There's a Quietness in the Air

And here is the rest of it:

We have no need to be told by anyone else

To not give in to fear

Because He

Already

Told

Us

We

Have

Nothing

To be afraid of

And so we do as we are bid by Him

We are not afraid

Because

We are

His

We are His Own

We are the Father’s Own

We are the Mother’s Own

We are the People of the Sacred Trinity

And bide in Their hands

Always

Always

And

Always

So who is this other that tells us

Not to give in to our fear?

What fear are they talking about?

We have none.

Truthfully, I find it a bit on the offensive side that anyone, least of all our own POTUS, would presume to attempt to instill fear where there is none, by trying to imply that it is here.

Really?

I'm feeling a true quiet, folks, and it is not in any way a fearful kind of quiet. 

Once in a while there comes a surge of repressed rage but for the most part this is a sensation of simple quiet, the kind that comes in answer to the words, 'Be still and know that I am God.'

Yes, the tears rise, they course, they fall. In the falling they carry hurt, anger, pain of loss ... but no fear.

The fear is just flat out not there, people.

Again and again the rage is stilled.

One day, perhaps sooner than we would wish it, yes bloodshed will raise the rage - but never the fear and never hatred.

I tell  you now, what must be done will be done but it will not be done in hatred or fear. 

It will be done though, simply because Peace must come. 

To all, not just to those of us who already have it.

By and large ours is a peaceful nation. The exceptions get the attention, not the vast majority who are getting along just fine thank you very much. 

Because the focus does go to the exceptions, it's all too easy to think that is the norm. 

It is not.

Nor will it become the norm.

It will not.

When the necessary time comes, and it will, it will not be with hatred or fear that we will do what must be done. It will be, simply, necessary.

Necessary in order to protect and to preserve what is ours to protect and to preserve, as those who have gone before us did, the Legacy for which they lived, fought, and died so that it would become ours.

2015 Christmas Artwork Bethlehem Stars and Some Small Paintings

Here are the finished Bethlehem Stars for this year - purple and blue are Alianora's colors, in case you're wondering about it. As it is Alianora's Character who is Keeper of the Faith through the generations, it's particularly fitting.

This collection of twelve is done specifically for my sister's shop in our own Small Town USA.

In addition, I'll add several small paintings that our people have liked the bigger versions of - textured black base with the texture highlighted in metallic tones. They're 'under construction' at the moment.

Here's where they're at now.

This last one has the ingredients for my latest experiment - flour, corn starch, glue, water - for the texturing. For my earlier pieces I used plaster of paris. The glue was supposed to minimize the cracking and such (unless I want that look, which sometimes I do) of the plaster. The jury is still out on that one. I put one of the pieces  done on a canvas panel on top of a heater - it bowed a little which cracked the gloop as it dried.

None of the others are showing signs of any such thing (yet) so I reckon it was heating the panel that was the culprit. Luckily for me, this one is essentially for the fun of it, just playing. And watch - it will be the first to go out the door in somebody's Christmas Shopping bag.

Here's a shot of the next step of the process:

Painted solid black. The paint's still wet; the reflection of the flash gives us a general idea of what the piece would look like if we used a silver metallic highlight - which we may or may not ... 

And that's enough for the time being. The other pieces won't be dry enough for their black coats until probably sometime tomorrow ... which is kind of a pain because I have shift-work for the next thee days ... doesn't leave much time nor inclination nor energy for creativity ... but they'll be ready by Saturday regardless ... ;) ...

If I Say Merry Christmas On December 25 ...

Please have the courtesy and respect to reply in kind.

If you say to me Happy Hanukkah or Happy Winter Solstice or Happy Yule (or whatever else) I will be pleased to reply in kind, out of respect and courtesy. If it happens to be December 25 I will probably add Merry Christmas and hope you will have the respect to reply in kind.

If you say to me Happy Holidays, I'll likely ask you to which holidays you refer and reply to whatever you tell me by saying Happy *whatever it is*.

We are each and all of us entitled to celebrate as our hearts lead us; we are not entitled to impose our choices on others.

Mid-winter has been a special time for most of the peoples of our earth for a very long time. It is both the deepest dark and the time when that deep dark begins to make its turn again toward more light, at least in the Northern Hemisphere where I happen to live. It is in many ways the most challenging part of the year - it is also the time of the most joy as the dark begins its annual retreat. 

So yeah, it's a time to celebrate - for all of us.

Christians celebrate Christmas; others celebrate in other ways.

Let's all of us respect the celebrations of all of us.