The Market

While my move is still requiring work - more to unpack, pictures to hang... my life is beginning to get back to a more normal pace. Shopping for food during the worst of the move, was a quick foray to a supermarket. Now, with a little more time to breathe, I headed to the market.

December at the market and the parking area is full of trees for sale. The light dusting of snow reminds us that soon winter will really set in. The market changes from season to season. Some of the outdoor stalls get temporary winter walls, while others disappear as November arrives. Part of the parking area changes from spring  and summer flower stalls to pumpkins and then to these trees and other seasonal decorations.



Now I do my shopping indoors. Unlike in a supermarket, here I linger - savouring a café au lait, enjoying eying all the delicacies displayed to entice. Somehow I always go home with a little more than I had planned. Shopping at the market is a personal experience. Each store requires a little conversation, not just a quick pass through the cashiers. I stop at my favourites, talking to the butcher that supplies organic meat, chatting with the woman in the bakery, discussing the merits of various cheeses in the cheese shop and more. I come home with a smile on my face, laden with bags of delights.

Day 346: Holiday of Lights

Day 346: Holiday of Lights, originally uploaded by susanvg.

As the days get shorter and darkness comes early, I crave light. I don't think it is a coincidence that so many religions have festivals / holidays that embrace light as part of the festivities. While I appreciate the historical symbolism of the lights on the menorah, I also appreciate the warm glow the candles cast.

Hannukah commemorates the retaking of the temple from the Assyrians after years of subjugation and then the resanctifying of the space. As the story goes, there was only enough oil to burn for one day, but it burned for eight giving the Jews enough time to make new oil. To me it is also a celebration of the freedom of worship, to allow diversity in religious practices, or for that matter, to practice no religion. What is important that one way is not imposed on others. So whatever holiday you celebrate: Hannukah, Christmas, Kwanza, Winter Solstice, or no holiday, find warmth in the lights of the season and in the friends and family who gather with you.

Day 311: pumpkins

Day 311: pumpkins, originally uploaded by susanvg.

Some people buy commercial decorations, others use the beauty of our autumn bounty. I loved this idea of displaying all these little pumpkins. Nowadays you walk around and are confronted with a clash of holidays. Some people still have autumn displays: pumpkins, scarecrows, wreaths with coloured leaves. Then across the street, or hanging over the street are Christmas decorations.

I get quite fed up with the commercialization of every holiday. But Christmas is the worst. It now takes over two months of the year with decorations, television ads, fliers all talking about buying, not about caring. Then, as the holiday approaches, everyone pays lip service by donating to shelters, bringing food to food banks and then they forget about other people's problems for the rest of the year.

I, too, get sucked in by the frenzy. This year I hope to keep it simple.

Day 99: Eleven for Dinner

Day 99: Eleven for Dinner, originally uploaded by susanvg.

Holidays bring family together. Tonight we were eleven for dinner. Along with the immediate family there was my nephew who came in from Ottawa just for the evening. My wonderful 91 year old cousin was here. Our grandmother had been married twice. Her mother was the oldest from the first marriage; my mother was from the second marriage. She and my mother were only four years apart. Although our ages are quite different, our relationship is very close. She tells wonderful stories and brings a sense of history to the table. She is a connection to my mother long ago in Russia. Her son and friend joined us from Boston. Another cousin was here - we are distant in terms of the way we are related, but close in terms of our feelings. It is not blood or close family ties that makes a family. Both our mothers came over "on the boat" together. We share history, travels, and many life events.

The family shrinks and grows. While at this time and always, we miss those who are gone, our family is enriched by those who now share our holiday meals - those new relations and relationships that are now family. The warmth we share, the caring for each others' lives, the shared laughter and tears - that is what makes family!

Day 22: Overlapping Holidays

Day 22: Overlapping Holidays, originally uploaded by susanvg.

Today I thought it would be fun to photograph store windows and saw the overlap of holidays and seasons. In one window there was a display of rubber boots, which may be great for spring. However, with our frigid weather, they would result in freezing toes followed by the terrible tingling as they unthaw once back in warmth.

And here - in this photograph, the crossover from Christmas to Valentine's Day. The outside of the window, with the snowy flower boxes and evergreen wreaths hearken back to December. Leafless trees, reflected in the window fit in with the usual monochromatic whiteness of winter. I think here in Montreal, we keep the Christmas lights lit much of the winter to brighten our evenings and add a little colour to this whiteness. Inside, a heartshaped wreath looks forward to February and Valentine's Day. Pink and red blossoms, the tradtional colours of love, are ready to deliver their message.