Posted on Friday, December 21
____________________________
Hannukah, Kwanzaa, Christmas.
The big three.
My goodness.
We are reaching peak season.

Milestones.
Revel in them.
Let them swamp us.
When we come up for air let’s be smiling.
Let the universal good will make us drunk with joy.

After Christmas and Kwanzaa and New Year’s Eve comes a letdown.
Next community milestones weeks away.
Dreary winter has fallen on us, suffocating us in an endless series of freezing and inclement weather.
Spring found only in our mattresses.

This the test.
Will we carry on the spirit these great holidays have imbued us with?
Or permit it to fade away?

__________________________________Tagging Today
Thursday, December 20, 2018
My 252nd consecutive posting, committed to 5,000.

Time is 12.01am.
On Thursday, Boston’s temperature will reach a high of 60* under a drenching rain.

Dinner is Lasagna Packets with meatballs, pork tenderloin, beef chunks, in honor of Kat’s return from school.

____________________________
Question of the Day:
What is Kwanzaa?

Short Takes: Movie
The Passion of Joan of Arc (French: La Passion de Jeanne d'Arc) is a 1928 silent French historical film based on the actual record of the trial of Joan of Arc.
The film was directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer and stars Renée Jeanne Falconetti as Joan.
It is widely regarded as a landmark of cinema, especially for its production, Dreyer's direction and Falconetti's performance, which is often listed as one of the finest in cinema history.
The film summarizes the time that Joan of Arc was a captive of England, depicting her trial and execution.

Danish film director Dreyer was invited to make a film in France by the Société Générale des Films and chose to make a film about Joan of Arc due to her renewed popularity in France.
Dreyer spent over a year researching Joan of Arc and the transcripts of her trial before writing the script. Dreyer cast stage actress Falconetti as Joan in her only major film role.
Falconetti's performance and devotion to the role during filming have become legendary among film scholars.

The film was shot on one huge concrete set modeled on medieval architecture in order to realistically portray the Rouen prison.
The film is known for its cinematography and use of close-ups.
Dreyer also didn't allow the actors to wear make-up and used lighting designs that made he actors look more grotesque.

Prior to its release, the film was controversial due to French nationalists' skepticism about whether a Danish person could direct a film that centered on one of France's most revered historical icons. Dreyer's final version of the film was cut down due to pressure from the Archbishop of Paris and from government censors.
For several decades it was released and viewed in various re-edited versions that had attempted to restore Dreyer's final cut.
In 1981 a film print of Dreyer's final cut of the film was finally discovered in Gaustad Hospital, a mental institution in Oslo, Norway and re-released.

Despite the objections and cutting of the film by clerical and government authorities, it was a major critical success when first released and has consistently been considered one of the greatest films ever made since 1928. It has been praised and referenced by many film directors and musicians.

___________________________
Answer to Question:
Kwanzaa is a celebration held in the United States and in other nations of the African diaspora in the Americas and lasts a week.
The celebration honors African heritage in African-American culture and is observed from December 26 to January 1, culminating in a feast and gift-giving.
Kwanzaa has seven core principles (Nguzo Saba).
It was created by Maulana Karenga and was first celebrated in 1966–67.

Karenga created Kwanzaa in 1966 to be the first pan-African holiday.
Karenga said his goal was to "give Blacks an alternative to the existing holiday and give Blacks an opportunity to celebrate themselves and their history, rather than simply imitate the practice of the dominant society."

Kwanzaa is inspired by African "first fruit" traditions, and the name chosen is from Swahili, "matunda ya kwanza."
The rituals of the holiday promote African traditions and Nguzo Saba, the "seven principles of African Heritage" that Karenga described as "a communitarian African philosophy":

Umoja (unity)—To strive for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation, and race.

Kujichagulia (self-determination)—To define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves, and speak for ourselves.

Ujima (collective work and responsibility)—To build and maintain our community together and make our brother's and sister's problems our problems and to solve them together.

Ujamaa (cooperative economics)—To build and maintain our own stores, shops, and other businesses and to profit from them together.

Nia (purpose)—To make our collective vocation the building and development of our community in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness.

Kuumba (creativity)—To do always as much as we can, in the way we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it.

Imani (faith)—To believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders, and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.

________________________________
Good morning on this Friday, December 21, Christmas now only 4 days away
Getting close.

Today we talked about the spirit of the holidays, prolonging the positivity through the dreary winter season.
We tweaked our view of time: tick tock.
We featured The Passion of Joan of Arc, a movie milestone.
And we discussed the meaning of Kwanzaa.

Che vuoi? Le pocketbook?

See you soon.

Love

Dom