Nativities in Portugal

 I love how memories jump into my head.  Unfortunately they are often in the middle of the night. This time the memory came while morning stitching.  While in Portugal with a girlfriend a few years ago, we stumbled upon a little gallery in the upstairs of an old church.  (That sounds funny - all the churches are old! Right?)   Anyway, I took loads of pictures:  

Christmas in Malta

 To celebrate my 60 birthday, my sister and I traveled to Malta for Christmas in December 2018.  How exciting to experience culture during the holidays!  We were both intrigued by the Maltese Christmas gulbiena.  This tradition of growing vetches in the dark to bring out at Christmas.  The weeds, grow tall in the darkness as they search for light. I won't go into detail as to how to start this tradition, as there is much information available online.  It was my plan to start my own pot in 2019, but forgot to get seeds ahead of time.  I've now added to my reminder calendar and plan to start my little gardens in November this year!

My creche

 My grandparents gave this nativity to my brother and me when we were very young.  I've offered it to Trace many times over the years, but he is happy to let me store it.  I wonder who will want it when I'm ready to Swedish Death Clean it out of my house?

After seeing the exhibit in Fulton, I realize that I need to add to my little collection. On my wish list is a camel and a dog.  Or chickens? Some trees would be nice too.  First off, I need to fix the broken wise man and get him back with his traveling companions.  Then the dreaming of the new improved display begins!

Only one of the figures has printing on the bottom.  Very difficult to read, but "German" does stand out.  It's too late to ask about this set now, Grandma has been gone for almost 30 years.  

As children when we unpacked our treasure each year, we had a method.  The angel was always the last piece to go onto the stable.  It also has a built in music box that plays, Silent Night. (Yes - it still works)  We would play it after everything was put together.  Aren't family traditions wonderful?

Considine Gallery of Fine Holiday Arts / Fulton, IL

 I enjoyed a lovely afternoon with my mom yesterday.  When she invited me, I dragged my feet a bit.  The way she described what we were going to see did not sound very interesting.  "A friend's collections that she has in an old building."  Well - that is not how I would describe what we actually saw.  It was more like, a well displayed collection of fine quality Christmas items from the 1500's up to the 1940's.  The nativities that she has collected over the years came from Germany, Italy and the Czech Republic.  She has figures that are carved from wood and cork (from Portugal).  She carefully collects moss from the woods to enhance her displays.  I was wowed by what I saw!  I wasn't so much interested in the rest of the displays (old trees with antique ornaments), but the nativities - yes!  

For me a few thoughts hit me hard:  

1. I need to enhance my own nativity.  Mine is old, a gift from my grandparents when I was very young.  It came to me about 60 years ago.  I always just set it up.  It needs some moss and trees, and maybe a few new characters - like a dog and some chickens.  

2.  My friends would really enjoy this.  I had no idea that this was here, so close to home.  Is this an annual event?  Does Arlene set this up every year?  She did say that she would be changing over to her Valentine's collection soon.  

3. The building was very nice.  Yes - it was an old building, but had been remodeled with very nice cases and display areas.  It is small, but is it a place for an art show?

For a small donation ($5.00), I truly enjoyed this visual treat. Arlene doesn't keep regular hours, but instead has a sign posted that you can call her and she will be there in 5 minutes.  Talk about keeping staffing costs down!