O' Christmas Tree, O' Christmas Tree

We've just had a fresh snow fall in northern Minnesota and this morning as I looked out at the pine trees, with their newly decorated boughs ... I thought even they are ready for Christmas.
 

"With its loftiness, its green color and the lights in its branches, the Christmas tree is a symbol of life that points to the mystery of Christmas Eve," says Pope Benedict XVI.

Probably one of my favorite memories as a child was the Maytag Christmas Party in Newton Iowa. I remember the great hall all decorated with the lights and jewels of Christmas. On the inside wall stretched a long table decorated with candles n' baubles placed among the many side dishes that accompanied a huge turkey n' ham... enough to feed all who gathered for the evening. The hall was full of families n' friends and so much excitement; I still remember the feelings of expectation I felt as I looked at the big Christmas tree down at the end of the hall... glittering in all it's glory... waiting, just waiting for Santa Clause to appear...

Just 3 more days until Christmas n' now I wait with great expectation ... for the Christ Child to appear...

Thank you georgegrama2007 n' YouTube

Christmas Blessings,

Elizabeth

http://www.zazzle.com/cabbageroses*

That Clear Dark Night...

 

Do you ever think about that night, that clear dark night when Jesus was born? I do, I try to put myself there, maybe as a Shepard, one of the wise men or just an animal...seeing through their eyes, hearing the sounds n' smelling the stable odors and waiting... waiting with expectation for the birth of a child... As a mother myself, I try to imagine Mary going through her labor and then the delivery of her Son, how she must have felt when she first held Him, how memory of the pain was fading away and replaced with such great love...

 





Thank you a video presentation by Libera USA

Father Cantalamessa’s Christmas reflection: "This emptying of one's hands and pockets of every pretension, in a spirit of poverty and humility, is the best way to prepare for Christmas.

"We are reminded of it by a delightful Christmas legend that I would like to mention again. It narrates that among the shepherds who ran on Christmas night to adore the Child, there was one who was so poor that he had nothing to offer and was very ashamed. Reaching the grotto all competed to offer their gifts. Mary did not know what to do to receive them all, having to hold the Child in her arms.

"Then, seeing the shepherd with his hands free, she entrusted Jesus to him. To have empty hands was his fortune and, on another plane, will also be ours."(Thank you...Zenit.org)

Have a Blessed Christmas... May Love n' Peace be in your heart,

Elizabeth

http://www.zazzle.com/cabbageroses*

http://www.trustiam.com