With December here now, we are beginning our season of Advent at Appleseeds. Many cultures celebrate this season in different ways and by means of different beliefs, but the symbol of light in darkness remains the same. I choose not to explain all this to children, but rather create a rich visual picture. So each day, we watch a candle that is embedded in an apple, move a little closer to a stable or house. Each day, one child gets to add a golden star to the sky above the scene. At our table, we have placed a mossy "Advent garden" with 4 white tealights. This week, we just lit one candle, and added treasures representing the mineral elements of Earth--a couple of pebbles, a sharks tooth, and a shell. Next week, we'll light two candles and add some plant treasures to the garden. I will put pictures on the blog next week as it builds up. This again provides a visual picture to the children of light increasing and the idea of abundance, though in this case the abundance is not in presents, but in the gifts provided in nature.
This weekend, we will gather in the early evening to have our lantern walk. This is a practice normally done during Martinmas, which occurs in early November, but we are doing it now, as part of our Advent season. The children will see a beautiful puppet show and then proceed outside in the darkness with our lanterns we've been working on, to sing songs while we make our way to a bonfire. It's meant to simply provide children with the rich experience of going out into the night (with the comfort of friends and family) with a little candlelight. Again, the purpose is not to explain anything, but just to allow the experience to unfold for the child. For the adult, if given time and space, Advent is a wonderful time to form our own rich imagery to strengthen our courage in our parenting task.
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