Advent: Day 17

"Thank God It's Christmas"

I've always believed that, just like in a movie, special days in our lives have their own soundtrack

So, I sure the only way this post can be read and felt is listening to the amazing voice of Freddie Mercury and the superb band Queen singing "Thank God its Christmas"

https://youtu.be/fu3uA8K6ApQ

I woke up at 7am, prayed-wrote-meditated, can't really tell the difference lately. Had to breakfast.... I guess as every other day of 2017 with hopes, fears, laughs and tears

♩ ♪ ♫ ♬ Oh, my love, we've had our share of tears
Oh, my friend, we've had our hopes and fears
Oh, my friends, it's been a long hard year
But now it's Christmas
Yes it's Christmas
Thank God it's Christmas ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬

Today was the Children's Party, an annual party for underprivileged children a friend of mine organizes and for which for a few years now I've been donating the CLOWN ... a she-clown to be precise, which means me and my other close friends are the clown's assistants when we are not doing anything else that is required. IT ROCKS!

This year 50 families took home a food basket, gifts and joy. 50 families who have an ill loved one. Like the family of 5 kids (all under 10 years old) whose Mom has cancer and 3 months to live... I can't really say anything else about that. But I hope that as you read this you join my prayers to send light to that family.

♩ ♪ ♫ ♬ The moon and stars seem awfully cold and bright
Let's hope the snow will make this Christmas right
My friend the world will share this special night
Because it's Christmas
Yes it's Christmas
Thank God it's Christmas
For one night ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬

Later we had vegan lunch and an ice cone. Don't you just love ice cones?

♩ ♪ ♫ ♬ Thank God it's Christmas yeah
Thank God it's Christmas
Thank God it's Christmas
Can it be Christmas?
Let it be Christmas
Every day ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬

We (as in the lovely souls of my closest friends) went off to the Elder's party, at a Christian-Charity retirement home, we sang the advent prayer with the nuns and rocked with 70 elders to the most popular Christmas carols in Spanish. 

A lovely grandma, who is 87 years old had her Christmas Cake with me. She told me she had been living there for 5 months, that this Christmas she had realized it her true home (now), everyone is so kind to her! She misses her daughter, who followed her husbands advise to "kick her" out of her house. She was very sad, but now she prays every day with the help of the nuns. 

♩ ♪ ♫ ♬ Oh, my love, we've lived in troubled days
Oh, my friend, we have the strangest ways
All my friends on this one day of days
Thank God it's Christmas
Yes it's Christmas
Thank God it's Christmas
For one day ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬

We all had coffee! yes... a Christmas coffee afternoon at a lovely restaurant in San Jose!

♩ ♪ ♫ ♬ Thank God it's Christmas
Yes it's Christmas
Thank God it's Christmas
Oooh yeah
Thank God it's Christmas
Yes yes yes yes it's Christmas
Thank God it's Christmas
For one day ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬

In the night, my Tao-Taiwanese friends cooked a lovely vegan dinner, just because had been travelling for a long time and she knows we love Christmas. And on top it all she invited one of the wisest, senior elders from the Tao community ... who answered so gracefully many of my spiritually-related questions 

♩ ♪ ♫ ♬ A very merry Christmas to you all ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬

All of that... because its Christmas.... thank God its Christmas ... for one day!

Advent: Day 16

My mom believes the reason I was born with white blonde hair, was because around the time I was conceived, Pope John Paul II visited Costa Rica and she attended a prayer circle which followed his advise to pray the rosary every day for miracles. The family agrees that because his hair was white blonde, mine was too. My mom has tanned skin and is a burnet. My Dad has a lot of freckles and although now his hair is grey, when he was born he was a red-headed. My brother has dark brown hair.  Just for the record, I do not know what my real hair colour is anymore, but the lady at the beauty salon can never replicate the colour of my mother'sprayers. (no matter how many miracles the bottle of hair dye bottle proclaims... :) 

I am almost sure my reflection seems pointless to anyone but me.

