Contrast

There's nothing quite like a nice thermos of hot tea, some sandwiches, and a drive in a warm truck to the lakeshore in the middle of winter!  The only thing that could make it better would be a nice CD with a good story to listen to on the way, which we happened to have.  I only wish we could have had our sweet granddaughters with us for this outing--they would have loved it.  The CD was a dramatization of 'The Horse & His Boy' by C. S. Lewis, produced by Focus on the Family and narrated by Douglas Greshem, Lewis's stepson who has

Claire, Nanna Pennie, and Jen on the shore of Lake Erie.

Papa Martin at the same location on Lake Erie.  Br-r-r!

a delightful English accent.  Claire & Em would appreciate such things. Martin had just read in this morning's Chatham Daily News that Lake Erie was frozen over, so that's what prompted our outing.  I'm posting a photo of the lakeshore when the Hudsons were visiting in the summer in August, 2012 for contrast.  I like to see the stark differences in the seasonal changes that God has created; it makes me appreciate the seasons our lives go through as well.

Evidence

There is some evidence around our house that there have been visitors of a young sort here recently.  There is a pink fuzzy bracelet with a heart-shaped button attached that is setting on the buffet in the dining room.  Emily, age five, made it for me last Sunday.  There is a drawing by Claire, age seven, on the front of the refrigerator, and a painting in a frame by Claire on the table by the T.V.  Emily's cross bookmark marks the place in my Willa Cather novel.  The photo album on the coffee table, filled with snapshots of their family, that daughter-in-law Jen put together for us.  Another bit of evidence that the dear granddaughters from California were here recently is the doll house and the roll away bed in the basement.  But the biggest bit of evidence is the happy smiles that we have when we say to each other, "remember" this or that fun time we had with the girls.  These two pictures portray some of our happy moments.  Can you see what is different in each picture?

A Few of My Favourite Things

Kathryn brought her 'Sound of Music' DVD to watch with us while she visited over the Christmas holidays.  I love the song, 'My Favourite Things', so today I'm sharing a couple of mine:

Doing a 1,000-piece puzzel on a winter's day (thanks, Peetra!)

Sitting by a cozy fire with a good book & a cup of hot tea with Martin.

Seasons of Life

A hot day for a hike on the trail in August, 2013

We have a landmark that we keep an eye when walking through Paxton Bush. We like to photograph the same spot in the Bush to show how the woods change over the seasons; this is one of our favourite spots because it's easy to recognize.

A chilly afternoon in April by the old tree

Brrrr! December on the trail

Storms decapitated the old tree by Aug.

No more green, just lots of white (like our hair)

Journey to the Manger

Lots of planning, preparing, and praying went into the past eleven months by a Catholic Women's League committee in Chatham, Ontario.  Christmas was barely over last year, when my friend Lori laid out her inspiration for a Nativity display event for the coming year.  With our priest, Fr. Daniel, we all agreed that this would be our Christmas gift to our city, and we would not charge for admission or refreshments (a beautiful tea room was set up), nor would we sell tickets for a raffle.   Like God's  wonderful Gift of His Son, this event would be free to everyone.

There were over 380 Nativity sets loaned by people in our parish as well as from others in the community.  We hand delivered invitations to every church in town as well as newspaper articles and radio announcements.

The large rustic stable was made by Martin & his dad about 60 years ago.

I am seated here with some of the most inspiring women I've ever worked with on  committees.  There were dozens of men, women, and young people that served as volunteers throughout the three day event.

 There were over 2000 happy people that passed through our church hall in the basement.  Everyone was so pleased with this birthday party for Jesus--for that's what it felt like.

Several groups of children from Catholic schools in town acted out the Christmas story as it was r read by a narrator.  We also had live organ, guitar, & violin music.

Members of our Stained Glass Window Book committee led tours of the beautiful windows in Blessed Sacrament Church.
The Journey to the Manger ushered great expectation for the Advent season.

Random Thoughts

"As the sugar hides in the tea,
Let me hide myself in Thee."
-Newfoundland Prayer

I just ran across this lovely prayer and had to put it out there for someone else to see.  Does it speak to you as it does to me?  (There's a lot of rhyming going on here!)

As the early evening moves into the cold darkness of a Canadian night, I feel warm and content in our little home, and have pleasant thoughts of warm sunny afternoons with grandchildren in California in recent weeks.  They are all so dear and their parents are teaching them well.  They each in their unique way are making the world a better place.

Isn't there a quote about giving children roots and wings?

That's what I see in these photos.

An old Inspiration

DON'T QUIT (Author Unknown)   When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, When the road you're trudging seems all uphill, When funds are low and the debts are high, And you want to smile but you have to sigh, When care is pressing you down a bit, Rest if you must, but don't you quit.   Life is queer with its twists and turns, As every one of us sometimes learns, And many a failure turns about, When he might have won if he'd stuck it out. Don't give up, though the pace seems slow - You may succeed with another blow.   Often the goal is nearer than It seems to a faint and faltering man; Often the struggler has given up When he might have captured the victor's cup, And he learned too late, when the night slipped down, How close he was to the golden crown.   Success is failure turned inside out - The silver tint of the clouds of doubt, And you never can tell how close you are - It may be near when it seems afar; So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit - It's when things seem worst that you mustn't quit.

Saite-Anne-de-Beaupre', Quebec

I ran across this poem on a plaque in one of the Shrine bookstores on our recent pilgrimage to Quebec with Fr. John and a bus load of fellow pilgrims. It reminded be of an incident when I was starting my tearoom business, Penelope's Teas & Gifts, back in 2001 in California. I was overwhelmed by it all and seriously wondered if I was being foolish and had gotten in over my head. While polishing a beautiful mahogany buffet we had recently purchased for the tearoom, I pulled out a drawer to clean behind it and found a bookmark with the above poem printed on it. I truly felt God was with me and I should keep on with the creation of what would become a place of comfort and grace to many visitors.