December 13th. is the day we Scandinavians ( I am Norwegian) celebrate St. Lucia. St. Lucia was the saint of the poor and down trodden. She was to marry and refused so she could remain a virgin and help the poor. For this she was put to death and later made a saint. Sweden adopted her as their patron saint in the Middle Ages. Lucia means light and December 13th is the longest night of the Julian Calendar. This is the beginning of the days growing longer.
In the morning the eldest girl in the house wears a St. Lucia crown of a green wreath with candles to light the dark and a white gown with a red sash for purity. She serves her parents saffron buns and strong coffee. She is followed by her siblings also in white gowns.
I like to serve hot cinnamon buns and lovely hot, strong coffee as well as other little sweet treats.
This is a tradition I treasure in our family. As soon as she can understand our traditions I will be making a gown and crown for our little granddaughter so she can learn the rich and wonderful heritage she is apart of.
To all of my family & friends of this beautiful Solstice LYKKELIGE ST. LUCIA DAG!
Happy St. Lucia's Day to you, too! We celebrate St. Lucia's Day at our house as well, and we hope yours was lovely.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful tradition to pass on to your family! Those cinnamon buns look delicious but I have to confess I would be a wee bit nervous about catching my hair on fire!! Those kinds of things seem to happen to me!
ReplyDeleteI hope you enjoy your day and thank you so much for stopping by and leaving such sweet comments...so very much appreciated!!
Happy St. Lucia Day to you Sue!!
Blessings~~
Julie
What a great tradition. Lovely!
ReplyDeleteYour blog is fantastic!! Happy St. Lucia Day! :)
ReplyDelete-pamela
Just discovered your blog, and enjoying it. I'll tell daughter, Freya, about this post, she might appreciate it with her Norse name!
ReplyDeleteHappy St. Lucia's Day to you, as well! Your pastries look amazing!
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