Clare Florist Blog

Throughout the world, the dawn of each new year is welcomed with celebrations and is seen as a time to reflect on the year past and to consider the possibilities of the year ahead. New year doesn't fall on the same date for all cultures, however. In the US, Canada, Australia and much of Europe, as well as the UK, it takes place on January 1st. This is following the Gregorian calendar and coincides with ancient winter solstice celebrations. In China, however, a lunar calendar is followed and the new year falls on the new moon between January 22nd and February 19th. In other countries it is celebrated in the spring, when life is seen to renew itself, while others choose the autumn, the time of the harvest.

One of the most renowned January 1st new year's celebrations is that of the Scots. In Scotland the eve of the new year, December 31st, is known as Hogmanay and the night is celebrated with fireworks and festivities. From midnight onwards the tradition of 'first-footing' begins. This means a race to be the first person over the threshold of a friend or neighbour, usually bearing a symbolic gift to bring good luck to the householder, traditionally, salt, coal, shortbread, whisky or fruitcake. A similar tradition of gift giving on the first day of the new year exists in Wales, where it's called Calennig. Another Scottish tradition, which has migrated to many countries now, is the singing of Auld Lang Syne at midnight. This was a traditional poem rewritten by the famous Scottish poet, Robert Burns and later set to music. In literal translation to modern English, the title is “old long since” but it means something like 'long ago' or 'times gone by'. The beginning goes like this:

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind ?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and auld lang syne ?

CHORUS:
For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

Here's a link to the music if you want to practice!
Happy New Year from Clare Florist — looking forward to all the good things to come in 2008!

Today I received a Christmas letter from my aunt in Wales, telling me how things have been going for her and her husband and my cousins this past while, and a card from my brother and his girlfriend in Spain. It's been at least six months since I spoke to either —perhaps even a year— and it was lovely to hear from both, though it also left me feeling a little sad that we don't see more of one another. No big family Christmases for me; we're too spread out. Busy, separate lives and all that. It made me think, though, how special it is to have this time in the stillness of winter to pause and think of such distant loved ones, to have an occasion to prompt us to get in touch where it might otherwise be put off repeatedly, indefinitely, not because we don't want to get in touch, but because it's difficult to know where to begin when there is no given occasion and because there's always the laundry, work, the shopping, the dog to be walked, immediate friends... The celebrations at this time of year mean many things to different people —unfortunately including stress for many— but surely this is one of the most precious and universal values of Christmas? A time to share our caring for one another, though we may fail to do so for so much of the rest of the year... Sniff. I think I will have to go watch A Christmas Carol, though I think my choice is between The Muppets or Mickey Mouse versions!

Or maybe I should go to the direct source and finally read the book.
“I have endeavoured in this Ghostly little book, to raise the Ghost of an Idea, which shall not put my readers out of humour with themselves, with each other, with the season, or with me. May it haunt their houses pleasantly, and no one wish to lay it.
Their faithful Friend and Servant, C.D.
December, 1843.”

Best wishes for Christmas and New Year - Lucy

Did you know that boxing day is also the start of Kwanza? Established in 1966 by Maulana Karenga, a professor at California State University, Kwanza is a relatively recent tradition. It celebrates both the African heritage and the current place of African-Americans around the world and runs from December 26th to January 1st. Kwanza is a Swahili word meaning “first fruits” or “fruits of the harvest”.

The festival involves the ritual lighting of seven candles (the Mishumaa Saba) representing the seven principles of Kwanza which are collectively called Nguzo Saba. These principles are Unity (Umoja), Self-determination (Kujichagulia), Collective Work and Responsibility (Ujima), Cooperative Economics (Ujamaa), Pupose (Nia), Creativity (Kuumba), and Faith (Imani). (Sound good to me!) The candles are in three colours: black, representing the skin of the African people; red symbolising the blood they've shed, and green representing hope for the future and remembrance of the motherland. Three green candles are placed on the left of a special candleholder (a Kinara), three red ones on the right and a black candle in the centre. Each day of the celebration one of the candles is lit. Houses are decorated with colourful traditional cloths and other decorations and there is drumming, music and dance, as well as reflection on the seven principles. And finally, not to be missed, feasting, including lots of fresh fruit!

