Christmas Musings

My Personal Christmas Musings 

Here we are on the second day of Christmas, which I am so glad is celebrated in my native country. I spent last few days before Christmas in 4 different cities, three different countries and various planes, trains and subways. Traveling just before holidays can be as exciting as exhausting. Exciting it is for numerous reasons from real travel lover's point of view. Exhausting it might be as what happens around you is all Christmas extravaganza, people are going bonkers cleaning their apartments to a sky-high perfection, buying gifts and having invisible fights with the fellow shoppers, complaining about how there was not enough time and so much to do. It all went so fast, and Christmas is almost over, but before that happens I would like to share to share with you things that are always present in my holiday celebration. 

There must be a perfect Christmas tree present wherever I celebrate. Perfection is not measured by the size of the tree or the lavishness of its ornaments (Still, the Christmas tree I saw in Milan was gorgeous!: see above) but it is more about reflecting particular mood or sentiment. There are both the old and new ornaments on it and some festive lights, and it brings every room, big and small, back into the magic land of joy.

I cannot imagine Christmas without books. Books that have been on my list to read forever and I did not have time to read still; books that I was gifted,;, books that I come back to whenever I feel the holiday mood. This time, all the books that I intend to read during Christmas holidays are written by women. There are Alexandra Shulman's personal adventures at Vogue; Lauren Graham's memoir of 10 years in between making the Gilmore Girls that I read practically in one day. It is a perfect read for travel, light, not too complicated but still honest and down-to-earth, which is quite a contrast to most of the Hollywood-based memoirs. Finally, there is a book by my favorite author from childhood, by Tove Janson, whom I respect even more in my adult years then when I was a kid. Her life-long correspondence gathered into one thick tome. I love reading letters of people I admire. It is such an intimate peek into their personal lives. I also always look into Moomin books for inspiring winter quotes and holiday wishes. 

Finally, everybody has a favorite Christmas movie. I have a few, and surprisingly, all of them are from 1940's, as I am a huge vintage cinema lover. This time I decided to re-watch "Christmas in Connecticut" with a fiery  Barbara Stanwyck. In the times with so many TV shows promoting the idea of a perfect housewife and an excellent home chef, watch this to see what happens if the skills that you boast about publicly are put to the test at the most unexpected moment.

Through years of spending Christmas with various people, sometimes far away from home, in different countries and different cities, I have learned that what makes it special and unique is to keep your childhood traditions alive, regardless of the circumstances. Sometimes it is enough to get your favorite dish right; put traditional decorations on the Christmas tree. What works miracles on that special day of the year are the people who are dear and near to you. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of you around the world!