Below is the text our teachers will be using during Morning Meeting during our 12 Days of Peace. In your newsletters this month will be more programs we’ll be doing this month to teach our scholars about generosity, including Angel Fish Families and Book on Every Bed.
On December 13, Sweden, Norway, and Finland celebrate St. Lucia’s Day. St. Lucia was a young girl almost two thousand years ago, who would sneak food to the hungry people hiding under the city of Rome. These people were Christians who weren’t allowed to worship their God. It was dark in the tunnels under the city, so she would wear candles on her head and carry food with her hands. Her name, Lucy or Lucia, means “light.” She had a good heart and was very generous.
On St. Lucia’s Day, a girl dresses in a white dress with a red sash around her waist and a crown of candles on her head. They can be real candles or electric ones. This girl leads a parade of carolers in the town, visits hospitals and the elderly, and hands out ginger snap cookies called papparkakor. People also eat lots of sweet buns with raisins for breakfast.
Girls love dressing up like Lucia, and the boys dress up as Star Boys-they wear a pointy hat covered in stars on their head and sing, too.