THEN SUDDENLY IT'S CHRISTMAS!

I know I should have been organised enough to write a grand blog and post it ready for Christmas, but when you live on a rural property there are many things that can interrupt even the best-laid plans. Mother Nature is the usual culprit and although she can provide many beautiful and spectacular happenings, sometimes she decides to show us another side of her activities, not necessarily the right one for that particular period.

We have had a wet Spring and then a very windy, unsettled, often dry start to Summer and this has necessitated many hours outside with urgent watering drooping vegetable plants, fruit trees, and berries bad tidying up after branches have blown down off the softer wooded trees. Unfortunately, the strong wind has put paid to any heavy fruit tree crop and in fact, many trees are completely devoid of fruit this year. And then all of a sudden it's Christmas!

Thank goodness for Online shopping, as it takes away some of the stress of rushing around town on infrequent visits prior to the big day and if you have some ideas for presents, you can scan the internet looking for good bargains. And they are there, often with free delivery. Of course there is always the problem of charging it to your credit card in the hope that the family household bank teller won't question any purchases and then you have to be on guard for when the rural mail is delivered so you can grab and hide the "unusual box" that overwhelms our large rural post box. Finding somewhere safe in the packhouse or garage then becomes the next problem, because you don't want the recipient "fossicking around" looking for preserving jars or garden tools that might be hidden in close proximity. This procedure does lend an air of excitement to the Season, but as we get older it seems harder to find top class hiding places!

Then there is the card making! I personally love making my own cards and devote quite some time to finding the right graphics and verse for any particular member of the family and there is such a huge variety to choose from if you use "Auntie Google". I mean, you have to read the words and check what you already have filed on your computer to see if it is appropriate and if you have more than one computer (we have four) and you haven't been religiously organising them in the correct folder as the years go by, you wind up with duplicates aplenty! Fortunately, there is software available to sort through the computers faster than any manual option, but even then, you have to make sure you use it!( Which reminds me that I have 365 unread messages in my "Get Organised.com subscription  mail folder)

Of course one of the main highlights of Christmas is the annual "Christmas Tree erecting and decorating day" and in recent years, my Granddaughter Holly has been self-appointed director of operations. Woe betides anyone who suggests erecting the tree without her approval and I gather that this year, she even has her own mini Christmas tree at home, alongside the family tree. This reminds me of other "Rural Family Traditions" we have had to endure. Holly's Mother (at the age of 5-6) used to be our self-anointed Christmas Tree organiser and it was her custom to ask the tree feller (that's me) to take her down to our front paddock which was fronted by 85 odd, large pine trees and we would select a nice branch to use as our No1 choice. We would usually start at the Northern end of the tree line and start walking along, inspecting each and every one as we went. I would spot a nice branch and ask if this would be our choice, "Oh No" Heather would cry,, "there might be a better one further down" After 1/2 an hour or so of climbing over fences and through gates, we would invariably return to the tree of my 1st choice and I would duly cut the appropriate branch, usually quite large and well covered with pine needles. "Can you help me carry this back to the house?" I would plaintively ask, knowing the reply would be "Oh No, there are too many prickles!" Even after a quarter of a century, I can envision myself dragging the tree and my heavy chainsaw back to the house, ready for bucketing and watering. Most of the branches had a slight lean and I would have to get out some strong string and tie the tree to something solid to stop it from falling over, usually a sturdy door handle. I had a fear that just as we topped the tree with the final flourish of the Angel, the whole thing would come crashing down, probably on my head!

As the years have passed Christmas Day itself has changed irrevocably for my wife Lyn and I. Not only have all of our children grown up and left the family home, but they have families of their own and obviously have their own duties and traditions to fulfill. Distance has meant that it is not feasible for us all to be together at once and in fact, our closest living family also have Mother & Father to visit, so they share the day between us. Being a lot younger it is not quite the same hassle to drop everything and drive many miles and we appreciate their efforts to make our day, just a little more special. Needless to say our phone rings from early morning as distant family send greetings and once I have played my "Favourite 25 Christmas Carols including " It came upon the midnight clear" and "Snoopy's Christmas" on a DVD player, the atmosphere of Christmas takes off in a huge burst of happiness.
Of course, Christmas is always tinged with a little sadness and memories of happy days with Family and Friends who have passed away is often in our thoughts when we get together. Golden days of Summer as a child, when a mini tent, shared with siblings was a treasure beyond belief at the time. Unfortunately, those Summer days were very hot and after a couple of hours, squashed up in a VERY WARM tent with 3 others, was no fun and after we convinced Mum & Dad it would be ok to sleep out overnight, the mozzies soon sent us inside. Christmas mornings in the 1940 &50s meant waking up early to the sounds of Dad preparing food for our roast dinner lunch and the squeals of delight as the children emptied their stockings tied to their beds. Things were pretty tight in the years after World War 2 and many food items were still unobtainable, but we always had an orange and perhaps a few wrapped lollies and some nuts in the shell. Other presents were opened all together in the upstairs lounge and the day disappeared in trying out new model planes cut out of balsa, wearing new clothes (even a cowboy outfit complete with cap gun) or a wooden truck for one of the boys. I can still remember getting my 1st teddy bear and back then plasticine was a popular gift for children. How things have changed and I am reliably informed that my youngest Grandson aged 6 was upgraded to his own TV set and a mobile phone! ( Personally, I am in awe at the speed our youngest generation pick up on the new technologies and the fact that young Aidan can text his 10 year old brother Ronan, has apparently increased his word knowledge immensely)

Like many others of my generation, Christmas songs and hymns, the decorating of trees, the look on children's faces as they open presents are the things that make Christmas so special and contact with Family and Friends (often sparse during the year) either personally, with cards or emails is always a highlight.

2016 brought one special memory for me when my Granddaughter received a card from a relative, that not only contained Christmas greetings, but a note to say that instead of a personal present, funds had been donated to a child in Africa to supply a chicken to add to their chicken run. This would enable eggs to be available for the family and would also supply food for them over a period. The difficult part was trying to explain to a five-year-old, that she wouldn't have to get a chicken personally to send (she was worried how to grab one from her Grandfathers flock) and that she wouldn't have to deliver the gift personally! A few weeks later Holly and I were sharing breakfast and she indicated she was full and wanted to get down. I suggested she come back to the table and finish her plate of cornflakes. She sat back at the table and ate one more little cornflake and said "I'm full!". I then said 'Holly we don't waste food. there will be some starving children in Africa who would love to have a nice big breakfast like yours".In a loud voice she exclaimed "I'VE GIVEN THEM A CHICKEN!!"...I sat there not knowing where to look as the laughter welled up inside...As they say, from the mouth of babes! African children are saved!

"Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful." I hope you have a Memorable Christmas in 2018!