St. Melangell

One of the many treasures Orthodoxy has brought to my life has been the doorway to the lives of the saints.  Before discovering the ancient faith, I had only a vague notion

 of those men and women whose lives shone forth the light of Christ.  

Nowadays I am introduced to a new saint on a regular basis.  Sometimes through church or Ancient Faith Radio or a book I’m reading.  Occasionally I find someone new while surfing the net perusing the latest works of my favorite artists.  With each new discovery I find such interesting tidbits and places to include on that “Must See!”  list.  

While browsing Patricia Banker’s latest pieces (pictured above), the beautiful illustration and story of Saint Melangell (pronounced Mel - eng - eth) captivated me.    She is a 7th century saint from Wales that renounced her royal heritage to live in the forest and devote her days to prayer and solitude.  

As the traditional story is told, she fled from her father when pressed to marry and settled in Pennant, at the head of the Tanant Valley in Northern Wales.  There she lived for 15 years in solitude until she was discovered by the Welsh Prince, Brochfael Ysgithrog while he was hunting in the area.   As his hounds pursued their prey, the frightened hare ran to St. Melangell and hid in the folds of her garment.  The hounds were quiet and refused to snag the hare, much to the amazement of the prince.  

Prince Brochfael was so moved by her beauty, purity and love for God that he asked her to marry him.  When she refused, he gifted her with a large parcel of land to be used as a monastery and sanctuary for people and animals.  This area became known as Pennant Melangell and the beautiful saint became Abbess of a religious order there.  Pilgrims still visit this sacred area even to this day.  

According to the St. Melangell’s Church website, there has been a christian church in this area of the Berwyn Mountains for over 1200 years.  St. Melangell’s Church (pictured below), a simple Norman structure, has been beautified over the years with the most recent rebuilding being completed in 1990.   With the blend of Celtic and Romanesque motifs, 15th century carvings, bronze statuary and a natural outdoor landscape with ancient Yew trees, I could breathe in this piece of heaven for several days. 

St. Melangell remains the patron saint of hares and other small animals as well as the natural environment.  In Wales, St. Melangell's feast day is celebrated on May 27th; the ancient feast day is marked as January 31st.

Other related links of interest:  Saints Preserved

and Saints Mary & Martha Orthodox Monastery

Green Bank, Paper Airplanes and Litmus Paper

A Tribute to an Incredible Boy

Last Tuesday, on St. Patrick’s Day, I spent a beautiful day with our son.  He had advanced to the Regional Math Field Day, held at NRAO in Green Bank, WV this year and what a privilege it was for me to be part of this special event!

We began our day around 5:00 am, in order to have breakfast and make the 3 hr. drive north.  The sights were spectacular on Route 92, with dense fog lifting slowly to allow brilliant shafts of morning light to accentuate the tidy farmhouses along the highway.  The air was crisp and while Ben snoozed in the seat beside me, I savored my coffee and the rolling landscape that offered a new discovery around every bend.

Ben is such a neat kid, often quiet, but thoughtful and usually trying to figure out how things work.  He has been this way since he was a toddler and one of our favorite stories is of him at Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia.  We were on a tour of the historic sights and while my husband & I were listening to the guide in the courtyard of the Governor’s Palace, Ben was apart from our group a little bit, standing over a grated drain inlet  with his hands resting on bent knees.  As he peered  intently down that dark shaft, we walked over and said, “What are you doing?”    Without looking up, he continued to study and then our almost 3 yr. old said, “Water down there..”  “Where does it go?”

I love his inquisitiveness and his ability to understand systems and mechanics.  Math and science seem to come easy to him and I am thankful for his gifts.  When he was selected for the County Math Field Day, he barely said a word about it.   And when he placed 3rd at that level, he didn’t want me talking about it.  He considers praise annoying ...and embarrassing if it’s done in front of others.  I admire this quality in him, although it’s been a learning curve for me, as I like to give praise and pats on the back. In talking with other moms, I’m finding this trait common in boys.

At the Observatory, the students tested from 10:15 am to about 3:15 pm with 5 parts to the field day:  Quantity Estimation, Group Activity, Written Test, Mental Estimations and Relays.  The folks at the NRAO were wonderful hosts; providing breakfast items and beverages and also a full lunch for everyone.  The day went smoothly and while Ben was testing, I enjoyed a tour of the Observatory and then sitting in my van, soaking up the sunshine and reading some favorite hymns and prayers of St. Patrick.

