Sunday December 31st - Promises, promises...

This year's resolutions might not have gone as well as in previous years -

I do have an entry for every page in my journal, although there were a couple of sticky patches when I found my self trying to write up a whole week in one go. That's what I call a memory test.

I did eat chocolate every week. At least, I didn't keep a record, but I can't imagine a week without chocolate, so it must have happened.

It's the "two bags of stuff to the charity shop every month" resolution that I'm not sure of. A plastic tub sat in the hall collection stuff for months, before I finally managed to get round to dumping donating it all to a randomcharity shop. So I might have managed it, but probably not.

 



Still, they are good, workable resolutions, so I will stick with them for another year. saves me cudgelling my brain to come up with something different. 

I'll retrieve the tub from the shed, where all the extraneous clobber has ended up over Christmas/NewYear, and make a start on filling tomorrow. Or the next day. Sometime soon.

 

Sunday December 31st - Diaries

You may have been wondering why I haven't posted for a week? Or maybe you haven't noticed!

The clue is in the name of the blog; "A letter from home". Well, they've been staying here from Christmas Eve until New Year's Day, so there wasn't much point in writing "letters" to them...

My new diary arrived today - Sunday! Just in time for tomorrow. I waited to order it in case anyone had given me a diary for Christmas - a risky undertaking, because I am very specific, except in the matter of colour.  And here it is;

This year's colour is............................................red!

It will seem weird, starting all over again in an empty book. I think this will be the fifth year....

Well, Happy New Year, everyone, and best wishes for 2018

#Pause for Advent 4

Recap of previous weeks; I'm reading Luke's Gospel "backwards" through Advent. In week 1, I started at the Resurrection of Christ. In week 2, I gathered my strength and tackled the Passion of Christ, which is dealt with mercifully concisely in the King James Version of the gospel. This week was all about the Ministry of Christ, from being Baptised by John the Baptist as far as just before the Passover Meal. That is from Chapter 2 to Chapter 19. Jesus certainly had a busy busy busy three years. I found a map showing the places he visited here

If you want to get a sense of scale, the Sea of Galillee is about 13 miles long.

Towards the end of Chapter 19, Jesus is talking about the Second Coming;

"Don’t let the sharp edge of your expectation get dulled by parties and drinking and shopping. Otherwise, that Day is going to take you by complete surprise" (from "The Message" by Eugene H. Peterson)

It struck me that is exactly how Christmas Day sometimes arrives all of a sudden, with all the sense of awe and expectation lost amid the chaos and scheduling of getting ready.

So, here is this week's #Pause - I will be reading the first few Chapters tonight, concerning the Birth of Christ. I may well go back to the old King James, for the familiar, traditional words...

and then I might listen again to O Magnum Mysterium composed by Morten Lauridsen

O magnum mysterium, et admirabile sacramentum, ut animalia viderent Dominum natum, lacentem in praesepio!
Beata Virgo, cujus viscera meruerunt portare Dominum lesum Christum.
Allelluia!

O great mystery, and wonderful sacrament, that animals should see the new-born Lord, lying in a manger!
Blessed is the Virgin whose womb was worthy to bear our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
Allelliua!


and then I might imagine myself to be this child... as related by Stephen Cottrell in his book From "Do Nothing; Christmas is Coming: An Advent Calendar with a Difference"

December 24

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nativity_scene_@_Eglise_Notre-Dame_de_Lorette_@_Paris_(31523272300).jpg

"One of my best Christmas memories is from the church in Chichester where I was the parish priest. Because the building was so small, and because every other available inch of space was needed for chairs, we used to put the crib underneath the altar. One Christmas morning, about halfway through the service, a little girl, Miriam, toddled up to the front of the church. She can only have been about two or three at the time. For several minutes she stood before the crib, gazing intently at the figures. Then, very carefully, so as not to wake the baby, she stepped inside and sat down. And as people looked at the crib that Christmas, as well as the shepherds and the angels and the ox and the ass, and Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus, they saw Miriam. She sat there for the rest of the service, content to have become part of the story. She was the best Christmas sermon I have ever experienced. I think this is also the best example I can muster of the how to get ready for Christmas this year." 

The other bloggers contributing to #Pause for Advent can be found at Tracing Rainbows. Many  thanks to Angela for hosting the #Pauses.

Saturday 23rd December - Christmas Eve's Eve

I'm having to do two posts today just so that I can use the phrase "Christmas Eve's Eve".

An oddly quiet day in some ways - I haven't left the house, apart from swapping the bright white lights on the outside tree to replace them with coloured ones, so that I could use the white ones inside. It isn't easy to take a picture of the tree at this time of night. Here is it without flash

and with flash

You either get the lights or the tree in my photographs. You'll have to merge them in your mind.
I've put the bright white lights inside a pickle jar to make a table decoration

I hoovered the whole house, bit by bit. Himself is on light duties, pending a minor op, so the hoovering was down to me. I find it is one of the quickest way for me to get completely out of breath, so I took my time, doing a room, pausing for a cup of tea, doing another room, another cup of tea...

