Yes, we are a strange race of people who insist on dragging out the Christmas celebrations until everyone is so sick of the joy of the season that Lent is looking like a fun time.
We went Christmas carolling with the Ukrainian scouts this past Sunday (because it was Ukrainian New Year's Day). We split into two groups (London's too large and the Ukie community is too spread out) and hit about six houses each. Orest and I had our girls and Julia's daughter (also a Larissa) while Julia and her husband Stepan had the boys and their Mums on another route. When we first told Adriana what we were doing on Sunday, she balked.
"I hate kolyadyvannya!" she said.
"But we can't leave you at home alone, everybody's going!" I replied, trying to find the unassailable reason for her capitulation.
"OK, but I'm staying in the car!" I was just happy that she understood that not going was not an option.
We went Christmas carolling with the Ukrainian scouts this past Sunday (because it was Ukrainian New Year's Day). We split into two groups (London's too large and the Ukie community is too spread out) and hit about six houses each. Orest and I had our girls and Julia's daughter (also a Larissa) while Julia and her husband Stepan had the boys and their Mums on another route. When we first told Adriana what we were doing on Sunday, she balked.
"I hate kolyadyvannya!" she said.
"But we can't leave you at home alone, everybody's going!" I replied, trying to find the unassailable reason for her capitulation.
"OK, but I'm staying in the car!" I was just happy that she understood that not going was not an option.
(The photo is of the 'zirka' or 'star' which is meant to represent the star of Bethlehem that led the wise men to the baby Jesus. It is carried it from house to house so that the hosts recognize that we're carollers, not some random people coming in to wail at them.)
At the first house, we did our bit, sang three carols, gave the blessing, with Adriana hiding on the floor behind me. It wasn't until the hosts started pulling out the traditional goodies associated with this ritual (alcohol for the adults and lots and lots and lots of treats for the kids) that she came up sniffing the air like a hibernating animal at the first breath of spring. There were cookies, there was cake, chocolates stuffed in their pockets, juices, crisps...It was like Halloween all over! It was at this point I grabbed the opportunity to inform Adriana that she wouldn't be allowed to have the goodies if she refused to sing next time. What a stroke of genuis!
What could have been a disastrous 4 hours of mewling and caterwauling, turned into a child mumbling her way through (but honestly trying to sing) our Christmas carols and actually enjoying herself, while everyone tried to supply her with enough sweets to last the next winter.
We topped the evening off with some Tex-Mex with the Szyszkas, a bit not in keeping with the theme of the day - but who cares?
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