Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

Each year, it has been my custom to create a blog Advent calendar with a  post a day in December until Christmas Day. Last year, the very popular Christmas Countdown of Christmas cake can probably not be equalled, but here is the first of 25 - the ABC of Christmas characters.  ( Aren't there 26 letters in the alphabet, I hear you ask ... yes, perhaps there will be a bonus letter on one of the days). To make this even more interesting, I will create 25 sketches to accompany the story behind each of the characters of Christmas 2016. The Little Drummer Boy -  watercolour, ink , pencil - Wilma Simmons  A is for Aaron ... who ? This is the name given to the Little Drummer Boy in the 1968 animated film, based on the Christmas carol. The Little Drummer Boy is the story of a poor orphan boy who had no gift to give to the Christ Child, so he played his drum, with Mary's approval. Delighted with the drummer's music, the Baby Jesus smiled. The Christmas carol, first entitl...

Christmas Countdown ...3... Christmas Tree :   The symbolic meaning of Christmas trees actually originates in pagan culture where the evergreen represents life and renewal.  In Scandinavia, decorating evergreens was a practice associated with the Winter Solstice and often brought into homes, as symbols of protection against evil spirits. In many sources, Martin Luther, the Protestant reformer,  has been credited with the first decorated Christmas tree – with candles.  Although this could just be a story, German Christians are known to have decorated evergreens in their home as early as the mid-16 th century.  It wasn’t until the nineteenth century in other countries that Christmas trees became the bright " giving"  symbol of Christmas as we know it. The first Christmas tree in England was set up in Windsor Castle by Prince Albert of Saxony, Queen Victoria’s husband in 1841. Franklin Pierce was the first US president to introduce a Christmas ...

Christmas Countdown ...5... Candy Canes  The first historical reference to a candy cane at Christmas goes back to 1670 in Cologne, Germany. The choirmaster at the Cologne Cathedral gave out sweet sticks to children in the hope of quietening them during the Nativity church service on Christmas Eve. To justify giving out sweets, he asked the candy maker to add a crook to them to represent the staff belonging to the shepherds who visited the baby Jesus.    A German immigrant August Imgard allegedly took the idea of candy canes to America. The candy canes remained white.   On Christmas cards after 1900, the red and white stripes which we now know, appear although the history of the stripes and the now traditional peppermint flavour is unknown. 

Christmas Countdown ... 6... Crackers  Christmas crackers or bons bons are traditionally English. In the 1840’s in London, Tom Smith, disappointed that his sweets based on the French sweet almonds wrapped in pretty paper were not selling very well, included a “snap” to make a sound when they were opened. Crackers were originally called ‘cosaques’ and were thought to be named after Cossacks whose reputation for riding horses and firing pistols in the air wildly.  Some of the early crackers had love poems inside them, but when Tom died, and his sons took over the business, poetry was replaced by jokes, a paper crown was added and little toys or charms were included as special gifts inside the crackers. There were even “themed” crackers, with special tokens added for bachelors, spinsters and even Suffragettes!  In our family, there is a tradition of making handmade crackers. This year, one of our grandsons has provided the jokes! 

Christmas Countdown ...7... Pudding Coins  We all love Christmas pudding, but have you ever wondered where the practice of putting coins in the pudding came from? Getting a silver coin with your serving of pudding is said to bring good luck. This came possibly from the 1300s in Britain when a “Twelfth Night Cake” was eaten during the festivities on the twelfth night of Christmas. A dried bean or pea was baked inside the cake and whoever got it was “king” or “queen” for the night. The bean was sometimes a silver ring. Then it turned into a farthing or a penny and then after World War 1, a silver threepence or sixpence.  There was also a practice of using tokens in a pudding, which held predictions for the finder – a bachelor or spinster for the following year, or the prospect of marriage. These days, silver coins are no longer currency, but many (like me) have kept a few silver coins just to put in the pudding on Christmas Day. 

Christmas Countdown ...8...Wreaths have been used as Christmas decorations for hundreds of years, mostly on doors, in windows and over mantles. They are a symbol of growth and everlasting life. Wreaths were usually made of evergreen branches and decorated  with holly, pine cones, fruit or berries, and nowadays are  more than often artificial, with all kinds of decorations. From a Christian perspective, a wreath represents eternal life. 

Stars are very common symbols of Christmas. The Christmas Star, the Star of Bethlehem, is said to have led the Magi to Bethlehem where Christ was born. In many cultures, the star plays a very special part in Christmas and religious celebrations, as a symbol of high hopes, and good fortune   For example in Alaska, children sing carols and carry a star shaped figure from house to house  in the hope of receiving treats.  In Hungary, a star is carved into half of an apple, supposedly for good luck. Here's wishing you a starry night! 

