St Andrew's Day

Today is the feast day of St Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland.

What I didnt know is that St Andrew is also the patron saint of

Greece, Romania and Russia.

In Scotland it is a holiday (why doesnt England do this for St George?),

and the Scottish flag flies.

The students of St Andrew's University have the day off

as a free holiday. I'm sure Prince William appreciated that when he was a student there!

St Andrew was a fisherman, one of Jesus' disciples, and helped

to spread the Faith through Asia minor. He is also the patron saint of

fishmongers, singers and spinsters, an eclectic collection indeed.

Snow in Brittany.

Having been just the tiniest bit smug about our lovely

sunny days here in Brittany, it was a bit of a shock to wake up to this

yesterday morning!

Compared to those of you in Canada this is nothing I know. We braved the roads and drove the forty minutes to church

and were quite surprised at how little snow there was.

Different story two hours later.

Then we crawled back in an absolute white-out,

huge flakes obscuring the vision, one or two cars creeping along,

quite a scary drive for me (I'm the driver now)

But as we came within ten miles of home, the sun broke out and the snow lessened.

It was so good to be back in the warm house again!

Advent is concerned with that very connection between memory and hope which is so necessary to man.

Advent’s intention is to awaken the most profound and basic emotional memory within us, namely, the memory of the God who became a child.

This is a healing memory; it brings hope.

The purpose of the Church’s year is continually to rehearse her great history of memories, to awaken the heart’s memory so that it can discern the star of hope.…

It is the beautiful task of Advent to awaken in all of us memories of goodness and thus to open doors of hope."

Written by Joseph, Cardinal Ratzinger.

A bit of colour in my home.

At this time of year there is very little colour in the garden,

but in my sitting room I am enjoying three lovely plants.This first is a Hibiscus. It lives outside in the Summer,

but once it comes into the warmth it just never stops blooming.

I counted 40 buds and flowers the other day!

Cyclamen always look so beautiful at this time of year.

There is something refreshing about their crisp green leaves, clustering

round the edge of the pot, with spires of pink above.

This is a very poor photo, I'm not sure why, of my Paper whites.

They have shot up, growing up to two inches a day!
It's so good to have plants around.

Giveaway winner.

All the names went into a glass bowl.

My husband was required to shut his eyes and choose a name.

and the winner of the little giveaway is.......

BARB,

of, appropriately enough, The French elements.

Barb loves anything to do with France, although she lives in USA,

so I'm pleased that she has won.

Let me know your address please, Barb.

Catherinettes

It's St Catherine's Day in France today.

I think I've mentioned her before, but anyway......

St Catherine was a young woman of noble birth, a Christian,

who dared to correct the Emperor Maximus for worshipping

false gods. Although he sent his men to 'reason' with her she managed to

convert many of them to Christianity!

St Catherine is the patron saint of ....

lacemakers, unmarried women,

students, potters and milliners, and it is said that on her saints day

unmarried women pray for husbands.

These unmarried women are sometimes known as Catherinettes,

such a pretty name! The picture is by Pierre Auguste Renoir, and simply called

'Girl in a hat'

What a beautiful hat, dont you think?

Oh, by the way

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends!

Little giveaway

As part of my giveaway I'd like to offer a very pretty

Calendar with photos of Brittany.

It's in cellophane so I havent opened it to show the photos, but

you can see them in miniature on the next photo.Obviously all the wording will be in French

but the dates are the same as anywhere else!
There will be a little extra tucked in with the calendar, but
due to not having gone out for a while, I'm not sure what it will be!
I will draw for the giveaway on Friday 27th.
Just leave a comment if you would like to be included.

600!

Oh my, 600 posts!

I'll have to have a little think and

find a giveaway.

I'd no idea when I first started posting that I would

ever reach so many. I must be very talkative.

What is so nice is that I feel no need to wander about searching

for new blogs (though some pop up of their own accord).

I'm kind of settled, with my old friends.

We may never meet, but there is a real feeling

of 'knowing' people.

Christmas sewing

Oh, the relief of a better day.

Thought I would just show you (instead of winding on about my health)

what I made for my two grandaughters in Australia.

It's always difficult to think of something new.

Clothes aren't sensible, as it is not easy to know their sizes, and French sizes are so different.

You cannot send food of any sort to Australia, so no Christmas chocolates.

I like to send them things made by Grandma.

This year I made little Christmas cushions, with the help of
my friend Jan, who has an all-singing, all-dancing machine
that does embroidery. She did the names for me, and
I have covered them in this photo, just for privacy.
The cushions are decorated with snowflake buttons, sequins
and stars. I hope the girls will like them!

