Happy 2018!

"Hope Smiles from the threshold of the year to come,

Whispering it will be happier."

~Alfred Tennyson

May your 2018 be blessed with great JOY!

Happy New Year!

2018 - My Word for the Year

My story is important

Not because it is mine….
but because if I tell it anything like right,
the chances are you will recognize

that in many ways it is yours
Maybe nothing is more important
Than that we keep track you and I,
Of the stories of who we are
And where we have come from
And the people we have met along the way.
Because it is precisely through these stories
And all their particularities,
As I have believed and often said,
That God is known most powerfully and personally.
If this is true, it means that to lose track of our stories
Is to be profoundly impoverished
Not only humanly but also spiritually
I not only have my secrets, I am my secrets
And you are yours
Our secrets are human secrets
And our trusting each other enough
To share them with each other
Has much to do with the secret
Of what it means to be human.
~Frederick Buechner

All stories are true and some actually happened.

~Caryl Menkus Creswell

  My word for 2017 was story and yes it did have a profound
impact on me through remembering and hearing others stories.
About half way through the year another word came to me,
it was Kindness. It has stuck with me along with Story.
As I approach 2018 I find that I want to carry Kindness forward
into the new year, but add Courage to the mix.

My religion is kindness.

~Dalai Lama

Courage with Kindness is it, it will carry me through 2018.
To tell you the truth Courage scares me a bit, but
I know it is the word I need to embrace with Kindness.
The picture shows a roller coaster.
I find it is a good metaphor for Courage.
Sometimes there will be exhilarating ups
and sometimes terrifying downs.
Come along with me as I learn about Courage with Kindness.

 A pretty picture of two sharing a moment of beauty.
No other reason to post this picture, but that we need beauty
surrounding us.

New Year's Blessing

This week between Christmas and New Year's is always a time for

reflection and quiet times sitting before the fire.

A friend sent this to me at the beginning of the year.

It was written by her minister.

May you also be blessed in this new year.

New Year's Blessing:

May your eyes be awakened to the beauty all around.
May you notice the clear colors, and the quality of the light
And appreciate their gifts.
May your ears discover the quiet you need to go deeply into your own soul
and truly listen to what you find there.
May you have the strength to let go of those habits and thoughts that are no longer serving you,
that you may explore and embrace new hobbies or ideas that will bring joy into your life.
May you receive the blessing of helping another, and the blessing of needing help that is gracefully
provided.
May you enjoy the simple pleasures of fresh air and sunshine, a warm mug of tea, or a long walk.
May you sing, even when no one is there to hear.
May you have whatever balance you need of solitude and togetherness—because we each need
both, but to different degrees.
May you have the courage to forgive, and the grace to realize the sufferings you cannot see, and
may that same grace be offered to you.
May you cry over a good movie, or a good book, and seek out the stories of others.
May you cry over the state of the world, and do something to make it better.
May the life of another be easier, because you have lived.
May you nurture and be nurtured. Hold, and be held. Love, and be loved.
May it be so.

~Marcia Stanard

Walk with Me to the New Year

You have walked with me through out this year.

Many places have I walked with you in my heart and mind.

We have walked by the sea, through the woods, by a lake,

in gardens here and there, and in other parts of the country too.

Thanks for walking with me this year, I loved taking you along.

We walked in snow, rain, and sunshine.

We walked with stops along the way just to enjoy

a sip of tea or the view along the way.

Now we will walk together into a new year.

We will embrace the joys of past memories

and slough off our sorrows and sadness.

Thanks for walking with me in 2017.

Merry Christmas!

Santa will soon have made his deliveries.

Now it is time to rest and sip on some peppermint tea.

Take care dear friends.

I hope you have some quiet moments for reflection

and to gather with friends and family.

Merry Christmas to each one of you!
I will return here on Tuesday to begin our walk to 2018.

Crave the Light

 Happy Solstice, dear friends!

 I must say, I crave the light;

so very glad when we start seeing longer light days.

With winter just now beginning, It will be awhile.

 In the meantime, the lights of Christmas satisfy my soul.

 I could sit in darkness surrounded by these lights

for a very long time.

More candles will be burned throughout the winter.

A string of Christmas lights will be left out somewhere in the house.

Do you crave the light?