All in all, it was a great first experience for the both of us.  And, even though he didn’t earn an award at the end of the day, he said he enjoyed the challenges and would try to go again next year. 

Among Ben’s hobbies, he enjoys making paper airplanes.  He has a book that shows how to make a variety of plane types and more recently, he discovered a website that includes video on how to make even more styles.  When he told us at dinner one night that he could make a rocket out of paper, my husband smiled at him and said, “If you can make a rocket out of paper, you’ll probably work for NASA”.  “I’ll show you” was Ben’s only reply.

And so, after dinner, we watched him take a spherical object he had fashioned out of paper, which included many tucks and folds, outside to the patio.  With a lighter in hand, he placed the small flame near a hole in the paper and WHHHOOOOSHH, it took off across a distance of about 4 feet and did not consume the paper.  We all applauded and asked if he could do it again!  He beamed as he demonstrated his craft a second time.

Ben is also knowledgeable about the fish in his care.  I have finally learned to stop fussing and asking if he remembered to feed them because he has shown me time and again that he is on top of it.  As he was cleaning the tanks one day, I observed from a distance that he was measuring and calculating something, as the bathroom counter looked more like a science lab rather than a place to brush your teeth and comb your hair.   Peering over his shoulder, I saw that he had made his own paper strips to test the pH of the water in his tanks.  “Oh, Ben, ...wow...you made your own pH paper?!”  I asked in wonder.

“It’s called litmus paper, mom” was his matter of fact reply.  It was no big deal to him; he needed to know the pH of the water and so, found a solution.  Simple.

What is nonchalant to him is incredible to me.  I admire this child and am thankful to be him mom. 

"May God grant Ben many, many years, enable him to use his gifts to glorify God's name and grow him in Truth and obedience always."

  

*Photograph is from the NRAO website.

Awake O Sleeper

As I sit here smelling the sweet Nazareth incense from Holy Cross Monastery, my thoughts are on St. Benedict and his Rule. I’ve written about this mighty saint before, but as we are in Great Lent in the Orthodox Church, I find his counsel most appreciated.

Great Lent is a time of increased fasting, prayer and almsgiving, a lean season that balances on the hope of springtime, renewal, and celebration in our Risen Saviour. I do not just want to go through the motions of Lent, I wish to experience Christ, to know the Pascal mystery in a real and intimate way. And through my efforts I am reminded daily of my weaknesses. I eat too much. I ponder too much and waste time too much. I yearn for discipline and yet, on a whim, will snag a second...or fourth Oreo. And these are just the petty things.

A much larger weak spot is my fear of flying. I joke about myself that I pray more on airplanes than any other time in life, but in truth, it’s a real fear that I have to deal with from time to time and it’s BIG, UGLY and RELENTLESS.  

St. Benedict says to “keep death daily before your eyes” (4.47) which I find an easy course when embarking on a plane, but he also says “Look forward to holy Easter with joy and spiritual longing” (49.7) How may I have joy while also contemplating my mortality?

The Christian life is filled with such seemingly contradictory maxims: “ You must lose your life to find it” “Through death, death was destroyed” “By Christ, we are made strong through our weakness” and “Rejoice through suffering, being thankful for our trials”. My quest in reading St. Benedict’s Rule is learning how to live in contradiction, how to be a peaceful pilgrim in this noisy world.

As I face my fear of flying, I realize that I’m led to a place of great vulnerability.  A place I would altogether avoid if circumstances were different. I am awake, attentive to my mortality and roused from a comfortable slumber. I realize how much I desire the mighty wings of God and how illusory is my control in life.

“The promise of the Kingdom is not that we shall escape the hard things, but that we shall be given grace to face them, to enter into them, and to come through them. The promise is not that we shall not be afraid. It is that we need not fear fear.” - Esther de Waal, Living With Contradiction: An Introduction to Benedictine Spirituality

In hindsight, what a blessing to confront this weakness head-on for this is exactly where Christ meets us.  As I continually prayed, “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner” my thoughts changed from an irrational torrent to a calm river of hope.  Through my vulnerability, living waters flowed ...how can I not embrace these occasions of spiritual growth?

Secretariat: Triple Crown Legend

If I was raised and lived far removed from churches, Holy Scripture, or anyone proclaiming Christ, ...I would know God, my Creator, through horses.

