Merry Christmas to all — and here’s how Dalston doorsteps into the 2019 festive season

Christmas wreaths in Dalston 2019: top, in Parkholme Road, and above, Malvern Road

HOW DID THE IDEA OF WREATHS at Christmas happen? Who can say, is the admitedly inadequate answer of Loving Dalston.

Various explanations are on the net: the likeliest best source seems to be Time magazine. Unfortunately, the style of the article is unusually unpersuasive, as if the writer is not sure (quite untypical of this famous American publication).

A blog offers an impressive array of research, as if the writer has actually gone further — looked in a few books (yes, words on paper!) — and another blog suggests simply that the wreath symbolises the strength of life overcoming the forces of winter. And that sounds reasonable.

Loving Dalston’s going to take it.

ChrisWreath©DA19d © david.altheer@gmail.com Christmas wreaths Cecilia Rd Dalston London E8 181219 — A hand-made wreath in Cecilia Road. It is not always easy to distinguish such wreaths from those sold in stores

Homeless©DA19: street beggar in Dalston Hackney London © DavidAltheer@gmail.com 251119 — Among all these door deccies, remember the message of Christmas: love and care for all, especially those in wretched circumstances, like this man photographed on a winter’s day in Kingsland High Street. He could not have been more than 25… in Dalston in 2019

David Altheer 121119

* Backstory: Christmas Day pubs 2019: where to get a pint

* Pictures © DavidAltheer@gmail.com. All available for sale via that eddress.Note, some of the above were photographed in 2018, not this year 2019.

* Emboldened underscored words in most cases indicate a hyperlink, a reader service rare among websites. If a link does not work, it is probably because the site to which the URL refers has not been maintained. A link in no way expresses support for any site.

This site welcomes fair comments, including the critical. They may be edited for grammatical, legal or taste reasons, or for shortening. In the unlikely event that anything defamatory is posted, the sender’s details may have to be divulged. (Under UK law, this applies to any comment/discussion forum, eg, Twitter.) RSS feed link is at top right. Twitter: @lovingdalston Publicists, amateur and professional, should read http://bit.ly/ZnClKc Also relevant may be the note at the end of http://bit.ly/117GXmi Photographs © David Altheer unless otherwise stated and apart from supplied pictures

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