Dedicated to our Friend who is stranded in the Sarnia/Strathroy, Ontario, Snowstorm:

One must have a mind of winter
To regard the frost and the boughs
Of the pine trees crusted with snow;
And have been cold a long time
To behold the junipers shagged with ice,
The spruces rough in the distant glitter
Of the January sun; and not to think
Of any misery in the sound of the wind,
In the sound of a few leaves,
Which is the sound of the land
Full of the same wind
That is blowing in the same bare place
For the listener, who listens in the snow,
And, nothing himself, beholds
Nothing that is not there and the nothing that is.

The Snow Man, Wallace Stevens (1879 - 1955), American.
Won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry, 1955 for a collection.

Christmas Mistletoe


Mistletoe has a long history in folklore and legend going as far back as the Druids who deemed it to have magical healing powers and to be a token of peace. At York Minster during the Middle Ages, a branch of mistletoe was laid on the altar during the Twelve Days of Christmas and a public peace proclaimed in the city for as long as it remained there.

Christmas Ivy

In Oxfordshire, England, a 17th century custom held that if maidservants asked a man to bring ivy for Christmas decoration and he did not, they were allowed to nail a pair of his breeches to the gate and to deny him the "well-known privilege of the mistletoe."

The World Encyclopedia of CHRISTMAS, McClelland & Stewart Ltd., 2000.

Original Post cards: 1912 & 1916.

The Ivy in The Holly and the Ivy:

The World Encyclopedia of CHRISTMAS* seems to have the most entertaining history of ivy. Apparently in ancient Rome, ivy was a symbol of wine and merriment. It was worn as an antidote to drunkenness but was adopted by Christians as a symbol of human weakness and the need to cling to "divine strength."

In England the ivy vine is used along with holly to decorate churches at Christmas time.

In Scotland young women would hold a sprig of holly to their hearts, chanting,
"Ivy, Ivy, I love you;/ In my bosom I put you,/ The first young man who speaks to me/ My future husband shall be." [Amazing the trust placed in a sprig of ivy!]

*McClelland & Stewart Ltd., 2000.
Tomorrow: A fascinating custom determining whether or not a man was extended the well-known privilege of the mistletoe.

Holly's Supernatural Qualities
"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.

The Holly and The Ivy

"The holly and the ivy,
When they are both full grown,
Of all the trees that are in the wood,
The holly bears the crown."

This six-verse song first appeared in an English broadside* of 1710; later published in a collection in 1861. By 1953 The Holly and the Ivy had been made into a movie.


Holly has long been associated with Christmas. Its image appears on decorations, on wrap and Christmas cards. Sprigs of holly are hung in wreaths, on mantles and over doorways. The red berries and green leaves make the plant an attractive choice in December.

*A broadside was a large single-sheet, printed on one side, often of illustrated ballads.

Tomorrow: In many countries the holly is thought to have supernatural qualities.

Thought for Today:

"One can never pay in gratitude, one can only pay 'in kind' somewhere else in life."

~ Anne Morrow Lindbergh, American author.

The movie, It's a Wonderful Life, is based on a short story, The Greatest Gift. The author could not interest a publisher in his work so he had the story printed on Christmas cards and sent to 200 friends. A Hollywood agent was among the recipients. He convinced RKO studio that it would make a great movie.

Even after its release as a movie in 1946 it was not an instant success. For years after its copyright expired in 1974, television stations broadcast it without charge.

In 1993 Republic Entertainment assumed control of the copyright and broadcast fees are once again in effect.
Starring in this Frank Capra Christmastime film are Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Ward Bond and Frank Faylen.

The World Encyclopedia of Christmas, McClelland & Stewart Ltd., 2000.