Night of the Tuna Fish

When I was a little girl, I got to be Sankta Lucia every year. I would wake up on December 13th and as a family, we would go sing to unsuspecting missionaries very early in the morning. I would wear my beautiful white Lucia dress with the little lace collar, the red sash around my waist, and the exquisite Lucia crown with candles in my hair. Although there were several of us children, I was the only Lucia. That honor goes to the oldest girl in each family and I secretly loved that I didn't have to share the privilege or even earn it. It came to me simply because of my "birthright"...and it made me feel so pretty and grown up. My sisters would wear their beautiful white dresses with tinsel crowns adorning their small heads and tinsel around their waists. Chip got to be "Steffan, the Stable Boy" with his own pointy star hat and wand...an honor reserved strictly for the boys of the family. And then there were the delicious Lucia rolls...big pieces of sugar on top and delicious gooey stuff wrapped up tight in the middle. They are memories I cherish. I never even questioned the Swedish Lucia song we would sing as we walked through the dark apartment with only the light from my Lucia crown lighting the way. To my 6 year old mind, it sounded as though we were singing "Night of the Tuna Fish..." and I didn't care as long as it meant wearing my pretty crown and eating sticky rolls.

And now many years have passed. My little dress with the lace collar no longer fits and I'm not sure what happened to my Lucia crown. This year my little daughter turned 6 years old and I had been thinking about what that tradition meant to me. I had decided to ask my parents if they would consider finding HB a Lucia dress and crown since they are currently living in Sweden. I wanted to share this tradition with my children and make it a part of our holiday celebration each year. More than anything, I wanted to share that breathless moment of putting on your dress, tying the red sash, and having someone light the candles on your crown. You feel so graceful and beautiful.

And before I could even speak my wish out loud, a box arrived from my sweet parents for HB's birthday.

And in the box was a beautiful white dress with a little lace collar and a bright red sash and a gorgeous Lucia crown. And just like that, we had our Lucia.

With a little help from the dress up box (in the form of a Jedi cape), we also managed to pull together two Steffan the Stable Boy costumes. The boys flat out refused to wear white nightshirts and the hats do look a little like dunce caps...so we Americanized our celebration a little bit. But we had lanterns with real fire and Ballerina Swedish cookies from Ikea...and our gracious neighbors allowed us to come do Lucia for them. I recorded a version of the Lucia song onto a CD (I didn't want to ruin the moment for them by making them listen to me and my little family butcher the Swedish language....or wonder why we were singing about tuna fish) and once I cued the music, down the sidewalk came my little Lucia gang. It was priceless!!!

No one dropped the cookies, we didn't set anything on fire, and our neighbors were so lovely and gracious. We even got delicious pieces of warm pie out of the deal! It was a night to remember.

And the following day, we repeated the whole affair for HB's kindergarten class...and then Jake's 4th grade class...and then Matthew's 2nd grade class. We were doing the Lucia gig all over the place...and having such a wonderful time. When HB did Lucia for her class, there was a little boy sitting on the rug watching her with big eyes who said as she walked by him, "Hannah, you are so beautiful. You are just so beautiful!" I think he said it 4 or 5 times before the whole affair was over...but it's true. You just feel so beautiful...and it made me think about the story of Lucia and the symbolism behind this tradition. Lucia was a young girl who sacrificed so much to serve others. She brought light in a time of deep darkness, not just physically but also spiritually. And today Swedes celebrate this holiday as a time of light during the darkest days of winter...and it ushers in the Christmas season, a time when we celebrate the Light of the World. And when we remember Him and have the light of the His countenance in our hearts and minds and souls, it makes us feel beautiful. We radiate from the inside out. In the darkest days of our lives, we can find hope and joy and beauty. And that is truly a Christmas miracle to celebrate.

I hope this season is filled with much to celebrate...I hope each of you feel beautiful, cherished, and have the opportunity to feel the light of our Savior Jesus Christ in your hearts and homes.

Happy St. Lucia Day!