Whew, a very strong wind nearly blew me away this morning! December dawned cool and crisp, the ground frosted and the trees completely bare. Winter has come! We only had one tiny snowfall about two weeks ago, but nothing major yet. I need to make sure I have enough ice scrapers – those early Monday mornings can be brutal!
Many of my neighbors have put out fun Christmas decorations and lights already. My roommate came home with two gorgeous real balsam wreaths and we also set up the little plug-in Christmas tree. It’s so cute – three feet high and even has fiber-optic lights. I put it on a side table in the living room and draped a square of Christmas fabric as a tree skirt. Very festive! My mother was allergic to pine trees, so we never had a real tree growing up. It was kind of fun to go digging around in the cellar every year for our artificial tree, then set it up and straighten out the wire branches. No pine needles to clean up!
People have been celebrating with wreaths for hundreds of years. The traditional circle shape was originally a head adornment made of laurel leaves to celebrate Olympic winners in Ancient Greece. The Advent wreath has origins in pre-Christian culture as well. The practice of putting lit candles on balsam circlets came about as a practice to ancient deities as an offering to bring about the sunlight of warmer days.
The different types of greenery each have their own specific meanings in the origin of ‘holy days’ (holidays). Pine, holly, and yew symbolize immortality and cedar represents strength and healing. Pinecones, nuts and seedlings are about rebirth and life, popular themes this winter month! Ancient cultures celebrated the darkest night of the year with festivals about light and rebirth.
So, the tradition of decorating with a wreath, whether a bright green one wrapped in red velvet bows for your door, a fun one on your car’s front grill, or one as a table centerpiece with candles goes back a long way! Oh, and when the season has passed, use the old branches as protection for your garden. Your plants will thank you!
The Wreath Hangers are popular as well – choose the star, cardinal or tree for a decoration you can use year after year. The Cardinal Wreath is handmade as well with real dried flowers. The Magnetic Wreath Holder is also useful and holds up to 8 lbs. They are a festive way to display the natural beauty of the season!
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