Yuletide Magic Posts

Not many people have opportunity or even consider visiting Williamsburg in January.  We ourselves were here for only a one-day/overnight visit.  The quaint ‘Merchant’s Square’ shops were as silent as the snow that fell.  This phase of winter is so dream-like, tiny light snowflakes sprinkling the scenery like powdered sugar.        Many places ...

There is unanimous agreement  that the Christmas tree originated in Germany.  History records that Hessian soldiers were celebrating with the complement of a tree when Washington and his men crossed the Delaware.  Pastor Henry Schwan is ascribed with setting up the first tree in a church setting in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1851.  England and France embraced the Christmas tree cus...

  Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.   James 1:17 Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.  II Corinthians  9:15 For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became  poor, that ye through his...

St. Nicholas, otherwise known as Santa Claus, must certainly stop by here to do some ‘last-minute’ shopping.        Thinking of the jolly old man with his sack of presents in ‘The Night before Christmas’, I surprisingly learned that Clement Moore who is credited with the poem’s authorship was an Episcopalian minister.  Strangely enough, this poem probably has h...

The Artist’s Colony Inn in Nashville, Indiana, is reminiscent of a 19th century inn and that link to colonial period architecture and decor reflected more of the splendor and simplicity of the season that we prefer.   Our accommodations were on the outskirts of the village, but here we catered to our appetites with an Early Bird Special so there was time to enjoy the shop and window illu...

Welcome to the shops and lights of Nashville, but – not Tennessee – Indiana!  We arrived about twilight in the Village of Nashville, Indiana, the early part of January, this year. I was delighted by the many shops still decorated for the holiday season.  There were so many beauties, especially appealing in the warmth and glow of the evening shimmer.  There’s little more than Ch...

The poinsettia is popular in homes and churches during the holiday season.  This  flower originated in Mexico.  It was small and star-shaped with red leaves and a tiny yellow center.             J.R. Poinsett, U.S. Ambassador to Mexico in 1830, was so impressed with its brilliance he transmitted a plant to a botanical garden. ...

These windows, dressed in a festive mood for the season, add much to the ambiance of Merchants Square in Colonial Williamsburg.  (They're somewhat dated, but I couldn't overlook them at this wonderful time of the year!)       

Can you imagine Christmas without Christmas music?  Mufflered carolers under lamp posts symbolize a joyful manifestation of the Spirit of Christmas.  Church choirs spend countless hours rehearsing cantatas, carolers stroll streets.... the hand bells, church bells and carillons – all bring a message of joy and good will.  And…..what would the season be without Handel’s Messiah...

It is difficult to believe we are now in  Advent Season……a beautiful time when the church commemorates the expectation of the Lord’s coming, both foretold and fulfilled in the Old Testament.  The Old Testament is full of Messianic prophecy from beginning to end. Some of the more familiar passages are cited below.   These are glorious promises to consider as we celebrate the com...