Last week I came to the realization that I put up too many Christmas trees. Two in the living room, two in the family room, one in the downstairs bathroom, one in our guest bedroom and one in the entryway. The trees vary in size, but most of them are decorated.
Theme Trees
Before too long I realized that after 50 years of collecting ornaments, I needed a theme (or several for that matter). So instead of having one hodgepodge Christmas tree, it morphed into a Mexican Tree, a Holy Land Tree and the main tree with my religious ornaments. Thank God I finally stopped purchasing ornaments! This year it took five days to complete the decorating.
Tamales
No one was in the tamale spirit this year. I give tamales as gifts to friends and neighbors so, of course, I have to rally the family into making them. It was just us, minus our granddaughter Maddie who was at work. I had staged the kitchen for this messy production. Something always goes amiss with this assembly; this time the sauce was too runny! Sonja came up with the idea of adding corn starch, but I felt that adding this ingredient would compromise the flavor. No one ever listens to me!
We did our best, so under these circumstances the tamales came out tasting great. We had a lot of leftover masa, so instead of throwing it out we made pendejos (stupid tamales).
The Pendejos
It turns out that there is a small demand for these meatless tamales because vegetarians love them. Both Sonja and Mikos sang the same song: “Oh my gosh! Why are you making them? No one wants to eat them!” I had one earlier today, and it was delicious! I had eaten a total of four tamales in one day! Then Mike wanted In–N–Out hamburgers for dinner! I honestly felt like a grazing cow, going through the green meadows without a care in the world. I’m not only eating tamales, I’m gorging on all the sweets my wonderful neighbors gifted us. I’m getting a little scared because Mike purchased the largest prime rib; so from here it’s all downhill until I get my head straight.
Mass
Because we’re so busy, who has time for Mass? I was questioning that on Tuesday evening when we had a special service for our teens at St. Norbert’s. We had a guest speaker, worship music, and followed with Adoration. I was immediately convicted for thinking that I was too busy to attend this service. Being before the Blessed Sacrament brought such peace to my spirit, a calming that we all need during this busy time.
The Birth of Our Savior
I praise God for how beautifully His spirit has manifested throughout Advent. It is a time of miracles, and more and more people are turning their lives to the Lord. We all get caught up in the notion of the Christmas season and all that the world wants us to believe. It’s about Jesus, but how we receive this message is personal. Take time to reflect on the Christmas story in the Gospel of Luke, chapters one and two. If you do not have a Bible, use your phone. Do not miss out on the greatest of all celebrations.
I recently read a post on Instagram describing how to make “Christmas about you.” No, it’s not about us! It’s about JESUS!
Prudie
By now most of you know that I have an elderly cat named Prudie.
Psalm 150:6 New American Bible (Revised Edition)
6 Let everything that has breath
give praise to the Lord!
Hallelujah!
It started several years ago. Prudie decided that she needed to keep the Holy Family company, so she made a spot near baby Jesus and slept there. Prudie makes herself comfortable at different locations in the Nativity scene and she slept there eversince. Of course she is the biggest animal in the Nativity scene, but she’s fine with that. If my cat can show reverence to Baby Jesus, why can’t the rest of the world?
We are so blessed to have our family living so close to us. Mike and I decided that instead of purchasing gifts for our grandkids, we would take them shopping instead. Maddie and I had a great time picking out make-up, and the boys are easy to shop for because they keep it simple. We always have a nice lunch after shopping, so this, too, has become a tradition.
Traveling
We took our annual trip to New York and Connecticut with our friends Larry and Helen. Whenever we’re in the Big Apple we always visit St. Patrick’s Cathedral. We prayed, lit candles, then walked over to Rockefeller Square to pose in front of the Christmas tree.
We stuck out like sore thumbs in this state, but I love the feel of a small-town community. We even caught a musical in a tiny theater in Iveryton. It was delightful! What I liked most about this visit were the family-owned restaurants that catered to our taste buds with locally grown products.
