Having celebrated the first Christmas, the guys retire to the back room where they smoke cigars and have some male bonding time.

Everyone turns their attention to the baby.

Mary & Joseph, the kings, and the flock, all stop to talk about what has happened. The 'listening process' is born.

The kings are on their way.

The shepherd and his flock pause to have their picture taken on the way to Bethlehem.

"In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.’ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favours!’ When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.’ So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger."

"While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn."

"In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child."

"In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favoured one! The Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women.' But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I am a virgin? I do not know a man.' The angel said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born of you will be holy; he will be called Son of God."

From our new South Africa crèche. Kalamazoo, Michigan. 10 December 2008.

I was having fun playing with the lighting on this crèche from Uganda. Looking at the images later, I realized that, depending on the lighting, two different church feasts could be observed. Above is the Christmas-lighted version.



















And this is the Epiphany-lighted version. Kalamazoo, Michigan. 10 December 2008.

I've been collecting crèches for many years, all over the world. This year I added three new ones to our collection. This one, from Kenya, is made from banana leaves and fibre. Personally I think the royalty happens to look like three queens, but why not? Kalamazoo, Michigan. 10 December 2008.

Returning home two days after the presidential election in the US, I got to see the headlines in many newspapers from around the world. There wasn't a single paper that didn't have a photo of President-elect Obama-- it felt as if the whole world was celebrating with us. When I was clearing security for my flight in Amsterdam, the person who takes you aside to "interview" you before boarding said, "I need to ask you some very important security questions." At that point she looked up from her table, noticed my "Obama" button, and asked, "Are you happy about the election?" Surprised, I said, "Is that an official question?" She laughed, and I said, "Yes, I'm happy-- is there anyone who isn't?" She whispered quietly, and said, "Israel.... now, please tell me who packed your bags...." Amsterdam, The Netherlands. 6 November 2008.

This image conveys the gamut of emotion that we saw in the kids, and their reaction to us-- from apprehension to delight. Kigali, Rwanda. 1 November 2008.

OK, so maybe this is my favorite.... Kigali, Rwanda. 1 November 2008.

I'm not sure why, but this is one of my favorite photos from this trip. The kids in this neighborhood were curious about who we were, but were slightly reserved, too. Kigali, Rwanda. 1 November 2008.

I was looking for things to take pictures of one day in Kigali, as the rest of the film crew scouted/negotiated over a location. Kigali, Rwanda. 31 October 2008.

"Tête-à-tête." Kigali, Rwanda. 31 October 2008.

Benjamin and Moses. Nairobi, Kenya. 29 October 2008.

I wish I could remember what these are. We had a quick visit to Kirstenbosch Gardens, where we made a b-line for the proteas. We passed these on the way, and had to stop to admire them. It was 10 years ago that I was last here, but I remembered more varieties of proteas being in bloom. Cape Town, South Africa. 28 October 2008.

St. David's Chapel at the People's Cathedral--- St. George's Cathedral in Cape Town. Cape Town, South Africa. 28 October 2008.

"Neighbor," O. R. Thambo Township. Cape Town, South Africa. 27 October 2008.

Victor Mukasa, whom we interviewed in Kampala last summer, is now working for IGLHRC in Cape Town, where we interviewed staff for our film. It was wonderful to see him again-- what a refreshingly honest and authentic person. Cape Town, South Africa. 27 October 2008.

Cape Town, South Africa. 26 October 2008.

Flowers at the foot of Table Mountain. Cape Town, South Africa. 26 October 2008.

Orange-breasted Sunbird (Anthrobaphes violacea) on top of Table Mountain. Cape Town, South Africa. 26 October 2008.

Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela, et al, were imprisoned during apartheid, can be seen in Table Bay, between Lion's Head and Signal Hill. Cape Town, South Africa. 26 October 2008.

Joe, our cameraman, hard at work at the top of Table Mountain. cape Town, South Africa. 26 October 2008.

