Evidence....

We had a lovely bit of snow this week. It began falling about 3 in the afternoon, and quickly faded, but not before a creature left evidence..... ..at our back door. It was a raccoon. We saw him earlier last week, on Christmas Eve, traipsing across the backyard. He was limping. If we leave out food for him then we have a problem. What to do? I am told that raccoons are very resourceful and will find food. With that said, he is still thought of and hopefully the family is fed! They are tucked away under the cover of a log, deep within the woods. We will keep a look-out for them, and as they know, the barn is never locked! :)

Happy New Year! May you have time to notice the little things that add up and enlarge your world!

Now & Then by Frederick Buechner

Back on January 10, I wrote briefly about a book on my reading list called, The Sacred Journey, by Frederick Buechner. Now & Then is the second book( in this series)of Buechner's, and worth mentioning. Written in 1983, Now and Then is the continuing story of his life. He fills in the gaps left out in Sacred Journey, and includes more people who surrounded his life during his growing up and younger adult years. Buechner's life story is interesting in the way it has played out. However, his writing style is what caught my attention and has me reading further into his life. It is said by James Merrill, "Buechner writes better than almost anyone.....deep within it, as we read, the sun shines and the constellations rove." It is true, the writing style of Buechner touches something deep inside and opens a door of understanding that transcends those who follow it.
Buechner's first novel, A Long Days Dying, written in 1950, was runner up for the Pulitzer Prize and gave him the freedom to continue his writing career.
I will be reading more of Frederick Buechner in the coming year, and encourage you to join me!

Let Heaven and Nature Sing!

The sweetest story ever told and one that changes lives forever!

God Bless and Merry Christmas! Luke 2
The Birth of Jesus

1In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world.

2(This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.)

3And everyone went to his own town to register.
4So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.

5He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.

6While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born,

7and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
The Shepherds and the Angels

8And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.

9An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.

10But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.

11Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.

12This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."
13Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

14"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."
15When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about."
16So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child,

18and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.

19But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.

20The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

Taken from Bible Gateway.

Merry Christmas Great White Egret!

New Era Rd. is a long winding road that cuts through the country side and gets us to town. We often drive it and have never seen a White Egret anywhere along the way. Until, this morning!
All alone and standing in the middle of a field, home to dairy cattle, was this lone bird. Our first sighting was at 12:30pm and our second was at 4:30pm that same day. He hadn't moved much and it was raining most of the day. What caused this bird to be here? Worms, frogs, slugs and such. Egrets don't usually come through the Willamette Valley according to All about Birds.The Great Egret lives approximately 23 years and travels from "southern Canada southward to Argentina, and in Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia."It is the symbol of The National Audubon Society. It is difficult to see in this picture, but the Egret has a worm in his mouth. This is probably the richest land around, considering how it is fertilized and cared for!

This kind of experience is exactly the kind that gets me excited. It's just amazing to see something so out of place but within reason! I do wonder where this bird's family is? Did he stray off the track in the fog? Will he pick-up and leave, knowing exactly where to go? Probably.... In the meantime, he is filling up on some mighty tasty food, with no end to the delicacy he is feasting on! Merry Christmas Great White Egret and welcome to our home!!

Christmas is a time for "programs."

Since we are first time grandparents there are a lot of experiences we are just beginning to have.....all over again. This time around(as grandparents) we are relaxed, rested and ready to soak it in! There is no last minute bustling, can't find the tights or the dress shoes kinds of things. We even get to the program early and find a front row seat! The camera has a new battery and we are ready! We are about to hear all about Christmas in the sweetest, most endearing way possible. Three and four year-olds can put on quite a nice show!!
Our granddaughter is in the second row, second girl in..red dress and candy cane in her hand. :))

She is prepared to sing.......

and they start!

Santa comes in and catches LilliAnne's expression.......
he stops and looks into her gleeful face.

