God Bless Us, Everyone!

Barbara with Katarina

What a wonderful day we had, despite the chilling cold. Marty and I bundled up early, and headed out on the metro to the Cathedral of St. Matthew, the apostle.  The church takes your breath away as soon as you enter the doors as it is filled with beautiful mosaic inlays throughout.  Right below the altar, there is an inscription in the marble in memory to President Kennedy, whose funeral mass was held here.  The choir was comprised of a large number of young men & women whom I suspect are music majors at the local colleges.  The melodies, accompanied by the huge church organ, sounded like angels from heaven.  We left Mass uplifted, and headed back on the metro to the Slovak Embassy.

After a walk up a long hill, in the freezing cold, we were warmly welcomed by Slovaks, and, with Marty wearing his pin, "Smile if you're Slovak", there was no lack of enthusiasm there.  We had a wonderful Slovak meal, and, of course, the appearance of Sv. Miklus, which was the purpose of the party.  In addition, we were entertained by a very talented Slovak musical group, who sang along with playing the accordian, bass, two violins and a symbal.  A great time was had by all.

Back on the metro, and we headed to Ford's Theater to see the production of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol, A Ghost Story ".  We probably had the best seats in the house, in the center of the balcony, front row.  Who could ask for more?  The production was definitely the best that I have ever seen.  If you are in the area, and have the opportunity to see this show, I highly recommend it.  Of course, the basic plot is the one that we are all familiar with, but the poetic license that enhances the performance was definitely unique.  I was impressed with the choice of music stressing the real meaning of Christmas with the majority of the songs dealing with the birth of Christ.  It was certainly a fabulous performance and Tiny Tim said it best with that familiar phrase, "God Bless Us, Everyone!"