{visit to St. Tikhon's Monastery} ~ the guest house

It is hard to recreate a space one has visited in person...

the guest house at St. Tikhon's 

was lovely.

*

I had it all to myself (!) and while I have a home

with Mr. Husband, have put on teas, dinner parties etc., 

when I got to the guest house it was like

I was young again and playing house.

*

The kitchen sink and window above it I failed to take a picture of.

It was so lovely and simple;

white paint for window sill and frame,

metal a two section sink,

the cutest clear glass dishes, a red scrub brush with white 

bristles, a working microwave and electric kettle. 

A lovely 4 to 6 person wood table with bench and two chairs,

with two more chairs off to the side... 

Lovely icons...

The room I stayed in, roomy, light and cozy.

The Our Father/Lord's Prayer,

perfect for a dining area.... 

It was good to be away from home,

and to have a bit of space.

*

It's been a lot going on, from hosting dinners, teas and

the sudden death of Mr. Husband's godson,

the many layers of adjustment that everyone is going through.

*

I was feeling like I was in great need of a rest

and at least I got a little respite here...

*

It made me want to go to a monastery for a longer visit this summer

but as God wills. 

Three Boarders Done! + Cats

Three of the four borders of my 

blue checkered blanket are done!

I will have to finish the last boarder 

and then weave in all the ends!

I was given this sweet small book on Cats

from S. when she visited!

It's by the National Library of Australia

and is really cute, with many 

pictures of cats, 

including some well done vintage ones! 

I am also still reading

little house on the prairie 

and quite enjoying it!

*

What are you reading and creating?

Yarn Along with us! 

About today....

Yesterday Mr. Husband and I went on a short walk

and saw berries growing... 

 We have no green space where we live,

other than this little square.

I want flowers in it but there

is concern also for the tree roots...

I really do hope for some pretty flowers 

or something to make our condo lovely 

inside and out!

We and others had some icons blessed yesterday...

The Guardian Angel Icon 

and the Christ the Good Shepherd,

St. Elizabeth and the Protection of the Mother of God

were all from my trip to St. Tikhon's.

This small icon is of

Saint Elizabeth the New Martyr.

Given, newly blessed, to a couple moving back to PA 

after being with our church for a year.

The wife knits and sews and I am going

to miss her kindness, talking shop and just her 

presence with us,

her beautiful knit blue sweater and long blue skirt...

*

I watched this video on Lisa's suggestion

and WOW. very worth watching.

Beautiful women, working to unravel clothes

from the West where they were so often so easily discarded.

They are unravelled and made into yarn and then woven

into blankets and sent back to the West...

Really caught my attention; 

I have bought new clothes and will be giving

away a bunch to charity...

For me I found what one of my first bosses' told me to be true:

as we age our metabolism changes and well,

many of the clothes I had simple don't fit anymore.

*

I try, when I buy new clothes, to pray for

the hands that made the clothes, 

quite often, even normally, in other countries...

now I think it would be good if I just prayed for them daily upon 

getting into the clothes...

such beautiful people,

such beauty amidst poverty and the shining sun...

*

I find there is so much irony in life;
that video; they were poor, but look at their smiles and their
beautiful clothes and children;
so much beauty in the midst of it all.
*
The same day I see this video,
I find out about clothes that I may need to get....
I am going to a wedding later this summer DV.
I hear the dress code is fancy.
I am so not fancy, not really.
I like long skirts and quiet ways and words.
So, not sure what to do in finding something that
I can wear to more than 1 event...
long, dressy, flowy, beautiful and reusable....
*
Meanwhile, I am watching quilting videos, including these two.

{May 2015: my parent's visit} ~ New shelves, Icons and a beautiful lampada

The Wedding at Cana...

My Dad installed this shelf and

hung the lampada.

I hung the icons.

My Dad also built these IKEA shelves.

This whole space in our bedroom is

so transformed now, so beautiful and orderly.

My Ottawa spiritual father always said

that you cannot have the Resurrection without the Cross

or the Cross without the Resurrection... 

