Tis the Season

Christmas is the thing. There is no Thanksgiving, no black Friday, not even any references to Hanukkah to distract from the fact that Christmas is coming! It has been a bit odd to walk by Santa and snowflake decorations while wearing short sleeves. “Dashing through the snow” just doesn’t compute in my brain. Maybe this Aussie version of Jingle Bells will help.  

Last week we were invited to the Warrnambool city staff and councilor Christmas party at the art gallery. Andy and I were publicly welcomed by the Mayor (“His Worship” according to his holiday card - it's a constitutional monarchy thing). Andy was “in the zone” talking with planners and councilors about new urban development, asking about zoning issues, and comparing green line notes. He even got to chat in French for a little while with one of the councilor’s husband! I enjoyed being in the company of people who were involved with city politics; it felt familiar and comforting. As Andy would say, there would be a lot of votes in that room.

It doesn’t totally feel like the holiday season to me, in part because it’s summer, but also because our family is on the other side of the planet. It occurred to me on December 21^st that it was not the winter solstice, but in fact the summer solstice - the longest day of the year. And we’re going to get three of those in a row, so I’m trying to stay focused on that perk!

In the U.S. it feels as though the energy of the season intensifies right up until Christmas and after the frenzy of food and presents, people relax into a quiet and restful week until the first of the year when schools begin and people return to regularly scheduled life. It feels just the opposite in Warrnambool. Just as the school year ends and people have toasted at their last Kris Kringle party, the caravan parks fill up with tourists and the carnival sets up shop for the summer down at Lake Pertobe. Woot! New Years Eve rides on the tilt-o-whirl! The downtown green is scheduled with activities throughout the next two months, entertaining the thousands who come to the coast to ease into the new year with their feet firmly planted in the sand.