Over the Garden Fence: A busy holiday season filled with music and tradition
The holiday projects and events continue flowing through our area. Our Earth, Wind and Flowers Garden Club members remain very committed as volunteers. Almost a month ago a portion of the club worked over two days decorating the Bucyrus Historical Society, inside and out. We finally got Victorian with the parlor tree inside.
A week later the outreach continued as another team drove to Mansfield and decorated a tree-themed "Gnome for the Holidays" at Kingwood. Come to think of it, gnomes were constructed back in October.
Although Remembering Christmas at Harvey School is not a sanctioned project for the garden club, several of us decorated the one-room school, baked German cookies, assembled heritage bags and spent an afternoon sharing German touches for the holidays. We learned that the powdered sugar-coated stollen made every holiday season is symbolic. When completed this cake is said to remind families of the Christ child wrapped in swaddling clothes.
Our own club observed the holiday with a dinner after which each member was recognized for having been outstanding in some way. From building the finest snowman of the year to being the most peaceful member, each person got a gift. Then Paula Brown and I prepared the "2022 Forecast." The sharing was inspired by the likes of Martha Stewart who is in charge of the world's holiday celebration. More about that forecast later.
There was a wonderful performance last night by The Texas Tenors who blended faith and holiday music with memories presented in a PowerPoint.
What I would like to share in a little deeper way is the German history of the Moravian star which was shared last Sunday at Harvey School by Kathy Scott. When our focus on Germany developed we found that so many traditions which came to America were inspired through German traditions. As for these stars, Kathy wrestled every sixth grade student through the 13 steps to completion when her daughter Sarah was in my class.
Kathy brought her granddaughter Lillian Rose, paper strips in many colors and paraffin for a final dipping to preserve them. She spent the afternoon demonstrating, directing people and explaining. There were guests who actually made one to take home. Others made it through several steps and left with intentions to finish. Others simply selected one already made. Folding, tucking and lightly tugging during the procedure results in a three dimensional star form with points.
An account that I came across stated that the Moravian star originated in Saxony, Germany, in two towns — Niesky and Kleinwalka — as early as the 1830s. The assumption was that young boys learning geometry had an instructor who crafted them as an application of the math principles. Soon after the Moravian church adopted the star as both a symbol of the birth of Jesus and the star of Bethlehem.
By 1842 a German immigrant who taught at William and Mary undertook decorating a tree at Williamsburg, Virginia, using the stars. And so, it began to be shared throughout America.
Grateful for Kathy's skills that day, we were blessed too with Jocye and MIke Schifer who came at the last minute when needed in Santa's corner.
Life is good.
Mary Lee Minor is a member of the Earth, Wind and Flowers Garden Club, an accredited master gardener, a flower show judge for the Ohio Association of Garden Clubs and a former sixth grade teacher.
This article originally appeared on Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum: Over the Garden Fence: Holiday projects and events
