October Skies

I love October. It may be my favorite month. But this year has held foreboding skies and a chill in the air that seems to have come too soon.  I still love it!  I’m certain I’m a melancholy spirit on a sunny day, but give me a little gray skies and misty mornings and it settles in a bit more.

I come by it honestly…my dad is the same way.  Every fall there was a rhythm around our house growing up.  It wasn’t a bad feeling by any stretch, just a twinge of reflection and soberness.  There’s a feeling of departure heading into winter’s sleep, even though renewal and inspiration is all around.

Last night I found some songs by Cat Steven’s that have always reminded me of my dad.  I’ve been hunting for them for years actually, to no avail.  My dad introduced me to this fellow melancholy soul when I was in high school.  We would sit in the den and have “jam sessions”, listening to his music on old complicated reel-to-reel tracks.  I could never figure out how to find the songs I loved on those tracks except by accident.  Itunes is a vast improvement! and for $3.00 and 3 minutes, I was able to buy the three songs I’ve been in search of all these years.  They still give me that same twinge in the heart.  Who ever said reflection was a bad thing?  It’s a little painful, but then “the unexamined life is not worth living.”  (Socrates, I googled it)

Dying to Self

That caterpillar went straight to work weaving; intent to do the next thing in the process of his transformation.  Within days, he hung in a glycine leaf bed shimmering and dangling.  Unaware of the intricate detail and delicacy which only another eye could appreciate.  He knew to make it strong and secure; make it able to weather the storm of change.

After a week or two, it seemed death had come.  Dark and gray, shriveled and dried up, unrecognizable from the lush green cocoon a mere days earlier.  We waited it out not know what would come of it, and soon deemed it a failure again.  But we were wrong.  To our surprise he had prevailed and he wanted to fly.

How similar is our sanctification in Christ.  Behold old things have passed away. We enter his rest and become a new creation.   At times we hunker down for the storm, tucked in the cleft of His wing, intent to do the next thing in the process of our transformation.  We are woven by His Spirit, for His glory, into a magnificent work that our own eyes cannot behold.  It seems death comes to our souls as we walk through dry and dark trials.  Perhaps the pain is caused by the dying of self, knowing that change hurts.  Crucifying the flesh that fights vehemently to live another day.  Yet bit by bit we gain victory as we obey first in the small and then in the big.  We emerge from each trial, if we persevere, more glorious than we were when we went in.  And by His power, we too reach new heights.

Manic Monday

I am overwhelmed this Monday morning. I wonder how many of my personal journal entries begin that way. It is a continual cycle of strength and weakness from week to week. Yet in my weakness, I am made strong through Him.

I come in prayer today for all I cannot do or acquire. I’m left holding a pittance in my hands without your provisions, Lord. So I lay my cares before your feet and come in prayer today–knowing that you are where I need to begin and end.

Noticing Things

I’ve been trying to slow down a little and capture the remarkable things simply waiting to be noticed.

Like this cute little thief among the tomatoes

Or my mom’s dear hands tending what she picked from my Grandpa’s vines

The amazing process of change

How glorious a flower can be

Two sweet faces that look very similar when I pause to see it

The kitchen crew when we camped over Labor Day

The stew that brought some stress to the weekend, but was enjoyed by us all.

So long, old man winter

This could very well be my last pot of chicken noodle soup of the winter.  We’ve had a week of weather which tells my internal clock that old man winter isn’t long for this world.  The light is coming earlier and staying later.  The rivers are swollen and the ground is squishy beneath our feet.  We took a hike last night and the wind was warm.  Aaaah!

We nearly did a little dance at the thought of full-on spring.  Though winters can be brutal, they make rebirth all the more sweet.

Welcome color.  Welcome cheer.  You are more than welcome here!

I splurged on some lovely note cards and a scrap bag from Anna Maria Horner this week.  Her aesthetic is growing more beautiful to me with time.  I was debating between her new book or another for my birthday wish (not till June).  I think I’m going with her’s.  Maybe it’s the fact that she’s having her sixth child that also makes me feel akin.

for a bird

I tucked this idea away for a minimalist bird house from 2 straight lines last year in September 0f 2007.  Didn’t I mention how my life is on a time warp continuum?!

Anyway, these gourds sell for a song in the fall.  I bought several and hung onto them for some such occasion as Christmas gifts.  There was no cost other than the gourds, as I used what I had on hand for all of the rest.

The paint was simply interior latex I’m using for our bedroom.  I applied 3-4 coats to ensure a good cover.  I would have coated it with polyurethane, but the shabby chic look will be nice over time too.  Next I marked off a 2 1/2 ” diameter circle.

Sorry for the bad lighting in this pict.

I then drilled 3 holes: one on either side at the top–to loop the twine through, and one below the cutout for a perch.  I cut twigs from my honeysuckle bush to size, and Gorilla Glued them in place.  Finally I used a utility knife (though a jigsaw would have worked better) to cut out the opening.  Once that was completed, I fed a garden twine from one side to the other (I used a straw and a knitting needle if you’re curious), joined and wrapped it at the top base then tied off a large loop for hanging.

I also painted one I had hanging in my front flower bed. It still needed a perch, so in my mind it wasn’t yet a true birdhouse. Apparently perches aren’t necessary when you’re a bird. Because when I walked up close to get this icy blue macro shot, the bird who was living inside suddenly flew out and whizzed right by my ear. My scream and little dance must have made my neighbors laugh if they happened to catch view of me. It made my heart race anyways.

In case you were wondering, they are inhabitable. Proof positive!

What I did on my Christmas Vacation

It’s easy to hunker down during the bleak months of the mid western winter. But despite our instincts to hibernate–plus factoring the amount of cookies that have passed from plate to mouth lately–we needed to get outside and hike.

There’s a great educational endowment in our area with a log cabin, working bee hive and community gardens. We explored for several hours and felt quite content when we got back home to have stretched our legs a bit and thickened our blood.

One other thing I did on vacation was neglect housework. Overwhelmed at the prospect of putting away 7 people’s new “toys”, I’ve chipped away at organizing and clearing and am just about done. Next on the agenda…laundry. Note to self: it’s not a good idea to take a break from that.