Middle icon above is my now 9 month old

goddaughter's Saint, the icon of the Mother of God

next to her patron Saint 

was blessed at her baptism and is my special icon to pray

for her... 

I am so very pleased with how this

turned out.

God and His Church really are the Supreme Beauty... 

{Fr. Roman Braga} ~ 40th Day ~ Memory Eternal!

Today is Fr. Roman Braga's 40th day ~

that is the 40th day since he fell asleep in the Lord

 on April 28th of this year, 2015.

*

I wish I could be at Holy Dormition Monastery for this memorial but

it was not possible.

*

This past week I was able to go to a closer monastery,

St. Tikhon's and it was so comforting to 

hear Fr. Roman prayed for in the liturgy and vigil service 

that I was at.  

I felt, in hearing him so prayed for, that 

not only was he being remembered

but all of us who loved Fr. Roman Braga were 

being remembered and prayed for as well.

Simply said, it made me feel cared for.

*

I never had the honour of taking to Fr. Roman for more

than a minute or so to get his blessing,

but once, right outside the dining hall, I got his blessing

and he smiled and said to me:

make yourself at home here [at the monastery]

and I felt so loved and blessed, as if 

everything was suddenly very much full of sunshine.

*

I still remember my first time at Holy Dormition Monastery

and how it was my first Sunday after I was chrismated and

Fr. Roman gave instructions for preparation for Holy Communion

in Romanian and they were translated into English...

*

I remember his joy, his jokes and laughter at the table once

when I was there with very few people

and I esp. remember how he prayed in church

during that Lenten period of Great Lent.

I have to this day never heard anyone else pray the

prayer of St. Ephraim with so much contrition,

that Fr. Roman really knew himself to be a sinner. 

*

I remember many times watching him in church,

knowing he was praying.

As I wrote earlier, it was enough to see him

and to just know he was praying to God

and also praying the Jesus Prayer.

*

It is like a child seeing their Father,

who they know in their very bones, is 

a good Father who does good and

is one they can trust

to care for them,

protect them, 

succour them, guide, teach 

and love them. 

*

For me, while the older I get the more shadowed realizations 

of my own inward poverty, it was always a real comfort to know

that Fr. Roman prays so deeply. 

*

It is the reassurance that one has knowing

that their Father is there 

and that everything,

ultimately, 

will be taken care of

and that they can be at peace.

*

I told someone at church,

and I know I am not alone in thinking it,

that while there is real grief and loss at Fr. Roman's passing,

especially for those who were close to him,

yet it was happy, as so many of us dream of the day

that Fr. Roman's day of death, April 28th,

will be his new Saint's day 

for us on earth while he is praying for us in heaven.

*

May God so grant and may we have Fr. Roman's blessing!

Memory Eternal dear and beloved Fr. Roman

and may God remember you in His Kingdom

and may we have your prayers and blessing! 

*

Memory Eternal,

Memory Eternal,

Memory Eternal!

{May 2015: my parent's visit} ~ Laundry room 'Makeover'

When I was taking pictures of the

new shelves in our small laundry room,

which I just LOVE having ensuite,

I could not help but think of my friend 

S. in Australia who when she saw

my laundry room in person

just loved it.

*

It is such a blessing to have this little

room in our home and

now with the new wall of shelving plus

more up top, it's even better.

*

I am so thankful for my Dad and Mr. Husband 

for installing all of these and for my beloved Husband for

measuring and ordering all of them!

*

PS: you may have noticed I have enough

dish soap to open a small grocery store... ;)

I used to have these all under the sink and once

when there was a great sale, I stocked up,

not realizing I had some already hidden in the very back

of the over-full cupboard! 

*

Now with the more open shelves in the laundry room,

I can quickly see what we have and 

stock up accordingly! :)

{Fr. Roman Braga} ~ on Christmas...

This blog post is posted in it's entirety from this blog

and this blog entry.

