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On Three Kings' Day we had our wedding anniversary. Beautiful, though I had the feeling of living in an endless succession of feasts: Christmas, my birthday, New Year's Eve, wedding anniversary.
Now every-day-life has us back.
The Christmas tree had to go: Berlin's binmen are stern about that: on Monday, the day after Three Kings' Day, the Christmas tree has to be out - otherwise they won't collect it and then it might happen as in Heinrich Böll's short story: 'Nicht nur zur Weihnachtszeit' - ("Not only on Christmas' Days") - a satire on Christmas harmony, where a very obstinate little Aunt Milla always gets a screaming fit when anybody tries to touch the Christmas tree to bring it away. All relatives give in and sing every evening of the year with her,
And on top of the Christmas tree hung a silvery cladded angel with red cheeks, who moved his lips and whispered 'PEACE'."
Husband took the tree when it was undecorated, schlepped it to the balcony (as you know we live on the second floor and the flats are high) - he imitated the Swedish shout "Knut!!!" - and down it went, unto the lawn, and then he had to run down and climb over the fence and pick it up, needles and all, and bring it to the curb.
Now we can quote Rainer Maria Rilke:
"One feels the splendour of a new page,
on which yet everything is possible to come." (rough translation by me)
Hello Britta:
ReplyDeleteWe love everything about this post and not least the mind's image of the disposal of the Christmas tree. And now we must look up the Heinrich Boll [forgive no accent] short story.
Dear Jane and Lance,
DeleteI admire your patience with me and my blog :-)
Heinrich Böll ist not a 'Must', we think he is a bit overrated, but I like those satires, as 'Dr. Murkes' Collected Silence'.
Lovely! Made me smile. Adore Christmas but agree with you, when it is over .... it is over. Happy New year, blessings to you. Minerva x
ReplyDeleteDear Minerva,
Deletethank you! To live in the moment, we have to accept change (and I enjoy more free room in the flat :-)
"One feels the splendour of a new page,
ReplyDeleteon which yet everything is possible to come." (rough translation by me)
This fills me with hope and reminds me why I love you so much. Also, I am losing weight, Britta. All kinds. And guess what? You are one of my style inspirations -- inside and out.
Dear Suze,
Deletethank you - I am always happily inspired by your comments! And of course very flattered by the style inspiration (this LBD is my favourite one - hope my inside is a bit lighter). Bravo for the willpower to slim - though only oneself can decide if it is necessary. But I think here you also spoke of 'inside and out', weren't you?
You do have many celebrations in a row!! How nice to have been married on Three Kings Day.
ReplyDeleteOurs is an artificial tree and it is still up. May get working on putting it all away this weekend....though our weather is to be in the high 60's to low 70's, so I might be in the garden instead.
Dear Janet,
Deletewe wonder every year why we have chosen January for a wedding. May or July are so much more warmer! We made our honeymoon trip to Helsinki, on a big liner that was also an icebreaker.
What a lot of lovely celebrations!
ReplyDeleteI remember The Great Dane heaving the tree from the balcony long ago - I had a fit because it was Germany, and I was sure that no German would do such an unruly and lumber-jack-like thing.....I guess I didn't know about your husband!
Dear Pondside,
Deletewell, I would say that the 'unruly' depends on the state you live in in Germany (and we have tested a few...:-)
Husband comes from Rheinland-Pfalz, (I studied in Mainz), and I was always utterly charmed by the more Italian way of living there - you might know the German saying 'To let five be even' - I think the people of Mainz might have coined it.
Hi
ReplyDeleteLovely post!! And thank you so much for posting this because I've been long wondering what happens to many gorgeous Christmas trees you put up in your houses. I now know that binmen collect them in January. Our New Year's decorations are usually burned in a large bonfire after January 15 at shrines. You look really great in the first and second photos. You look really good in black!!
I'm a little confused. Is this blog. "If Not Now, Then When?" a new blog?
I'm going to change the name of your blog on my sidebar soon.
Dear Sapphire,
ReplyDeletethank you! Every state in Germany has its own rules - son had to bring his Christmastree to a collecting point in Munich, and had a weird feeling sitting with a tree that started to shed its needles in a streetcar :-) To make a bonfire in front of a shrine is a good idea - and I could throw full of thankfulness a few Darumas from last year into that fire too, seems an appropriate way.
I changed the title of "Britta's Letters from Berlin" to "If Not Now, then When" a few weeks ago. The address berlinletters.blogspot.com remained the same (and it is the follower/substitute for 'You are Witty and Pretty'). Thank you for changing it eventually.
At least you only had to clean the house and decorate just the one time. Maybe it's better to have all of the celebrations at once instead of stringing them out through the entire year.
ReplyDeleteHusbands must be the same the world over, (K)nutty fellows having to dispose of the tree with great effort and much spirit! Since we are country mice, we are permitted to have a burn pile in the back yard for lawn debris and discarded trees. Now we just have to wait for the rain to stop so we can have our bonfire.
Dear Walk2write,
Deletethat is a very true and practical view to see it, like my motivation-rule: to clean up when not in the mood: invite visitors - and you'll hurry along :-)
I envy you the bonfire in your garden - such an alluring atmosphere.
The Rilke quotation is lovely, and I hope you'll allow me to wish you, if belatedly, a very happy anniversary. All the best, Sue.
ReplyDeleteDear Sue,
ReplyDeletethank you! And the very best to you, too! We'll keep in touch.