This is my first Hanukkah where I have lit the candles and said the readings every night on my own. It's really lovely and meditative. My Hebrew sounds like I'm a 2nd grader but at least I'm trying. I have learned a few things, though. I was basically doing it all wrong, oops. The candles are put in right to left, and you don't have all of them on there at the same time. One gets added each day, but the middle one always stays. You learn something new every day.
I promised a stole for my friend Jeannie for advent this year. She had seen one from another artist that inspired this one. Mine isn't all that technically advanced. I sketched used a heavy felt backing cut and sewed it into a V shape. The designs are basically a fabric collage, but I used fabric glue. The tassels make it look legit, though, I think. I sketched it out and figured out the measurements. The essential design element are, first, the pregnant Mary with her hands on her belly. And the roses on the side make me think of the song "Lo, How a Rose E'r Blooming". I was also totally enamored with a children's story by Ken Medema growing up called "The Story of April". There was a song with the chorus -
Bring me a rose in the wintertime
When it's hard to find
Bring me a rose in the wintertime
I've got roses on my mind
For a rose is sweet most any time, and yet
Bring me a rose in the wintertime
How easy we forgot
I really love the stole and was blessed be able to make it. The message for me is really expectation, hope, and that joy is always approaching. I hope Jeannie likes it, too.
