In September we had a maze theme & we went to the corn maze & we did mazes & we went to see The Mazerunner, a book series Noelle read this year.
In October we had a C.S. Lewis theme. Micah had just finished the Chronicles of Narnia series. The children received new notebooks & pens & we drank tea & ate turkish delight, although we still haven't gone to Tea Maineia.
In November we had a Thanksgiving theme & we ~of course, ate Thanksgiving food & made Thanksgiving crafts & watched the Disney movie, 'The Thanksgiving Promise.'
For December the kids decided they wanted a Hobbit Christmas theme!!! My food budget for the month is spent & the past 24 hours were a whirl, but it was very much worth it!
Noelle was the first to read The Hobbit. Then, 2+ years ago, when Micah was 9 years old, he read it for the first time. The Hobbit is the only chapter book that Micah has read multiple times! He loves it!! (Much like Uncle Marvin loved it, even before it was the 'cool' thing to love!) I have suggested to Micah that he should read the LOTR. I know he would like it! However, he is very stuck on the idea that when he is an 'old man' he will have nothing else to do but read LOTR and he will read it then!
"If more of us valued food & cheer & song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world."
-J.R.R. Tolkien
Did hobbits celebrate Christmas?
(If at this point in the reading you feel a need to point out that hobbits are not real~ take a pause so that you can give your imagination & sense of wonder some time to brush the dust & cobwebs off.)
Well, no. Hobbits would have lived before Jesus came to earth as a man. So: No Christmas existed. However, a 'Hobbit Christmas' is what was requested!!
Would hobbits have celebrated Christmas?
We believe the answer is, "absolutely!"
(disclaimer: My words on this are a combination of my own thoughts & recent reading I've done on this topic.)
Christmas emphasizes the 'peaceful pursuits' of hobbits: gift giving, the spirit of sharing & creating community. Hobbits would have loved Christmas! The feasting, The Feasting! And the gift giving!
"Light descends on Middle Earth
All is calm in the softness of the snow
Hobbits dancing by the fire
And the lanterns are all-a-glow!"
Hobbits did, however, celebrate Yuletide! The timing of our Hobbit Party coincides, according to the calendar, with when the hobbits would have celebrated Yuletide. Like Yuletide, we have a decorated tree set up in our home (!) and we also have a 'sacred plant', (real mistletoe!) 'Yule' means 'renewal, rebirth', which seems very appropriate for Christmas, actually! It may a pagan holiday, but it's very meaning reminds me of the Christ child, come to give us new life!
As this party idea developed, we decided to invite Micah's friends, J.B. & K.B., to The Shire and Bag End so that they could celebrate with us!
'Mathoms'~ Hobbit holes are full of things, things, things that may have no use but things that hobbits were unwilling to throw away. Mathoms are also 're-gifts!' Old, useless objects that were given as presents.
We certainly could not, could NOT have a Hobbit party without food. (More on that later.) But we also could not have a Hobbit Christmas Party without gifts!!
I found some items & I consider them to be fairly clever!
K.B. received his first copy of Tolkien's 'The Hobbit.'
Noelle received a super cool Hobbit journal with neat sketches of the characters. (Pre-movie. Which kinda makes it the best!
Micah received a neat book that truly has a little of this & a little of that.
The boys received Hobbit Legos! (Seriously. Christmas, you know! Plus, it's a good way to give away my 1/14th of the Lonely Mountain treasure!)
Noelle received a hobbit ornament!
(Nice blending of 'Hobbit' & 'Christmas' there!)
I looked for how to bring ideas together & which ideas to bring together.
I read an article about how when the One Ring of Power is destroyed, the Realm of Sauron is ended forever, (LOTR)~ How that is such a great picture of the moment when God Himself became incarnate as man. Light replaces shadows. Hope replaces doubts. (Happy Hobbit Christmas!)
I thought about how The Hobbit is basically a Journey.
Although when I asked Micah he said it's not a journey, it's about war!
