Christina Hollis - An English Country Christmas...

By Philip Halling

I love to party, but my OH is all for the quiet life. That's we moved into a house that's deep in the English countryside, shortly after we got married.  Living here, we have the best of both worlds. When OH comes home, he can leave the stresses of his high-powered working life at the gate (assuming I can hide his wretched BlackBerry). If I need a break from the solitude, I can hit town within an hour as long as we're not locked down by wintry weather.

This year, the run-up to Christmas has been exceptionally mild. That makes a change - for the last two years, our village's annual Christmas Tree festival has been disrupted by heavy snow. England doesn't cope well with extremes of weather. We're used to ordinary rain and cold, because we suffer that pretty much all year round (!). Blizzards, floods and other natural disasters do happen here, but so rarely our councils can't afford to tie up much money in specialised equipment and manpower that may only be needed once in a blue moon.  We're hoping it won't be another bad winter. Our lane is too small for the snow-plough, so we always have to dig ourselves out as far as the main road, which is half a mile away!

By Trish Steel

There hasn't been a school-day this term when the weather has stopped me walking the two miles from home each afternoon to meet Son No.1 at the school coach-stop. It's lovely to listen to the blackbirds and pheasants racketing off to roost. It's dusk by the time the coach pulls in, so I have to remember to shut our poultry safely in their run before I leave home, or Mr Fox will be around to pick up takeaway chicken! On my walk down to our meeting-point, I can enjoy all the outdoor Christmas lights going on as the light fails. One of the cottages down in the village has new owners. They've already made a start on their big, overgrown garden and this has meant they've had a bonfire going all week. The smell of blackberry-and-apple-woodsmoke is delicious and seeing the embers glowing as night falls is almost as good as enjoying a log-fire at home.  By the time I reach the coach stop, OH is already waiting in his car. He stops off there on his way home from work to pick up me, Son No. 1 and Son's huge haul of school books, homework and other kit. Carrying that load home, uphill for two miles, would be too much after a long school day.

FOOTNOTE: While I was writing this blog, the BBC announced that the bereaved of Sandy Hook in Connecticut have asked for 14th December to be marked by acts of kindness. That's a generous and dignified way to remember their loved ones, and I'll be doing my best via Twitter and Facebook to spread their message. This happy time of year holds so many memories for all those who have lost loved ones, everywhere - maybe if we could all spare a couple of minutes on Saturday to check on our friends or neighbours, we could make a difference to their Christmas?

Christina Hollis writes both contemporary and historical fiction - when she isn't cooking, gardening or beekeeping. You can catch up with her at http://www.christinahollis.blogspot.com, on Twitter and Facebook, and see a list of her published books at http://www.christinahollis.com

Snow Fever!

I met my OH in 1982, during the worst English winter in two decades. After that interlude, we rarely saw snow. Then we moved right out into the middle of the English countryside. It was a bit of a worry that the last mile from our house to the nearest decent road was like an Escher staircase, but as the media told us cold winters were a thing of the past, we took the risk.

Until a couple of years ago, our gamble paid off. Then in 2010 we were snowed in several times, if only for a couple of days. Last winter, it began snowing just before Christmas, and we were cut off from the main road for nearly two weeks.

The guy delivering our turkey couldn't get within a mile of us, so the bird had to be towed the rest of the way to our house by sledge.  Being snowed in was such a novelty, we didn't succumb to cabin fever. Clearing paths, digging out to the road and feeding the birds filled a lot of our time. Luckily, we only lost the electricity supply for the first twelve hours, so the freezer contents weren't damaged. After the power was restored we had TV and internet access to keep us amused.  

Photo by Andrew Smith

The unpredictability of English weather means it isn't cost-effective for the-powers-that-be to invest in snow-clearing equipment which might only be used once in ten years, so everything grinds to a halt here at the first hint of the white stuff. People living in the country keep  holiday in hand in case they can't get to work, or arrange to work from home (like my OH). In this area we all keep emergency supplies. Some, like us, can get snowed in, while those at the bottom end of the village suffer from flooding. With so much rain, the river has been running ten feet higher than normal - see the submerged trees in the top photo!  Torch and radio batteries, tinned food (pet and human), powdered milk and toiletries need to be on hand here in winter. Prepare for the worst and hope for the best is the motto. 

I always make sure there are a few treats squirrelled away in our emergency box, along with the bare necessities. Bars of chocolate and a new book or two fill any spare time nicely.

What little treats would you hide away with your emergency supplies? There's a signed book from my backlist for a comment picked at random.

Christina Hollis has written both Historical fiction and Modern Romance/Presents for Harlequin Mills and Boon Ltd, as well non-fiction for national magazines and prize-winning short stories. Her current release, Lady Rascal is available for download from  Amazon, iTunes  and many other retailers, while her next book,  Changing Fortunes, will be published in the summer. She loves to hear from readers - you can contact her through her website or her blog.