Lux Fulgebit

The Introit of the Second Mass at Dawn on Christmas is taken from Isaiah 9:2,6 and Psalm 92:1
   Lux fulgebit hodie super nos: quia natus est nobis Dominus....A light shall shine upon us this day: for the Lord is born to us (and it continues) and He shall be called Wonderful, God, the Prince of Peace, the Father of the world to come: of Whose reign there shall be no end. (Psalm) The Lord hath reigned, he is clothed with beauty; the Lord is clothed with strength, and hath girded Himself.

What a beautiful expression of the Christmas gift. However the Lord has girded Himself with strength, He came into the world a helpless Babe, humble, poor and emptied of Majesty. Our pastor stressed the humility of Our Lady and of Our Lord and urged us to be humble in our humanity.

   We sang the First Mass of Christmas, the Midnight Mass, at 9 p.m. on Christmas Eve.  The "propers" are all beautiful, taken mostly from the Old Testament psalms, the prophesies of the coming of Our Lord.  It was a special Mass for me this year.  One of my grand-daughters and her two little boys, ages 8 and 9, were visiting for the holiday and were able to attend Mass with us that evening.  I could look over the edge of the choir loft and see my family below in the last pew. One of the boys fell asleep half way through, which happens when we have late evening Mass. One can look around and see several small bodies sprawled in the pews!

   It was a special Christmas all around.  I hadn't seen the boys since one was two and the other an infant. Nature decided to cooperate and give them a bonus during their visit.  I felt like I was at home in Nevada City, CA. We had a white Christmas.  The fluffy stuff began to fall just as we were getting ready to sit down to our 3:30 p.m. dinner. By 4:30 there was about an inch and by evening we had about 3 inches all told.  I went out  before 5 p.m. to get the chickens tucked up for the  night. They had already, every one, left the pasture and gone into their coop. I threw some scratch down onto the layers of pine shaving on the floor (which we just added to that morning), then filled their two feeders inside the coop. The red heat lamp that warms the coop on extra cold nights aims down at the waterer, so the water will not freeze. I closed the door to the coop and the little cut-out door that usually remains open, even if I close the big door on cold nights. it got down to 26 degrees that night. I went out a little later the next morning than I usually do. A lot of ice had accumulated on the sidewalks. I tried to avoid it. Bless the girls.  Despite the cold, on the day after Christmas they delivered 20 eggs.  They actually went out into the snow in the pasture for awhile.  The chicken wire on the top of their run was full of snow; and the wind had blown snow all over the chicken wire around the run, so that you couldn't even see into it. We spread some extra hay around the run for them to scratch in.  Actually, not too much snow fell into the run itself.

   Our company left in the evening, the day after Christmas, so that the boys might sleep for their long four hour drive home.  Today, the 27th, was pretty quiet, very cold, and a catch-up on rest day, except for a dentist's appointment for one of my daughters.  I dread the thought of taking down all the bright decorations next week. They will stay up until New Year's Day, at least. My Nativity set will remain on the piano until Epiphany.  We can't let the Wise Men get lost.

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I think tomorrow (I hope) I'll relate my amnesia story from the week before Christmas.