This led my thoughts nearly immediately to one of the greatest books every written about a journey: (besides The Bible & our journey through life!): Pilgrim's Progress!!
Which immediately made me think of one of my favorite books: Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.
“Go then, my little Book, and show to all
That entertain, and bid thee welcome shall,
What thou dost keep close shut up in thy breast;
And wish what thou dost show them may be blest
To them for good, may make them choose to be
Pilgrims better, by far, than thee or me.
Tell them of Mercy; she is one
Who early hath her pilgrimage begun.
Yea, let young damsels learn of her to prize
The world which is to come, and so be wise;
For little tripping maids may follow God
Along the ways which saintly feet have trod.”
Adapted from JOHN BUNYAN.
(You shall have to re-read Little Women if you want to remember the ways that Pilgrim's Progress came up in it!)
So I sought an abridged audio version of Pilgrim's Progress. I have never read the unabridged one & it's a bit daunting to me at this point!
With this idea of a journey, I purchased the audio version for our family to listen to together.
Lastly, for gifts, I found a wonderful devotional, Walking with Bilbo by Sarah Arthur. I bought two, one for Micah & one for Noelle & I have enjoyed reading and perusing it. We read the first chapter at [first] breakfast for our family devotional.
"I am looking for someone to share in an adventure that I am arranging, and it's very difficult to find anyone." -Gandalf
Gandalf marked Bilbo's door, indicating that he was the burglar. We have been marked for something special too! Bilbo had a potential that only Gandalf could see! Gandalf knew that Bilbo had something good to do for Middle Earth. "The Creator of the universe is also the Creator of every human life, including yours, and all that he does has a purpose. God made you for a reason and has a plan for your life! [You have been marked for something special!] He's calling you to fulfill a purpose within a story that is larger than you could ever dream or imagine: an adventure beyond all adventures!"....."God has Gandalf-like tendencies that are really quite alarming.
'Follow me,' he says.
'Take nothing for your journey. Go the extra mile. Why do you worry about what you will eat or what you will wear? Seek first God's kingdom.'
These are not safe words. At the very least, they could 'make you late for dinner.' In fact, they might mean you don't get any dinner at all. But Jesus also says to his disciples, 'You didn't choose me. I chose you.' (John 15:16)."-Arthur.
But...on to the food!
We know how important that is for hobbits!
I had fun researching that as well. It is amazing the volume of information out there on all-things-Tolkien!
Hobbits eat filling, simple foods, ones that could have been grown or produced on a farm. Interestingly enough, foods that have an English theme. Their pantries & larders are full. (They would have to be, if you are going to eat 6 meals a day!)
Now... in a 24-hour swirl I was able to fit in as many hobbit meals as possible, although not as many as hobbits would have liked! I only had to drop out one dish today because I decided I didn't have the time or energy to make it!
We typically are a water & milk & sometimes juice kind-of family. But we went all out in our quest for ale & beer -like drinks! (Although my recent interest in kombucha may have actually been closer!)
[First] Breakfast:
Second Breakfast:
Elevenses:
Kevin joined us for elevenses. Moose-meat, mushroom & onion pies & soup. Hearty! A customer came during elevenses & when Kevin told him that he had been just having 'elevenses' the customer knew right away what that meant!
I encouraged the kids to not stuff themselves until they were full or they would end up feeling pretty sick by the end of the day!
We had some cake last night & today we had some 'treats' out at each meal. They could have two treats per meal, if they wished. And usually they did!
Luncheon:
Luncheon was Micah's favorite meal. He is perfectly happy with a ploughman's lunch!
Long before this time of the day, it is abundantly clear what a hobbit woman spends her entire day doing!!! Also by this time of the day, time is really getting away from me. We needed to leave at 2:25ish in order to meet K.B. & J.B.'s mom at the theater & be on time to see The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies (woot!). I already knew that the 'dinner' meal wasn't going to happen. I had hoped to squeeze in 'afternoon tea', (usually at 4:00ish). However, in reality, I did put 'afternoon tea' on the table, but we only had moments before we had to leave! Bellies were full anyway, so it really didn't matter!