I’ve had a love of horses for as long as I can remember and have shared my life with them since age 6. Reading about horses, watching them on t.v., drawing them, spending hours at the barn riding, grooming and listening to them munch hay is a tightly woven part of my life’s tapestry.

I can recall a little motorized toy that my parents bought for me on Christmas one year that allowed me to place each differently colored horse on a little track, press ‘go’ and watch them race over and over again with varying outcomes, much to my delight.

I spent days outside in the summer reveling in Walter Farley’s Black Stallion series
and actually fell over backward in my lawn chair after throwing my hands in the air, celebratory style, as I read about the conclusion of a long and arduous desert horse race.

It isn’t the sport of racing that appeals to me as much as the opportunity to witness perfection in God’s most noble creature. In fact, there’s much to lament about the sport ...the misuse of drugs, some calloused owners and insurance policies, the questionable breeding and other ethical matters.

What I wish to share with you is the essence of the animal, a heart and spirit that kindles praise to my Creator.

There are times in our life when we can witness perfection or experience it ourselves as God’s grace is given. When we see an athlete such as Terry Fox and his Marathon of Hope or Lyman Bostock who sought to return a salary he felt he didn’t earn, or Troy Polamalu who speaks openly about his love for God, we can gain a sense of something outside of themselves, something greater...something far greater and wonderful. In animals, perhaps even more so since they haven’t the propensity toward sin. Every perfect thing in us is from God above; how glorious when we gain glimpses of the eternal on earth!

I was only a toddler when Secretariat wowed the world with his stamina and heart. But through the recordings of his races and the words of those closest to him, I can share in his amazing life. In watching him run as God created him to do, it is not just thrilling to behold, but deeply humbling in the sense that here, before us, is a glimpse of perfection, of God’s handiwork.

In 1973, Secretariat won each leg comprising the Triple Crown: the Kentucky Derby, The Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes, setting new track records in each and a new world record in the Belmont. Since 1919, we’ve only seen 11 Triple Crown winners...and after the Belmont Stakes, the last and longest of the races at a mile and a half, Pat Lynch remarked:

“It was like the Lord was holding the reins, ..Secretariat was one of His creatures and maybe whispered to him a “Go” and that horse really went. It was really an almost supernatural experience...it really was.” 

--Pat Lynch NY Racing Association 1957-1981 on Secretariat’s performance in the Belmont Stakes

*To the best of my knowledge the above image is in public domain; for more information on Secretariat, please visit www.secretariat.com 

Never Quit

My daughter is home from school today with a tummy virus.  We've spent some time working on her skills telling time and reading and then she needed to lay down to rest.  When I asked her if she wanted to watch a movie, mentioning some of our favorites, Cinderella, Little Bear and Bug's Life, she said, "How 'bout the Giant movie?"  

She meant "Facing the Giants" , a film that we discovered several months ago and have watched as a family on several occasions.  It's a Christian film, from an evangelical mindset of a high school football coach's struggle to win, in life and on the field.  It's a great story with themes to warm and encourage the heart no matter your denomination.

I'm posting my favorite scene below:

Victory through Christ; thoughts on St. Terese of Lisieux

I had intended to write about St. Valentine last week, but fierce storms and a power outage that lasted for days altered my plans. We live in a rural area that experiences frequent outages and although it’s fun to live like pioneers for a few hours, I find that it’s more a lesson in patience and self-control. Which brings me round to thinking on St. Terese of Lisieux and her “little way”.  

A Catholic friend recently loaned to me a film about St. Terese’s life. She was known for small acts of kindness and demonstrating what it means to crucify our will in favor of allowing the light of Christ to shine through us. If you’d like to learn more about St. Terese, you might enjoy reading at the Society of the Little Flower website. I didn’t know much about St. Terese before watching the film and now find myself greatly inspired by her life.  

Her life encourages my walk with Christ by helping me to take the high road in everyday circumstances. She reminds me that it is not necessary that I do grand things for God, such as building a cathedral or living among the poor in order to minister to them, but it is necessary that I become aware of my own sins so that I may repent and do small things in a grand way, or more accurately, God’s way.

Small things such as placing my needs behind another’s, listening to someone’s heartaches when you feel pressed for time or even giving a smile or warm words to someone who has been unkind. I experienced a victory through Christ a few days ago that is worth sharing for anyone who may battle a common demon, ... anger.

