There are all sorts of surprises in the monastery at Christmas. Tonight at Vespers we were singing the hymn "Come Thou Long Expected Jesus" and Br. Roy started it in Unison (melody only - the way the monks usually sing hymns) and we all joined in as usual... but at the beginning of the second verse the monastic choir suddenly broke into 4 part harmony and everyone in the congregation also went to their parts. It was glorious... no organ, no instruments, just human voice. It was a nice surprise.
Like last year, the service ended with a wonderful candelight procession around the church to the creche while singing "Silent Night". Last year I was told the story of how two people showed up at the monastery a while back and offered to make artwork in exchange for lodging. This wonderful creche, made from discarded timbers, was one of their works.
After Vespers, we had our first feast of Christmas - roasted turkey breast, stuffing and zuccini. The circle around the table is growing as more guests arrive.
And the other surprise at Dinner was... MONKS IN HATS! One of the regular guests brought santa hats for all the brothers.
You can feel the mood lightening all around the place... earlier I heard a brother whistling "Silent Night" as he was walking down the hall.
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