ST.Lucias Day was definitely a memorable holiday this year. It was better than I could have planned.
I planned to celebrate it yesterday (the actual holiday but that just didn't fit into the books) .... so today I woke up to a roaring storm. It knocked power out across the entire county and knocked trees over left and right. Our power never went off for more than 5 minutes but it flickered the entire day. We watched from our windows the wind throwing Christmas lights, outdoor furniture and the rain blowing sideways.
I got my trusty ole' cast iron pot ready to cook soup on the woodstove just incase and got the boys to help me break open our bounty of walnuts we harvested off our property this year. It was like trying to break out of jail (well, in jail would be correct , not out) trying to open those shells without cracking them. We managed to get a heap of usable shells. I broke out the double broiler. Crossed my fingers the power stayed on. I poured in the beeswax and let the house begin to flourish with the smell of honey. We didn't have wicks, so we scavaged through my trusty crafting desk and got ourselves some string and made homemade wicks (instructions to come on later post.) We made the most adorable little walnut candles. After we were done the boys played with the wicks and wax and expiremented with making different size and shape candles of their own. We got 1 usable birthday candle out of it and a cat shaped candle with a wick for a tail. Later that day we made tissue paper lanterns with a mason jar and made a little handle on it. The boys were so excited they couldn't wait to use them. It had barely turned dark and my oldest immediately jumped up. He wanted to go shut the chickens with his new lantern. Well, as long as mom and all the dogs went with him for protection. So we went on a night journey across the property. We light up all the Christmas lights outside, shut the chicken coop and even went and got the package left at the gate. All under the light of one little candle in a homemade lantern. The smile and pride that radiates across my sons face was worth every second. He was a proud (knight?) carrying his lantern for everyone through the dark. Tomorrow to cap off all of today's celebrations we will read Lucia and the Light as the celebrations continue on until The Solstice.