Anger thrives on haste, self-righteousness and pride. I know my enemy very well and yet struggle to find peace when I know his approach is near. It is only by the grace of God that I am able to turn away and see a different path when all my buttons are pressed and the fuse is at the end. But it so happened a few days back that God quieted my mouth when I experienced hot words and gave me such a taste of sweetness... victory through Christ. I learned that if I can just hang on, over the crest of the wave, there is stillness, peace and mercy on the other side; it’s only in our nearness to our Creator that we are able to forget self, thus foiling our enemy.  

I’m grateful to St. Terese for radiating the love of Christ, for bearing witness to heaven through her selfless acts of love toward others. May God have mercy on me and enable me to call to mind His wondrous saints in times of temptation.  

"I applied myself above all to practice quite hidden little acts of virtue; thus I liked to fold the mantles forgotten by the Sisters, and sought a thousand opportunities of rendering them service."  St. Terese of Lisieux

St. Brigid's Cross

In a popular icon of St. Brigid she is depicted with her handmade cross of rushes.  I have one of these crosses on my living room wall and have found it is usually a conversation piece, with one guest believing it was some sort of ninja tool!   Legend says that the saint formed this cross in order to minister to a dying man; one version goes like this:

"A pagan chieftain from the neighborhood of Kildare was dying. Christians in his household sent for Brigid to talk to him about Christ. When she arrived the chieftain was raving. As it was impossible to instruct this delirious man, hopes for his conversion seemed doubtful. Brigid sat down at his bedside and began consoling him. As was customary, the dirt floor was strewn with rushes both for warmth and cleanliness. Brigid stooped down and started to weave them into a cross, fastening the points together. The sick man asked what she was doing. She began to explain the cross, and as she talked his delirium quieted and he questioned her with growing interest. Through her weaving, he converted and was baptized at the point of death. Since then the cross of rushes has been venerated in Ireland."

I think it's interesting to note that both St. Patrick and St. Brigid utilized elements of nature, shamrocks and rushes, respectively, in order to minister to those seeking the Divine. It calls to mind Romans 1:20, "For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse..."  All the firmament shouts His glory, how much more in the hands of His precious saints!

Menu ideas for St. Brigid's Feast Day

I am not one for adventure cooking.  Because our family likes to eat dinner together, I prefer simple meals that do not involve much forethought.   This time of year, you’ll find such standards as meatloaf, chilli, taco salad, spaghetti, baked pork chops and various soups and salads on the rotating menu.   When it comes to the fancy stuff, I leave that to my husband whose fondest hobby is trying assorted recipes for everything from cornish game hens to guacamole.

Imagine his (and our kids) surprise when he arrived at the dinner table recently to find Boxty Pancakes and Beacán Bruithe (stuffed mushrooms) created by yours truly.  I found the traditional Irish recipes in a  book given to me by my mom titled, Celtic Teas With Friends by Elizabeth Knight and illustrated by Hugh Harrison.  It's a colorful and entertaining little book with rich illustrations and brief commentary that includes bits of history, folklore, recipes and common teatime traditions enjoyed in Wales, Cornwall, Ireland and Scotland.

The recipes were listed in conjunction with a tea for St. Brigid’s Feast Day which is coming up soon on February 1st.  As St. Brigid is my patron saint of course the menu for this particular tea piqued my curiosity and I decided to try a few.    I surprised myself ...I enjoyed making these dishes just as much as eating them!    The boxty pancakes combined mashed potatoes with raw grated potatoes, buttermilk, flour and baking soda and were especially good served up hot out of my cast iron skillet.   My husband went on so about the scrumptious dishes that I think I’ll have to do a little more adventure cooking this year.    I believe I can sense my Nanny's (my late paternal grandmother) smile even as I type that.

With whatever foods you decide to celebrate Super Bowl Sunday, St. Brigid’s Day, may God bless your table with plenty.

Elizabeth: The Golden Age

This movie came out in  2007 and although I didn’t catch it on the big screen, I finally rented it several months ago.  Since hubby & I recently watched David Starkey’s History Channel documentary on Queen Elizabeth, I’m thinking of this lady who so captures my imagination. 

