It is still dark outside. The girls have left for school, but I am spending a quiet morning at home before driving down to my office later in the day. Today's advent basket is unpacked, and I have just read through my advent diary from this day written during the last couple of years.
December 1st is always a special day. The day I start my basket, the day I start to do the first decorations waiting for Christmas to come in a few weeks. But still the purple colour of advent and of waiting dominates our house. The advent wreath candle is lit during every meal now, though only the first candle still. And this morning we also got another candle to shine through our meals. Marta gets a small packet every day from today untill Christmas, her advent calendar, and as always, today's "surprise" was the special advent candle marked with 24 numbers, one for every day untill Christmas Eve.
I will spend advent this year together with Mary, this young girl who was chosen by God to give birth to Jesus. This young girl, later a grown up woman, who laid her life in the hands of the God Almighty. An angel came to her and told her what turned upside down on her whole life; she was pregnant and would give birth to the Saviour. Alot is written about Mary, and alot is still to be written. I have a good friend who writes hymns and carols. She is working on a special hymn right now about Mary, or Maria as we call her in Norway; Ave Maris Stella, where she describes Maria as a star who shines the Word of God on us. I will bring the hymn with me trough this day.
December is for me also a period when I work on my many Christmas Quilts. I used to quilt ALOT, and then also started alot of different Christmas pro
jects. Nowadays, when my quilting is alot more limited, I find joy and pleasure in working on old projects. And this log cabin is a typical example. It is tucked away in a cupboard during most of the year, but every December it comes to life again. I basted it last December, and have now started handquilting it. Will probably not finish it this year either, but it will follow me, and it will, though it is still unfinished, be part of our advent and Christmas decorations.
