It is the night before Christmas Eve,
and we are about as ready as we can be...
I have been printing out the Latin words for all four verses of Adeste Fideles, ready to sing with the church choir tomorrow night.
It is always an absolute treat to sing these beautiful carols and hymns on the most precious of nights..
We are looking forward with great anticipation, to spending a few hours with the grandchildren on Christmas morning. What a blessing they are in our lives.
Last week we attended a stage version of Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol'. It was beautifully done, very atmospheric, but with a few laughs for the many young people in the audience.
Still trying to teach myself to do Junk Journaling, I recorded the night in my December 2024 Diary.
The front and back covers look like this:
I used a padded mail envelope for the cover, and collaged with fabric.
The pages I stitched in are a mix of coffee died papers, and some purchased Christmas themed paper. Then I play around with pages of old music, and odd bits of ephemera from my collections.
My new little quick photo printer is very useful and fun.
I could hear rustling in the leaves below my sewing room window.
Looking down, I saw a very large Goanna (Australian lizard), about one metre long.
He climbed up over a rock, as I quickly grabbed my phone to get a picture.
Unfortunately its head had already gone under the leaves in this first picture:
It then emerged a bit further away, and I got another shot (greatly magnified):
I have never seen these creatures in a suburban garden before. It may have become disoriented during yet another flood event last week, and is trying to find its way back to the bush.
It had very unusual banded markings. I googled it, and I think it is a Lace Monitor goanna. I found this photo on Google:
Not exactly the same, but similar.
I think 'our' goanna had more picturesque markings!
It did not stay around for long, and has now gone on its way.
In 2018 we enjoyed a wonderful Art and Music cruise on the River Elbe, from Berlin to Prague.
We floated along from Potsdam, then spent a pleasant day at the picturesque city of Magdaburg..greeted by this pretty pink statue near the waterfront..
I took lots of pictures of a fabulous pink citadel ...
What fun to live in this building..
We also visited their ancient and beautiful Cathedral...
When researching family, Mr Cardinal later discovered his Grand+ forebears were married here.
Sadly, we have seen this week the tragic event which unfolded in the Christmas markets nearby. Poor Magdaburg. We pray for their citizens whose Christmas has been interrupted so shockingly.
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| Poppies pictured in a Monastery courtyard at Magdaburg. |
Wishing all the Readers of the Red Cardinal blog a Safe, Happy and Merry Christmas, and a bright New Year in 2025.
Thank you for popping by, I do cherish your friendship and thank you for reading my ramblings.
Joy and Peace
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Merry Christmas, Patricia. How lovely it will be to sing those old carols once more. I love the way they soar into the air.
ReplyDeleteWhat happened in Germany is truly awful. May peace and justice prevail.
Thank you Lorrie. We are about to get ready for the carols now, and will warm up our voices in the car. So sad re Germany, and may they have peace on earth.
DeleteMerry Christmas to you! You had The LIZARD of Oz! LOL!! Wish I could hear you sing in the choir, I bet it will be wonderful. Once again, happy Christmas. Peace on Earth.
ReplyDeleteWe should di have the Lizard of Oz! I will tell the grands that, lol. The choir was well received; we sang ourselves to a standstill for 90 minutes. Merry Christmas.
DeleteMerry Christmas, Trish! I too wish I could listen to the choir sing those beautiful songs in Latin. I love all your Christmas themed things. What a charming German town. I also think the lizard is attractive … from afar of course.:)
ReplyDeleteYour friendship is one of the things I feel blessed to have. I learn many things from your blog, from art and travel to creatures I've never seen.
Warm good wishes in spending the next 12 days of Christmas with all your family and friends!
We really enjoyed singing in Latin, such a special and ancient language. We are blessed to have a long distance friendship, aren't we. I always remember you were my first blog visitor. Seems so long ago now. Warm wishes back to you across the miles. Blog friendships make us know the world is just one big village. Merry Christmas today.
DeleteYes, time sure does pass, Trish! An unexpected but delightful bonus from blogging is making a friend or two across the miles. :)
DeleteHow special that is that you sing in the choir for Christmas, Patricia. "The Christmas Carol" on stage sounds like a delight to see. I just watched the original movie last night with my son. I've seen it before, but it's been many years, and there has been many other versions of it through the years. The junk journaling sounds like a fun hobby. We used to call it "scrapbooking," and it was really popular a few years back and I loved it. I like how you put old music pages on yours. Wow, that Goanna is huge! That must have startled you when you found that in your garden. I hope it went on its merry way, not to bother you anymore. Those pink buildings are charming, and the cafe sounds nice. Your Nativity scene is beautiful. I hope the new year brings much goodness to your life. Patricia. And thank you for your blog friendship all these years.
ReplyDelete~Sheri
We watched the original movie of Christmas Carol too, during the last week. It was interesting to contrast with the stage production. Yes, it seems my journaling is a lot like the scrapbooking I did for many years, just with more bits of 'junk' (recycled stuff). Fun with glue! I was beyond startled to see that great big Goanna outside my window: my goodness, it was huge. I think it went right on down the street because we haven't seen it since. My Nativity scene belonged to my mother, so is very special to assemble it every Christmas. I wonder who will take it for the next generation? So nice to have you pop by, my friend.
DeleteI always so enjoy seeing all things Australian Christmas! Thank you so much for sharing my dear! Wishing you and yours the very best in the New Year! XOX
ReplyDeleteAnd wishing you a very Happy New Year in 2025. We were more than usually Australian this Christmas with native animals finding their way into the garden! Whatever next, I wonder. A couple of months ago it was a little wallaby. Maybe an emu will stroll by one of these days, lol. Best Wishes. xox
DeleteI've missed out on saying Merry Christmas to you, Trish, but I can say Happy New Year. I loved this post. We used to get those Goannas in South Africa, but they mostly hid in the bush away from people. Yes, the Magdeburg tragedy was too awful. My heart goes out to all the victims and their families. Terrible. But on a more personal front, I do hope you had a lovely Christmas day with your family and that 2025 will bring you only good things.
ReplyDeleteAha, the Goannas come from Africa! They generally hide in the bush here too, which made it so surprising when this one turned up. I do hope you also had a lovely Christmas with just the right amount of frosty snow, and have a bright and interesting New Year.
DeleteHello dear Trish!
ReplyDeleteSuch wonderful Christmas joy in this post. :) I hope you had an amazing Christmas time. That production of A Christmas Carol looked so cool!! And that giant lizard is beautiful - although would freak me out a bit. Lol I love seeing how your world is so different in the most awesome ways...such a contrast to northwoods!! 😉
Wishing you and your family abundant blessings for 2025. I pray you have a very fun and healthy New Year dear Friend!
🙏🏻✨❤️
That goanna freaked me out too, Carrie. Fortunately I was looking down from an upstairs window! It certainly is a contrast to the northwoods here, and I love that. I always want to see pictures of your snow and beautiful nature. Wishing you all the blessings of a wonderful year in 2025. xox
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