~D.H. Lawrence~
Happy day dear friends! Today is the shortest day of the year. Starting tomorrow the days will begin to lengthen and we will once again make that long turn back to Summer. For those like me, that love Winter, I will rejoice in its arrival.
"Winter is a time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and for a talk beside the fire: it is the time for home."
~Edith Sitwell~
~Edna O'Brien~
Happy Winter Solstice, Jane! I had to tell you I realized one of the books I picked up at the library was The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree! I look forward to savoring it.
ReplyDeleteI think you'll like it Laurie. It's such a charming book and a sweet story. Hope you are enjoying this first day of Winter!
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Jane
Laurie, you will love it. It is set in the region where I live and it is very accurate portrayal of life in these mountains. You might also like "When I Was Young in the Mountains." It is another dear book!
DeleteThank you matty! I will look that one up as well.
DeleteAnd down here maybe it is the longest. Love those words from Edith Sitwell, home is the best.
ReplyDeleteWe do live on opposite ends of the world, don't we Jean? Hope your Summer is a wonderful one!
DeleteHugs
Jane
I have just come inside from the apricot glow of an early summer solstice evening, having surprised two wallabies (like kangaroos only smaller) before coming in. So today is our longest day of the year. I wish you the best of days today.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it amazing, Sherri, that although we live on polar opposite places on Earth, we still experience the same sky? How interesting about the wallabies! I can't imagine what that must be like. Happy Summer Solstice!
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Jane
I love your pink and purple tinged sky.
ReplyDeleteSo, our days will now be growing lighter a little longer each day. That's nice! Let there be light.
Happy Christmas dear Jane ~ FlowerLady
This year it felt like the days were shorter than ever, Rainey. That Bible verse is even more profound now. Hope you are having perfect weather your way!
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Jane
Love the sleepy garden photo, Jane. Somehow, it escaped me that you keep bees. I love beekeeping and had a couple of hives after we bought our place, but Goodman wasn't thrilled at.all. The bees stung him (even through his gloves) every time we worked the hives so after a few years I gave them up.
ReplyDeleteI look forward to soups and reading more in winter. For several years I read the Little House books and the Elsie Dinsmore series every year. It doesn't take much for me to get through winter. :)
Have a great day!
We don't keep bees Toni. It's against the village ordinances. The bees skep you see is nonfunctional. A few years ago I went to an auction and spotted a Hitchcok-style footstool that I wanted. I waited all day for it to come up. Well, it ended up being in the last lot of things to be auctioned. The auctioneer threw the boxes in to sweeten the deal. So I had to take both the boxes and the footstool for $1. Ran made the roof. he thought it would make a nice herb garden feature.
DeleteI plan on doing a lot of knitting. Winter seems to pass too quickly for me. But then, I love being a hermit!
Hugs
Jane
Such beautiful photos! Your garden looks so serene and peaceful.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it marvelous that the beginning of winter and the beginning of increasing sunlight coincide? It really does help the long march through the season, having just a little more light each day. The Creator knew what he was doing! :^)
Sue
I never could figure out why the first day of Winter is the shortest and Summer the longest, Sue. Perhaps you are right! Whatever the case, it will be a blessing to have more sunlight.
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Jane
Joyful Solstice! I have my white candle ready to light at twilight and my bayberry to burn for "gold in my pocket" for New Year's Eve. The sky is crisp and bright here... the air is crackling cold. I am a spring girl... I love the promise of the new green and bursting colors... summer is rich with movement.. and fall for nesting... winter, for me, is contemplation time...
ReplyDeleteHave a marvelous day!
as ever.. m
Well then, Matty, you should be all set. Spring here is just a slightly muddier version of Winter. It's my least favorite season, because to me, the damp and cold is worse than the very cold. But Winter I love. For no other reason than it's a good excuse to stay home. I think I have a bit of agoraphobia. Is that the one where you're afraid to leave the house?
DeleteBTW, I didn't know that the setting of The Year of The Perfect Christmas Tree is near you. I suggested the book to Laurie because it is favorite Christmas book. We're both fans of Children's Christmas books.
Hugs
Jane
I love the Lois Lenski children's books! She has written one that is about our area entitled "Blueberry Girl." Three Hump Mountain in the book is an actual place and about 15 minutes from my house! Yet another reason for you to come South -- a literary tour! :)
Deleteas ever.. m
I met Lois Lenski,Matty, and had my picture taken with her for the newspaper. She wrote a story about our area too. It was a publicity photo for it.
DeleteOh exciting! What book was that?? I'd love to read it! You are like Forrest Gump! You meet the most interesting people!
DeleteBeautiful! I love winter, but only if I don't have to drive in the snow and ice.
ReplyDeleteLove the winter scene of your garden.
That's true, Kathy. Winter loses a lot of its charm when you have to be out on the ice. One of the best things about being retired.
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Jane
First, I want to tell you how much I have enjoyed your daily posts leading up to Christmas. There has been such variety to the posts - recipes, decorating, Christmas memories, etc. and much more interesting to me than some blogs which seem to focus on more, more, more. So glad that I found your blog and no idea how I stumbled upon it. Your Christmas memories reminded me of things I have not thought about in years. Like the Christmas dress. I didn't necessarily have a new dress for Christmas but every year I got a wrapped Christmas gift to open before our church Christmas program. It was always a new article of clothing. At our church, all children received a lunch bag filled with an apple, an orange and a Hershey bar. I think there were sometimes nuts or gum but always the apple, orange and Hershey bar. Sometimes the Hershey bar was plain and sometimes it had nuts. As kids, my brother and I did not have stockings but we had a shoebox that we placed under the tree and it was filled with fruit and candy. No idea where that tradition came from and I will have to ask if he remembers the history. Love that your husband rescued the stray kitten. It is a beautiful kitten and will be a great pet for someone. It is so sad to see animals neglected and abused. My donations usually go to the various animal rescue groups. Thank you for all you have shared!
ReplyDeleteBless you for donating to the shelters, Shirley! I could've guessed you were cat lover by your profile picture. I'm glad I sparked some happy memories for you. I think a shoebox is a much nicer idea than a stocking. All that lint. Yuck! Thank you for the kind words. They spur me on!
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Jane
Hey Jane... since you are running a Kitty Kat Kamp up there as a rescue mission, why don't you put a "Save the Cats" donation spot on your blog margin and let us send a bit of cash once in a while to help you keep them warm and fed this winter? Just a thought!
DeleteThanks for wanting to help, Lori, but it isn't that difficult to keep them in kibbles with the great deals from The Amish discount food store. Besides I always believe a good deed isn't a good deed without a bit of sacrifice. But it is kind of you to want to help!
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Jane
Okay... well, just to let you know that my two, Janie (really), 16.5, and Graycie, 9, wish to tell you they are thankful and love you for what you are doing for all catkind. Ha! They send Hugs to Holly *-P
DeleteThat's sweet! Thank you, Janie and Graycie! Holly is getting used to us, today we got her to purr! God Bless!
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Jane