Wassailing

Up to Cotehele  for wassailing today - a group of us walked up through the woods and gathered with all the others in bright hats and instruments to scare evil spirits away and promote a good harvest for the following year!  The GreenMan, Hobby Horse, Holly men, a frog  and a  stag were there as well as others in fancy dress of their choice! We processed up to the orchard and sang and  hollered as cider was poured round the decorated tree in the Old Orchard and then the Mother Orchard. The whole wondrous event is here!
It felt only right to stop at the National Trust shop and buy a couple of bottles of Mulled cider and a bunch of mistletoe - although I have no plans to be snogging anyone under it and in fact left it in the pottery shop on the walk home! 
We all drank the warmed mulled wine at mine and then wearing Christmas hats I had gathered from my school resources, we went to stand in Friends garden to sing carols. The girls opened the window and Friend raised her hands in the air and clapped us after each carol - so much better than she had been the previous day. At the end we went in one by one to wish her a happy Christmas and give her a kiss - no mistletoe needed.