WINDOWS OF ST. ANDREW'S CHURCH - Taunton, MA

On Saturday, September 8, we decided to drive around the city to look for yard sales.  We did not see any interesting sale - it must have been too late in the morning or too late in the season - but we continued driving anyway until we reached a part of the city that was unknown to us.  There, we found a brick church that was open.  Since it was rare to see a Catholic Church, or any church for that matter, that was open at  odd hours of the day, we decided to stop by and visit.  

It was a medium sized church that was built in early 1900's.  It was dedicated to St. Andrew  the Apostle.  Inside, we were pleasantly surprised to see the Tabernacle at the center of the Altar.  The Sanctuary Lamp was lit too.  To us Catholics, that meant that the Consecrated Host, the Real Presence of Jesus, was in the Tabernacle.  

It was a medium sized church that was built in early 1900's.  It was dedicated to St. Andrew  the Apostle.  Inside, we were pleasantly surprised to see the Tabernacle at the center of the Altar.  The Sanctuary Lamp was lit too.  To us Catholics, that meant that the Consecrated Host, the Real Presence of Jesus, was in the Tabernacle.  

After some prayers, I took some pictures of the stained glass windows that adorned the walls and front and back of the Church.  It was a lovely sight to see the sun filtering through the glass and lighting the dim interiors of the Church.  

A caretaker approached us.  He told us that the Church building was closed until about two or three years ago when some parishioners renovated the Church.   They maintained the old character and the original windows of the building but added a modern touch - cushioned pews.  We were amazed that in this time when closing and razing down of church buildings were more common, a church building was reopened for worship.  

In all, it was a very pleasant Saturday for us.  We considered it to be providential, a sort of a special gift - since September 8 was the birthday of the Blessed Mother.   It was so nice to be able to visit the Lord in the Church on her special day.

Thank you very much for coming by.  I appreciate your comments and visits.  God bless you.

I am joining Beth's You Capture: Windows with this post. Head on over to her page for more of the responses.

GREEN GREENS IN THE GARDEN

I am joining Beth's  You Capture with this post.  This week's theme is Green.  Initially, I wanted to take photos of buildings with green in them, a green house, a green roof, a green dome.  Yet somehow,  I found myself forgetting about my assignment and remember to take pictures only when I was already passing by the subject (while on a moving vehicle).  I did try to take some pictures, with funny results.  

I was hesitant to submit photos of my plants and foliage but I really really wanted to join the prompt.  So this afternoon, while the sun was setting, I took pictures of plants around the house.  The sun lent a magical light to the photos. 

This must be a morning glory vine.  Now that I cannot take care of the garden so much, the wild morning glory vines are everywhere. 

I wonder what this plant is.  It is growing on the fence  in the far end of our backyard.   I tolerate the plant as long as it does not overwhelm the yard.

These are asparagus needles.  They completed their second season this year.  I guess, I can now expect a  'bountiful' asparagus harvest next spring.  I hope the asparagus thrive well  in the conditions that the plants are in.

Ah, these are sphagnum moss.  They make the ground soft under my feet and I love walking on them.  Now I just read that sphagnum moss may be useful for cleaning the water.  Instead of using chlorine, sphagnum moss may be used instead.  I guess I need to read on this some more. 

This is a picture of my poor collard green. I love collard greens so I planted some last year and this year.  We are in the northeast.  When are collard greens harvested?  I heard that they need to be harvested during the cold season so that the leaves will not be too bitter.  But the leaves turn yellow in the meantime.  What do I do?  

Rosemary!  Normally, Rosemary is not a perennial in the Northeast.  The snow always kills the plant.  But last year, owing to the mild winter, this rosemary plant survived.  So now, I have a rather lush plant.  I will harvest the leaves soon and freeze them for future use.

Golden Raspberry.  This is one of our best plant buys last years.  Raspberries, I found out, are quite prolific.  They not only multiply fast, but they also yield fruit from late spring until fall. 

Thyme.  It is a perennial in our place. It spreads quite well too.  It does not even die out during the winter.

Parsley.  This is the first time I planted parsley.  The aroma of  newly snipped parsley is so wonderful - lemony and fresh.  I will harvest these leaves and freeze them for future use too. 

Simple Woman's Daybook, a place I used to visit and participate in until life got a little too busy for me also has a spin-off link-up place too.  It is called The Simple Woman's Kitchen and Garden.  I think that my herbs should qualify my post to the group so I will go there too.  :-) 

Please visit   and THE SIMPLE WOMAN for more lovely entries. 

God bless you.

~Imelda