GALLIVANTING

The week before Christmas...

and I have been out Gallivanting, as my mother used to say..

I received this golden angel at the Sewing Sisters Christmas party,

look at her graceful arms above her head, made from fine wire; 

they also form a halo.

She was hand-made by the talented R, who does amazing things with assorted paper, stamps and lace.

I have to show you V's beautiful necklace, which of course she made herself.

The talent of these girls is amazing...

Mr C and I lunched with colleagues at the Wild Canary..

to give thanks for a good year in our business..

The food is beautiful, organic and fresh, with herbs grown right outside the restaurant, which is located at a garden centre.

 I visited the lovely M for an iced coffee:

Look at the tiny Christmas house and tree on the tray, and beautiful hand-embroidered napkins...

Heavenly...

M gave me this beautiful lace fan, the perfect accessory for choral singing on a hot Christmas night...

I have been to lots of choir practise, singing carols for the season.
These days I prefer the lesser known, and medieval, carols for their beauty and simplicity.
The half dozen most common carols, constantly rearranged with a modern beat, pierce my hearing at the shopping malls.   
I shudder...

My sister and I went to see the Queensland Ballet performance of
The Nutcracker.  
It is performed every year at Christmas, (not that I go every time), and is a special treat for the season.
The sets and costumes were brilliant, like a Victorian Christmas card.

We loved the snow ballet at the end of Act 1, all frosty and white with snow falling on the scene.
Then the curtains came down, and snow fell down on the audience.
It disappeared when you tried to catch it, but seemed to be a type of soap suds, or bubble mix. 

We have had a few more dramatic storms this week.
There has been no steady rain, but the storms have revived our garden, and at last we have green grass once again.

The strong wind of this storm reminded me of an Australian Christmas carol,
 'The North Wind'...

Forgetting about snow, here are the words of a carol set in our own brown land:

The North-wind is tossing the leaves,
The red-dust is over the town;
The sparrows are under the eaves
And the grass in the paddock is brown;
As we lift up our voices and sing
To the Christ-Child the Heavenly King;

The tree-ferns in green gullies sway;
The cool stream flows silently by:
The joy-bells are greeting the day,
And the chimes are adrift in the sky,
As we lift up our voices and sing
To the Christ-Child, the Heavenly King.

(Words by John Sheeler, Music by William G James)

Enjoy the season,

XXXX