And we managed between us to get the cards up. We usually string them up at ceiling level, but lots of things are different this year. At the beginning of the week getting ready for Christmas seemed an impossible feat, but now - everything has been checked off the list apart from four emails, washing the kitchen floor and delivering a couple of presents. And there's still one more day before Christmas!

I've finished the little bit of Christmas sewing I wanted to get done - last year it was frantic Advent Calendar Completing in time for 1st December. This year it is a little surprise for Christmas Day. I've also made a sort of "cat's duvet" from various scraps of fabric left over from other projects, which has helped the "Upstairs Cat" spend more time downstairs this Winter. 

It's nearly bedtime for us. As soon as James May has finished trying to follow the instructions for making some stilts, from a vintage "Ladybird" book, we're off.



Oh, and the Jamie Oliver Crazy Fish Pie was worth making.

Saturday 23rd December - Catch up, catch my breath

Have I really not posted since Monday morning?

So it seems...

Monday - Dentist experience relatively OK - no drillin'n'fillin, but what my son describes as "an industrial strength clean". So that was ok, home for lunch, which I as able to eat (not always the case after the dentist!) and off shopping for - can't remember. Non perishables, I guess. Mega present-wrapping.

Tuesday; Unexpected phone call; could I play for a carol service tomorrow morning for the residents of a local home?.... Thinks hard, yes, I can just fit it. Shopping at school. Off to school in the afternoon for the Dress Rehearsal at the church for the School Nativity tomorrow. Several unplanned additions to the carols from the keyboard I play - sudden loud drum beats, or change of instrument. Hope it doesn't do that tomorrow. More present-wrapping.

Wednesday; frantic last minute practice of songs for the Nativity. I can do the carols; it's the jazzy up-tempo numbers that I find taxing. The zip round to play some carols at the Home - not too many "bonus notes" today. Back to the school, and with the keyboard precariously balanced across the choir stall ends, and my music surreptitiously propped up on a handy flower display I get through the songs and carols without any "surprises" from the keyboard.



(Memo to self - must watch "Flint Street Nativity" again to compare notes...)

Home, change, snooze even, before off out again for end-of-term meal. To my horror, the others all arrive (after me - I was early) Bearing Gifts! We are doing a Secret Santa! All gifts to cost no more than £1; and I remember that I spent the whole day trying to squeeze in time to drop off a bag of stuff at the charity shop. So I rummage in the boot, find something possible, wrap it in a napkin tied with string from behind the bar. Phew. That was lucky. It was at least as good as the inflatable reindeer, or the canned snow, and other presents to choose from. 

Thursday; TERM HAS FINISHED!!!!! NO MORE SCHOOL!!!! When I eventually woke up, I zombied into town and bought vegetables and spent the afternoon wrapping some more presents. Which had fortunately arrived for me to give them to the recipients when we met up in the evening.

Friday; Turkey-Lurkey day. We woke far too early, made tea and toast for us both at about 4:30 am (Yes. True.) Then rolled over and went back to sleep until 10:30. Oh no! Turkey-Lurkey day! Up, breakfasted, dressed, in the car and in the shop in record time. Brought everything home, and somehow managed to get it all into the fridge. Except the box full of stuff in the shed....

Cooked supper for us two and the Grand Old Man. Excellent.

That was my week - full tilt until just now. I'm just about to have a go at Jamie Oliver's Crazy Simple Fish Pie. (Didn't like the chipolatas with apples and onions - too sweet.)

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/jamie-oliver-crazy-simple-fish-pie-ng3htpq7l

Monday 18th December - a moment of happy happy

Just look at all these pictures. Don't argue with me, just go and look.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-42370195?SThisFB

Monday 18th December - start the week

Here's a random post...

If you are following the #Pause for Advent bloggers, you can find us at "Tracing Rainbows"

One of the bloggers posts hymns - how long is it since I have sung "Hills of the North Rejoice"? Not since school, maybe.



Today I am off to the dentist.This is a major expedition as he, no, she, as the daughter is now running the practice, is twenty miles away. Sooner or later we will have to move to a more local practice - but I've been going to them since before I was born - old habits are hard to change. We usually make this a family day out - are you laughing? I'm sure I heard you laugh. But it hasn't worked out that way this time, so I shall travel solo. Fingers crossed....




The the to-do list is enormous. Why is it that every time I go to tick the items off, the list gets longer instead of shorter? Some of the items are proving hard to deal with, like clear all the accumulated charity bags and recycling out of the back bedroom . I should just get on with it - it will be a load off my mind (and a load out of the house) when that is done.



What shall I try and achieve today? Charity bags as far as the front door, that would be good. Wrap presents,  - here's the Japanese speed-wrap method - 15 seconds per present - and another video showing how it is done!

I'll let you know how it goes.

Right now I need to brush my teeth, scrape the ice off the car and get going. Toodle-oo.

Pause for Advent 3 - Luke chapters 3 to 21

I've read the bit from the 'Last Supper' to 'Jesus laid in the Tomb' several times now, in the King James version.

Now it is time to move back - this will be a marathon read - all the way from chapter 3, about John the Baptist, to the end of chapter 21. I might start a bit further back, where Jesus gets separated from his family in the temple during a visit to Jerusalem.

