Friday, January 29, 2010

~ Let It Be ... Mother Mary comes to me....


There will be an answer, let it be...

I looked for quite a while for a vintage Mary statue like this one. One that had just the right amount of age, a few chips here and there. One that reminded me of my childhood when you truly believe that prayers could be answered. One that would remind me that maybe they always are answered, even if it isn't the answer that we think we need or deserve.

I found her at Renninger's Extravaganza in Mt. Dora a couple of years ago. The dealers were very nice people and had picked her up in either France or Belgium. They were not sure. Now she lives with me. A long journey to a new heart waiting for her.


When I find myself in times of trouble, Mother Mary comes to me
Speaking words of Wisdom, let it be
And in my hour of darkness, she is standing right in front of me
Speaking words of Wisdom, let it be

Let it be, let it be, let it be , let it be
Whisper words of Wisdom, let it be

And when the broken hearted people, living in the world agree
There will be an answer, let it be
For though they may be parted, there is still a chance that they will see
There will be an answer, let it be

* Lyrics by Paul McCartney *
......................................................

I have always thought these words were inspired.
Not that I feel Paul McCartney is a saint.
But it gives Hope to all of us, who are not saints,
that we too can give the world
something that
is inspired.

See Y'all Soon
...........................................................................................
** Hearts For Haiti at Etsy...
Currently raised for Doctors Without Borders (after fees):
$25,065.32 as of 9:00am EST 2/1/10**

Thursday, January 21, 2010

~ Rosemary & Time

                           
When it's time to put away all the decorations after Christmas, most of us either miss the baubles because the house looks empty, or you are thrilled to have less clutter. For me, it feels like a breath of fresh air, and it reminds me to start the year fresh.  Time to start anew again.




I love the smell of rosemary. Usually at Christmastime  you can find some really pretty cone shaped topiary rosemary plants. (Lowes, Home Depot and many garden shops carry them.)  This one has been sitting on the window sill in the kitchen where I can see when it needs water and it has been doing very well. It's really wonderful in the living room window, but we'll see how long it can stay there without me forgetting to water it.

The pot is terracotta which was painted a few years ago. First I painted it a creamy white, then aged it with some brown/taupe glaze and added a bit of mossy lime green to imitate the moss that would be growing on a pot left outside. 

A little word of warning about these Santos cage dolls. I have recently seen them being sold as "vintage" and they are not. Although they look a little older, they are being made today and imported. Sticking a vintage label on them seems to garnish a higher price.

Thank you for the nice comments on the Hearts For Haiti shop. It is doing so fantastic!

See Y'all Soon~

** HeartsForHaiti.etsy.com Currently raised for Doctors Without Borders (after fees): $16491.12
(as of 6:15 pm EST, January 24, 2010) **

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

~ Welcoming Magic & Wisdom on the Epiphany & The Nativity Dog




When Sweet Daughter was quite young, we began celebrating the 12 days of Christmas to extend the Holiday Season. Instead of having all the gifts on Christmas Day, I would give her little ones on all 12 days. It ends with the Epiphany, when the Magicians/Magi arrived in the Nativity story.


I was given a wonderful old Nativity set almost 40 years ago that had been started by a family member, whom I loved dearly, when she was in her 20's in 1948. As time went by I was more interested in getting a bigger, more elaborate one because I had lost interest in anything that was old or used. You can get like that when you spend your younger adult years not being able to go out and buy brand new. After I purchased a couple of larger beautiful sets, I kept the old one for my daughter to have in her room at Christmas.

It wasn't until this year that I really longed for that old simple, vintage one. It reminds me of the one we had when I was a kind, which had fewer pieces, and of the one I mentioned above from a very saintly woman who gave me mine. Over the years I had broken 2 of the pieces and that began my search on Ebay to replace them. And that is when I discovered the forgotten character from the story. The Nativity Dog!

You see by the time the Great Magi found the birth place of Jesus, others had already found their way, including many animals. And of course one of these was the Nativity Dog. Who could be more protective and caring to keep watch over the new baby? (Disclaimer: You might not find this part of the story in any of the books of the bible. But we like to think a faithful dog was there in attendance.)


This year I added the dog and some sheep, along with a couple of camels
and a new shepherd .
Mary, Joseph & the Baby are Italian rather than the
original ones made in Japan.


I'm sure the little dog greeted the Magi with the same respect that he would give the donkey or his friends the sheep. After all you know that dogs think we are just one of them.

We have a tradition of a very simple, peasant meal to celebrate the Epiphany, French Onion Soup, with a Fruit Salad and a loaf of French Bread. It is one of my family's favorite meals and that is what they chose many years ago.



~ Hoping & Praying for a New Year of Magic and Wisdom ~

Monday, January 4, 2010

~ Is That Snow?

It's even cold way down here.
But no snow, thank goodness! As much as I love seeing the snow pictures on blogs, I am really happy that we will not need to shovel our way out tomorrow morning. Instead we go out and uncover the semi-tropical plants that we put sheets and covers on to protect them from the freeze. This is extremely amusing in the beginning to people moving down here.