The last Sunday before Advent, and so called because traditionally this is when English people made their Christmas puddings (in the 20th century - who does that nowadays) before the advent of Mrs Peak's* or other shop bought puddings.
It gets its name from the collect for the day in the 1549 BCP, which begins with the words "Stir up O Lord the wills of thy faithful people" and has become associated with the custom of making Christmas puddings on this day. It was quite hard work stirring up all those ingredients, and involved everyone available to pitch in and stir.
I looked up a Wikipedia article on Stir Up Sunday, and read that it was sometimes the custom for silver coins to be put in the puddings, and I have to say that when I was a child I definitely expected to find a coin in my Christmas pudding. But I've lost touch with the present generation, do children today still find a coin in their puddings? Or are modern parents mindful of emergency visits to A&E?
The weather here has been really overcast and damp. Tim picked me up to go to the 8 o'clock this morning, and I've spent the rest of the day watching tv and crocheting. And doing jigsaws on my computer. I probably don't get as much physical exercise as I ought to have, but I try desperately to keep my brain ticking over.
*I've just realised I don't think I've seen any Mrs Peak's this year. Can an English person tell me when and where they went while my back was turned.
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