Christmas Past Mingles With Christmas Present

My mother-in-law loved Christmas.  She shopped all year for presents and if one looked, one could find wrapped gifts stashed in the corner of every closet in her house, even in July. 

 All during the month of December, she baked the best cookies I have ever tasted.  Her house was decorated with an entire winter wonderland village.  And she relished  fixing Christmas dinner for the whole family. 

 I think she enjoyed Christmas almost as much as her grandchildren did. She has been gone for fifteen years and I miss her most at Christmas.

She made this nativity for us in a ceramics class one year early in our marriage. It has been a part of our Christmas every year since. Some years we set it up on a table and some years it is nestled under the tree.

As soon as her first grandchild was born, Mom began making or buying ornaments . Our tree is covered with these handmade gems loaded with memories.

 Now that our girls are starting their own families and Christmas traditions, I plan to pass the ornaments on to them.  Perhaps a bit of 'Nana' and her child-like joy  of celebrating Christmas will get passed along to her great grandsons.

 One year, she gave us a table sized carousel as a Christmas gift.  With the flip of a switch, it turned, lights flashed and it played about 10 different Christmas songs.  My children were teenagers when she gave it to us and so neither I nor they were especially impressed with it at the time.

It wasn't until MY first grandchild stared at it with wondrous eyes, that I began to appreciate it.  And every year since then, I have whispered a thank you to my mother-in-law for this wonderful gift, the gift of seeing Christmas through the eyes of a child.

This Christmas, I have a new grandson, a wide-eyed five month old boy.  My mother-in-law would be delighted to know that he is named after her son, my husband. How she would have loved to watch him stare at the carousel and the lights and then hear him squeal with delight! 

We celebrate Christmas to recall the moment when God came to be with us, indeed, becoming one of us. Perhaps the only way we can ever approach such an extraordinary happening, is with the innocent wide-eyed stare of a child. And once the wonder of it dawns on us, we, too, can squeal with delight!!

Merry Christmas!!!

What a Difference A Week Makes!

I took some photos in my garden during the first week of December and discovered, if not a blooming parade of summer flowers, at least some quiet snippets of  late autumn beauty.

 The sage was still quite green and the skimmia had tiny flowers on it!

 I leave many flower heads in the garden for two reasons.  The birds visit from September to November to feast on the seeds and I enjoy the golden sculptured look of the spent flowers.

 The leaves remain on the beds all winter too.  They keep my perennials warm and  eventually break down  into compost.  If they are still around in spring, we rake them into the compost.

 The euonymus is covered with berries at this time of year - another food source for the birds.

 My rhododendron has set buds for next year already.  Now if only they can escape the notice of hungry squirrels in mid-winter.

 This week we woke to a lovely snow shower which dumped an inch or two of snow on us, turning the world outside my window into a white sculpture garden.

 The sage wears a white fur coat this week!

 The snow clings to the seed pods in new and ,sometimes, dramatic ways, creating some unusual patterns.

 St Francis stoically remains a fixture all year round. (I think the birds come to visit him, not me)

So while everyone else is searching the malls for the latest toys and the biggest bargains, I wait with quiet anticipation for the gifts of December to come to my garden - family, celebrations, a new season of cold and snow and a new season of renewal of the heart - with the retelling of the ancient story that still has the capacity to make hearts leap with joy! The Christmas Story.

December Sorrow

    My last post was about how December is a month for and about children. It was titled 'December Joy' and  I  recalled my own childhood as I pulled Christmas out of the attic, relived our children's Christmases  and planned  for more  magic  for our beautiful four-year old grandson.

    I was writing and posting my photos and recollections, forming some haiku as I went along last Friday morning.  No TV, no radio just me and my poetry.  So it was an enormous shock to discover what had transpired while I was writing about the joy and innocence of Christmas.  It was an enormous shock no matter how or when one heard the news.

   I am heart-broken......devastated.......  bereft of words.......filled with sadness like everyone else.

  At the heart of Christmas, of course, is the Holy One who came as a vulnerable child to teach the world about love. The One who always let the children come to Him.  I have no doubt He weeps with us today.

  All I can do is pray....... for the children, their parents, grandparents and siblings, friends and neighbors. All the ones for whom Christmas will never again be wrapped in joyful memories.   May they be consoled.