Thank you!

Thank you all so much for your kind wishes.

I'm pottering slowly, still in pain,

but thankful for my comfortable home.

I'm doing a bit of sewing, but its difficult to sit in any one position for long.

A kind friend brought me some books...always a huge treat , so I shall settle down with one later.

Housework? No.

Staying at home

I'm staying at home today, yesterday and probably tomorrow.
The Doctor thinks I might have shingles, and having done some research on the internet, that's certainly what it feels like.
Acute pain and general malaise.
Well, it's good to have a warm house where I can potter. No position is comfortable right now, so I do a bit here and a bit there.
The sun is shining today, unlike yesterday when it rained all morning. So I might even have a very little wander in the garden.
Just for five minutes or so. Then in for a cup of Coffee.

The engagement

It's finally happened. Good for them for doing it in their own time.

The interview on British television last night was, to my mind, shallow and trivial. All sorts of silly questions......'Did he propose romantically?' 'Were you hurt by criticisms?'

For goodness sake....it's nobody's business but their own how he proposed. Do we really need to know if he was on one knee or two, armed with a rose between the teeth?

Of course, anyone is hurt by criticism, why ask. It just seemed titillating.

Many years ago I was privileged to meet this nice young man's mother, when she came to open a wing of the school where I taught. She was, as you would expect, totally charming, and we were all swept away in admiration. Her son follows, it seems.

Washday

Traditions die hard here.

Families do the same thing that their parents did, and that

their grandparents did. Little changes.

This morning when I left the house, early, it was cold.

So cold that I had to scrape the ice from my car windscreen.

I drove the village road, passing the church, the hall, the little shops, till

I came to the outskirts.

There there is a Lavoir.

Lavoirs are something that almost every village has, and were widely used.

This was the place where the washing was done, in tandem with the neighbours.

All the gossip could be discussed while scrubbing. All the news relayed.

Round the edge were sloping stones on which to rest the clothes while rubbing.

It's many years since I saw dear old Angele, equipped with her wheelbarrow,

come through the field to our village lavoir.

But today, in all the icy cold of the morning,

at the little lavoir just outside the village, there were two ladies,

wheelbarrow parked on the verge, scrubbing.

How I would love to have taken a photo of them.

But no camera.....and I think it wouldnt have been polite anyway.

After all, they were just following a centuries old tradition.

Toast by the fire.

Did you ever have one of these brass toasting forks?

We did, and this afternoon, as I look out at the pouring rain (again)

I could wish myself back into childhood.

I raced home from school, longing for warmth

and that security that home brings.

Special rainy day tea was almost always Toast, made by the open fire, using Grandma's brass toasting fork.

Oh, the smell of it, that wonderful hot, yeasty, hungry smell.
The naughtiness of deliberately leaving a piece of bread just that moment

too long, so that smoke started to curl, and I could shout 'Fire!'

The taste of real toast, covered in butter, maybe honey as well.

It bears no relation to toast from a toaster.

How innocent, how undemanding we were in childhood.

How wonderful to look back on that satisfaction of such a small thing.

Remembrance Day

This was the scene this morning at the Ceremonie of Remembrance

in our village.

The Mayor , helped by two children, placed an arrangement of flowers

in front of the War Memorial.

The rain poured down.

The letter from the President was quickly read out.

The two minutes silence were held, rain dripping into everyone's sleeves

Thanks were given......

and the smallish group were welcomed into the two bars for a free drink,

courtesy of the Commune.

It never fails to rain on Remembrance Day here, but the thoughts are

serious, and thanks are given for the lives of those who

died that we might live in freedom.

Little lonely chapel.

I drove through the back lanes today to meet someone.

It was a route I had never taken before, and at one point I wondered if I was even on the right road. The tarmac ran out, the road surface got rougher, the forest loomed around me.....and then,

this little chapel appeared.

It stands in a clearing with trees around it.

There is one very old house, all shuttered up nearby.

Nothing else. I knew its name, Chapel de St Jean du Poteau, and when I came home , did a bit of research.

It dates from 1767, and was named after a neighbouring 'poteau' (post)which was part of a statue dedicated to St-Jean.

There is, I discovered, a thriving association known as the Friends of St Jean
which keeps the chapel in good repair, and organises annual events.

There is a 'Pardon', that is a religious festival, in August, to which many visitors come.

And at Christmas, this sweet creche is erected in the Chapel.

This year I shall find out when it is open so that I might share in the

local pride in this tiny place.

