Thursday 18th December - Tinsel! and O Antiphons - O Radix Jesse

 The next stage of tree decoration has happened;

I must have thrown all the small pieces of tinsel away last year - they do get increasingly tatty as the years go by. So this year I gathered the remaining long strands of silver tinsel, and cut them to length with the kitchen scissors. What a mess! You can see snips of tinsel all over the floor. But according to my mother's instructions the tinsel has to lie along the branches like snow, which means having longer and shorter lengths. Being snow, all the tinsel is silver, although some looks gold in the light.

It has been tipping it down with rain all day, but I wasn't going to go outside to check how the tree looks. Luckily BB had to go out, so he stood and directed me where to put the last few pieces.

.....

The little birds found the bird feeders yesterday and were making a occasional timid forays back and forth. Today, in spite of the rain and the cold blustery wind they were busy all day, some at the seeds, some at the peanuts. The squirrel hasn't appeared yet, so the nuts are lasting quite well at the moment.

Ang over at Tracing Rainbows posted a video on how to make a wreath by stabbing greenery into a large potato. I spotted a link at the end of the video for discovering more crafts. In particular I fancy having a go at making apple and peanut butter bird feeders.

    

They seem to be apple slices with the core cut out and a string threaded through. The bottom is smeared with peanut butter on both sides, and then dipped into birdseed. I reckon I can cope with that!   

......

Antiphon for 19th December 

O Root of Jesse, standing as a sign among the peoples;

before you kings will shut their mouths,

to you the nations will make their prayer:

Come and deliver us, and delay no longer.

 

O radix Jesse, qui stas in signum populorum,

super quem continebunt reges os suum,

quem Gentes deprecabuntur:

veni ad liberandum nos, jam noli tardare.