“Oh, here we come ‘a wassailing among the leaves so green. Here we come a wand’ring so fa’air to be seen. Love and joy, come to you, and to all God’s children too. And God bless us and send us a ha’appy new year! And God send us a happy new year!”
So goes the old holiday carol I sang as a teen with my school’s madrigal singers. And, when I say it’s an old carol, I’m not kidding. It may, indeed, be among the oldest carols of all. So old it predates the word "carol". “Wassailing”, as the tune refers to, was the ancient practice of going from home to home to check on neighbors and wish them well in the frozen cold of winter. Which is thought to have originated in what is now Norway. The term is from the Old Norse phrase “vas heill,” which means “be well and in good health.”
By the mid 13th Century, the practice had spread to England, where it became more Christmas focused, and known as caroling. Hence the modern phrase, "Christmas caroling", instead of the ancient phrase, "wassailing". And the word “wassail” came to refer to the hot and thick beverages carolers would take with themselves to stay warm, and offer to their neighbors as they travelled. Which were the basis of today’s spiced hot cider, mulled wines, hot cocoas, and eggnogs.
Instead of going "wassailing" throughout the solstice and through the new year (which we call the holiday season today) it's become the tradition to go caroling through Christmas day. But that tradition is waning. Once, even back in my boyhood, caroling was a common holiday tradition in America. Sadly, in recent years fewer than 2 in 10 Americans reported caroling, according to the Pew Research Center.
And yet, there may never be a better time to revive, and even expand the practice to include the New Years holiday. After all, when the tradition first began it was as much a New Years as a Christmas or solstice thing to do. And it was done as much for the purpose of checking in on people and wishing them well, as it was for fun and fellowship.
With the Covid-19 pandemic still dragging on, and the new Omicron variant spreading, as many immuno-compromised people and those who have not been vaccinated choosing to continue social distancing, there seems to be a strong need to check on people, and lift their spirits. So now might just be the perfect time to “go ‘a wassailing” again.
So, fill up those thermoses with your modern "wassail" of choice, be it hot coffee, mulled wine, hot spiced cider, hot chocolate, or soup. Load up some classic holiday song lyric sheets on your phones. Use your favorite social media tool to put together your caroling crew. And ask around to see who could really benefit from some happy voices raised in song outside their door. In the spirit of the season, and a strong community.
Doesn't that sound fun?
