Leanne Shawler, Artist

Written 12/21/15: Apologies for the sudden stop in posting. I got caught up in finishing an icon (it's still in progress) and finishing up LifeBook lessons for the year. I'm taking the class again in 2016 as there's a cool new crop of teachers.) Written 2/27/16: I finished the icon and will post about it later. I got obsessed with Hamilton (the musical). I forgot all about blogging. But found this post, last edited in December with "READY TO GO" written next to it in my Notes app so here's as good a place to re-start as any. "I will not be driven by perfectionism or performance - because I was formed by Love, for Love. I will simply Enjoy the Ministry of Presence today: God's presence, people's presence, the present moment, the gift of now. The greatest gift I can give back to our great God is to let His love make me glad." - Ann Voskamp. This is on the card for December 2 of Ann Voskamp's Advent reflections, which is also ...

Chanukah is this week. Running from Sunday night for eight days, each night observers light a candle, remembering the miracle of how an oil lamp stayed lit for eight days even though the oil was almost gone. Rabbi Angela Buchdahl from Central Synagogue, shares in the short video below the meaning of the Shamash: the candle that lights the other eight candles over the course of Chanukah. She says: "Being a Shamash might not have all the glory of being a Chanukah candle but the light that the Shamash brings is no less miraculous." Watch the video below to learn about what it means to be a Shamash, a helper of light, in your own life (and stay tuned for the three blessings as the candles are lit during Chanukah). How are you a Shamash in your part of the world?

I first heard about the feast of St. Lucia from a Norwegian friend when we worked in the office together. So I made her these buns based on this King Arthur Flour recipe . They were okay, a bit dry and tough. Turns out it was the way I made them. Pretty sure I over-kneaded.  Or maybe the yeast wasn't fresh enough. Anyway. So I had a second crack at it last night, in honor of my friend and, of course, for St. Lucia. They're yummy. And St. Lucia? She's a virgin martyr saint from Roman persecution times who is very popular in Scandinavia for some reason. ( Wikipedia has an opinion .) The girls dress in white wearing a crown of candles in their hair at the church service. Her name means "light" and in this Advent time of waiting for the Great Light of Jesus to be born, it's an appropriate saint for the season. A little saint-light who had eyes only for Christ, no matter what her culture demanded of her. For me though, it's a day to remember my...