Some more fascinating tales of festive flora...

Holy Holly

Perhaps the best known Christmas plant, next to the Christmas tree, holly has has a long history of connection with winter festivals. Because it stays green and glossy through the winter, it was revered by the druids in ancient times. They considered it a symbol of death and regeneration and, along with ivy and mistletoe, used it in their winter solstice ceremonies. The belief that holly had magical properties continued and it was used as a charm to ward off evil spirits, placed over doorways or planted in front of the house. Another superstition led the people to bring sprigs of holly into the house during winter so that the woodland elves and fairies who supposedly lived in the holly would be safe and warm through the harshest time of year! In Christian lore it became associated with the crown of thorns and the blood of Christ.

With its shiny, deep-green leaves and bright red berries, holly is a favourite decoration for brightening up the home through the dreary days of northern winters. Have a look at our colourful Berry Christmas bouquet!

Pretty Poinsettia

The distinctive crimson, star-shaped upper leaves of the poinsettia are often mistaken for petals. Being a native of Mexico, it wasn't until more recent times that the poinsettia was brought over to take its place in the Christmas tradition of Europe. In Mexico, however, a touching legend arose linking the plant to the Christmas spirit. It's said that one Christmas a young girl (or, in other versions, a young boy) went to visit the nativity scene in the local village chapel. She had no gift to give the Christ child and the best she could do was to gather some of the roadside weeds, but when she laid them in humble, loving offering by the manger, the little bouquet of leaves blossomed into the beautiful red stars of the poinsettia. Thus the flower became known as the Flores de Noche Buena – Flowers of the Holy Night. It has even been appointed it's own day in the festive season: December 12th!

Hurrah ! Santa is almost here.
We've helped the elves as much as we could by making sure all your flower parcels have been dispatched on time.
So now all we have to do is go home and sit back by the Christmas tree waiting for him to come.
As you know Rudolph heads up his team of reindeer, but do you know the rest of them?
Here you go Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner & Blitzen.
Children remember to leave out some food for those weary reindeer. They're used to finding food beneath the snow but they also like dried porridge oats mixed with a wee bit of sugar, they need the sugar to pull the sleigh laden with presents.
You can sprinkle it in the garden and lead a path to your door, when you wake in the morning they will have eaten most of it!
So go to bed nice and early and close your eyes tight, make a wish and you can be sure the reindeer will come that night.
Have a very Merry Christmas from Kerryanne and all the team at Clare Florist.

The Winter Solstice (like the Summer Solstice and Spring and Autumn Equinoxes) is an astronomical event. It is the shortest day and longest night of the year, after which (slow though it seems!) the days begin to grow longer: a turning point in the annual orbit of Earth round the Sun. It didn't take a modern scientist to realise this, though, and the occasion has been celebrated in pagan traditions for centuries past. This year it falls on December 22nd (sometimes it's December 21st). Officially, it marks the beginning of Winter but it is also known as Midwinter, which is more what it feels like to me —the nights may be growing shorter but it's only getting colder!

Many festivities are held around this time today, some of which I've written about in earlier entries. There's Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year's, St Lucia's Day, Kwanzaa, Yalda... Most of these involve symbols of rebirth and light. The best known name for the ancient celebration is Yule, or Yuletide. The Norsemen of Northern Europe would light bonfires, tell stories and drink sweet ale at this time of year. An enormous Yule Log would be lit and feasts would be held for as long as it burned: from three to twelve days. In the Celtic tradition it was believed that the Sun stood still for twelve days at midwinter, so the the Yule log would be lit to bring light during this time, to ward off evil spirits and attract good luck for the New Year. Druids would give mistletoe, a symbol of life through the deadness of winter, as a blessing. In the Wiccan tradition, too, ceremonies are held to welcome the rebirth of the Great God: the newborn solstice Sun.

In ancient Rome the midwinter/new year festival was called Saturnalia and it was a time for ordinary rules to be turned upside down. Men would dress as women and masters as servants. They would also, as we do still today, decorate their homes with evergreens, light candles, exchange gifts and hold processions. Who would have known our traditions had such a long history (though the cross-dressing seems to have fallen by the wayside)!