We can't smile big enough or love her more! LilliAnne has come into our lives, melted our hearts and we thank God everyday for her!

Santa Lucia and The Angel!

Santa Lucia is celebrated on December 13th. The story is told that Santa Lucia was a beautiful Christian maiden who lived many centuries ago in Rome. Because she refused to give up her religion to marry a pagan, she was burned at the stake by order of the Emperor Diocletian. Her saint's day falls on December 13, a day that was celebrated even in pre-Christian Sweden as the beginning of the Festival of Light-Winter Solstice, the day when they say that "the sun stands still."
We are going to attend a vespers service at a local Orthodox church this evening. After the service there will be a Santa Lucia celebration. The church will be warmly lit with candles, the air will smell of incense and several young maidens will come into the sanctuary wearing white dresses, candles on their heads, and bearing plates of cookies. It will be a joyful time!
The picture below is of our daughter, when she was the Lucia Queen, several years back. It is a fond memory! Laura Jane is wearing her Aunt Christine's white velvet wedding dress. Christine is with all the other saints now. She was given the name "Lucia" when confirmed into the Orthodox Church and before going to her final home.

My mother, the angel. This is a most prized photo and priceless, to say the least! Mom was born in 1910, and the youngest of twelve children. Her mother took the time to get her into this angel dress and take the picture. You can see that my mother was not all that thrilled with the pose but she was trying her best! It's just the sweetest picture to look at! I imagine there was a Christmas pageant, and mom was the angel come to bid "Glad Tidings of Great Joy, For Unto Us A Child Is Born!"
May you all hear the message that my mom brings, "Christ is born!" May you have a very blessed Christmas season!!

Finishing up....

My classes are nearing their end and finishing up assignments this week is the goal. On the way to class, my errands took me through town. The views of Mt. Hood were so incredible I had to stop and capture them. The problem with the views are all the power lines, cell towers and buildings that get in the pictures. (Cropping works wonders). Mt. Hood is still pretty and worth the trouble of pulling over into business parking lots to get a snap shot. I like how the trees enhance the balance of this photo. It is easy to see where the sun is hitting the mountain, and the shaded areas are clearly in focus. Another picture is taken from the college parking lot .
Now, onto class and finishing up a Basic Design assignment. Our teacher gave us the most interesting assignments during the term. They really caused me to stretch and create things that I may have never done otherwise. We were asked to research 20 artists, write a short essay about each one, and do a small work, using a particular style, design, or even copy one of the individual works. We were to then choose one artist that we really admired and create a larger work of art. After my research was done, I chose Renee Magritte (1898-1967) to complete the final assignment. He was a surrealist painter, used very clear imagery and put his art together in intriguing ways. The painting below is just one example of his work and the one that caught my attention. I especially like the trees.

"The Lost Jockey" 1948

In living day to day, I notice art in life. Nordstroms does a good job with design in their advertising and store displays. For the past several years they have used surrealism and I used an example in reference to Magritte's work. I see the similarity and once again, I hope my teacher does too! If you look at Nordstroms advertising, this season, you will see the moon, birds, trees and snow.

My art piece is done in watercolor, on 11x17 inch paper. I used a simple triadic palette of Alizeran Crimson, French Ultramarine blue, and Azo yellow. The trees were done in permanent black ink.
Next project: Second part. Choose a controlled work of art and make it abstract or chaotic. Below is a painting done by Jacob Lawrence. It is a part of his well known Migration series. I like what he did and the story he told. If you want to know more about Jacob Lawrence go here.
First, I made a realistic rendition of the piece using cut paper. It's very simple.

Next, I cut paper again, and then made the design abstract. It's still readable as a Jacob Lawrence.

If you want to stretch your imagination, learn about art, and make art...Basic Design is the class for you. It was perfect for me, at this time in my life, and has opened a door that will lead me into the world of "art appreciation" and recognition of style.

To see Basic Design part one, go to my post called Abstract Art.