We share some deliberately belated Christmas photos to both share what a monastery Christmas is like and to prolong the Joy of the Incarnation for all!
Archive Treasures: A Last Tiny Touch of Christmas: The Littlest Nativity Scene
With the Feast of the Presentation on February 2nd, and the day set aside as the World Day of Prayer for Consecrated Life, we end the last trimmings of the Christmas season by putting away our creches. In doing so we share one last glimpse of Christmas past with this tiny ornament that has graced our Christmas trees and niches …
Gertrude’s Christmas Wardrobe – ribbons, for a moment
Gertrude, not to be outdone by Gunther’s little green bowtie, did tolerate a bit of Christmas color for a short photo shoot session. A dashing, yet feminine, red bow assembly with a flower, was (after some treat bribery) quite something against her diluted tortoiseshell coat of grayish brown. She even provided some reasonable poses before opting to remove said bow …
Archive Treasures: Christmas in the Canyon from 1956
It’s an old photograph from 1956 but we can sense the care and creativity our Handmaid pioneering Sisters took to create a little Christmas corner at Cor Jesu. The tree looks to be real. A large statue of Mary, robed in green, looking down at a swaddled Christ child at her feet. To the left might be a small votive …
What Do You Get Cats For Christmas?
We can laugh about the gifts the cats are sometimes sent and in this cartoon we poke fun that Shadow and Sunbeam (a.k.a. Gunther and Gertrude) are disappointed with practical presents found under the tree. Us nuns are thrilled with such items while the cats may be sniffing around for catnip and other edibles. An interesting fact about Gunther is …
Another Christmas Cat Laugh
Humor can extend Christmas too. And animals as well. This is a cartoon many cat owners might sympathize with, though in full disclosure, we must admit Gunther has never climbed the Christmas tree. [It took him over a year to even touch his cat tree. Russian Blues are notorious about disliking change.] But he does like to be the present …
Archive Treasures: Christmas in Capena, Italy
We share this little post as part of our continuing Christmas spirit so people not living in monasteries and who might be suffering Christmas withdrawal due to the world declaring the Incarnation “over” on December 26th can linger in thanksgiving a little longer. We keep our creches up until the Feast of the Presentation, February 2nd even though Ordinary Time …
Archive Treasures: The Little White Church
For many years at our Heart of Mary Priory in Lake Villa, IL the foyer was graced by a little handmade miniature southwest style adobe mission church. Built by a talented friend and benefactor it was used as a donation box next to the votive candle stands. Delightful in its details, the stucco was uneven, bells hung atop the roof …
Of Community Christmas Photo Sessions and Cats
We had our community Christmas photo and invited Gunther. He declined the invite though he did wear his bowtie and even seemed to parade it before every Sister that entered the house. But as the photos indicate, he prefers to play with his tie than wear it. He also likes trying to eat artificial Christmas decorations. All the beautiful poinsettias we …
White Christmas! Not So Typical!
We recently shared a post on what a typical monastery Christmas is like. But what was it really like this year? It was a WHITE CHRISTMAS!!!!!! That’s a shout-able event. Why? Because it was a rare event experienced maybe only once every 10-15 years or more…a White Christmas of 5 to 7 inches of snow that meant no Midnight Mass, …
A Typical Monastery Christmas
COVID-19 can’t kill Christmas 2020 COVID-19 may have radically changed 2020 but it can’t really touch what we celebrate at Christmas, or rather WHO we celebrate at Christmas. Certainly the “how” has been modified for many. So let’s remember Jesus as we share what it’s like as a typical monastery Christmas approaches. We have told you some of these customs …