Elizabeth I is one of my heroes, one of those people from history that I am continually intrigued with.  That may sound strange coming from an Orthodox Christian who might easily identify with the Catholic struggle under this Protestant Queen, and yet it is her restraint, her firm resolve to avert the bloodbath that her half-sister Mary had ordained, that fosters my admiration.

Elizabeth:  The Golden Age, starring Cate Blanchett, is the sequel to the 1998 film, Elizabeth, which tells the story, albeit loosely, of the beginning of her reign in 1559.  The Golden Age picks up in the middle of her 45 year reign as the tensions with Roman Catholic Spain were at an all-time high and war was on the horizon.    

I thought the Golden Age was an artistic achievement with rich costumes, authentic sets and ethereal scenes that would make for excellent oils.  In this way, The Golden Age directed by Shekhar Kapur, is superior to its prequel.   And Cate Blanchett simply IS Elizabeth I.  I cannot think of anyone more suitable for the role.    However, that’s about the extent of my praise.

I kept waiting to be awed by this film, by explosive and intelligent speeches, by scenes created to flesh out Elizabeth’s mastery of multiple languages and political finese, but they simply didn’t materialize.   I was left pondering several scenes, wondering if Hollywood had gone too far in manipulating the truth in order to dazzle. Ugh.  The truth of her life is much more dazzling than the scene created of an (erroneous) youthful Elizabeth riding out on a great steed to deliver a powerful speech to encourage her troops to defeat the Spanish Armada.

The personal anguish that Elizabeth must have battled, the realities of being a woman and also a Queen, forever in danger of assassination attempts and plots to overthrow her, is played out well in the film, even if artistic license is taken here as well. 

This personal battle is also why she is a woman I most admire.  Elizabeth made difficult choices and always in the interest of her country, in securing England’s place in the world, in protecting her from the Inquisition.  She ruled during the fire of the Protestant Reformation and showed wisdom when she said, “I have no desire to make windows into mens souls”  as she tolerated Catholicism in her Protestant land.  Although she removed icons as idolatrous, I tend to view her as carrying out her father's desires and standing firm against a corrupt papacy.

All in all, I’d give Elizabeth: The Golden Age a C+ because it’s a beautiful recreation of one of my favorite periods in history but it’s too much symbolism over substance to warrant a hearty applause.

If you’re a fan of Queen Elizabeth I, I’d recommend the History Channel’s  4 part documentary by David Starkey; we found this series at our local library.

Best Wishes

 Congratulations President Obama.

May God grant you health, guidance and wisdom in your service to this great nation.

President Bush,

Thank you for serving the United States of America 

and making decisions

based upon your convictions rather than popular opinion.

THANK YOU for keeping my family safe in the post 9/11 world.

May God bless you and keep you.

Hats off to the Steelers!

What an amazing game last night!  I hope to see the Steelers go all the way to Super Bowl victory =-)  Troy Polamalu made an impressive showing on the field against the Ravens, but did you know he is also an Orthodox Christian?  In an age where we have more news stories about star athletes serving time for  lawless behaviour, it was refreshing to find a Yahoo! Sports interview with Mr. Polamalu at Mind in the Heart blog.

Enjoy!

Snapshot ~ Friday afternoon

I am reading:   Esther de Waal's,  Living with Contradiction: An Introduction to Benedictine Spirituality

I am listening to:  Live Ireland Radio

I am seeing: orders & tasks on my desk to complete

I am thankful for:  a warm house when it’s 11 degrees outside!

I am smelling:  Fred Soll's pinon (desert pine) incense

I am praying for:  family

I have discovered:  that I am slowly grasping what true hospitality means

I am thinking: that holidays and feast days are fully enjoyed when I stop worrying about details and focus on the essence of the celebration

One of my favorite things: coffee friends - those few that know me best and love me anyway!

Mere Consumers?

“Have pity on us for the look of things,

When blank denial stares us in the face.

Although the serpent mask have lied before

It fascinates the bird.”  George MacDonald

The obstinate illusion before us each day is that which shields an honest view of ourselves.  We create masks, those images we want people to see and quietly sweep the ugly stuff under the rug.  Our addictions remain, our justifications all the same...tomorrow we will conquer the clutter in our lives ...tomorrow.   

Fr. Andrew delivered a powerful sermon on Sunday reminding us that our nation sees society as mere consumers, but what does that really say about us as human beings?  Do we live in a disposable world where every material item is easily replaced?  Are we so absorbed by instant gratification that we’re missing what’s real...what’s pure?

