"May your future hopes come true"
Pick nine berries in silence at Friday midnight, tie the berries with nine knots in a three-cornered handkerchief, and place them under your pillow. If you can remain silent until the next morning, you will dream of your future spouse.Holly is also used to ward off demons. In Louisiana, U.S.A., berries are said to protect folk from the evil eye and lightning, a belief that applies in Germany as well, as long as the holly has previously been used in decorating a church.
Toss a sprig of holly on the Christmas fire and you are guaranteed an end to all your troubles!
Perhaps best of all, folklore has it that the prickly-leafed holly is considered "male" and the smooth-leafed variety "female." Which type is brought into the house first at Christmas, determines who rules the roost that year, the husband or the wife.
S0-0, toss a piece of holly onto the fire; combine that with the right variety ~ and your year is sure to be a good one!
Source: The World Encyclopedia of CHRISTMAS, McClelland & Stewart Ltd., 2000.
Postcard images from The Old-Fashioned Postcard Book, Sterling Publishing Co., 1993. For larger image, click on picture.
