12.18.2023 | Third Monday of Advent

The colder winds are blowing in the Carondelet Garden this sunny Monday morning.  A red maple leaf sits alone on the concrete in front of the Parterre Garden this morning.  The winds haven't blown it away just yet.  The highs today should make it into the upper 30s but there is a warm-up coming later in the week.  It has been a very mild December so far.  

I set a bit of a goal for myself as this year began.  I wanted to live a simpler, more ordinary life.  Less hustle and bustle; instead, more calm and contemplation.  There is a kind of freedom in becoming absorbed in a simple, ordinary life in the garden.  In a noisy age, I think perhaps trying to live quietly might be a virtue.

Some days are better than others.  The days when I do accomplish to calm down and take in a bit of contemplation, I do feel much better and more connected to the realness of life.  A bit more hope in those moments when the world around me says hope is gone.  A bit more faith that things will get better.  Faith that we can and do make a difference.  Then there is love.  The love of nature.  The love of family, both the family we are born into and the family we choose.  Faith, hope and love to live out this simple, ordinary life.  My goal will remain the same for this coming year.  

It's a new week.  Gaudete Sunday has arrived.  Rejoice in the coming light.  That's all the news from here in the Carondelet Garden.