At last it was here- the evening Strauman had been waiting for: The twenty-third evening before the evening!
The crowds streamed up from the parking lot to the schoolyard, gathering around the sitka spruce – recently imported from the lush and tropical spruce forest habitat: Sør-Brenna.
Once the troops had assembled, there was a solemn and unison countdown from five to one, and then the Christmas tree lit up the surroundings. You could feel the hairs on your arm stand up, an emotional response triggered by neither cold nor fear, but a thrill, moved by feelings rooted in deep Christmas traditions.
(Disaster averted: just before the musical performance became a reality, one of the most important guitar strings snapped due to the cold, and an instrument swap became a necessity. Fortunately, the musician has weathered a winter night before)
The evening's troubadour, armed with a stringed instrument, then struck up "Musevisa." It didn't take long before we witnessed matchless enthusiasm and considerable forces at play, as the audience got swept up in a Christmas moshpit around the tree to the beat of the music, singing at the top of their lungs. "Jeg gikk meg over sjø og land" earnestly encouraged stomping to the beat, and proved excellent for those in search of extreme sports, given the slippery surface. But then came what no one could have foreseen. The song was abruptly interrupted when Santa made his entrance!
No one wondered who this fellow was, for there he stood unmistakably in person: With a beard and cap, full red attire, and a sack filled with gifts! Both children and adults gathered hopefully around him, as the contents of the sack were to be handed out.
(A formal bow is made to the distinguished gentlemen, and the press photographer pushes his way through)
It turned out, however, that the generosity was not entirely without a return favor. Santa displayed a clear need for admiration, and demanded "På låven sitter nissen" be sung as payment for the gifts.
Santa then humbly took his leave and was spared having to depart with his mission unaccomplished. The evening was thereby declared a success, and after one last song, everyone could head home happy and content.
Photo series follows:
(Not even the North Pole is spared from today's intensive marketing, and Santa wore a not-entirely-club-neutral cap, combined with mittens branded "devils")