And I might read it in a modern translation - it will be about 4 chapters or so every day.

Maybe it will be a good idea to make a point of pausing with a cup of tea, (or a glass of wine!), light the advent candle and take time out to settle down for a Good Read.

We have the advantage of knowing how the story ends. Jesus' followers, at the time when he was here, could only follow, like sheep, not really understanding or knowing what he going to do, or where he was going next. I'm not great a surprises or suspense. I have been known to skip to the end of a book just to make sure it is going to all end happily.

I've just read in a literary blog about "mapping out a book" - marking all the locations where the action takes place on a map. What a brilliant idea - I found this map here

and I think I will print out a large copy and use it as a bookmark. I could do with working out what the scale is.

Sunday 17th December - Not where I wanted to be

Church was where I didn't want to be - but I got up, scraped the car and shivered my way there. And shivered into the church. And chose a seat near the blowers at the back, and did up the top buttons of my cardigan and zipped up my fleece to the neck and hunkered down. It's my husband's fleece, several sizes too big for me and very warm, so I was able to shelter my hands inside the sleeves and make like a hibernating tortoise.



We lit the third advent candle - "this one represents 'Love' " announced the vicar.

Wikipedia - advent wreath

We sang the third verse of the advent-candle-lighting-hymn - all about how this candle represents 'Joy'

We listened to the reading from chapter 8 of Paul's Epistle to the Romans, all about 'Hope' and a then a sermon on the same theme. 

We sang the hymn "The Servant King" - one I really don't care for, followed by "Meekness and Majesty". Not keen on that either.

So what was the point of being there? Why did I stay?

Because - it's not about me, and what I want, and what I like.

And the sermon was good, and full of Hope, with a bit of Love and Joy thrown in.

And I left feeling a better (if chillier!) person than when I rolled up.

Just to clarify everything, here's wikipedia on the usual themes for the four Sundays in Advent;

Advent candles

In the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, the readings of Mass on the Sundays of Advent have distinct themes:

1. On the First Sunday, they look forward to the Second Coming of Christ.
2. On the Second Sunday, the Gospel reading recalls the preaching of John the Baptist, who came to "prepare the way of the Lord"; the other readings have associated themes.
3. On the Third Sunday, the Gospel reading is again about John the Baptist, the other readings about the joy associated with the coming of the Saviour.
4. On the Fourth Sunday, the Gospel reading is about the events involving Mary and Joseph that led directly to the birth of Jesus, while the other readings are related to these.

In another tradition:

1. The readings for the first Sunday in Advent relate to the Old Testament patriarchs who were Christ's ancestors, so some call the first Advent candle that of hope.
2. The readings for the second Sunday concern Christ's birth in a manger and other prophecies, so the candle may be called that of Bethlehem, the way, or of the prophets.
3. The third Sunday, Gaudete Sunday after the first word of the introit (Philippians 4:4), is celebrated with rose-coloured vestments similar to Laetare Sunday at the middle point of Lent. The readings relate to John the Baptist, and the rose candle may be called that of joy or of the shepherds. In the Episcopal Church USA, the collect "Stir up" (the first words of the collect) may be read during this week, although before the 1979 revision of the Book of Common Prayer it was sometimes read in the first Sunday of Advent. Even earlier, 'Stir-up Sunday' was once jocularly associated with the stirring of the Christmas mincemeat, begun before Advent. The phrase "stir up' occurs at the start of the collect for the last Sunday before Advent in the 1662 Book of Common Prayer.
4. The readings for the fourth Sunday relate to the annunciation of Christ's birth, so the candle may be known as the Angel's candle. The Magnificat or Song of Mary may be featured.
5. Where an Advent wreath includes a fifth candle, it is known as the Christ candle and is lit during the Christmas Eve service.

Other variants of the themes celebrated on each of the four Sundays include:

• The Prophets' Candle, symbolizing hope; the Bethlehem Candle, symbolizing faith; the Shepherds' Candle, symbolizing joy; the Angel's Candle, symbolizing peace
• Hope–Peace–Joy–Love
• Faithulness–Hope–Joy–Love
• Prophets–Angels–Shepherds–Mag
• Faith–Prepare–Joy–Love

Saturday 16th December - A day for ourselves

Oh me! oh my!

This has been the first completely unscheduled day since, since, since....

I normally work for several hours a day, Saturdays included, except Sunday (unless I am on the rota at church for something...)

Today I wasn't at "work",
so,

I have done

housework (bathroom cleaning, hanging up laundry)

teaching admin (sending in end of term pay claim and registers)

teacher clearing-up (I have a number of different "teacher-bags", depending on where I am going and what I am teaching. By this stage of term they are full of "where shall I put this" and "I'll deal with this later"

Shopping - perishables which are not on the internet order, and bits and pieces which it is too soon to go into details about

Posting the parcel which MUST reach its destination before Christmas

And finally, finishing the tree,

and decorating the fireplace.

Christmas seems just that little bit more real.

Time to pause, stop, relax, enjoy, reflect, remember...