2 Seconds More

Freezing rain and ice pellets welcomed in the longer day yesterday (Sunday). Just two more seconds, but trending in the right direction.

I woke up in the middle of the night Saturday to the sound of the wind thrashing freezing rain and ice pellets against the house. I didn’t lay in bed listening for too long before I got up and filled some buckets and jugs with water. The ice storm of 1998 is always brought to mind when the rain comes down as ice sheets. We were out of power for 9 days that time… Luckily all those buckets weren’t needed as the power held out, only  flickering from time to time.

It finally feels like Christmas – the decorations around the house didn’t do the trick, the lights on the tree outside didn’t really do it, but yesterday, with Christmas music playing, Carm and I made the lefse and then it was Christmas.

We made them in record time – just 1 1/2 hours for 44 lefse is a record. The griddler gave us room for 4 extra (I couldn’t keep up with Carm near th e end), which meant 7 cooking at a time. Carm mans the spatula, while I have the rolling pin. Of course we had to make sure they turned out alright ;-)  We didn’t have lutefisk, gjost (cheese) and lingonberries to go with them, so we made due with some brie and blueberry jam. Still good!

Sharon (from Odd Essay) asked the other day if we’d be having lutefisk with our Norwegian meal – I hope so! I don’t recall Mom mentioning that she’d gotten some, but gosh, I hope she did! (knowing Mom she found some somewhere as she is nothing if not resourceful).

Soon after we arrived in Norway that year, we participated in a tradition – either celebrating solstice or yule – where we went from house to house, perhaps singing (I can’t remember), and receiving cookies and other sweet treats. It wasn’t Christmas eve, perhaps a few days before. My memory is dim – it was 40 years ago, and I was only 11! I hope Bjorn can enlighten me.

This is one of 8 prayers to Yule, the longest night of the year:

O! Mighty goddess, in silvery ice,
watching over us as we sleep,
a layer of shining white,
covering the earth each night,
frost on the world and in the soul,
we thank you for visiting us.
Because of you, we seek warmth
in the comfort of our homes and hearths.

~ prayer to the Winter Goddess