Thursday, December 22, 2011

CHRISTMAS QUOTEDOWN (5)

It is within the darkness and the silence 
That the magic of Christmas starts; 
Somewhere between the glimmer of lights 
And the first breathless moment 
When children come 
Stumbling like new-born angels 
Into morning light.

It is here, between the darkness 
And the light, 
That we wait, uncertain,
Seeking the moment,
That challenges us to believe
In a freshly minted miracle
Born every Christmas Day.
——John Matthews, The Winter Solstice


The Solstice is a time of quietude, of firelight and dreaming, when seeds germinate in the cold earth and the cold notes of church bells mingle with the chimes of icicles. Rivers are stilled and the land lies waiting beneath a coverlet of snow. We watch the cold sunlight and the bright stars, maybe go for walks in the quiet land.
——[ibid.]


The Twelve Days of Christmas stand outside of "ordinary time," and celebrations focus on the return of the sun and a continuation of the eternal cycle of life.
——[ibid.]


The Yule Log itself is above all a reminder of the importance of fire in the depth of the cold and darkness of Midwinter.
——[ibid.]


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I've collected Christmas books for years, and must have at least a couple hundred. Their contents range from anthologies of seasonal poetry, short stories, and novels, to histories of the holiday and its customs and traditions, sketches and narratives of remembered Christmases by various writers, cookbooks, even a craft book or two, though Myladylove collects the latter two categories and probably has upwards of a hundred Christmas volumes of her own.

This year, starting on the first day of December, I thought it might be fun to dip into a few of these works and share a quote or two from their pages—a few lines of poetry, a bit of prose, maybe even a recipe—on a daily basis, a sort of "Christmas Quotedown," which I'll put up in addition to my regular posts. I'll also include a photo of the book's cover, from which the day's quotes are taken—though a few, lacking a dust jacket or any sort of fancy cover design, might be decidedly non-photogenic. On the other hand, several of my favorite Christmas works are quotably rich troves, indeed, and thus might end up furnishing more than a day's worth of quotes—though I'm starting out with the notion of a different book each day. 

Along the way, I hope I select some things you enjoy. 
———————

8 comments:

The Weaver of Grass said...

As usual a lovely selection. I really would love to see them all collected in one little book for us all to take off the shelf and enjoy at Christmas!

Gail said...

HI GRIZZ - yes, it is in the silence and darkness that the magic and miracle of Christmas lives - every Christmas eve when the last person arrives for our traditional Christmas Eve gathering and the door closes something magical happens in that moment that is indescribable - we are joined in celebration - memory - hope - love - glory "hallelujah"
Love Gail
peace.....

Grizz………… said...

Weaver…

There are so many shorter quotes I'd like to put up—and maybe that's what I'll do next year. But this particular book is quite rich, aside from being fairly unique, and I have a couple of others I'd not want to be without, too. In fact, maybe at some point I'll make a list of what I consider the "essential" Christmas anthologies.

Grizz………… said...

Gail…

With your Christmas Eve you've just described something wonderful and magical and personal—and so very true. There IS that point when the final guest arrives, the door closes…and the joy and anticipation becomes palpable. I haven't experienced that in that way for a long time. But I remember in growing up how, at my grandparents, that exact mood took place—the sense of the celebration's beginning, like the opening of a theater's curtain.

Gail said...

Grizz - your words captured my sentiments of the moment so beautilfully, thank you
Love Gail
peace.....

Grizz………… said...

Gail…

Thank you…because you reminded me of something dear which I had somehow forgotten.

Robin said...

Gail got it right. The closing door and, magic!

Thanks for reminding me.

Grizz………… said...

Robin…

She reminded me, too. Isn't it awful how you can forget some little thing like that that is so wonderful and purely magic?