This travelogue of Malta isn't necessarily having any rhyme or reason in how I'm telling it, but since today is Ascension Day and Sunday is Mother's Day, it fit perfectly to tackle the doorpost plaques I "collected" throughout our stay.
This gives you an idea of what I mean by doorpost plaques.
Many of them are placed under/behind the outside door light, right next to the doorpost.
Astrid calls Ascension Day "Jesus' Flying-Up Day" because she can never remember "ascension." HA! So let's start with the Jesus plaques:
Who knew Jesus was a redhead!
And who knew that Jesus and a horseshoe made for a good blessing!
There were saints, too: Rita, Teresa, Paul, Vittoria, Antnin, etc.
But by far, the majority of plaques were of Mary, baby Jesus and Joseph.
Malta is, after all, a Roman Catholic country.
In fact, the Constitution of Malta establishes Catholicism as the state religion.
Let's first start with Joseph and baby Jesus.
Have you seen anything so precious?
The more "religious" Joseph didn't nearly do as much for me,
but I was very glad he was given a place as the earthly father of Jesus.
I was also glad to see the family circle...variations on the theme.
Not to be sacrilegious but I've been singing "We are family" all week.
But as you'd expect, MARY is the one who is most seen throughout the country,
with or without baby Jesus.
Most of these plaques are from 4- 10 inches across, I'd guess.
And many have some form of her name in or next to the plaque.
"My Madonna always protects my house."
Sometimes you can tell how old and weathered the plaques are.
The salt-water air and winds from the Sahara wreak havoc on almost everything in Malta.
Do you have any favorites?
By far, my favorites were these loving, precious poses of mother and child.
Perfect for Mother's Day!
Of all the plaques, this was the simplest and most understated.
This is Mary at barely 2 inches across. I wonder who used to live next to her?
The most overstated of all the doorposts I saw was this one in Marsaxlokk.
Don't you wonder what that story is!
♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
In honor of this national holiday and a day off from work for Astrid...
we took a walk together in the glorious sun,
ended up at the ice cream parlor, where we totally indulged (once a year max),
after which Astrid made the "classic" Dutch white-asparagus supper,
with ham, sauce and egg...and baked potato.
Happy Ascension Day!
And Happy Mother's Day!
