CHRISTMAS IN THE COTSWOLDS

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32788, 13 December 1971, Page 7

CHRISTMAS IN THE COTSWOLDS

(By

SYBIL M. WOODS)

Suddenly winter has us in its grip. England was caught in November between an anti-cyclone over the North Sea and a . depression over the Atlantic. Down the “funi nel” between these rushed an icy wind straight from the Arctic, bringing sleet, snow, and ■ a sudden end to the lovely late autumn ’ weather. We have had two falls of snow already, and we are told that in the Cotswolds , white Christmasses are usual. We lost the hour’s daylight saving at the end of October, I so it is dark soon after 4 p.m. I Now we are driven in from I the garden, the ground frozen hard. Outside the living-' room window we hang a net bag full of nuts. Here, sheltered by the eaves of thick 1 thatch, acrobatic tits hang at 1 (incredible angles on the plas- j tic mesh enjoying a varied ! 'menu of hazel, beech, and 1 [Brazil'nuts. On the wide stone window--sill we put bread, fat, mor- ■ 'seis of cheese, and household , scraps, and the word soon j passes round. There is a constant fluttering of wings ( until the last crumb has dis- | appeared. j On an apple tree in our i walled garden a thoughtful | former owner has grafted a i bush of mistletoe. I A neighbour has already

offered me a good supply of richly-berried holly, and I have returned from recent field walks aimed with the kind of seed heads and cones which, when sprayed with “instant frost,” will make up into festive table decorations. One of the pleasant features of pre-Christmas pre, parations in the Cotswolds is the almost total absence of the commercialism, which so often robs the season of its true significance jn our modem cities. Christmas wrapping paper has just begun to appear in the stationers’ shops—and a captivating array of calendars and Christmas cards. Otherwise, life goes on much as usual.

CRAFTED GIFTS Chipping Campden has a fascinating craft shop, called “The Pottery.” It is ideal for Christmas shopping. Everything in it is hand-crafted. You can watch the pottery tea-sets, coffee mugs, jugs, and dishes being made on a potter’s wheel in a corner of the shop, and fired and glazed in a kiln at the back. Hand-woven ties, suede belts, and shoulder bags are all made in a |ocal homeindustry. as are the sheepskin gloves which defy the icies>=Winds. For an* 11-year-old goddaughter, I bought a delightful group of figures made from the dried leaves of maize. A little girl with plaited hair gazes up at her mother who holds a young baby in her arms.

For daughters and daugh-

’■ters-in-law there is an array 11 of . casual jewellery made -'from gaily-coloured enamel rand semi-precious stones. ! Or you can choose brooches 1 hand-carved in exquisite leaf 1 designs from a variety of ■ woods—yew and walnut are • my choice. Yew is perhaps • prettiest, because of its many--1 hued grain. These are ideal ! for coat jewellery and you ! can buy men’s cuff-links made from the same woods. CHILDREN’S TOYS But I find the children’s . toys the most irresistible , things in the shop. A country I craftsman carves Noah’s Ark’s sets. Pairs of semistylised animals in natural wood march up a ramp to be met by Noah and Mrs Noah on the deck of an ark built to withstand the ravages, not only of storms, but of the rough-handling of generations of small children. Our grandchildren in Milton, Otago, will be unwrapping these this Christmas. I like to think that in time their children will play with them in turn. The same carver makes charming nativity and farmyard sets, and wooden trains. For the sick child con- ' fined to bed there are little bags full of miniature gaily coloured model villages and , farms; service-stations with ' cars and trucks, or railway , stations and trains, all small enough to be arranged on an invalid’s tray. RADIO LESSON Yesterday I turned on the 1 radio to listen to a music- 1 and-movement lesson for '

Standards I and 11. The ' children were invited to walk I wearily, wearily to music which evoked the mood of dragging feet and desperate fatigue. Then the teacher • chose a boy to play the part , of Joseph leading a donkey ; into the town of Bethlehem, ’ walking very wearily. The rest of the class divided into groups of three, and each group formed into the shape of a house. Joseph dragged his way from house to house, but nowhere is there any room. So the children of England learn by mime and sympathetic involvement the age-old story of the Creator of all things, who humbled himself and knew a pauper’s birth so that He might draw near to us all. MULLED WINE When Christmas Day comes we shall bum in the great stone fireplace of our cottage the apple boughs of a dead orchard. Into the red heart of fire we shall thrust a long poker before we plunge it, hissing and steaming, into the bowl of spiced red wine. This we shall offer, warm and aromatic, to the guests Who find their way through the snow, guided by the little lantern which glows red outside our stout oaken door. Tongs will pluck roast chestnuts from the ashes. Fingers already scorched from eating these will snatch “raisins flambes” from a pool of burning brandy. Mince pies and Christmas cake, and chocolates filled with cherry brandy—all will drive out

winter’s chill and spread the mood of cheer which will end in the acting of mad charades and the midnight singing of carols.