Christmas Eve & Dayzed 2009

In 46 BCE, Julius Caesar in his Julian calendar established December 25 as the date of the winter solstice of Europe.

I ain't much for Christmas. Lots of reasons that you can guess and I won't go into. Coincidental is it not, how we seem to have the same symbolic celebrations - by different names - over time and space? And so it is the eve and day of a mid-winter festival known in my culture and time as Christmas, just a few days after Solstice.

Good reasons for having a mid-winter festival. Across time and space, these gatherings have value for emotional comfort, having something to look forward to at the darkest time of the year. This is especially true for those of us who live north of latitude 45 degrees. (We're at 47 degrees 30 minutes) The depressive psychological effects of winter on meself and lots of others are experienced as coldness, tiredness, malaise, and inactivity. This is S.A.D. is it not?

Insufficient sunlight sucks! I read somewhere that "the short winter days increase the secretion of melatonin in the body, throwing off the circadian rhythm with longer sleep. Exercise, light therapy, increased negative ion exposure (which can be attained from plants and well ventilated flames, burning wood or beeswax) can reinvigorate the body from its seasonal lull and relieve winter blues by decreasing melatonin secretions, increasing serotonin and temporarily creating a more even sleeping pattern." Or, insufficient sunlight sucks!

The winter solstice, thus Christmas et. al. may have been immensely important because communities were not certain of living through the winter, and had to be prepared during the previous nine months. Starvation was common in winter between January and April, also known as the famine months. In temperate climates, the midwinter festival was the last feast celebration, before deep winter began. Now that's depressing. No apologies. Sorry.

Christmas Eve. Nope. No Adam. Widowed twice. Mary Ann of Fergus Falls. Mother and Mother-in-law to three and three. She comes to visit two daughters in Bemidji during the festival. She has a son living in Indiana by the name of Miles. He thought about moving to Canada once, but didn't want to change his name to Kilometers.
The eldest daughter, middle child. Prefers the Great North Woods in Winter over the Great Plains of Fergus. The conifers temper the winter tempests.
Kari, the baby of the family tries to hide behind a wine glass not realizing it doesn't work. She used to love peek-a-boo too.
Ken, husband of Kari. Yes, as you can tell by the star shine, he is one of the wise guys.

There's a light on

over my head, my Lord

There's a light on

over my head, let it shine

Let it shine, let it shine

Although it may not be

the only one

Let me shine,

shine, shine, shine

Although I may not be

the only one.

~Neil Young

Kari and Ken's son Nathaniel or Nate of late. He's also nephew of Barbara and I. Interesting fellow, a hockey coach and Roy Orbison fan.
Confused and amused and needing a mid-winter festival to help with sanity. It isn't working do you think?

I can see very well

There's a boat on the reef with a broken back

And I can see it very well

There's a joke and I know it very well

It's one of those that I told you long ago

Take my word I'm a madman don't you know

~Elton John/Bernie Taupin, Madman Across the Water

Kari playing it straight looking over her mother. If you've never heard a Kari-ism, you've missed a good laugh. She laughs too, so it's okay.
Nate and Ken, moved by the revelry of Christmas lead the rest of us in caroling. Fa la la la bah!
Little sister, koy Kari.
Christmas Day. We move over to the other side of the family for dinner at Gregory and Lizette's. They be cooking up a turkey with all the fixin's, they're good at it and do it often. Cook up a turkey that is.

A Mother and Child Reunion.

"Oh look, yet another Christmas TV special! How touching to have the meaning of Christmas brought to us by cola, fast food, and beer... Who'd have ever guessed that product consumption, popular entertainment, and spirituality would mix so harmoniously?"

~Bill Watterson, Calvin & Hobbes

Our two hosts listen to the conversation of mother and daughter. They both like Calvin and Hobbes. The feline at center claims to be a second cousin once removed to the stuffed toy tiger. Thus being outside the third degree of kindred, theoretically...they could marry.
Ivory the cat. Got an attitude about Christmas festivals which is none at all or more of the same.
"Hmmm", says I. Engaged in some thinking of something, or so it seems or was it sew it, seams.

And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet cold in the snow,

stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so?

It came without ribbons. It came without tags.

It came without packages, boxes or bags.

And he puzzled and puzzled ‘till his puzzler was sore.

Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before.

What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store.

What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.

~Dr. Seuss

The mark 4 dinner set, & ready 2 go.
Barbie sits with a window winter wonderland behind her and through the glass darkly.

Bright lights come and go

Playing blue songs on my radio

Shadows still appear in the house tonight

Ghosts have come in from the past

All those ghosts that keep on coming back

Sliding through the walls and my windows

When I’m with you

The nights are cold and long

Still can’t remember

What it feels like to be strong

I’ve tried to blend in

But it seems I don’t belong

I don’t know what it’s coming to

But I’m looking through the glass darkly

~Annie Lennox

We await the cooks to be seated.

A lovely thing about Christmas is that is is compulsory, like a thunderstorm, we all go through it together.

~Garrison Keillor

Ten hours of cooking, twenty minutes of eating, two hours for clean-up

Darkness falls, and Christmas is done. Yes! Another week, and maybe some semblance of normality...whatever the heck that means.

So this is Christmas

And what have you done

Another year over

And a new one just begun

And so this is Christmas

I hope you have fun

The near and the dear ones

The old and the young

And so this is Christmas

For weak and for strong

For rich and the poor ones

The world is so wrong

And so happy Christmas

For black and for white

For yellow and red ones

Let’s stop all the fight

A very merry Christmas

And a happy New Year

Let’s hope it’s a good one

Without any fear

~John Lennon and Yoko Ono