Why? - the reader asked

Because prayer is how we talk to God and meditating is listening to God. And the rosary is both, a contemplative prayer meditation, of surrender, hope and faith in the Christ-consciousness. - I replied  

So what does that mean for me? Well, it means everything, since this Advent period I need more than ever to remember that the Miracle is coming to change the evening news, to cease the will of our leaders to go to war, awaken humans to care for earth, of terrorists to remember we are brothers or anything else you want to change to make a better world for the bears, the pigeons and the whales.  A Miracle!

ACIM says "A miracle is a correction. It does not create, nor really change at all. It merely looks on devastation, and reminds the mind that what it sees is false"

So I choose to believe the reason I was born with white blonde hair was because of the Pope and the rosary prayer circle. 

If I would have something more to say today, I would write it... i but I will reframe and read again the message in the image in the beginning of this post, with a rosary at hand and be inspired

inspiration (n.)

c. 1300, "immediate influence of God or a god," especially that under which the holy books were written, from Old French inspiracion "inhaling, breathing in; inspiration" (13c.), from Late Latin inspirationem (nominative inspiratio), noun of action from past participle stem of Latin inspirare"blow into, breathe upon," figuratively "inspire, excite, inflame," from in- "in" (from PIE root *en "in") + spirare "to breathe" (see spirit (n.)). ,

And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. [Genesis ii.7]

The sense evolution seems to be from "breathe into" to "infuse animation or influence," thus "affect, rouse, guide or control," especially by divine influence. Inspire (v.) in Middle English also was used to mean "breath or put life or spirit into the human body; impart reason to a human soul." Literal sense "act of inhaling" attested in English from 1560s. Meaning "one who inspires others" is attested by 1867.

Con amor,

Paola

Change to WordPress

Dear Lovely Souls, Friends, Brothers, Sisters

As some of you may know, I recently started to blog at WordPress, as a trial (since I've always used blogger.com in the past)

I am very thankful for the platform www.blogger.com, they allowed me to host my blog since 2011 but given some more user-friendly features I've decided to permanently change to WordPress, this blog https://thehenthatwantedtofly.blogspot.com will remain active, like that old book that we love to open and smell. And for now, I will post on both blogs until all my followers migrate.

Love and light,
Paola

Advent Day 14

Asking the right questions is the key to the right answer. I've been meditating on how the question is the lock and the answer is the key, but while I look into my heart to know what to ask, the best I can do is to notice and appreciate my blessings, I know that is how I open the door to more of God's gits.

15 minutes ago, before typing this post, I sat down at in the wicker chair in the left corner of my balcony, overlooking the San Jose valley (- Oh it looks so beautiful!). Prayed and shuffled like a spiritual dealer I guess... :) a deck of Guidance Cards from Doreen Virtue, a Hay House author that created a deck called Mary Queen of Angels Mother Mary Card Deck @ HayHouse

This card came up and there is nothing I can type right now that can express the immense feeling of love that dived deep into my heart.

Gratitude is the master key to unlock God's gifts for us. Mother Mary has been a great master in teaching us how Heaven cares for us, in her recent messages she has talked about a generous and loving God that cares for all of us (humans, the animals of earth, wind and water and all of Earths flora, oceans and minerals), just like she cares for us, reminding us that no matter what the world status is right now there is always something to be grateful for.

So let's be grateful for this Advent period, for the people that donate gifts for the underprivileged children and elders, for the employers who pay their 13th salaries on time, let's be grateful for the beautiful decorations in the streets, for the warm afternoons and the cosy snowy nights.

What do you see in this image of Mother Mary? (please share below in the comments!)

I believe she is feeling her heart. And tonight I will stop thinking and start feeling,... feeling how she sends us gratitude for celebrating Advent, after all, she was the first soul in history to celebrate Advent, for more than 9 months since Arcangel Gabriel gave her the news on the Annunciation.