From his sermon:

“What are the fruits of this endless appetite for something else to eat, something else to consume, something new and interesting? For one thing, we are often bored. We spend so much of our time voraciously consuming the latest bit of entertainment, gossip, information, politics, and possessions that when we encounter things like beauty, permanence, or—dare I say it?—eternity, our response is “I’m bored.” As consumers, our attention spans get more and more childish.

Our appetite as consumers is such that we don’t just use up entertainment and information, but we also use up people. We see other people primarily in terms of what they can provide us rather than for who they are and the communion we can have with them. This corrupts not only friendships, but also marriages and families. “

Fr. Andrew has posted his full sermon, "Consumption and the Dignity of Man", here.

Praise God for illuminating our darkened hearts and minds, praise the Father of Lights for granting us grace to cast off the mask!

*Painting is by John William Waterhouse, "The Crystal Ball"

Frankincense: Gift of the Magi

When the Magi visit the Christ child, we are told in St. Matthew 2 that they found him in his house, not the cave where the shepherds worshipped him. Theirs was a long and arduous journey in order to worship a King they had never met. Holy Scripture does not say there were three, yet we assume so because of the number of gifts offered.

“And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary his mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense and myrrh.” St. Matthew 2:11

Frankincense has an ancient history, being used in ceremonial and religious rites for more than 5,000 years. It comes from the resin in the bark of the Boswellia tree in areas of the Middle East and I find it interesting to note that it’s such a scraggly yet hardy tree. It has been known to grow amongst solid rock, sinking deep roots about the crevasses in order to survive the harsh wind and sun. Frankincense is harvested by scraping the bark and allowing the resin to bleed forth and harden, forming droplets or ‘tears’. These tears are then used in a variety of ways, some of which we can glean from Holy Scripture.

The Lord gives to Moses in Exodus 30:34-36, a very specific recipe for making incense that He deems holy, which includes sweet spices, onycha, sweet galbanum and pure frankincense. There are several references to frankincense in Isaiah, such as in chapter 60 which speaks of the assembling of the Church from many corners of the earth, turning their eyes to the glory of the Lord and bringing gifts, such as gold and frankincense to “proclaim the good news of the Lord’s salvation”. In Song of Songs, we see this sweet resin used in powders to scent the body and in Revelation 8, we learn that incense is present in heaven, the smoke rising along with the prayers of the saints before God from the angel’s hand. What a magnificent image!

The healing properties of frankincense have made its use common in medicaments and have proven very valuable in the treatment of respiratory ailments; no wonder it has been used for centuries to clarify temples and aid meditation.

How fitting and symbolic that the Magi brought such a kingly gift to our Saviour. One that is created through the wounding of a tree in order to give praise and honor to the One who came to heal us by His wounds...Isaiah 53

Flight into Egypt

“Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word;  for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him.”

This is a photo, depicting the flight into Egypt, from our Christmas cards this year, purchased from The Printery House.    It caught my eye because of the colors and I like the artistic style.  The card itself is a photo of a mural created in the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception at the Conception Abbey in Missouri, painted by Benedictine monks in the late 19th century.  

The symbolic imagery in the mural piqued my curiosity and this is what I learned:  the crumbling idol in the background is based on Thoth, the Egyptian baboon or monkey god of mathematics, writing and wisdom.  The idol is clutching a writing implement as it topples to the ground while the Holy family passes by.

At the base of the cracked column, you can notice the date 1896, which is when the fresco was painted.  A Lilly-of-the-Valley is blooming near the feet of the Theotokos while poisonous mushrooms grow near the base of the column.

On the Conception Abbey website, it is noted that the donkey's feet are not painted in the proper positioning for walking and yet, I hardly think this detracts from such a splendid portrayal.

I tend to think so much of the Nativity as a moment that stopped time, when the shepherds were near, the cows munched their hay and Blessed Mary knelt in the glow, adoring the newborn King.  In my mind, the star of Bethlehem that led the wise men to worship Christ, is forever held there.  It is good to hear the Gospel every Sunday morning, to be reminded of Jesus’ journey after his miraculous birth...to think on the perilous trek that Joseph and the Blessed Virgin underwent to keep the Christ-child safe.  To think of the wise men who risked so much...

Glory to the newborn King!