Shared with Recuerda Mi Corazon

December Joys

***

december weekend
unpacking decorations
wrapped in memories

christmas 

enters her heart and soul

through many doors

fragrant pine

scented with childhood
excitement

candles and toys

decorate an evergreen

with joy

giving gifts

the magic of santa

lovely secret

warm kitchen

nana's linzer torts baking

hugs from heaven

carols sung

 with neighbors and friends

o holy night

Jesus

born in a stable

humble love

a prayer

for the bells of peace to ring

on earth

***

Sharing with Recuerda Mi Corazon Haiku My Heart

Christmas Bread

   OK, I admit it, I was never the cookie mom when my kids were small.  They knew better than to ask me to bake for the class.  It just wasn't my thing. 

 But I could bake a mean loaf of bread and this particular recipe became a family favorite.  I've been making this bread at Christmastime for as long as any of us can remember.

 Where the original came from is lost to history. I have this written on an index card with enough wear and tear on it to have come from the Civil War, except for the fact that it is written in ball-point pen!

Bread making is a somewhat lengthy process and requires some skill in working with the amazing qualities of the living organism known as yeast.  I admit to having made several brick-like loaves before  I got the hang of it.  This is one of the easiest, most fool-proof recipes I've used and it is delicious!

  There are two parts to the recipe, the basic ingredients and the special add-ons which flavor the bread in various ways.  

   Here's how I do it:

 *** Gather the ingredients and start the bread early in the day.

 ***Bring 2 cups of water to a boil and add it to 1 cup of old-fashioned rolled oats in a large bowl.  Add 2 TBS of butter, 2 & 1/2  tsp of salt and 1/2 cup of honey or molasses.  Let this sit for 1/2 hour.

 *** Add 2 packages of yeast to 1/3 cup of lukewarm water. let this sit for 5-10 minutes.

 ***Add the yeast to the oat mixture and stir.

 ***Add the special ingredients if using.
Choose one:
   * 1 cup of raisins and 1-2 tsp of cinnamon
   * 2 tsp rubbed sage,2 tsp caraway seeds, 1 tsp marjoram
   * 1/4 tsp thyme, 2 tsp summer savory,  1/2 tsp dried parsley, 1 tsp basil, 1/2 tsp anise seed
   * 3/4 cup of citron
   *or use 1/2 cup of orange marmalade and only 1/4 cup of molasses.

 Now you are ready to add the flour.  You need about 6 cups of flour give or take a 1/2 cup.  I use  half whole wheat and half white flour.  Stir in the first four cups of flour, mixing with a spoon. Add the last 2 cups of flour a little at a time and begin mixing with your hands once you can't stir anymore.  Keep adding the flour and kneading as you go.  As soon as the dough becomes sticky, add more flour.

Keep kneading.

Eventually(after about 10 to 15 minutes of kneading) the dough will take up all the flour and begin to have a slight sheen to it.   Kind of velvety.  That's when you've kneaded enough and you are ready to let the dough rise. Cover with a clean towel and place in a warm spot . In 1& 1/2 to 2 hours the dough will go from this:

 To this:

Now punch it down, divide in half and form 2 loaves.  Cover again and let rise for about 1 hour.

 When the loaves are peeking over the side of the pan they are ready to be baked at 325 about 4 inches from the bottom of the oven for about 40 to 50 minutes.

When they come out of the oven take the loaves out of the pans and place on a cooling rack.  Paint the top of the hot bread with butter to make the crust shiny and resist the temptation to devour the entire loaf before it cools a bit!

This recipe, depending on which 'special ingredients you choose, can be perfect with a cup of afternoon tea or as an accompaniment to a turkey dinner, or  for making a sandwich of leftover turkey.   I try to always have the cinnamon raisin loaf for our breakfast on Christmas morning. Toasted heaven!

Some hints for successful bread-making:
           ** Check the date on the yeast package to make sure it is fresh.
          ** Yeast needs lukewarm water to begin to work its magic.  Not too hot please!
          ** Yeast rises best in a warm kitchen free of drafts.  I usually put my dough into a (cold) oven with a pan of hot water under it.  This seems to be a perfect environment for the dough to rise.  Replenish the hot water as it cools.
           ** Don't be afraid to knead, knead, knead.  The flour has to break down for the bread to rise properly and the kneading promotes that.
   
Thought for today :  There are few aromas more wonderful than baking bread.  It seems to fill the house with love!