Merry Christmas! Happy New Year!
I’m warm and cozy on this new year’s eve, drinking tea, doing a little writing, sharing the sofa with my honey, whose warmth and coziness can’t be captured in a picture.
Author: Maria Johnson
Happy feast of the Holy Family
One of my favorite feast days…
watching water boil
I spent far too much time watching the little bubbles travel up to the surface and burst into steam.
It was that kind of day.
Today’s Christmas Eve chuckle
Weekly Photo Challenge: Yellow
This morning I had the loveliest experience at our church. For some months, the sanctuary in the church has been under renovation. The altar got a little bit of a facelift; the tabernacle was moved behind the altar, and a crucifix was installed. The tiles that match the ones in my kitchen were replaced with lovely marble tiles, and the whole sanctuary was raised so that there are three steps up. It’s lovely.
We’ve been taking peeks at it on Sundays and watching the progress, but travel kept me away this past weekend and I didn’t see the painting finished last week. Or the installation of the crucifix.
I decided to go to mass this morning so I could stay and have a little holy hour. At the end, I was surprised by the announcement that we were going to have a Eucharistic Procession to the church to bless the tabernacle and crucifix, followed by Adoration.
Oh, my! What a delightful surprise!
It was beautiful. The moment when Father placed the Blessed Sacrament in the tabernacle for the first time brought tears to my eyes. The whole experience was too lovely for words, and a part of me was reluctant to take pictures so I could be present in the moment. I’m glad I didn’t distract myself trying to frame a shot.
Later, when everyone was gone, I took a quick picture to share with my husband. The moment was more precious than even gold. The yellow sunlight brightened everything on the altar. Brighter than the sun, is the Son.
a little late, but still has a Twinkle
Happy third week of Advent. Time for a a little Joy. And a little twinkle, too.
gone, but not forgotten…a weekly photo challenge
I woke up this morning to the delicious sounds of rain — the steady beating of drops on my roof — and the counterbeat of the runoff hitting the roof over the basement door. It was so soothing, so hypnotic that I rolled over and went back to sleep.
The rain continued through the morning into the early afternoon, and then it stopped.
The sun came out to play after that, and the rain was gone, but not forgotten. Big fat drops remained, decorating the yard with beautiful gems of water with sunlit highlights.
Isn’t that like the people we love? They come into our lives and water us, and even when they’re gone, a part of them remains with us.
ad astra
What is it about the crisp
December night that beckons me
outside
and compels me to look
past the tree tops
past the clouds
to the hopeful moon
and beyond?
provocative? too…too?
Gonna try this as a writing prompt. Would love to know your thoughts.
Weekly Photo Challenge: Converge
I expect a bunch of mathematical and geometric convergences in this challenge. In the absence of getting a good picture of the Nexus, or Soran‘s attempt to enter it, I went with something a little more spiritual. Also, I really like blue.
This glass window above the transom at the Abbey Church at the Monastery of the Holy Spirit represents the challenge best. Stepping through the doors into a sacred space is a convergence, from the finite to the infinite, from the temporal to the eternal.
another cup of coffee 