Would you pause for a moment and notice your heartbeat and repeat in your mind's eye

- Thank you, heart, for pumping blood to every corner of my body. Then pause take a deep breath and imagine a tube of sky blue light coming into your head crown and reaching your heart, then imagine the heart pumping this light to all the corners of your body. Inhale God, Exhale Gratitude.

That is how I prayed earlier and the Mother Mary sent me a text with the guidance card Mother Mary Card Deck @ HayHouse

My wish for you tonight is simple, may gratefulness accompany all night!

Con amor,

Paola

Advent: Day 13

According to the Christian Calendar, this post belongs to March 25th. And now that I think it thoroughly, seems I should have started this Advent Calendar Blog (that is how I refer to it with my friends)  with the Annunciation.

The Annunciation is the celebration of the announcement by the Arcangel Gabriel to Mother Mary that she would become the mother of Jesus. Gabriel told Mary to name her son Yeshua, meaning "YHWH is salvation". According to Luke the Annunciation occurred "in the sixth month" of Elizabeth's pregnancy with John the Baptist. So the Cristian Calendar made an approximation of the northern vernal equinox nine full months before Christmas, the ceremonial birthday of Jesus, which started the tradition to celebrate Annunciation on March 25th.

Recently a friend of mine gave me a lovely book about the history of Mother Mary, looking back through the year she has healed me and guided me like a strong but loving mother in so many crossroads. So book in hand I will dedicate the next 5 posts to Mother Mary.

We all have a divine feminine and a divine masculine, both are equally important to fulfil our life purpose. Our patriarchal society focuses on the strong male decision-making mode, the doer within us, but to ascend to the Christ consciousness and give birth of the Christ with us in our heart, is not something we do, it is something we receive from the Holy Spirit, just like Mary did.

• we need to quite our minds and listen! we need to try to be attentive and leave judgement behind so we can hear the angels whispers like Mary did. Or dream about it like Joseph did.

So tonight I will pull a Guidance Card from the Mary Queen of Angels card deck Mother Mary Card Deck @ HayHouse

Con amor,
Paola

Advent Day 13

A Christmas Tree Story 

12 days until Christmas, the countdown has officially begun and almost everyone I know has a Christmas Tree. Personally, I do not think given the current world situation Before the Flood - Leonardo Di Caprio it is a good idea to promote massive cutting of trees. Gladly now there are some options. Will share more below, so please keep reading!

My favourite tree embodies the Joy this Advent Period. My favourite tree is the Tree from the Costa Rica National Children's Hospital (Hospital Nacional de Ninos), a national pediatric hospital that provides medical care to children in the country since its founding in 1845. 

Since 1964 in the front garden of the Hospital a large tree is lighted up so all the hospitalized children can watch from their window. The picture speaks for itself:

This year they even took it up a notch and made the 25,999 light bulbs to be made of Led technology to make it eco-friendly. The tree is planted in the hospital garden, so no tree cutting required. 

The first person to bring a Christmas Tree into a house, in the way we know it today, may have been the 16th-century German preacher  Martin Luther. A story is told that, one night before Christmas, he was walking through the forest and looked up to see the stars shining through the tree branches. It was so beautiful, that he went home and told his children that it reminded him of Jesus, who left the stars of heaven to come to earth at Christmas. Some people say this is the same tree as the 'Riga' tree, but it isn't! The Riga tree originally took place a few decades earlier. Source 

The evergreen fir tree has traditionally been used to celebrate winter festivals (pagan and Christian) for thousands of years. Pagans used branches of it to decorate their homes during the winter solstice, as it made them think of the spring to come. The Romans used Fir Trees to decorate their temples at the festival of Saturnalia. Christians use it as a sign of everlasting life with God. Source 

n Germany, the first Christmas Trees were decorated with edible things, such as gingerbread and gold covered apples. Then glass makers made special small ornaments similar to some of the decorations used today. In 1605 an unknown German wrote: "At Christmas, they set up fir trees in the parlours of Strasbourg and hang thereon roses cut out of many-coloured paper, apples, wafers, gold foil, sweets, etc." Source 

At first, a figure of the Baby Jesus was put on the top of the tree. Over time it changed to an angel/fairy that told the shepherds about Jesus, or a star like the Wise Men saw.

