Candles

My candle burns at both ends;
   It will not last the night;
But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends--
   It gives a lovely light!
                               by Edna St. Vincent Millay
                               Source: Poetry (June 1918).

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There's nothing better than the atmosphere of scented candles lit, dancing flames, and the gathering of stories told around its flickering shadows. A quick write revealed a few glimpses of holding short, fat white candles with a cut out circular cardboard base to catch the wax during our Christmas Eve Church services, and lighting of candles during my wedding ceremony. Candles were the source of light from darkness throughout history and have come to symbolize hope, clarity, warmth, and love. 

Chalk talk activity: Storytelling Club a few years ago, we dug deep to discover truisms from an image posted on chart paper (6 tables, 6 chart papers, 6 different images). Students were placed in 6 groups and asked to walk around the tables and post their thoughts based on the image. No talking allowed at this point (hard for them). I did have Mozart playing quietly in the background. The kids were allowed to revisit the tables at any time, read what was posted, and add any connections.  I was amazed! From here, came stories with light, personal tales, and poems.

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Here's a close up of what some of my students wrote. Its so important for their names to be written down so ideas were always acknowledged.

A few stories incorporating the artifact of candles that have impacted me as a storyteller are:

The Candles by Hans Christian Anderson
The Hodja tale: The Flame of a Candle, retold by Marci Stillerman
The Crimson Candle by Ambrose Bierce