AGES AND STAGES

with Mocco Wollert

THE joy of buying presents! I am like a bower bird and used to start assembling presents from August onwards.

There were wonderful specials to be found in pop-up shops and unusual things on bargain tables which one never sees again around Christmas time.

I have a special drawer where I keep trinkets, books , candles and specialties which I collect all year round so, come birthdays or anniversaries, I always have presents on hand. It is not only the joy of finding items that will bring surprise and cries of joy but also the fun of wrapping them up, and choosing beautiful paper and ribbons.

One of my biggest joys was buying Christmas or Easter presents. That joy was taken away from me quite a while ago.

When I ask the parents what a grandchild might like, the answer was usually, “oh, just give him or her some money, then they can buy what they want.”

I have accepted that fact over the years, but it has taken away a great lot of joy for me.

Many families are hard pressed to find presents for their children and grandchildren who have everything. I hear it time and time again: “I just don’t know what to get her – or him – they have everything.”

One year I decided not to buy any presents at all and instead gave the money to the Salvation Army. In return they issued wonderful certificates, nominating each teenage grandchild on them as a donor.

When I gave them to the children at Christmas rather than a present, it went down like a lead balloon. I certainly was not a beloved grandma any more but had become persona non grata big time!

But consider the following. How about, when you make up your spending budget for Christmas presents, you divide that sum – one half to buy presents, the other half going to a charity. Or maybe to a neighbour in need of something.

Are there relatives in your family who are half forgotten? Who might need some help and who would never ask?

What about a homeless person? They don’t even think of presents but would certainly welcome just a cup of warm coffee or a blanket?

Maybe that money could be collected into a fund for a monetary reward for our firefighters, our nurses, paramedics and doctors?

They often put their lives on the line for all of us and are mostly paid a pity or nothing at all.

They certainly deserve a present from all the people they keep safe – us!

It would maybe be a good way of introducing even small children to becoming a “giving person” rather than a “taking person”.

Christmas can be a joyous time with family and friends, with barbecues and drinks on the lawn, with emphasis on celebrating Christ’s birth together, without being a mini toys-are-us under the tree on Christmas morning.

May your Christmas be blessed and your presents be beautiful.

with Cheryl Lockwood

‘TIS the season to drink coffee. For many, this is year-round. I have developed a new appreciation for the wondrous drink as I have made my coffee from scratch – right down to growing it!

I don’t have a green thumb and confess I did not even know the identity of a little shrub that was already settled in the overgrown garden of the house we bought seven years ago.

Discovered after some extensive weed pulling, it seemed quite attractive, so I left it where it was growing.

Obviously, it was hardy, a prerequisite for any poor plant that falls into my hands. I’m fairly sure I could kill even the artificial variety.

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The plucky little plant grew into a tree, then possibly to attract some attention from me, sprouted little berries which turned a shade of dark red. Still clueless, I turned to Google and discovered that it was a coffee tree.

Excitedly, I did some more online research to turn those berries into my favourite beverage. As you may be aware, this is quite the process, so much so, it beats me how anyone figured it out before the magic of the internet.

One legend suggests a 16th century goatherd noticed lively behaviour in his goats who had consumed berries from a certain tree. No kidding! See what I did there? Anyway, my coffee making went something like this:

Pick berries from tree. Peel off skin to reveal two slimy coated beans in each one. Wash beans. Spread beans to dry for a couple of weeks. Peel the dried husk from each bean. Rub off another thin, papery layer. Spread on a tray and roast in oven.

Keep in mind how long it has taken to get this far and realise this is the first time they start to actually smell like coffee. Grind the beans in a food processor of some kind. Get a bit excited because it’s now close to making the drink.

I don’t own a coffee maker because I don’t need to spend more time sitting on my couch with cup in hand, but I have a hand-operated plunger. I used it to turn hot water into the brown liquid I love. That first attempt yielded just four cups of coffee. This year, no thanks to me, the tree flourished.

I was raised on a fruit-growing property and was taught not to waste food. Kids who dared to whine about being hungry were told to go outside and eat whatever happened to be in season.

When coffee berries started to rain on me as I walked under the branches, I knew I could not let them go to waste. Many evenings in front of the TV were spent skinning, washing and peeling.

Am I enjoying the fruits of my labour? Yes!

Is it worth it? Considering the ease of buying a delicious cup of coffee from a café, I’m not so sure.

Sometimes, I open the lid of my ground-up granules and sniff. I know how much work went in, so I don’t want to use them up too quickly. I also try harder to savour my morning brew now.

Enjoy your coffee and season’s greetings to all! 60 Kuran Street, Chermside QLD Phone. (07) 3624 2121 | www.burniebrae.org.au

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