Looking south, toward the Cape of Good Hope. Cape Town, South Africa. 26 October 2008.

A recent filming trip to Africa included a visit to Table Mountain in Cape Town. It was an absolutely spectacular spring day, with virtually unlimited visibility. Cape Town, South Africa. 26 October 2008.

The surf in front of my mother's house wasn't as spectacular on this day as it was just before the hurricane, but then again, the sun was shining and it wasn't pouring! York Harbor, Maine. 25 September 2008.

Okay, so I enjoy getting up close and personal with the bees, as long as they're not the kind that would send me to the ER if I got stung! This was outside my aunt's house in Maine. It was taken the day after I got my new Zuiko 50- 200 2.8/3.5 SWD, but before I got the new E-3 body. York, Maine. 25 September 2008.

Apparently the pretty white moths found the sedum quite tasty, too. Kalamazoo, Michigan. 6 September 2008.

Another shot of the pretty white moth. Kalamazoo, Michigan. 6 September 08.

There were a couple of pretty white moths hanging around the wild onions in our front yard today. Kalamazoo, Michigan. 6 September 08.

This is a courtyard along the outside of the New Mexico Museum of Art. It struck me as having that quintessential "Santa Fe" kind of look.

I later learned that it is a Pueblo Revival building designed by I. H. and William M. Rapp, and based on their New Mexico building at the Panama-California Exposition of 1915. The museum's architecture inaugurated what came to be known as "Santa Fe Style."

Santa Fe, New Mexico. 13 May 2005.

Looking north from the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge. Near Taos, New Mexico. 25 March 2007.

Chama River, near Abiquiu, New Mexico. 25 March 2007.

Bandelier National Monument, New Mexico. 26 March 2007.

Bandelier National Monument, New Mexico. 26 March 2007.

The stairway to heaven!

Pecos National Monument, New Mexico. 26 March 2007.

I discovered this labyrinth near St. John's College, Santa Fe, one day when going for a walk along an arroyo. Santa Fe, New Mexico. 26 March 2007.

I haven't had a camera in my hand in a couple of weeks (okay, with the exception of taking some pictures of a home construction project that's been going on for a while), so I thought I'd revisit some photos that got earmarked for posting here, but for one reason or another were never posted.

This is from one of many trips to the little town of Chimayó, New Mexico, where El Santuario de Chimayó is located. It's a great store to buy chili, santos, crosses, milagros, and a cold drink.

Chimayó, New Mexico. 25 March 2007.

One last photo from our afternoon at the gardens of Sissinghurst. This was taken from the tower that (fortunately, though probably not coincidentally!) sits in the middle of the gardens. Sissinghurst castle, Cranbrook, Kent, England. 27 July 2008.

These lillies were beautiful, but most of them were pointing downward (avoiding the sun?). I solved the problem by putting the camera on the ground and crossing my fingers that I had actually focused on something other than sky. Sissinghurst Castle, Cranbrook, Kent, England. 27 July 2008.

I know Katie told me what these are, but I can't come up with it. Perhaps someone else knows? Sissinghurst Castle, Cranbrook, Kent, England. 27 July 2008.

There were bees everywhere at Sissinghurst, which is probably not surprising, given that there were flowers everywhere, too! Sissinghurst Castle, Cranbrook, Kent, England. 27 July 2008.

Probably the most famous garden at Sissinghurst is the White Garden. It was amazing. Sissinghurst Castle, Cranbrook, Kent, England. 27 July 2008.

During the almost three week long Lambeth Conference we got one day off, so we made the most of it. We drove to Sissinghurst, the home of Vita Sackville West. Before even reaching the incredible gardens at Sissinghurst we learned why Kent County is called the "Garden of England"-- these marigolds took up several acres and were quite a sight. Near Charing, Kent, England. 27 July 2008.

One last puffin photo. I think the caption could be, "Didn't mom teach you not to talk with your mouth full?" Skellig Michael, Co. Kerry, Ireland. 10 July 2008.