********

Today my song comes from an Orthodox Archimandrite Roman Braga, who serves the nuns at Holy Dormition of the Mother of God Monastery in Rives Junction, Michigan. His article in the Winter 2014 monastic journal, The Burning Bush. Here’s a short excerpt:

We must understand that the Nativity is a historical fact; it is not a mere hypothesis open to speculations. Simple Christians did a much better job—they clothed this Feast in poetic folklore only to keep this mystery fresh and not dried up by theological reasoning. The theology of simple people is contemplation, prayer and singing, and in this way they are much closer to the Truth.

Later in the article Father Roman tells us who Christmas is for:

Christmas is for simple and wise mothers who are silent and humble….

Christmas is for fathers who with calloused hands daily make a commitment… to protect their families….

Christmas is for countrymen, for shepherds and workers….

Christmas is for the poor….

Christmas is for the rich….

Christmas is for the ill and lonely, for the abandoned and destitute….

Christmas is for wise Christian philosophers an object of adoration and not a speculation….

Christmas is the gift of God for everyone, children and grownups, sinners and saints, angels and stars, shepherds and magi, and even for inanimate things, because God revealed Himself in the flesh and all nature was imbued by Him.

{May 2015: my parent's visit} ~ Beautiful Blue and White Delft Pottery

{this is a picture of a Dutch couple of many decades past

on their wedding day}

{Rembrandt's Night Watch}

We bought a lot of Delft back at Christmas

time for Mr. Husband's birthday 

and for the beautification of our home.

We also ordered some online around Christmas time

last year and found some real deals.

My parents brought all of this with them,

and my beloved husband, Mom and Dad all helped

hang these pieces up throughout our home. 

We are so happy with the progress and added beauty!

{Fr. Roman Braga} ~ on the Brother's Karamazov

I have read the book,

Exploring the Inner Universe: Joy -- the Mystery of Life

and one of my favourite parts of Fr. Roman's story

is when his confessor, Fr. Nicodemus,

tells him, after confession,

to go and read The Brothers Karamazov

and analyze the character of Alyosha.

Fr. Roman says that 

"this was a turning point in his life."

(page 26).

{Fr. Roman Braga} ~ the sufferings in prison

"A few months ago I was able to talk with another survivor of Pitesti, Fr. Roman Braga, when I visited the Michigan convent where he now is in residence. The Communists had arrested Fr. Roman on an inventive charge: he was accused of trying to overthrow the government by discussing the writings of St. Basil the Great, St. John Climacus, and St. Gregory of Nyssa. He spent his first year in solitary confinement, and in the dark, narrow cell could not tell one season from another, nor could he look out the small, high window and see a horizon. “You had to go somewhere; you had to find an inner perspective,” he said, “because otherwise you would truly go crazy.”

Fr. Roman told me that religious beliefs were particularly mocked. Tormenters would set obscene lyrics to the tunes of familiar hymns, and celebrate parody liturgies designed to break believers’ hearts. His sole clue that Christmas or Pascha (Easter) might be near would be the appearance of their themes in the torturers’ arsenal.

One way guards particularly taunted Christians was by telling them that Christ and Mary Magdalene had had a sexual relationship. Fr. Roman noted, laughing, that in Romania this constituted torture, but in America people line up to pay for it in movies and books (“Here in the land of so-called freedom—I am not so sure you are free.”)

Neither man would describe what they’d endured. “It is secret, intimate,” Fr. Roman said, “I saw saints fall, and I saw the simple rise and become saints.” "

~interview by Kh. Frederica Matthewes-Green

Sewing Together + Two Books

My blanket is almost totally sewn together!

I have a little bit left to knit on the bottom right

and then will make a boarder;

I am thinking, as I used 4 colours of yarn,

that each side of the border will be one of these

4 colours... 

I finally finished Cather's Song of the Lark

and am enjoying the restful read of

Wilder's Little House on the Prairie.

*

I hope to get a lot done with week on 

the blanket yet!!

Then I will have to think of what I will knit next...

I am thinking of doing a big

crazy quilt knitted blanket again,

as the first one I made is very well loved.

*

What are you reading and creating?

Yarn Along with us! 

