Merry Christmas!

 

Dr. M wrote this year's poem, and I would just like to remind everyone that he has a Master of Divinity (with languages) and a Ph.D. in history. 

“Of the logos being forever do men prove to be uncomprehending, both before they hear and once they have heard it.” Heraclitus, as quoted by Sextus Empiricus
 
Surely the one who preached in the wilderness
Understood the failure of men to comprehend.
Neither Christ nor Elijah, no prophet was he,
But he knew things and spoke of them boldly.
The logos, he said, was everlasting, indeed,
The logos was with God in the beginning,
The logos WAS GOD! Heraclitus likely
Would have debated the nature of the Divine
With the man we know as John, but he had
Gotten the gist of the Greek’s ancient memo.
“Jesus is the reason for the season!”
We proclaim. John would likely correct us:
The Christ, he preached, is the logos,
The “word” that gives meaning and order
To everything that was, is, and ever shall be.
The Christ is God become human, accepting
The fragile mantle of flesh and dwelling with us,
The Promised One who joined us here on Earth
To show us the true way, the Lord’s way, and in turn
The errors of our ways, our thoughts and actions.
The Christ, both gift and sacrifice, born of a human
For the sake of all humans, in love made manifest
A new covenant between God and humankind.
The season of God’s love has no beginning, no end.
God’s love is forever. Hallelujah! Celebrate God!
 
Mike & Dana Rhyne
Christmas 2025

2025 Project 365 – Week Fifty-one

Perhaps I shouldn’t have waited until after a full day of church and caroling to start writing this…
Sunday, December 14^th            
Choir photo after the cantata. We wore pink because it was the Joy Sunday of advent.

Monday, December 15^th       
Happy anniversary to ussss!!!
 

Tuesday, December 16^th      
I made an omelet with Justice. I might have added a smidge more cheese than was strictly necessary.
 

Wednesday, December 17^th        
People. It happened AGAIN. Ms. Aunt was trying to send flowers to her niece and put the wrong city on the address, so they got left by our door even though the street address didn’t exactly match ours. This time, Dr. M just decided to pay it forward, sleuthed the correct address & had flowers sent to the niece.
 

Thursday, December 18^th    
I’m wearing some compression gloves due to having a little thumb pain & now I know how dogs feel when they try to walk in those little booties. My right hand is ok, but my left hand can’t feel the yarn. VERY WEIRD.
 

Friday, December 19^th              
Felt rather festive today!
 

I think we’re finished decorating our tree (for now). 
 

Saturday, December 20^th   
I was rootling around in our box of spices from the Penzeys Spices Advent Calendar & came across this one that looks delicious AND made me smile. And THEN I got a flyer from the Open and Affirming Coalition in the mail & I decided that God must be telling me to spread the love. But then I also took a picture of the spoon that my coworker Kim gave me so you could see my true nature (witchy with a chance of sarcasm).  
 

It's entirely possible that I will always share this meal when Dr. M makes it because it’s so pretty! Italian style bone in chicken thighs with peppers and onions. Delicious!

Christmas is in just a few days, although we’ll continue to have gatherings for a week or so. Thank you so much for the book suggestions! I think I got all but one of them. Now I need to spend some time reading them before I pass them along to the boys. Right now, I’m wearing my new Christmas jammies (thanks Dr. M!) and doing laundry. How about you? Ready for the week ahead - or just ready for the week ahead to be over?

2025 Project 365 – Week Fifty

People, I have been busy! Yesterday was cantata day (& we did really well, to my utter surprise), and today is our 35^th anniversary so we’ve been spending some quality time together mailing our Christmas cards and getting lunch from the hot bar at Honey’s IGA. Big time celebrating going on here!

Sunday, December 7^th            
So Mary apparently had about an 11 pound baby? My gauge might have been a smidge off (in my defense, I didn’t know the size of the manger, but in my non-defense, I didn’t try to figure it out ahead of time).

Monday, December 8^th       
You’re getting three BeReals this week because we were slack on taking pictures. This is me, home from mall walking and taking a photo of the full glory that is Ms. Pinky. We know she should be trimmed, but that’s where her most gorgeous blooms are.
 

Tuesday, December 9^th      
And here is a closeup of the blooms…
 

Wednesday, December 10^th        
Another BeReal – doing some training on year end procedures (proof of health insurance tax documents that have to go out to employees per the Affordable Care Act).
 

Thursday, December 11^th    
I was SO SLEEPY after dinner!
 

Friday, December 12^th              
My dad putting together his Christmas present (a cabinet for his shoes). He’s still pretty darned handy!
 

Saturday, December 13^th   
While I was at choir practice, Dr. M was on Pop duty. Here are three of his cats. He loves these cats and feeding them helps structure his days.
 

Christmas poem is written (thanks Dr. M!), cards are in the mail, cantata is history, most of our gifts are purchased (I think – perhaps I should inventory them). We might be ready for Christmas. Oh! I just remembered I need to get books for the great-nephews! Any favorites for toddlers & 4-6 year olds? (Grayson is VERY SMART and into weather and dinosaurs). Elliott seems pretty bright too, but since he’s still a toddler he’s just getting regular toddler books.

2025 Project 365 – Week Forty-nine

Once again it’s Sunday afternoon, and once again I’m writing this with one eye shut, kicked back in my recliner, two minutes away from falling asleepzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…
Sunday, November 30^th            
Since it was the first Sunday of Advent, we opened up door 1 of Dr. M’s Penzeys Spices calendar. It was a good one!

Monday, December 1^st      
Bugnook of the North, reporting from 45 degree Hickory NC!
 

Dr. M put the tree up! It was a nice surprise when I got home.
 

Tuesday, December 2^nd      
This was the only photo on my phone from Tuesday – a screenshot I took to send to Dr. M. Made me laugh.
 

Wednesday, December 3^rd       
Ms. Pinky is, as ever, two toned.
 

Thursday, December 4^th    
I look like I’m about to tell you to shush in the library. Ha!
 

Friday, December 5^th         
At Thanksgiving we had a bit of a hamtastrophe & the oven was FULL of juice & grease (note: the ham was fine). When I got home from work yesterday an elf named Dr. M had cleaned it all up! The oven hasn’t been this clean since we moved in almost 9 years ago! Thanks sweetie!

Saturday, December 6^th   
I made a baby Jesus, as one does. (Stay tuned for next week’s post to see that he was not exactly the right size for the nativity that I made him for. Oops!)
 

Well, I managed to stay awake until the end of this post. Were you able to stay awake too? Good for us!