Just be good.

I went to church today.

I finally felt inspired to paint again. It felt good to get the art journal out and a couple of tubes of paint.

I had just gotten out of the habit. Like going to church.

But it's what inspired me. I felt contemplative and sensitive to everything around me. The music was beautiful and the babies, sweeter. The stain glass shown more brilliantly and my little town showed up in their finest to celebrate and worship something beyond ourselves and our stuff.

I was raised to be good- to be good to myself, other people, animals and the environment. I'm one of those people that have to work at being good. Sweet Farmer was born that way and it comes more natural. But me, I have a natural naughtiness that takes some work to overcome. I get out of the habit.

The Man above reminds me of who I am and who I want to be. He's very real to me. Not like a good-luck charm or a spiritual Santa. He was a real man whose feelings, thoughts and realities were recorded by real men. I believe in his reality of the world. I believe that he gave us a glimpse of who God is and how much he wants to be re-united with us and how much he wants us to have great lives until we all get together again.

I'm glad I have a Center (besides me). A Person to go to that grounds me (besides Sweet Farmer). A place that speaks of community and rising above the mundane.

Today reminded me to be good.

Favorite Things

I've been so remiss in posting lately. I feel like a person who is not returning letters to dear friends as I have continued to visit your blogs quickly between all my happenings. I've missed our connection here. I thought I would share some of my favorite things at Christmas time.






Sweet Farmer loves, loves a decorated home so I fussy everything up for him and me because we have time to sit cozy around the wood stove and admire this pretty place he built with his own hands and I decorate with lots of love.




My penguin family is one of my favorite things so I placed them in a winter wonderland atop my entertainment center.
This is fantastically intricate cross-stitch my Mom made for us in 2003. I'll never forget the day that Sweet Farmer realized that each of those tiny little x's represent stitches that were made by my mother's tragically beautiful arthritic hands and crippled fingers.











This village of Santas were all hand-carved by my very talented father. He's done so many and I gathered them up like treasures when he first started when nobody cared so much about them. Now, everyone is scrabbling to get the next one he carves. I'll probably never see another one now that they're wildly popular and so many grandkids, but I'm so happy to have this collection.



This is Gus, my oldest grandson, preparing for his part in the live nativity. He took it as seriously as this expression illustrates.

And this is Cash who says, "DEAR SANTA, I WAS FRAMED".

Just a few of my favorite things!!