considered unlucky to bring mistletoe into the house before Christmas Eve. Perhaps the most important rule is that each time a kiss is taken under the mistletoe a berry should be picked from the sprig. When all the berries are gone then the kissing has to stop. Shame! .
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on seasonal kissing

the holy and the ivy

a more beautiful version I haven't EVER heard. . .

a little history:
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Holly (ilex aquifolium)
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Holly (the word "holly" originates from the Old English word "hollin") has been used as a festive decoration since earliest times and is ritually symbolic for almost all pagan religions. Unlike most other plants and trees, the holly tree is at its most spectacular in mid-winter with brilliant red berries and glossy green leaves. It is hardly surprising that our pagan ancestors regarded it as magical.
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Traditions surrounding the holly abound. It was said that a walking stick made from holly would protect the person who carries it from any wild animal. A holly tree on your property was believed to ward off witches and to be the place where faeries and elves lived. A syrup made from holly allegedly cures coughs. A sprig of holly on a bedpost assures one of pleasant dreams. Early Christians adopted the holly with enthusiasm and it became symbolic of the ‘crown of thorns’ worn by Jesus on his way to be crucified. A very early tradition suggests that the holly originally had yellow berries until they were stained red with Jesus’s blood.
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Holly was traditionally seen as a ‘male’ plant – perhaps because it is so prickly! This tradition was not universally accepted. Because holly has both very prickly leaves and softer leaves it was believed by some people that both sexes were represented in the same plant and it all depended on which sort of leaves were used to decorate the house as to who was going to be in charge for the coming year.

Ivy (hedera helix)
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The traditions associated with ivy date back into pre-history when it was seen as a ‘female’ plant. Bacchus, the Roman god of drinking, is always depicted with a wreath of ivy as it was said to ward off drunkenness. Not a particularly good omen for the festive season perhaps.
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Ivy has a number of traditions associated with it including the ability to predict the future and cause domestic strife. It was said that people should drop an ivy leaf in a glass of water on New Year’s Eve and leave it until Twelfth Night. If it stays fresh and green then a good year will follow but look out if any black spots appear as these foretell bad luck.

Holly and Ivy

Since holly and ivy were believed to represent men and women, it was said that whichever was brought into the house first would dictate who rules the residence. . .

candy canes

it's beginning to look
a lot like Christmas!

"The history of candy canes goes back to the 17th century, when candy-makers across Europe were already producing hard sugar sticks, a popular treat at the time. Unlike their modern counterparts, however, these candy cane predecessors were completely straight and all-white in color. Then, in 1670, the choirmaster of Germany's Cologne Cathedral introduced a new twist to the sweet sugar sticks. He intended to hand the candy out to children to keep them quiet during the church's lengthy Christmas ceremony, and to commemorate the occasion he had the sticks bent at one end to resemble shepherds' crooks. Thus was born the familiar hook-shaped appearance of today's candy canes.
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"Following the choirmaster's innovation, bent sugar stick treats became a popular holiday confection throughout Europe. The first documented reference of candy canes in the United States goes back to 1847, when a German-Swedish immigrant named August Imgard decorated his Christmas tree by hanging the treats from its branches. Friends and family members were delighted by Imgard's idea, and they rushed home to adorn their own Christmas evergreens with candy canes. This tradition quickly spread across the country, making candy canes a staple of Christmas celebrations in the United States. But these plain white canes still lacked the colorful designs seen in today's versions. No one is sure exactly when the customary red stripes were introduced, but it was somewhere around the turn of the century. Christmas cards produced before 1900 show plain white canes, while striped ones appear on many cards printed almost immediately thereafter. Additionally, the popular peppermint-flavored variation also emerged around the same time as the striped patterns."