St. Lucia is celebrated in Sweden, as well as many other countries. She is the patron saint of light, and Sweden celebrates by having processions with a girl that has been crowned as "Lucia." She has a wreath with candles on her head, and is followed by singing boys and girls. I loved this tradition so much, that for the last 4 years I've talked about it in my boys' U.S. preschool in December. I would dress up like Lucia, have the kids dress up too, and we would walk down a darkened hall so the other classes could see us. Since I was one of the few that knew the song, and my singing voice is not my best attribute, I would have an iPod with a speaker hanging around my neck, so it sounded like a beautiful choir was singing. This year was extra-special, knowing it would be my last time at the preschool.
But now, having just arrived here in Sweden, we'd been up since 2 a.m. with the boys, whose jet-lagged bodies were telling them it was time to eat, play, and roam. At 7 a.m., we turned on the TV and watched the Lucia procession. It was so wonderful to be here for this - our first Lucia day in Sweden.
Afterward, Henrik celebrated by taking a nap on the floor.
Next year, maybe we'll venture out to a concert performance. But this time, our first full day in Sweden, it was nice to stay in our warm house and look out at the snow.
No comments:
Post a Comment