And Back to Dark

First, by an unseen hand

We are given

A push on the swing

That hangs from Heaven.

A mighty shove-

We seem to drift

Though in truth the descent

Is swift-is swift-

To drift till our feet

But graze the ground

Then we are off

On the up rebound.

Till we have traversed

The shining arc- 

That leads from the dark

And back to dark.

~ Kitchen Sonnets by Ethel Romig Fuller

Not sure if this poem is encouraging or not,

but I picture a sliver of a moon tonight

while we sit and pause in the darkness at the

tip of the sliver. Soon the days will lengthen

and the moon will fill with light.

We will return to the fullness of it's light

and delight and dance once more.

In the meantime, light candles and hang

those twinkling lights.

Sit by the fire sipping a warm cup of cheer.

HAPPY SOLSTICE, DEAR FRIENDS!

Christmas Tea Time

A simple tea time for Christmas, dear.

A sip of tea and nibble with a sweet and savory.

The tea I drink for Christmas was found on Amazon,

The Noel,  Compagnie Coloniale - Paris

A black tea with almond and cherries.

It is almost gone now, but it was like Christmas in a teacup.

To add to the tea time was little wreath shaped sandwiches,

one of my favorites.

Just cut the bread with two different size round cookie

cutters to make a wreath.  Spread with a mixture of cream cheese

and finely chopped green pepper. (note: most often I don't like

green pepper in food, but this I do) Spread on bread wreaths,

place under the oven broiler until the edges are toasty and

the mixture is a bit soft. Then decorate with a sprig of mint

and two or three pomegranate seeds. Delicious!

Then for the sweet in the bowl I just cut small bits of

a fruit cake I had on hand.

No more was needed for a Christmas afternoon tea time,

but a friend or two sitting nearby,

candles burning, and soft music playing.

Hoping you find quiet times to share a Christmas cup of tea.

Linking to Bernideen at: http://blog.bernideens.com/

Chritmas Is

Christmas is:

 Candle light with a prayer sent on its way,

Christmas is:

 Twinkling lights that fill our hearts with delight,

Christmas is:

 A cookie and an orange placed before us.

Christmas is:

 A moment to remember family and friends both near and far, for it is in those remembrances that we can savor the seasons warmth.

Christmas is:

 Children’s laughter and their tears as they sing for us their songs of JOY and celebration of the holiday.

Christmas is:

 Most definitely the celebration of the Christ child’s birth, as he cries in the manager blessed by angels over head.

~m.miller

Walk with Me - The Grotto

 The Festival of Lights at The Grotto takes

place every December for the past 25 years.

Come along and walk with me through this

beautiful botanical gardens not far from my home.

It is also known as The National Sanctuary of Our Sorrowful Mother.

A Catholic shrine with gardens and beautiful church.

 

 The grotto is a peaceful place where mass sometimes takes place outdoors.

 Inside the church every evening are Christmas concerts from school

children to professional musicians.

The church gets packed with people enjoying the music of the season.

 Looking up as I walked.

 And looking all around, I experienced JOY.

 Even with all the people walking there,

it is a peaceful place.

A place to celebrate and enjoy Christmas.

 And walk!

 Hope you have enjoyed this festive walk as we approach a new year soon.

Merry Christmas! And keep on walking!

It's Beginning to Look like Christmas

“Winter came down to our home one night

Quietly pirouetting in on silvery-toed slippers of snow,

And we, we we’re children once again.”

~Bill Morgan, Jr.

A child at heart, the vintage tricycle sits high on top of
a cupboard in my living room.
This dark Santa is a vintage mold for paper Santa's long ago.

The little village is residing on the mantel
with twinkle, shiny stuff hanging above.
How I love shiny stuff at Christmas.

A few bottle brush trees sit in the village.
I do love them so.  I think I need to add more trees to the village.

Two vintage flower pots hold little lemon cyprus trees,
which will go outside in the Spring.

The live tree sits on the table now
enjoying the birds and the view through the window.
The sled holds packages for dear ones.

Santas have been collected for many years sit above the books.

As the daylight dims the twinkles and shiny lights delight my heart.

I will be back to blog next week,
but just wanted to share of bit of Christmas joy.
Merry Christmas to one and all!
Happy weekend, dear friends.