Sunday, 10th January 2016

                This weekend was filled with simple, necessary tasks.  Saturday I took the Christmas tree down.  I confess to missing the beauty and decoration of the tree; like the room has been stripped and left bare.  Yet, I have no inclination to replace it with flower arrangements, or bigger potted plants.  The ritual of commencing a season with adding a fixture, and then ending a season by removing it is like watching nature.  In Spring flowers and trees shoot up.  In autumn those same trees will bare themselves, shedding leaves and giving up their fruit.  So, why shouldn’t that pattern repeat itself in our homes, creating the comfort of beginning and ending, creating a rhythm of sleeping and then awakening?  Now the lounge has a different ambiance.  Although the days are growing longer, it is still dark by 4.00 pm, especially on those grey, overcast, rain-filled days.  So, although I don’t have the Christmas tree lights, I still use the candles to give the room warmth and welcome.  

                 I made progress on the crochet project, working while watching films on the BBC I Player. 

               Sunday I took a day off from church and started reading a book entitled, “Everyday God, The Spirit of the Ordinary” By Paula Gooder.  The book is one of a series by Paula.  In it she discusses how we often miss opportunities to encounter God when we focus on “making things bigger, better and extraordinary.”  The context of “The ordinary” refers to the Christian disciplines that follow liturgical calendars, that is, those who follow the seasons of Advent, Christmas, Lent and Easter.  The weeks between Easter and Christmas are referred to as “Ordinary Time.”  It is that season where we walk out our Christian faith.  The book provided me with some good food for my spirit and mind.

For lunch “Maverick” and I wanted something a bit different.  So, I took four ciabatta rolls, sliced them in half and used them for a pizza base.  Passata, a tomato sauce made by cooking and then running tomatoes through a sieve, worked for the foundation.  Then I added chopped onions, chopped bell peppers, chopped ham and shredded cheese.  I put the mini pizzas under the grill for about two minutes.  It was a yummy lunch, quite filling.  

                I hope your Sunday was as restful and refreshing as mine.

Serving Jesus, Author of our faith,

Dalletta