Of course, all this only applies to the Northern Hemisphere at this time of year, but our friends down South celebrate their midwinter Yulefest too —only it falls in late June! The Australian tradition includes the lighting of a bonfire, as well as some of the traditions that have migrated from Europe.

To those this end of the globe, happy Winter Solstice! (And a happy Midsummer's to the other half!)

It's been a busy week here at Clare Florist with lots of beautiful bouquets being sent out in time for Christmas. Though it is Christmas which makes itself most apparent in the shops and on television here in the UK, I wondered what other festivals might be being celebrated at this time of year and I was surprised at how many other winter celebrations there are when I started looking into it! More to come later, but here are a couple that have already been:

Hanukkah, which began this year at sundown on December 4th, is an important Jewish celebration, also known as the Festival of Lights. It commemorates the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem in the second century BC, following its desecration by the Syrians. The festival lasts eight days and for each day a candle is lit on the the Menorah, a special eight branched candelabra. This recalls the miracle of the small vial of oil which lasted a full eight days until a new supply could be found when the temple was being rededicated. Translated from the Hebrew, Hanukkah means 'dedication' or 'consecration' and it is transcribed into various spellings in the roman alphabet, including Hannukah, Hanukah and Chanukah.

Bodhi Day takes place on December 8th and celebrates the day of the Buddha's Enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree. Did you know the Bodhi Tree is actually a type of fig, also known as Pipul? On this day Buddhists dedicate extra time to meditating and reflecting on the Four Noble Truths set out by the Buddha, which concern the nature of suffering and the possibility of transcending it.

To those of you who celebrated Hanukkah or Bodhi Day this year, I hope your celebrations brought some light and warmth into the winter days. We'd love to hear more about how you marked these occasions!

Today (December 13th) is my saint's day and though it's not widely celebrated here in my homeland, I discovered that in Scandinavian countries it marks the beginning of the Christmas celebrations and acts as an occasion to bring light into the darkness. In the old Julian calendar December 13th fell on the shortest day of the year, the winter solstice and, aptly, the name Lucia (or Lucy, in its English version) comes from the Latin word for 'light'.

The legend of St Lucia goes that in 304 AD she was a wealthy young Christian woman living on the isle of Sicily. Unfortunately this was during the last great persecution of Christians, led by the Emperor Diocletian. After she prayed to St Agatha, her ailing mother was miraculously cured and Lucia persuaded her to distribute her wealth among the poor. Lucia also gave up her dowry and her proposed marriage to a pagan man, committed to a life of chastity. Enraged, her suitor denounced her to the Roman authorities who had her tortured. They tore out her eyes and set her to be burned alive but the flames would not harm her. Finally a soldier pierced her with a sword (or, in some versions of the tale, beheaded her) but before she died her eyesight was restored. Thus she became the patron saint of the blind, as well as of Sicily. Later, a famine is said to have ended after the Sicilians prayed to her, ships loaded with grain arriving in the harbour.

In parts of Italy her day is celebrated much as St Nicolas's day and Christmas are elsewhere in Europe. Children leave food out for her and her flying donkey, who helps her to carry gifts that she leaves for them in the night. They're not allowed to see her delivering these gifts; if caught she will throw ashes into their eyes temporarily blinding them! And naughty children will get coal instead of presents. In remembrance of the ended famine, a boiled wheat dish they called Cuccia is eaten.

It is in Sweden, however, that her day is most recognised. Traditionally, the oldest daughter of the family dresses in a white gown and wears a wreath of lit candles on her head. On the morning of St Lucia's Day she brings coffee and Lussekatt (Lucy cats, special Lucia day saffron buns), to wake her family. There are also Lucia Day processions in which young girls and boys dressed in white gowns and bearing candles sing traditional Lucia day carols, lead by the elected Lucia who wears a candle-wreath and a red sash (symbolising the saint's martyred blood). They visit schools, hospitals, offices and churches, distributing gingerbread biscuits and Lussekatt.

Fancy celebrating St Lucy's Day yourself? Make your own Cuccia or Lussekatt, and here are some more suggestions.

Enjoy - Lucy

Decorating your door with a wreath during the festive season can add a
warm welcome to your home or office on the cold and dark winter days,
but have you ever wondered what's behind the tradition?

