BBQ northern style

Toques, headlamps and steak - works for me

Christmas

🎼🎶🎵 Deck the halls with boughs of holly, 

fa la la la la, la la la la 🎼🎶🎵

With the first snowfall, and especially with the first cold snap, my brain starts to shift. I tend to semi-hibernate in the cold months. This year we went directly from a warm and sunny autumn to the dead of winter in just a few days! Fortunately we were ready with all the winter prep complete, but are we ever mentally prepared for that first snow? I was already suffering from the sudden absence of a catalyst to get me off my… to get me going. It’s hard to overcome inertia when the things that need doing are uninteresting and can be put off for another day. With nothing pushing me - no tomatoes calling to be salsa, no garden cleanup, no tools to stow away before the snow hides them - well I was spending a lot of time curling up with a book (Kindle - I love my reader). But now, suddenly, Christmas tradition is calling. 

Women are the keepers of Christmas traditions (mostly). If it were up to men, well it would not be quite the same, would it? Many of our traditions are carried forward from nostalgic memories of our youth and others are formed by the unique circumstances of our own families, when the kids were young, when we are old. We lock ourselves, willingly, into carrying on the traditions we have established over the years. We do what is expected by our friends, our families, and ourselves. As long as it’s enjoyable we may as well continue on. But we do need to remember they’re traditions, not mandates. If your Christmas celebrations become too much, lose their joy, you can make changes! We could become snowbirds, we could have Christmas dinner at a restaurant, get a pre-decorated tree…

One of my favourite memories from youth - the whole family would sit around the Christmas tree “guessing”, with a smile, what my mom’s gift from her sister back east would be. “I wonder,” my mom would say, “what can it be?” She’d open the parcel and exclaim, “I never would have guessed!” And we’d all join in with a good laugh. Without fail my aunt followed her giving tradition - a new apron every year.

Another family tradition was having a village under the tree. My dad built a cathedral, a log cabin, a crèche, and we had a blue mirror lake for wee skaters. As kids we spent hours playing in that village. My sister, Karen, carried this tradition on in her home with her own village, and when she passed in the first Covid wave I inherited it, replacing my tiny one. I’ve other reminders of my sister throughout my home - she was a watercolour artist and her beautiful paintings adorn my walls.

My traditional Christmas gift is caramel corn. When I stop making it my friends and family, and myself, will have to accept that I’m old. Until then the popcorn kernels will keep getting a sugary winter coat.

Christmas shopping has changed a lot for me over the years. It was more fun when I was looking for toys for little ones. Big “kids” seem to prefer gift cards or cash so they can get what they really want. The older folks mostly have what they need and buying useless junk doesn’t sit well with me. I like to give gifts that get used up, like boxes of chocolates, gifts of shared experience, handmade goodies. Having said that I do have to say I admire people, like my daughter-in-law, who have an uncanny ability to spot the perfect gift you had no idea you would need or love. Such gifts hold as much love as handmade and, in today’s busy world, are more possible. Then of course, for some, there’s the practical gifts, things people need and simply won’t or can’t get for themselves. Times are getting hard for many. Food banks are overwhelmed. More people are reduced to living on the streets. Santa’s anonymous has an unprecedented sign up list. Sadly, there’s no shortage of people in need of a merrier Christmas. 

My sister’s Christmas village

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Yum, yum!