It's a wonderful feeling to get excited about things to come. Anticipation, hope, eagerness, and longing are good words in my vocabulary.
When I grew up tradition was to decorate the Christmas tree on little Christmas Eve, which is the 23rd of December. But now -- and after having lived in several countries around the world, I have picked up a little of the festive celebrations from here and there.
In Okinawa, Japan, where we lived for three years, Christmas trees were flown in around the 10th of December and I stood in line for 3 hours with a little toddler to get one. In my book still, the 10th seems like a good day to decorate the tree. I just have to choose one that will stay pretty and keep most of the pine needles till after New Year's Eve.
Christmas songs will be played from the first day of the Christmas month. The only exception is the sing-a-long we do on Thanksgiving. Then we get out our printed copies for each guest of joyful Christmas songs and go through all three pages of merriment, starting with "The Twelve Days of Christmas" and ending with "Over the River".
It's all about extending that special feeling of Christmas to more than 2 or 3 days. It's about creating a feeling of harmony, love - and holiness - in the home and heart.
Norwegians sing songs about November being gray and dreary, but I like this time of year. It's an indoor, cozy, cocoa-drinking time of year. The winds howl outside, leaves that have lost their golden glow lie frosted in piles here and there on the ground, nature and folks alike prepare for winter to come.
November is a contemplative month. My thoughts creates stories to write, my hands try to paint the scenes in my head, I relive memories from my childhood, and think about how to be a better person. In other words, my mind works a little overtime this time of year.
Today's water color is of Svinøy Lighthouse and depicts a day this time of year meant for indoor activities.
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