The first Christmas Trees came to Britain sometime in the 1830s. They became very popular in 1841 when Prince Albert (Queen Victoria's German husband) had a Christmas Tree set up in Windsor Castle. In 1848, drawing of "The Queen's Christmas tree at Windsor Castle" was published in the Illustrated London News. The drawing was republished in Godey's Lady's Book, Philadelphia in December 1850 (but they removed the Queen's crown and Prince Albert's moustache to make it look 'American'!). The publication of the drawing helped Christmas Trees become popular in the UK and USA. In Victorian times, the tree would have been decorated with candles to represent stars. In many parts of Europe, candles are still used to decorate Christmas trees. Source 

As promised... non-cutting trees options... LOL

Con amor,

Paola

P.S. Some real man-made Christmas Tree options Amazon - Christmas Tree

Advent: Day 12

Healthy Christmas Dinner

Earlier today I was planning the Christmas Dinner menu. I’ve been a vegetarian for many years, but 2017 was the year I turned fully vegan… yeiii helping the polar bears(I do not intend to put harsh images or sad news in this post, but if you want to know, please click on this link and see the starving polar bear which the deforestation for meat production has kicked out of beautiful glacier house due to global warming Polar Bear in Trouble)

So I was searching for good at Hay House Healthy Eating Books

And I found this great post at the VeganSociety.com

Hope you enjoy your Christmas Dinner and help the Polar Bears while saving money (did you know a Vegetarian Christmas Meal is 40% less expensive than a regular Christmas Meal?) and eating healthier! that is for sure!

Perhaps you want to one step further and save what you saved DONATE SAVE POLAR BEARS

Bon Appetit!,

Paola

1) Parsnip and butternut squash soup

From mydarlingvegan.com

The last thing you want to do is to spoil your appetite for the main event. This simple recipe includes roast apple for that sweet festive kick. Get the recipe here.

2) Cranberry and pine nut stuffing

From onegreenplanet.org

Tis the season to stuff our lovely vegan faces. Get the recipe here.

3) Gravy

From jamieoliver.com

Even Jamie Oliver’s getting on board the vegan gravy train. Make in advance to allow the flavours to intensify, and get the recipe here.

4) Maple glazed carrots

From lifecurrents.dw2.net

Providing a new hope to anyone who thinks carrots are icky, this glazing really makes it the best side ever. Get the recipe here.

5) Haggis and whisky sauce

From veganlass.com 

Traditionally served with neeps and tatties (turnips and potatoes to you non-Scots!) this vegan haggis is the perfect thing if you want to impress folk in the north of Britain. Get the recipe here, and check out Vegan Lass’ new recipe book – New Traditions: Christmas recipes for a vegan future.

6) Chestnut pâté strudel

From veganrecipeclub.org.uk

Praise be to ready-made puff pastry. Deceptively simple to make, this festive strudel will be a hit with vegans and non-vegans alike. Get the recipe here.

7) Christmas pudding ice cream

From Jane Hughes, author of Vegan: 100 everyday recipes.

That’s no moon… it’s a fabulous recipe for the more (holiday) seasoned chefs out there! The sprig of holly is, of course, essential. Get the recipe here.

8) Christmas trifle

From the lovely Sarah Cook, our Office Manager

Cake, custard, jelly, cream, nap by the fire. Yes please. Get the recipe here.

9) Lentil apple walnut loaf

From ohsheglows.com

Because including fruit in savoury recipes is the way to go. Get the recipe here.

10) Eggnog

From theroastedroot.net

As writer Julia Mueller says, ‘We will never understand eggnog naysayers. We put our brave britches on, take a swig of nog and say, “no, nog nayslayer, I will not succumb to your non-nog naysaying ways.” ‘ Get the recipe here.

By Elena Orde and Ali Ryland