Angel on an Altarpiece

Monecarlo Altarpiece

Fra Angelica
Oil on canvas
Private collection

'God Almighty, and with Him
Cherubim and Seraphim,
Filling all eternity--  GK Chesterton
Adonai Elohim.'

Advent , Angels and Angelica

Fra Angelica ~ Detail from the Linaioli Tabernacle 1433 Florence, Italy Her halo is elegant . Her wings seem to be decorated. So colorful. Her dress flows. And the drums? C.S. Lewis said that the first words out of angel's mouths were "FEAR NOT."

Stacey Kent

An American goes to Europe for her Master's
in Comparative Literature
and meets her husband Jim Tomlinson, an
Oxford saxophonist. Now they make music
together.

To welcome my siblings home from St. Martin:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnLV1FlFIPY

For the Election Year Ahead

From a book I'm teaching next week
to my high school students:

The History of Rasselas, Prince
of Abissinia by Samuel Johnson:

"The prince, whose humanity would
not suffer him to insult misery without
reproof, went away convinced of the
emptiness of rhetorical sound, and the
inefficacy of polished periods and
studied sentences."

Sweet Coffee

An afternoon coffee with a dear friend,
23 years younger than me,
is so refreshing. I am reminded how
God brings us a taste of eternity in
knowing one another, in the continuity
of relationships, and what that holds.
It holds weddings ( Emma was her flower
girl) and children ( mine! , we're waiting on
that with this young couple!) and books
and how God is bringing our callings to
our doorsteps. Had to come home and
find out where Burma is! She's learning
ESL to teach refugees from this faraway land.
Our relationship started with letters about
Charlotte Mason! Then I found a letter writer
who I pray will write a children's book one day.

Thanksgiving Eve

Snuggling in for a couple of days as the boys
come home for this holiday. Just us.....
Some of my family are celebrating BIG
birthdays in St. Martin ( sister turned 50 yesterday,
brother turning 60 in Dec. and sisterinlaw 40 in late Dec)
and some in Nairobi, Kenya ( missions
trip of Ken's brother turning 50).......my other
siblings ( 8 of us) are either home or one is in Hawaii visiting
his son from Conn . Warm weather Thanksgivings!
Turkeys will appear even in foreign lands.
My five are home for the holiday!

Here we are warm and
the leaves are still glorious in their brillant colors!

Lots to be thankful for ~~ so much.
Thank YOU Lord!


Carl Larsson

Another Shepherd

Ernest Shepherd's daughter was also an
illustrator: Mary Shephard illustrated
Mary Poppins. Born on Christmas Day
in 1909, she died in 2000.

P.L. Travers ( Pamela) wanted Ernest to
do the illustrations, but he was too busy.
She saw a Christmas card on the mantle
of a friend that was "a happy imperfection
and a sense of wonder." It was by Mary
Shepherd who was 23 and out of Art School.
Mary used a wooden peg Dutch doll she had in
her attic for her model for Mary Poppins.
The film version beared true to the illustrations
in the costumes of Julie Andrews. Shepherd
received a payment from the film co.


From the New York Times:
A family memorial service was held at the
Hampstead Parish Church on Sept. 14, where
Miss Shepard worshiped daily as long as she was able.

Drawn From Memory is Ernest
Shepherd's autobiography of his
childhood. I have it from the library
right now in a pile!! I'm reading
about Samuel Johnson ~~ he wrote
a dictionary!




the first four Mary Poppins books

Mary Poppins (Mary Poppins)

by P L Travers