Christmas on Late Blooms

Simplifying Christmas - 5 Tips

Wed, 06 Dec 2017 00:00:00 +0000

We expect too much at Christmas. It’s got to be magical. It’s got to go right. Feasting. Fun. The perfect present. All that anticipation. Take it easy. Love’s the thing. The rest is tinsel. (Pam Brown)

All the preparations have started for the big day - December 25th. Christmas is one of those times that we imbue with special meaning and significance. We want everything to be just right, perhaps, even perfect. I was thinking about this and trying to understand how we got ourselves into this mode of thinking. More important, though, is how can we get ourselves out?

December's Here: Tis the Season to be Merry

Sat, 02 Dec 2017 00:00:00 +0000

I suddenly realized that today is the 1st of December. My thoughts, of course, turned to the reality of the fact that Christmas is coming soon and the need for getting ready. No matter what faith or tradition we are raised in, everyone seems to get caught up in the Season — even if it’s just being present at an office or school party. I felt like writing a Christmas acrostic to get me caught up in the language of Christmas. “Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love.”― Hamilton Wright Mable

A Christmas Garden Show

Sat, 12 Dec 2015 00:00:00 +0000

We’re so fortunate in Toronto that we have our own Christmas Garden Show. Allan Gardens had the opening of their Christmas Flower Show last Sunday. The gardeners there did a magnificent job decorating the entire greenhouse which houses many different kinds of poinsettias and other flowering plants. The theme this year is winter and you will be able to see the skaters and the tobogganer in the collages below - all beautiful topiary creations using plant material. There were horse and wagon rides for old and young alike, carollers, and a visit from Santa himself. The hot apple cider provided was a welcome treat but the cookies were gone by the time I got there. Apparently this show was recognized as the “Garden Event of the Year” at the 2015 Canadian Garden Tourism Awards. Hope you enjoy the collages!

A Holly, Jolly Christmas!

Tue, 17 Nov 2015 00:00:00 +0000

[caption id=“attachment_2687” align=“aligncenter” width=“800”] “Traditions have been replaced by lifestyles.”
– Lars Svendsen, A Philosophy of Boredom[/caption]

Christmas is just around the corner. I was trying to figure out what it was that impelled me to go over to the nearby Garden Centre on Friday and buy some evergreen branches. I did hear that Santa was coming to town in Toronto on Sunday and that the Santa Claus Parade was taking place. But was it that? “No!” I had begun to feel Christmassy. Christmas had begun in my heart. “It is Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air.” (W T Ellis)

Christmas in Toronto

Mon, 08 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Christmas renews our youth by stirring our wonder. The capacity for wonder has been called our most pregnant human faculty, for in it are born our art, our science, our religion. -Ralph Sockman

It’s wonderful to see the Christmas lights and decorations around Toronto as the big day approaches. Toronto’s City Hall Square is ablaze with lights and many skaters were on the rink the evening I was there. “Located in front of City Hall, Nathan Phillips Square is an events landmark in the centre of the city. During the summer, the square is in motion daily, with people watching concerts and dance performances, viewing art at outdoor exhibitions, shopping for fresh produce at the farmers’ market one afternoon a week, attending weekly children’s events or sitting mesmerized by the fountain, eating lunch. The Peace Garden is a small green haven in the square, ideal for quiet contemplation or reading. In the winter months, the reflecting pool becomes a skating rink, with skates available for rental. Ice skating during the winter months runs from mid-November to mid-March each year.”

Looking like Christmas!

Sat, 15 Nov 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Santa Claus is coming to town this weekend in Toronto. However, I was in Niagara Falls last evening and it was very pretty and cold as well. As you can see from the above collage, the snowfall we had yesterday stayed on some of the branches of the trees there and gave that white, picturesque, wintry scene. And who isn’t dreaming of a white Christmas? To top it all off, the Show at Fallsview last night by Kenny Rogers was half his hit tunes and half Christmas music. That got me right into the Christmas spirit. He sang “Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow,” as well as many other favorite hits. All the decor in the collages are images that I took in the Christmas store at Niagara. There were many people hustling and bustling in there trying to take in the sights of Christmas and many serious shoppers as well. As far as Christmas decor goes, there is decor in every color, size, and shape. You don’t need to worry these days that you will run out of ideas for decorating your tree or home. The above ornaments are all pink as you can see. This Christmas tree was one of my favorite ones there. I will be adding other collages over the next little while to this post. For now, I will just share the lyrics to “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas” with you. Perhaps you are having your own little epiphanies wherever you are about the onset of the Christmas Holidays. Watch out for the other collages!

Merry Christmas!

Sat, 21 Dec 2013 00:00:00 +0000

I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round, as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys. ~Charles Dickens

Christmassy!

Mon, 02 Dec 2013 00:00:00 +0000

[caption id=“attachment_1492” align=“aligncenter” width=“584”] By The Fireplace[/caption]

“_So if a Christian is touched only once a year, the touching is still worth it, and maybe on some given Christmas, some quiet morning, the touch will take.” (Ha_rry Reasoner)

It’s fascinating to take in the sights and sounds of Christmas around this great city of Toronto. “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas everywhere I go” as the popular song says. All kinds of people get caught up in the Spirit of Christmas, whether they are celebrating the Birthday of Jesus or just having fun. There’s so much to be done before Christmas Day - cooking, baking, shopping, wrapping, decorating, writing, travelling, rehearsing, praying, singing, meditating, playing, just to name a few of the important things to be done.

Birthday of a King

Tue, 25 Dec 2012 00:00:00 +0000

[caption id=“attachment_632” align=“aligncenter” width=“584” caption=“Birthday of a King”][/caption]

Christmas Day is celebrated all over the world - even by those who are not Christians. The birthday of Jesus is significant because of the message of love, peace, and forgiveness that he taught. As I did this Christmas collage, I was reminded of a Christmas concert that I once attended and of a wonderful song that was sung. It was called “Birthday of a King.” These are the words:

Christmas Angels

Sat, 08 Dec 2012 00:00:00 +0000

[caption id=“attachment_598” align=“aligncenter” width=“584”] Christmas Angels[/caption]

“When the song of the angel is stilled/When the star in the sky is gone/When the kings and princes are home/When the shepherds are back with their flock/The work of Christmas begins:/To find the lost/To heal the broken/To feed the hungry/To release the prisoner/To rebuild the nations/To bring peace among brothers and sisters/To make music in the heart.” - Howard Thurman

Deck the Halls!

Thu, 06 Dec 2012 00:00:00 +0000

[caption id=“attachment_583” align=“aligncenter” width=“584”] Hand-made Christmas cards[/caption]

Garrison Keillor - A lovely thing about Christmas is that it’s compulsory, like a thunderstorm, and we all go through it together.

That time of year for merriment, festivity, and joy is upon us. Christmas Day is just around the corner. As the day draws closer and closer, many of us look forward to receiving our Holiday Greetings. We put them where we can see them and they are tangible reminders of our friends and family who have taken the time to remember us and share their good wishes for our happiness, health, and wellness at Christmas, and in the New Year.