Buon Natale, Merry Christmas, Joyeux Noel

May you welcome peace into your heart this Christmas.

(photo taken at the community of the 'piccoli sorreli' in Rome last Christmas.)

Iona of my heart...

A well known prophesy embroidered on a seat in the quiet corner of the Abbey.

Closed.

The hotels are now closed for the winter. The craft shops closed until Easter 2010. The island is settling in for the winter.

Pink Clouds and Orange Moons

Morning clouds as fluffy and pink as cotton candy and a round orange moon rising over Mull at 6pm this evening; a bonfire on the beach with colourful fireworks-- all colours so amazing I lack photos and instead post this picture from the nunnery of white clouds and winter trees.

The Geese are Back!

Wild geese, with their orange beaks and feet, in the field by the abbey. They returned sometime last week from their summer in the north!

November Skies

Bright sun against a steel gray sky is always dramatic, especially when the pink granite of the Abbey comes to life. This photo was taken from in front of the post office this afternoon after mailing a package home.

Mull

My favourite view of Mull from Iona. Never the same, some days hidden in mist and other days two dramatic waterfalls are clearly visible.

In the Abbey

Autumn Colour

Sheep

No one else in sight at the north end this afternoon, except for the sheep.

Writing in Sand

Write your hurts in the sand;

Carve your blessings in stone.

May the winds of forgiveness erase the hurt,

But always remember what you have carved in stone.

(from a story about the sands of forgiveness by an unknown author)

Sunshine!

Watching from a hill on the moorland, I saw the whole island become bathed in light as the sun rose.

Windswept Isle

Windswept isle

tiny and remote

yet more alive

than any city

vibrant

with life

everchanging

renewing

engaging

challenging all

Rainbow Season

Yesterday in the back garden, a rainbow stretching from Iona Abbey to the shore of Mull.

Cowries

After searching for tiny cowrie shells for months, I now often spot them without trying to look for them...it's as if they just jump out at me with barely a glance.

"You have to have something to look for," says a wise friend who collects sea glass on the beach as she walks.

Snail Post

A bird's eye view of the north beach... I wonder what a snail's eye view looks like?

House with a View

I found myself a house on Mull today. It needs some work, but it does have a great view over to Iona!

Pilgrim prayers

If the only prayer you ever say in your whole life is "thank you," that would suffice. -Meister Eckhart

Just Because

A favourite photo taken before the summer...The view over to Mull from the beach I walk to almost every day.

Dawn

Friday Full of Sunshine

Drinking tea and watching the sunrise, breakfast on the beach and lunch on top of Dun I with a clear blue view over to Mull. What a way to spend a day off!

Hill of the Angels

One of the stops along the road pilgrimage today. The story goes that on this little hill Columba was seen praying by one of the monks and he was surrounded by angels.

The Watching Place

A favourite place for children to explore in Iona Abbey is this tiny room up a narrow stairway. A chair inside looks out a window to the west so the monks could welcome pilgrims coming to the Abbey. Hospitality was important to the Benedictines in the thirteenth century, just as it is to the Iona Community today.

A challenging book called Radical Hospitality, Daniel Homan, o.s.b. and Lonni Collins Pratt explore what hospitality means in today's world of fear. "I was a stranger and you welcomed me" Mt.25:40

Looking Back...

As the season draws to an end, I look at photos taken in months past and remember the ever changing scenery, as well as people who have come and gone: guests, co-workers and visitors.

The 'white house' above is apparently a holiday home, a reminder of the constant coming and going of people on this tiny island.

Sunrise

Air and sea so unusually calm this morning at 8am as the sun peeked out over Mull.

Celebrate!

National Children's Assembly 2009. One hundred children from Scotland, New Zealand, Hungary, Kenya, Zambia and Malawi. A wonderful celebration of communion in Iona Abbey this morning with children serving the bread and grapes to the congregation. Songs and stories: clapping and smiles.

Iona Fire Station

Beside the fire station is the only paved parking lot on the island... a favourite place for youngsters on their bikes!

Wind and Wave

Today is another 'weather day' of winds and waves...but the ferry is still managing to make it across so our fruit and vegetable delivery arrived on time. Island life in the autumn is full of unpredictability.

On the Beach....

On the beach again...I still don't know the name of this stretch of beach on the east side of Iona at the south end of the road. It was the first beach where I found the tiny pink cowrie shells. On the map, this beach is between the "Little Port of Sliginach" and the "Port at the End of the Enclosure." The "Hill of the River Mouth" and the"Hill of the Well" are to the west of this beach. The names of all the small hills and bays on Iona are fascinating!

Beach Art

Sunshine! Walks on the beach, no wind....and the ferry is running today!

No Ferry Today!

Afternoon in the village. No ferry made it to Iona today because of the high winds and the big ferry did not even sail from Oban to Mull all day!
...I stood on a rock on the beach taking photos and was almost knocked over by an unexpected gust of wind! The sunshine between the few showers was spectacular though.

Freya

A beautiful wooden boat, built 40 years ago in Orkney, now sails around Iona and has been as far as Ireland. See http://www.ionaboattrips.com/

Freya is usually anchored here in front of the village on Iona, but with the 53 mph winds predicted for tomorrow, she is safely moored in the bull hole for the night.

Jelly Beach

Jelly fish stranded on the north beach of Iona this morning; the shoreline thick with a slippery mat of purple jelly!