December Sunrise in the Woods

There was a beautiful sunrise in the woods, this morning, so I braved the chilly temperatures (24F) and took some pictures of it.

December 6th is the Feast of St. Nicholas in Europe. In Hungary, we called him Mikulas Bacsi. Santa Claus was not a part of our Christmases.

Mikulas Bacsi came on the Eve of St. Nicholas, dressed in the robes of a bishop, with a red miter on his head, a staff in one hand and a sack full of small presents in the other. He didn't come on a sleigh, pulled by some raindeer. He was accompanying by a scary "Devil" boy, or Krampusz, in a black costume, complete with horns and a long tail. He usually held a switch made of dry twigs, ready to smack any "naughty" children.
Each "good" child received a small gift and some sweets from Mikulas Bacsi.

I like the American Santa Claus better!

Christmas cheers and blessings!

Finding Joy

Early this morning, I was catching up with some of my favorite blogs. So there I was at Mary's Writing Nook, enjoying her always positive, family oriented posts, when I came upon a sweet comment made by Denise, that somehow touched me. Something prompted me to go and check out her blog.

I have felt a bit down lately. Concerns and worries sometimes get in the way of enjoying a beautiful day to the fullest. Then I sang along with Denise, "I've got joy, joy, joy, joy, here in my heart. Here in my heart. Here in my heart..." and pretty soon, joy did fill my heart.

I gazed at the beautiful sunrise, enjoyed the crisp fall air as I filled the bird feeders, and noticed the hickory trees in the field had turned all gold overnight, and were sparkling in the bright morning sun. And suddenly, I was thankful to be out there seeing and enjoying it all. And I thought, even in blog world "seek and you shall find" applies. Thank you, Lord!

Have a wonderful week, everyone!