#adventathon

This is what #love looks like at Christmas - at least, at our house: hours spent chopping and slicing and simmering and tasting at a hot stove; learning how to make family favourites from scratch. You know it'll all be eaten up within hours, if not minutes, but it is gratifying to see your loved ones enjoy every bite. #food #cooking #adventathon #advent2017 #holidaycuisine #stew #comfortfood #thisiswhatchristmastasteslike

Callos - or, more accurately callos ala Madrileña - is a serious #tradition in my family. Essentially an ox tripe stew (made even better with ox cheek and calves' feet), callos is my mum's speciality and it's something we look forward to all year. While I can easily order the stew from a reputable Spanish restaurant, nothing beats my mum's #cooking - and this year, it's MY turn to cook it. Fingers crossed... #adventathon #advent2017 #culinaryheritage #food #recipes #comfortfood #family

a single / star / shining in / darkness; / lone jewel / against / the black / velvet / of night / and the / voices / that sing / praises / to the / most high / echo through / the valleys / and plains / caroling / about the / birth / of the / one / to save / us all. #poetry #poetsofinstagram #monochrome #adventathon #advent2017 #star

The 'Carol of the Bells,' a traditional song from the Ukraine, has a haunting tune that is so awesome when sung acapella. It's always been my personal favourite. #music #carols #adventathon #advent2017 #sheetmusic

i pity / those / who stop / believing / in the / angels / who move / silently / among us. // they / have lost / the wonder / the innocence / the openness / the faith / that there / are greater / things / than ourselves / and our / mortal bodies / and our / petty triumphs / and squabbles / and foibles. // but i / pray / that someday / the scales / may fall / from their / eyes / and that / warmth / and gentleness / and love / and magic / could return / to them / and colour / their worlds / once more. #poetry #poetsofinstagram #angels #adventathon #cynicism #innocencelost #advent2017

It's that time of year - the last few days of Advent - when the #books come out for inspiration. But the big question is this: sure, we're doing all the material preparations for the Holidays - but are our hearts and souls ready to receive Christ this Season? #adventathon #advent2017 #reflections #wordstoponder

Some food for thought for today: has the world become so heartless and blind that we only see the external #decorations of the Holiday and not the spiritual heart of it? Sometimes, I feel like agreeing with friends who, for religious reasons, don't celebrate Christmas: it has become a commercial, materialistic sham; a merchant's season for bilking the gullible. I'd like to believe it isn't. For as long as families gather in even the simplest of feasts, heads are bowed in grateful and hopeful #prayer, and love - not lust, not false friendship - still holds sway, then Christ is still the heart of the Holiday. #wordstoponder #adventathon #advent2017 #reflections #putchristbackinchristmas

light a / candle / in the / darkness / of this / winter night / and draw / to the / warmth / those who / seek / a little / love / a little / tenderness / in a / world / gone cold / and blank / and sad / and unfeeling. // reach out / to the / lonely / and those / who seem / to have / lost / their way / and guide / them / to safety / to succour / to shelter. // give / of yourself / like a / candle / gives off / gives out / light / and life / for it / is in / giving / that we / receive / and it / is in / loving / that we / find love / in a / world / made dark / by hate. #poetry #poetsofinstagram #light #darkness #hope #candles #adventathon #advent2017 #nightphotography #giving #sharing #beablessingtoothers