A Warm Wool Wrap: A retelling of a Martinmas Story

I go with my lantern.

My lantern goes with me.

Above the stars are shining,

Below is shining me.

So shine your light

Through the darkest night.

La bimba la bumba la boom

So shine your light

Through the darkest night

La bimba la bumba la boom

(A Playgarden Lantern Walk song)

Each year, just as the days become noticeably shorter, and the stars appear a little earlier

in the sky, friends and families of Playgarden gather together for our annual Lantern

Walk; a tradition celebrated throughout LifeWays/Steiner/Waldorf programs and schools

around the world.

Here at Playgarden we begin the preparation for our walk a few weeks earlier as we begin

singing the songs we will sing that night, and making the lanterns we will carry. We also

take extra notice of all the kind words and deeds others do for us, and, if we are lucky,

may even get a chance to share a time when we said a kind word or were able to help a

friend.

Then, on a dark, cold, moonless night, we gather around a golden bonfire to hear the

story of a young man's selfless act. Once shared, lanterns are lit, voices are lifted, and we

begin to wind our way through our neighborhood - bringing warmth and love to all.

Oh, what a sight it is!

- Jane McCoy, Hummingbird Hill Playgarden

Once upon a time - though not so long ago - Autumn was a very busy time where friends

and neighbors would help each other with the long and difficult task of preparing for the

long winter ahead.

They helped with the bringing in of the harvest, drying and canning food for the winter,

repairing homes and barns, and trading for everything else they may need.

And it was just about this time of the year - when the days became noticeably shorter, the

air grew noticeably chiller, and the stars appeared noticeably earlier in the sky, - that

marked an end of much of this work, and so whole communities would gather together to

give thanks to each other for the help they had received. They would thank Mother Earth

for all she had given them, and they would thank the Divine Spirit who would guide them

through the dark days ahead.

And it was on one cold Autumn evening, that a group of young men were coming back

from one of those festive gatherings that I just mentioned.

Now, among the group was a young man from a very proud and prosperous family. He

always had the finest of clothes – made from the most expensive and ornate fabric - to

keep him warm and stylish.

And his horse – Oh! His horse was wonderful! So tall and strong, graceful and swift. The

young man never lost a race that he entered with his fine steed.

Now as I said, on the night that I am telling you about, this young man and a small group

of friends were traveling home on their horses after feasting and celebrating.

As they traveled, the cold wind whipped around, and the young man was grateful for the

warm, wool wrap he had around his shoulders, pulling it just a bit tighter to keep the

biting wind off.

As they rode down a dirt path, they came across an old man sitting by the road’s edge; so

ragged and thin were this man’s clothes that the wind teased its way into each and every

hole - and even though the young man was warm in his wool wrap, just looking at the

man sent a chill through him.

Now, the young man’s friend passed this old man without even taking notice of him, but

the young man could not take his eyes off the old man - so filled with compassion and

concern for him.

Suddenly, before the young man even thought about it, he jumped off his great horse and

ran to the elder. Taking a sword from his sheath, the young man took off his wool cloak

and split it in two. He wrapped one piece around the elder man to keep him warm and the

other around himself.

When he got home, the young man fell into a deep, sound sleep, and while he slept, he

had a dream. In his dream, he saw the old man sitting on the side of the road wrapped in

his wool cloak. And in his dream, he saw the old man stand up and as he did so, the

warm cloak that was draped around his shoulder, fell away, and standing there was an

angel surrounded in a golden light, smiling. The young man’s heart was filled with

warmth and love.

The young man awoke and knew that by helping that old man, he had made the angels

smile. From that day on, he promised to do something each day that would make the

angels smile again. And do you know what? He did!