March 2018 |
PRELUDE TO MARCH The Monthly Diary for February has been completed, and sent out to those who appreciate it.
It snowed this morning in a slow, measured fall. I am concerned both for the garden birds and the seagulls who come for food. Perhaps the snow is a light fall which may well melt away before too long. * The vase of flowers in the cloister is now dropping some petals. The flowers have been truly beautiful, and a source of joy.
* This is the last day of February and the snow has returned, gently dancing in the breeze. It is hiding the area which Dave cleared as a feeding site for the gulls. The gulls - and other birds - have had several good feeds today. And now the sun is shining ! * MARCH 2018 The snow is still on the ground, patterned by the paws of nocturnal feeders and the early morning visit of the gulls and the larger garden birds. It remains cold, and the birds perch on the adjacent roofs waiting for the sower of bread ! Could this be a reminder of the Last Supper when Our Lord said Do this in memory of me * In the bleak mid-winter Frosty wind made moan, Earth stood hard as iron, Water like a stone ; Snow has fallen snow on snow, Snow on snow, In the bleak midwinter Long ago ....
This is a good description of our weather now ! The poem was written by Christina Rossetti March Hares
Alas, these March hares will have to delay their ritual fight ..... the snow is still falling ! * Storm Emma is producing snow which is disrupting travel, with strong winds across Ireland and the UK all through Friday .... which is today, 2nd March. * 5th March The Martyrology for 5th March quoted Karl Rahner, Theologian 1904-1984
The real task of a Christian is to become a human being, a human being of course whose depth is divine ..... To this extent Christian life is the acceptance of human existence as such. * 6th March I was seeking for a suitable text for the Monthly Diary and found one in THE TABLET.
In the middle of the fourth century Bishop Cyril of Jerusalem gave this instruction to those who were about to join the Catholic Church. When you come forward for Holy Communion, do not draw near with your hands wide open or your fingers spread apart; instead, with your left hand make a throne for the right hand, which will receive the King. Receive the body of Christ in the hollow of your hand and give the response: Amen. * 8th March I awoke to the sound of torrential rain beating down on the flat roof. The intermittent sunshine of yesterday, and the pleasure of seeing frog spawn on the lower pond were not completely washed away....
* The first daffodils are beginning to flower and the purple crocuses are out. Have they all been flattened by the rain? Many plants are resilient and rise again when beaten to the ground... * Tomorrow, Sunday 11th March is this year MOTHERING SUNDAY. The name today is now focused on a family member, the mother of the household, who gave birth to her own children. It was originally a reference to a return to the Church in which one was baptised. Baptism was seen as the true source of life - perhaps because original sin was washed away.... It has been steadily raining here. * We had torrential rain during the night and the flat grass areas in our garden are drenched - once again. Pools of water shine even in this dull light - it can be thus even for human beings, touched by fond memories in time of affliction. * O Light serene of God the Fathers glory, To you, O Christ we sing, And with the evening star, at hour of sunset, Our worship bring. Phos Hilaron, 2nd century * Sunday 18th March I found the following quotation by Jonathan Tulloch in The Tablet of 10th March 2018.
We were cut off. Snow roared in from the east, closing schools and silencing roads: snaggle-toothed icicles lengthened under the eaves. We hadnt seen a fall like this in years. After three days inside, cabin fever set in. I just had to get out into the pristine world of the white-blanketed village. Wrapped up warm, each step I took was a crunching, satisfying bite of wellie sinking in crystal snow, but this winter-wonderland vanished once Id left our sheltered village. A blizzard was waiting on the exposed arable fields. Here the driving snow formed a horizontal wall; the wind screamed. I hadnt staggered far into the blizzard when I realised it was a whiteout - a snowstorm with zero visibility. I lumbered on, making for the woods; but without a path, landmarks or any reference points, it was impossible to see where I was going... *
The daffodils are out in our garden, reminding me of a poem by William Wordsworth which we learned at school.
I wandered lonely as a cloud That floats on high oer vales and hills, When all at once I saw a crowd, A host, of golden daffodils; Beside the lake, beneath the trees, Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
We wish you every blessing in this coming Easter season.
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Ingathering |