Baubles:  The first “Christmas” trees were decorated with apples, strings of popcorn and pastry treats in the shapes of stars, hearts and flowers. They were illuminated later by candles.  The first glass baubles were said to be made in Lauscha, Germany by Hans Greiner –  at first, garlands of glass balls and then glass figurines.  In 1840’s, illustrations of Queen Victoria and family around a Christmas tree festooned with lights, and  ornamental glass baubles appeared in a London newspaper and also in  the American Godey’s Lady Book in 1860’s . These illustrations encouraged  a more widespread practice of decorating trees with ornaments and baubles in both Britain and America. Until the 1880's when the mass production of glass and moulded  tree baubles began in earnest,  tree decorations were created at home usually from paper, and lovingly used year after year. 

Christmas Countdown...11...  Have you ever wondered where the idea of a Christmas stocking came from? Here's a story.... Very long ago, there lived a poor man and his three very beautiful daughters. He had no money to get his daughters married, and he was worried what would happen to them after his death. He thought they would become prostitutes.  Saint Nicholas  was passing through when he heard the villagers talking about the girls. St. Nicholas wanted to help, but knew that the old man wouldn't accept charity. He decided to help in secret. After dark he threw three bags of  gold  through an open window, one landed in a stocking. When the girls and their father woke up the next morning they found the bags of gold and were, of course, overjoyed. The girls were able to get married and live happily ever after. Other versions of the story say that Saint Nicholas threw the 3 bags of gold directly into the stockings which were hung by the fireplace to dry.

The twelve days of Christmas are the twelve days between Christmas Day, 25 December   and the Epiphany, 6 January,  the day Christians celebrate the arrival of the Magi (Wise Men) .     The Christmas song, "The Twelve Days of Christmas" is a well known song which enumerates gifts, each day something more elaborate. There are many parodies .... here   is a modern Australian version. However, the song  actually had its origins in religious symbolism - and with a serious purpose.  It dates from a time of religious persecution. The song, "The Twelve Days of Christmas," was written as a kind of secret catechism that could  be sung in public without fear of arrest - a learning or memory aid to Christians.  

Christmas Countdown ... 13....  Christmas beetle is the common name for an Australian beetle Anonplognathus.  They are known as Christmas beetles because they are abundant in both urban and rural areas close to Christmas   Christmas beetles are large (20-30 mm long) members of the scarab family that are noisy and clumsy fliers. They are easily spotted in the sunshine because of their iridescent colours. It's not all good news about Christmas beetles, as some of the species have been implicated in dieback of Australian eucalypt trees. 

Christmas Countdown ....14 ...   Three Wise Men;   The   Magi , known as Three Wise Men or Three Kings   in Christian tradition were a group of distinguished foreigners who visited  Christ   after his birth, bearing gifts of   gold ,   frankincense   and   myrrh . They are regular figures in tra ditional accounts of the  nativity  celebrations of   Christmas .  In Matthew's Gospel, they "came from the east"  and while a number is not mentioned, it is widely assumed because of the three gifts that there were three men.  

Christmas Colours? I always thought red and white were traditional colours of Christmas because theywere the colours associated with Santa Claus, but  the origin of Santa dressing in red costume comes from a marketing strategy rather than a tradition. It was adopted by Coca Cola when an artist depicted their soda brand with the colour red during winter season. This was in 1890. Previously, Santa was dressed in green ever since the Victorian era.

Christmas Countdown ... 16...  In American folklore, a Christmas elf is a diminutive creature that lives with Santa Claus in the North Pole and acts as his helper. Christmas elves are usually depicted as green or red clad with pointy ears and pointy hats. Santa's elves are often said to make the toys in Santa's workshop and take care of his reindeer, among other tasks. They were first introduced by Louisa May Alcott in 1856. The association of Christmas presents with elves has precedents in the first half of the 19th century with the Tomte in Scandinavia.

. .. Good tidings we bring ... .   Angels played an important role in the first Christmas.  Gabriel , the archangel  of revelation, informed  Mary  that she would be the mother of  Jesus Christ  on Earth. An angel  visited Joseph in a dream  to tell him that he would serve as Jesus' father on Earth, and a vast amount of  angels appeared in the sky over Bethlehem  to announce and celebrate the birth   of Christ. Considering the vital role that angels played in the first Christmas, it's not surprising that they began to take prominent places on Christmas trees soon after people developed the tradition of decorating trees for Christmas.

 I have been counting down Christmas from 1 December on my Facebook page... here is some trivia I have been uncovering during the process. 25 Christmas Bells...   In older times he very shape of the bell is reminiscent to dome of heaven. In Christianity  the ringing of a bell is a sacred announcement to the presence of Christ at mass. In Buddhism, the sounding of a bell is the resonance of pure wisdom - a tonal symbol of perfect harmony & clarity. In Asian thought the bell is also a harmonic symbol - the bell itself considered female, the clapper or pendulum within the bell is male. The two working as one to create a beautiful tone is symbolic of the union between male and female ( yin and yang ) to create perfect cooperation and balance  24  I use these pillow cases every December and have done so for about 30+ years? I have enough for everyone in the family so now I guess I have a set of "vintage" Christmas pillow cases   To see ...