The small elf or gnome we call Tomtenisse in Sweden, is a part of the rich Swedish folktale tradition that includes trolls, elves, giants, fairies, witches and the little elf-like tomte who often lived in the barn and was thought to be benevolent, looking after the farmer, his family and animals. As you can see, he bears little resemblance to the big and burly Santa of today.
I treasure this little plate, a gift from my cousin, Anders. Anders and I share an interest in Old Town , Gamla Stan, the oldest part of Stockholm Stockholm Arabia , Finland
Here you can see the little tomte again. He doesn't look much like Santa, does he? While I believe he may now be a Santa's helper, he is not related. It seems like this little tomte has always been with me. Maybe he is keeping an eye on things around this place.
On my Monday evening without power, I sat here and wrapped gifts as darkness fell outside. I'm so glad I took this picture and I want to share it here. It will remind me of the important things in life that you can feel and observe when modern conveniences fail you.
I'm up for another challenge today. One of those huge windstorms is going full force outside and it's raining again. And I have to go to the dentist and get the permanent filling put in and then to the lab for my diabetes blood tests. I may have cancelled, but I have a gift to bring my dentist and his wife, so I'm off. At least I'm not going to the flat desert below where I would be really scared driving the little Jeep in a storm like this.
