elaina keppler

alisonwithers:

They came with candles in their hair. 

The story goes that once upon a time, when my boyfriend’s grandfather worked in a small Swedish town as the village doctor, he would be visited by a small procession of young, fair haired girls with candles in their hair. They would come on a dark cold winter’s morning, floating over the snow dressed in white flowing gowns, singing Lucia songs and bringing warm buns for the doctor. 

It’s got to be the most beautiful, magical Scandinavian rite I’ve ever heard of. These traditions, who’s origin have softened and evaporated, and still upheld in a way that completely surprises me with their simplicity and their breathtaking gestures.