Date: Fri 04-Dec-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: CURT

Quick Words:

edink-tree-lighting

Full Text:

ED INK: Illuminating The Season

As the sun slips toward its assignation with the solstice, and the deep covers

of night get pulled up around the neck of these scant days, Newtowners

annually venture out into the early evening dark on the first Friday of

December to make a stand against the gloom. They light a Christmas tree.

This simple act has become ever more popular with each passing year, and if

the tradition holds true, at 6 pm on Friday, December 4, the Ram Pasture will

be full of people who, with their friends and families, have come to sing

carols, to count down, and to cheer as the town tree finally illuminates the

night. We urge everyone who has not yet attended this traditional kick-off to

the holiday season in Newtown to make an extra effort to join the crowd this

year. You will have no trouble finding your way. The approaches to the Ram

Pasture will be lit by luminaria -- a sight of such astonishing beauty that

even the most hardened home-bound commuters on Route 25 slow down to take it

all in.

The tree lighting at the Ram Pasture is just the start of the weekend's

festivities. The 13th Annual Newtown Holiday Festival and House Tour takes

place on Sunday, December 6, with music, art, crafts, food, and just plain fun

scattered around the center of town. (You can read about all the planned

activities in our Enjoy pages this week.) Like the tree-lighting ceremony, it

is an opportunity to immerse yourself in a genuine expression of community.

And it is a sense of community -- of family, old friends, and even the many

friendly new faces we see in town each day -- that is our best shield against

even the darkest and coldest of winters.