Wreaths are made with flowers and leaves and sometimes fruit and
ribbons, woven into a ring to be hung on a door or wall or placed as an
ornamental centrepiece on a table. The tradition hails back to the time
of the Greeks and Romans when they were associated with the god Apollo,
god of the sun, life and health, and they became a symbol for victory
(think of Caesar's famous laurel wreath crown). The circular form
symbolises eternity and immortality. In the cold winter months, the use
of evergreen plants like pine, holly and yew acts as a further symbol
for the strength of life, which conquers even through the hardships of
inhospitable winters. Festive wreaths are sometimes embellished with
candles, a reminder of the sun that will return, and red berries and
pine cones which may traditionally signify the autumn harvest.

With such a rich tradition and symbolism behind it, hanging a festive
door wreath not only brightens up the dull winter days but has come to
act as a reminder of the spring to come and is thought to herald
contentment and good luck into the new year.

Though winter, with its waning light, is a time of hibernation for many species, with most trees leafless and few flowers or fruits to brighten the landscape, those flowers, berries and foliage which remain play an important part in the traditions of the festive season.

Romantic Mistletoe

Known best for its presence in Christmas stories and pictures and the tradition of 'kissing under the mistletoe' at Christmas time, mistletoe is a parasitic plant which grows in the branches of trees and shrubs. It has long oval leaves and bears clusters of small white berries. It's now a cause for conservation projects in parts of Britain, while in other countries it has become a pest in need of control.

Mistletoe has a rich history in myths and customs. It bears its fruit late in the year and was used by the druids in ancient times for their winter solstice ceremonies as it was believed to have magical properties — perhaps because it has no roots yet remains green through the winter. The ancient Celts and medieval Britons used it as a healing plant and to ward off evil spirits, while for the Romans it was a symbol of peace and friendship. It also took on a darker role in other traditions. In Norse mythology the God Balder was killed with an arrow of mistletoe after everything else living and growing on the earth had sworn not to harm him. In the Christian story it's said that the cross on which Christ was crucified was made of the wood of the then mistletoe tree. After the crucifixion, the legend goes, the plant shrivelled up in shame or punishment into its present day state as a parasitic vine.

It's not known how the English tradition of kissing under the mistletoe arose —perhaps it came from its association with friendship and good luck. The tradition involves the hanging of sprigs or garlands of mistletoe: anyone who stands underneath can expect to receive a kiss! Particularly for young women seeking marriage, this was said to bring good luck, but in one tradition a berry must be plucked for each kiss and when there are no more the mistletoe is no longer lucky. Another superstition holds that the mistletoe must be burned on Twelfth Night or the couples who kissed under it will lose their luck and might never get married.

Besides these traditions, mistletoe is still used as a healing plant by modern herbalists and is being studied as a potential treatment for tumours. It must only be used medicinally in skilled hands, though, for if not properly prepared and administered the berries are poisonous!

Saint Nicolas is the common name for  Saint Nicholas, a Lycian saint and Bishop of Myra. He was born in the third century in the village of Patara. He had a reputation for secret gift-giving but is now identified with Santa Claus in the UK and USA.
Saint Nicholas Day is now mainly a festival for children in many European Countries, here's an idea of how its celebrated by our European cousins.....

Netherlands

Children and adults enjoy the parades and celebrations in every village on the 5th and 6th of  December to welcome St Nicholas and his helper Zwarte Piet.  Sinterklaas (the Dutch name for St Nicholas) rides  into town on a white horse to visit the children and put gifts in their clogs.

France

Children leave their shoes by the fireplace to be filled with gifts from  Pere Noel, although  Pere Fouettard will be with him carrying a bunch of sticks to beat naughty children - ouch!

Germany

In Germany he is known as Klaasbuur many children put a boot outside the front door, if they have been naughty it will be filled with coal instead of gifts :-(

Spain
In Spain however things are very different, the children leave thier shoes under the Christmas tree the night of January 5th and presents from the Three Kings appear the next morning. These days Papa Noel comes on the 24th December also!

Of course here in the UK our children have to wait until Christmas Eve to hang thier stockings up!
How lucky the children of Europe are that they have two days in which they can recieve gifts, but be warned children he knows if you have been bad or good - so be good for goodness sakes!