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| We made this nativity scene mostly out of recycled objects, and wove the rug by hand, communally |
One shopping day till Christmas. Or, as they used to say back in olden times, one day till Christmas.
Those of the more creative persuasion at Pilsdon, or perhaps the more penniless, have eschewed the shops in favour of making gifts for their loved ones. The pottery has been busy with people making a variety of colourful earthenware objects to decorate/clutter their family’s shelves. Even more impressively, Gaius* has spent all his spare time plus most of his night times weaving a couple of beautiful blue and white patterned tea towels for his parents using Pilsdon’s loom. Apparently it took an entire long day just to get it set up with the vertical “warp” threads all in place correctly - and then the actual work began.
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| The back half of Pilsdon church |
Pilsdon celebrates Christmas as a community should, with lots of communal feasting and singing. The carol service was last Sunday evening. Our small church was rammed with people (75 at the last count) and lit by candles on three large chandeliers. The Broadoak choir came and sang the most exquisite and haunting pieces, one of which I accompanied on the piano, and the place rang with lusty voices during the congregational carols. Those entrusted with reading the scripture verses did so just from where they were sat. No microphones or audio equipment necessary.
There tends to be a bit of coming and going around this time of year as some (including myself) head off to spend time with their families for a few days, whilst others come from afar be at Pilsdon over Christmas. As it does every weekend, the community opens its doors at Christmas to wayfarers, some of whom may be homeless, who can just turn up without notice.
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| The huge willow dwarfs the manor house from this angle |
Because one of our two main butter-makers has been away for a couple of weeks already, visiting his girlfriend’s relatives in Knoxville, Tennessee, I gamely put my hand to the churn and made a batch of butter myself. It goes something like this - 1) pour four bowls of cream (which we get by separating our cows milk) into a big ‘Buffalo’ electric mixer and turn it on, 2) wait for 10-20 minutes until you hear it has turned solid, 3) squeeze all the buttermilk out of it by hand, 4) pour water over it and shake the droplets off each piece, 5) pop it back in the mixer for a minute to coalesce, 6) make large round balls of it by slapping them from one hand to the other, 7) put in the fridge for 15 minutes to cool, 8) use two wooden paddles to bash each ball into the required shape, 9) place in a large container between baking sheets, which goes either in the fridge or the freezer, 10) wash up. I made eleven lovely pats.
The place is host once more to the joyful sound of children playing, crying or chasing the cat. Brian and Norma* moved in just over a week ago, joining Pilsdon as members, and, not surprisingly, brought their two young children with them who are aged 4 and 1.5. Despite having come straight from the States and being plonked in a place full of strange adults who all talk funny, the kids seem to have adjusted incredibly quickly, playing with anyone and everyone, learning our names, and generally acting like they’ve been here all their lives.
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| Truffle the sow returned from her lengthy visit to the boar this week, job done, we believe. She deserves her rest. |
If you have been losing sleep over the wellbeing of Snowdrop since I reported her illness last week, you can look forward to a restful night tonight. The vet has put her on antibiotics and she appears to be back to full health. We weren’t allowed to drink her milk whilst she was taking the medicine, but since we still had to milk her (otherwise her udders would pop) it was just poured down the drain.
So it just remains for me to wish you all a very happy Christmas, wherever you may be! Thanks for reading thus far.
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| Three of our eight (or so) weaners also enjoy a rest |
* names made up
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