{May 2015: my parent's visit} ~ first day ~ Ascension

My parents drove from MI to NJ to see us,

arriving the night of Ascension. 

That day Mr. Husband and I went to liturgy,

then home for a festive lunch,

with desserts given out at church for a lovely 

church woman's father who has departed this life.

Then a trip to lowes, 

looking at shelves, lighting, and closet shelving.

I worked on knitting wash clothes and we got back home

just minutes before my parents did.

After unloading my parent's belongings,

we all went to our favourite dinner for dinner.

It was a wonderful day.

{Fr. Roman Braga} ~ the felt presence of God

[Interviewer]: What was your spiritual life there like? [in prison]:

I told you I did not reach the level of St. Paul, to say that Jesus is my personality, He is in the center of my heart, He is the seal of my authentic personality—I could not say that. However, I reached the level of feeling the presence of God in a vivid way; that is, since that time, I never saw or imagined God in my prayers outside of myself, and I hope I will never see him in a "vision" outside myself while I am in this world. I hope to remain with the true understanding of God, not with illusions. But I have the feeling of His presence. When God speaks to you He does not use material words but brings you joy. I experienced such joys in prison, I could not detach myself from them. I was never interested when they brought me food or water...

~Fr. Roman Braga, 

On Prayer of the Heart

Excerpts from Exploring the Inner Universe

by Fr. Roman Braga

A very special gift ~ Fantastic Mr. Fox for a Munchkin's 7th Birthday

Back in early December my lovely, creative, talented,

Artist & Orthodox friend Ira, wife, mother and owner of this

lovely etsy store,

posted a Fantastic Mr. Fox that she had

for sale via her etsy store.

*

Now the munchkin who I love and had over

last summer and other times, 

loves the book, Fantastic Mr. Fox.

*

I soon realized I had a great gift for him for his birthday.

So, as the (church) Aunt Elizabeth that I am,

this lovely lovely plush velvet Fantastic Mr. Fox 

was bought and shipped.

*

Yesterday we had a birthday party for 

this munchkin who is now 7.

*

The first present he got was a really neat

playmobil Roman soldier with a chariot and 4 horses

from another dear friend.

Then he got a book that I had for him

since August, signed and waiting for him!

And then the icon of Christ the Good Shepherd that 

is his favourite,

and then the green and white pillow that was

the first thing I made with my sewing machine,

the machine that came the day that our munchkin was visiting;

he was so excited about it and urged me to open the 

box so he could see the sewing machine. :)

He hugged the little pillow immediately and 

understood that it was a special hugging comfort pillow. 

I was so so glad.

*

And then he opened the biggest box of all:

Fantastic Mr. Fox.

Ira made a card for him that he and his Mom read together,

Fantastic Mr. Fox's bow got rearranged courtesy of his Mom

and I heard late last night that Mr. Fox with this loved Munchkin

as he slept.  

It was a very good 7th birthday party

and all of us are so glad.

{Fr. Roman Braga} ~no one can take the image of God from within us

"Fr. Roman did not want any eulogies. He did not want people’s tears. As he said, the
soul needs not tears but prayers. And he referred to himself as a great sinner. Such was his humility. It is this holy humility coupled with love that I am sure have vouchsafed him rest among the saints, taking his place as one of them.

Fr. Roman lived for 93 years and did not have an easy life. When the communists took
over Romania he was imprisoned not once but twice. And as a priest, the communists took special care to be cruel through physical and psychological torture, through isolation and solitary confinement. Who would give thanks for that? Yet Fr. Roman said he was grateful for what the communists did to him because by stripping away all his possessions, even his liberty and the community of others, as they tried to turn him into a beast, he said distractions were removed from him and he turned inward, inside himself to discover God. Because God is not outside us. God has made us in His image. We already have the divine image within. Jesus says “the kingdom of God is within you.” (Luke 17:21) And that image of God shone through Fr. Roman by his sufferings, by his being a modern day confessor of the faith, that is one who calls Christ Lord and God though it will mean suffering and imprisonment."

~homily from St. Nicholas Church in MI