Afternoon Tea:
I had more ideas for this Hobbit Christmas Party than I had time for!
Storytelling, music & games.
Hobbit personality quizzes, Hobbit origami, Hunt for the Ring game, (Who's got the button?)...
We did read some riddles. Of course, Micah knew each one!
Alive without breath,
As cold as death;
Never thirsty, ever drinking,
All in mail never clinking.
As mentioned, we read some of our new hobbit devotional. We prayed. We laughed!
The kids and I have just begun reading Tolkien's Letters from Father Christmas. That seems to fit in with the theme. I have found them to be whimsical & wonderful. Can you imagine Tolkien was your dad & storyteller? He illustrated these letters as well. They have been a real treat.
(In fact, it warms my heart that as I write this & announce 'bedtime!', Micah says, 'Aren't we going to read a letter from Father Christmas!?')
In between me presenting meals, I was wicked busy in the kitchen. The boys played some games of their own. Archery, which certainly keeps with our theme). Monopoly. The wii. A bit of Legos. (I could stretch the connections, and say that 'legos' sounds like 'Legolas', but that may be taking things a bit too far!)
I can nearly always count on Noelle to 'enter in' to my celebrations! She is truly festive & will dress & play the part for me! (Thanks for that, Noelle!) She actually has a hobbit costume that she wore two years ago to the first Hobbit movie. She wasn't quite up for that, but she did put together an amazing costume & cheerfully joined in on the celebrating!
So we scooted out the door 2.5 seconds after 'afternoon' tea was placed on the table & tea was had been quickly taken! On the way to the theater we played hobbit-themed Pictionary.
We watched the movie & it was glorious. I could personally do without the fighting, but then there wouldn't exactly be much of a story line!!! Micah drank it in & Noelle did too & we both cried when... you know...
We ate some lembas bread on the way home. Pretty much only ate it because that is what we had & we were hungry! Plus it is for travelers!
It's been a good day.
Like a hobbit, I sometimes have an excessive need for comfort & safety. (well, and a tendency toward chubbiness, but anyway!!...)
"Even though the journey's long
and I know the road is hard
Well, the One who's gone before me
He will help me carry on
After all that I've been through
Now I realize the truth
That I must go through the valley
to stand upon the mountain of God." -Third Day
There's a scene in this third movie at the end of the battles when a shocked, weary & grief-stricken Bilbo is sitting next to Gandalf. There have been times these past few years when I have felt kinda like that.
"He was now weary of his adventure. He was aching in his bones for the homeward journey." -Tolkien
"All I know is I'm not home yet.
This is not where I belong.
Take this world & give me Jesus.
This is not where I belong." -Building 429
"But until that day, heaven is the Last Homely House that we long for as Christians. Eventually we realize that we're never really at home anywhere in this life- and we had better not get too comfortable here, either... If we ever feel at home on earth, it's because we're getting a small taste of what our true home in heave will be like."-Arthur
Bilbo gained his 1/14th of the treasure. But really, through the action of helping to save those around him, he himself is saved. From a life bounded & surrounded by a need for predictability, safety & comfort. The treasure he brings home is the kind that will never rust & cannot be stolen by thieves.
"Surely your goodness & unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever." -Psalm 23:6
"In the meantime, we have work to do. We have an adventure to go on, a role to play in this great story that we've 'fallen into' with Jesus. Our existence will not be safe, comfortable, or predictable for a good long while- at least not until all the tales have been written and all the old songs and stories have come true. Then someday, when our adventures are over, like Bilbo, we'll be able to say, 'Our back is to legends and we are coming home.' -Arthur
We've been marked for a special purpose. May be learn it and live it.
We've lived to fight another day...
No comments:
Post a Comment