Christmas at my grandmother's house was a tiny pink Christmas tree, bowls of ribbon candy, and a wreath on the kitchen door. It was always the same wreath, hung year after year. Small, made of yellowed translucent garland, and adorned with a small silver bell.
Up North, winters are cold. We children would pound up the steps and throw ourselves against the kitchen door. The door would put a mock resistance, then yield gracefully. We would spill into the warmth of that room, its windows steamy from cooking, accompanied by the soft tinkle of the bell.
Now, every Christmas, I hang a wreath of fresh pine and cedar on my front door. This year a friend makes a wreath from the boxwood and bayleaf in her garden. She adds cinnamon and red ribbon.
I add the bell.
At every opening and closing of my door, somewhere, an angel gets its wings.
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Fresh green and white striped semi-soft, oval shaped beckoned their sugary sweet refinements be captured immediately. The burst of green mint surging the taste buds, wetting the tongue to near drooling sheltered quite protectively beneath their clear cellophane wrappings. Great Grand Mothers always had decorative bowls of every material tucked through the evenings festivities. Coffee, dinner, breakfast, crafting, office tables held their own unique bowl and candy. The living room coffee table had usually about two to three different varieties from the after dinner soft mints, with a gooey thin inner layer. To the pure pouted sweeter than molasses multi colored ribbon candies and the never boring small size individually wrapped red and white striped candy canes, that were devoured like oxygen. Much to our family dentists delight in the following weeks, hot tea of chamomile, honey and lemon cradled the lemon drop hard candies. Or the often served peppermint tea with your choice of tree or table candy canes, dipped then slowly melted as you enjoyed the coveted holiday beverage. I was much to young for egg not with the "adult" sweetener added to it. Never curious it was tear drops of bourbon producing even the grimpiest of Scrooge's to wish every to be yuletide. But the sought after and waited for treat was the Yule Log cake with ice cream drizzled in caramel, chocolate, strawberries or any variety of nuts one desired. Walnut, peanut, chestnut, pecan and cashews complimented each toppled over mound of sweet piece of heaven. The memories of a quickly ever evolving family of holiday dinners Christmas at Great Grand Mothers home were some of the happiest celebrations I have in my memory. We were all together. As many as the eye could see. Though I don't remember if my Great Grand Father had met me before his passing. He was spoken if as being very tall. His office desk custom made in the room off the living room across from their bedroom. It would be many years later and despite IKeA being a "thing" we were able to deconstruct his office desk and as it was placed in each potential new home, it was like a reticent traveler. Seeking the nonpermanance of the moment just like the reflection one could see in its beveled glass topper, our time then too was transient.
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