Tuesday 4: January!

January    


Welcome to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4 in the new year. 

 We wish you a very Happy New Year!
January is named for Janus the two faced god who looked into the past and future. Some believe he was Noah who may have been worshipped by his progeny. He certainly looked into the pre flood world and the new world. The Anglo Saxons called this month Wulfsmoanth. Let's talk about January.

1. January 1, 1892 Ellis Island opened it's doors. Did any of your relations enter the United States through Ellis Island? If not, do you know your family's history?

I am not sure.  Many of my ancestors migrated to the United States way before 1892, so I guess they didn't have to pass through Ellis Island if it wasn't in existence yet!  I am learning more about my family's history through Ancestry.com, and it is quite interesting. But there is still much to learn and I really haven't spent as much time on it lately as I would like to. Maybe in this New Year I can get back into it again.

2. January's birth stone is garnet and the flower is the carnation. Do you have favorite gem stones or flowers?

My favorite gemstone is the blue sapphire, because that is my birthstone (September). The flower for September is the blue aster, but that is not a common flower here where I live so I haven't had much opportunity to enjoy it!  My favorite flowers would be roses and wildflowers in general. I love flowers that grow in God's garden, where I don't have to do a thing to make them grow!  However, right now this is what is blooming in my kitchen "garden":

This beautiful Christmas cactus continues to blossom and make me smile!

3. January 6 is Epiphany. Many take that day as the final day of the Christmas celebration and take down their decor. What about you?

January 6th is also my mother's birthday. She would be 106 this year! But she will be celebrating her birthday and Epiphany in heaven, as she has been there since  May of 2006. Not a day goes by that I don't think of her in some way.  Especially when it comes to the holidays, and how she managed to cook and decorate and make everything so special, even though she was working a full time job in addition to taking care of our family of six.

Regarding the taking down of Christmas decorations, I've mentioned before that in our home growing up we never took the tree down before Jan. 6th, but I always thought it was because it was my mother's birthday and that is what she always did in her family.  I never understood the connection with Epiphany until later.  Normally we do leave our tree up until January 6th now as well, but this year we are taking things down early since we are going to be leaving for a trip to north Georgia on the 5th, and I would like to have everything cleaned up before we leave so I don't have to deal with it when we come home. I started working on dismantling the tree and other things yesterday, but this morning when I woke up I wanted to enjoy the beauty of the lights on the tree one more time...

The tree with just the lights

And also savor the coziness of our "Christmas at the Cabin" one more time...

(you can see the boxes of tree ornaments stacked up to the right)

And enjoy the peacefulness of this cabin scene a little while longer...

Here is the scene on our Still Waters Pond early this morning when I woke up...

I stepped out on the porch so I could "listen" to the sounds of the bullfrogs and early morning bird songs while it is still calm and peaceful on this foggy morning...

4. There is some evidence that January can set the tone for your entire year.
What do you think of this? Do you make resolutions, etc?

Yes, I do believe this. That is one reason why I select a "One Word" for the new year, instead of trying to make resolutions.  As I wrote yesterday, my new "One Word" for 2023 is LISTEN.  And that is the "tone" I am trying to set for this year, as I "listen" to God's voice through His Word and through the things and events surrounding me, I will be watching and listening for what God is speaking to me.  This morning I went back to the book of Isaiah chapter 55 and read further beyond what I shared yesterday from verse 2.  And the further I read, the more I "heard" God's voice speaking to me, encouraging me to continue in this path that I believe He has directed me to.  Here's a few of the verses that stood out to me in this early morning time...

Excerpts from Isaiah 55

3. "Incline your ear, and come to Me.

Hear, and your soul shall live;

6. Seek the Lord while He may be found,

Call upon Him while He is near.

8. “For My thoughts are not your thoughts,

Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.

9. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

So are My ways higher than your ways,

And My thoughts than your thoughts.

10. “For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven,

And do not return there,

But water the earth,

And make it bring forth and bud,

That it may give seed to the sower

And bread to the eater,

11. So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;

It shall not return to Me void,

But it shall accomplish what I please,

And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.

12. “For you shall go out with joy,

And be led out with peace;

The mountains and the hills

Shall break forth into singing before you,

And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands."

This is the "tone" for the New Year that I want to have set for me. Starting the year out seeking the Lord will lead to joy and peace and fulfillment.  And this weekend we are heading into the mountains and the hills...and even though we are going to "celebrate the life" of my husband's cousin who passed away last month, we expect it to truly be a time of joy and celebration, because we know he is with the Lord and is already celebrating his new life in heaven. 

I may not be able to comment or respond to posts while I am gone, but I will try to get caught up when we return next week.  Meanwhile, you all have a blessed and beautiful new beginning to this new year. 

Now, let us go see what our other friends are sharing over at the Tuesday 4 link up!