On the Tenth Day Of Christmas - Angela Britnell Hangs a Sicilian Glass Ornament

On the tenth day of Christmas Angela Britnell hangs her favourite ornament on the RNA tree...

Every year when I hang this beautiful Sicilian glass ornament on our tree so many memories flood back. We'd only been married a couple of years and were stationed at the US Naval base at Sigonella. Our first son was a month old and we lived in a villa on the slopes of Mount Etna. Christmas was a magical time on the island and to the Sicilians it was a time for family and celebrating the true meaning of the holiday. We still crave the wonderful chocolates they sold and oranges picked straight from the trees and sold in the local streets. On Christmas Day the traditional firework displays and guns shot into the air had to complete with Mount Etna erupting. The sight of glowing red lava against the night sky is something we'll never forget. One day before Christmas we went shopping in the lovely city of Taormina and stopped outside a shop selling hand painted glass. This ornament was hanging in the window and although it was expensive we decided to buy it along with three similar ones. We have treasured them now for twenty-six years and they've survived multiple moves and three rambunctious sons. One day we'll share them between our sons and hope they'll continue the tradition of hanging them in pride of place on their own Christmas trees.

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