It isnt as lonely as I had first thought.

Weapon

This is my weapon of choice at the moment. Even though the Summer has gone, we still have small flies that love to come in and wander around the kitchen, in the warmth.

I loathe flies.

My 'tennis bat' has two batteries in it, and a little button on the side.

When pressed, the button lets fly with a high voltage charge......

and if I can actually manage to hit a fly, there is a horrid (but very satisfying) sizzling sound!

I dive round the kitchen like a demented tennis player

in the finals at Wimbledon.

But most times, like the Mounties,

I get my man (fly).

Jan Karon book

Thank you to those who sent me websites of booksellers.

I found the two books that I wanted,

and was able to buy new, rather than 'pre-read' books.

I had no idea that there were so many different sites,

as up to now I have only used Amazon and Bookdepository.

I've enjoyed browsing, and wishing...!

A change of view.

Overnight, the scenery has changed.

Where there was a very tall field of drying maize (for animal feed)

there is now

this. At 10 oclock last night we heard the rumble of heavy machinery.

Lights shone across the field as the maize cutter and the tractor rolled in.

Impossible to photograph, as all I would have got were lights,

but truly rather weird, like giant monsters roaring round the field, the

cutting blades held rigidly in front, just clearing our fence.

We've been wondering when it was going to be cut, as the maize looked so dry.

Now we look across to the far part of the village.

And my beautiful Liquidambar tree shows up so well against the stubble.

This is its fourth year, and it is changing colour so prettily.

I find the name so attractive too....it brings pictures of Amber

pouring itself liquidly into a glass.

What a dreamer!

This morning's task.

More sewing? No.

Christmas things? No.

Ironing.

I have a bad habit of allowing the ironing to mount up...something I virtuously told my daughter never to do.

So, armed with a steaming cup of coffee,

and a lovely CD of The Fisherfolk playing, I attacked it full-bore. Sheets, shirts, tablecloths, Church altar cloths...all quailed under the attack.

Now it's done......and there's another load of washing on the line, just waiting to come in and glower at me from the basket. Sigh.

Wonder if anyone remembers The Fisherfolk, an American community, who sang so beautifully. They relocated to England in the 70s, and we had the privilege of a visit from them to our Church. They have now returned to USA, but their music lasts.

Action stations....

I've suddenly sprung into action as regards Christmas presents. December feels ominously near.

I do love Christmas, and as we will be spending it in England with family, I can shop on line and have things delivered there.

I thought it was going to be simple until I ran up against a book on my sister's wish list. It's not available through Amazon, though their sellers have lots of copies.

In the USA.

So that didnt help either, as there is a long wait and customs duties to pay also.

I'm hunting around other online bookshops to see if I can find it.

The last resort is that I give her my own copy....but that is sadly very 'read' and not 'as new'!

I felt so organised! I have found various other things, classical CDs for my husband, flowers from the Scilly Isles ordered for an old friend. So I'm not doing too badly for the moment.

Bit of sewing.

Playing around with some strip patchwork, some Christmas fabric, and lots of home-grown lavender.

I've suddenly realised that December looms large. We have a Church Christmas coffee morning/sale to get ready. So once again I'm stitching little things.

Why is it that my fabric stash drawers never look neat and tidy? I'm always burrowing in them, and somehow never fold things up again.

Naughty person.

Book review.

Booksneeze is a company affiliated to Thomas Nelson,

who will provide free books to bloggers

in exchange for an honest review on one's blog. My first book went astray, so the company kindly sent another

which arrived this week
From the selection of books I chose 'Lonestar homecoming'

by Colleen Coble.

It is the story of a young woman who, with her daughter Hope, flees a desperate situation involving her ex fiance.

With only five dollars in her pocket, she alights at a station

where she meets the man who will be instrumental in saving her.

This book is part of a trilogy, but is quite readable on its own.

It is 'Christian fiction', and that is where I began to be disappointed.

The story of Gracie's rescue, her involvement with the man who helped her,

the search by her evil ex fiance, is a little too facile. I found that there were some 'loose ends'. Gracie's synesthesia is mentioned several times, but when her daughter shows signs of having this also it is not developed.

God is mentioned in a few places, but I never had the feeling that the whole story rested on

a Christian base. I could not say that my faith was challenged by this book.

I enjoyed the descriptions of the Texas countryside, somewhere the author obviously knows well.

I would read her other books, just for comparison, but for me, I'd prefer something a little deeper..

I read this book free from the publisher through the Booksneeze bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. the opinions I have expressed are my own.