|
Do you know what happens in Korvatunturi on Christmas Eve, when Santa Claus with his helpers has gone to deliver presents to all nice children all over the world? There are a great lot of elves who stay in Korvatunturi. There are bookkeeper elves, cattleman elves, present-maker elves, let alone the wrapper elves. When the present-sacks have been packed, the reindeer have been harnessed and Santa Claus has been seen off, all those elves begin their celebration. And there is, of course, Mrs Santa who is responsible for arranging a proper Christmas party for the elves who have been busy all year.
Because all have been working hard from the morning, the first number of festivities is the Christmas porridge. Mrs Santa has boiled it in a big pot. She has her own top secret recipe. According to that top secret recipe the most important ingredients and their measures in the porridge are as follows: a lot of rice, quite a lot of water, more milk, and an elf-pinch of salt. The porridge is eaten with milk, sugar and cinnamon and everybody has his or her own wooden spoon with initials. Somewhere in the porridge there is an almond hidden and the one who gets it, is entitled to make a wish and what’s more it comes through. Mrs Santa likes to put several almonds into the pot; so there are many lucky ones among the elves.
After the porridge the elves sing songs and dance round-games around the Christmas tree. The tree is in the middle of the floor in the large drawing room of Santa’s Korvatunturi house, and the star, which had been gotten from Old Man Moon, is glimmering on the top of the tree.
There is room enough for all elves to dance and sing! One of the elves’ favourite carol is ”Hey, all elves, let us dance”. They sing it many times during Christmas. |
|
When the evening comes, it is time to go to sauna. Mrs Santa gives bath whisks to the elves. The whisks have been made the previous summer, when the branches and leaves of birches were at their softest and greenest. Then the whisks were preserved in freeze box for Christmas. With the bath whisks it is good to whisk away all dust and dirt from skin, and at the same time a wonderful scent of summer spreads into the air of sauna. The sauna elf makes sure that the sauna is warm all through the Christmas night so that Santa Claus and his helpers can have a bath when they come back home.
After taking a sauna bath the elves have a wonderful Christmas feast. On the table covered with a linen tablecloth there are a lot of Christmas delicacies from Christmas ham and Christmas loaf to juicy potato-, turnip- and carrot-casserole to nicely decorated gingerbread houses and many other dishes. The elves eat with good appetite and drink reindeer milk and home-brewed beer. The cheeks are burning red and happy smacking can be heard round the table.
Although Santa Claus is not at home in Korvatunturi at Christmas, presents are given also there. Every elf has his or hers sock or stocking on the mantelpiece, and into them Santa Claus has put little presents. There may be mittens, gloves, new caps, exciting books, and, of course, chocolate. The chocolate confections are star-shaped and each better than the other. The boxes are not big, but nobody has ever heard that the chocolates had run out. With their full bellies and happy faces the elves continue their plays, games and singing through the night. Some are still singing when tired but happy Santa Claus returns from his journey. So is Christmas Eve over, once again, a happy, warm Christmas Eve in Korvatunturi. |
