Hello to you – how are you doing? It’s a sunny, blue sky day here. I went and got groceries a little while ago. Found some new chews by Blue dog food for Link. He gobbled it down!
Today my thoughts turn toward how we are connected in this world. Being my age, I have gone through so many phases of what it means to be connected to family, friends and the world. I know what it was like to not have computers and the internet! We used the telephone and letters. We used to actually go and visit friends and loved ones. Now days it’s so easy to just rely on the internet – texts messages. I am guilty of this. I am blessed to have my mom who still writes to me on occasion! It’s nice to now live near family – we will be getting together for Mothers Day on Sunday which will be really nice. To me being together is one of the best ways to be connected. What does it mean to you to be connected in this modern world?
Link makes doggy connections with other dogs via the yards in the neighborhood
1 Thessalonians 5:11New International Version
11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.
Hello to you. How are you this day- it’s Saturday here. I’m here with Link. We got out for a walk together. I cherish these moments as he is getting older and just doesn’t always feel up to walking. I’m only 55 and feel that way! Walking is something so many of us take for granted until we are unable to for whatever reason. I have family that have had knee and hip surgeries because those parts of their bodies have just worn out. Even after the surgeries there is still pain. The longer we live, the longer our bodies have to be able to carry us. Stuff like joints just wear out! Our bodies are like cars – depreciate in condition the moment we leave the show room floor!
Link out for his morning walk
Mark 6:49-50 NIV
But when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought he was a ghost. They cried out, because they all saw him and were terrified. Immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
Hello to you. How are you? I’m doing pretty good. I got Link out just enough for him to do his business and then took him home and walked on my own. Its no good trying to force him to go all the way around if he doesn’t want to go. It’s sunny and windy today. I was a bit winded after the walk but it felt good to have the sunshine on my face. I was able to capture a couple flower pictures – remembered to bring the phone:
My neighbors daffodils – such a cheerful sign of spring! My boy and some lovely little purple flowers
When I was growing up in Sioux Falls South Dakota the first flowers to bloom were tulips. I haven’t seen any of those here.
Lately I’m regretting quitting my pest control service. I have some ants that have decided to try and make a home inside mine. I have been killing them when I see them and that helps for a little while and then they come back! Ugh! Any suggestions?
What an experience this must have been:
Matthew 28:1-10New International Version
Jesus Has Risen28
After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them.“Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”
Hello to you how are you today? I hope we’ll. It’s starting to look and feel like spring already here in Idaho. My neighbors flowers are starting to push up through the winter soil. Every time I walk past her yard and see them I feel like smiling. Mother Nature, this earth is so amazing isn’t she? I’m always amazed at how quickly, with just a few elements life is able to happen. Like a construction site where a mound of dirt is pushed off to the side and within a short time it being covered with life. Last year I was awed by a beautiful purple flower growing in a crack in my Aunt and Uncles driveway. God is good! So much evidence of the master of creation.
On a slightly different note, we are trying to break a cycle of going to bed late and getting up late. I try to go to start winding down at 9 pm but often don’t fall asleep right away. I wake up around 8 am automatically no matter what I do. My Aunt, Uncle and therapist have been encouraging me to just get up. I need to practice this – May be make an appt with myself. Make a coffee date or exercise appt- something. Link and I walk in the morning but he likes to dawdle and I wonder if he’s starting to feel his age (like I am!) Anyhew I have been having spinning spells when I move a certain way the past couple of days.
Hello to you. How is your today? I hope we’ll. Today I find myself grateful for the walks I am able to take with Link. Today he lead me to where a couple neighbors were talking and I was able to say hello and find out we have a stray cat problem. People dumping their unwanteds at the Post Office across the street. One of the men said he’s been feeding a couple of them. He said if I wanted one I was welcome to them. Honestly I don’t know how Link would do with a feral cat as a housemate!
Walking with Link took me past some places where the water still is running freely and that was pretty to see. Getting out with him really is good for me even if it’s kind of tough with the swaying in my head issues. I have a neurology appt this month to further investigate what may be causing me to experience the exaggeration of motion I feel when I walk. I am wondering if Mal de barque syndrome will be the diagnosis and if so will there be anything to be done about it. From what I’ve seen and read there is no cure.
I am just grateful as I write to you for my boy Link. He is a reason to get up each day and to get out in the world.
Hello to you. How are you? I’m doing ok. Frustrated with myself. Tried to fit into a pair of jeans I’ve had for so many years this morning and nope! Too bloated. There is a Dr. Guidry and others that say the culprit is probably leaky gut syndrome. I am trying to eat better but still taking in too much processed food that is heavy on salt. It’s hard when your living alone to want to cook for yourself and if you do, avoid having a lot of waste. I am working with God about this and my body. Our microme- gut bacteria gets trained up early on in our lives. I notice for myself, that my body likes to eat a lot of protein. Much of the protein I ate as a young person came from meat. I want to change that. I am seeking a protein that does for me what meat does without involving the suffering and death of food animals. I have explored stuff like Quinoa and coconut milk. God and I will figure this out!
Yesterday I was looking into water filter technology and there is a lot of innovation out there. The Achilles heal to much of it – what to do with what is filtered out of water. The byproduct of most filtration tech is dirty filters and stuff you have to figure out what to do with. Desalinization – brine. What O read is a lot of the byproduct gets put back where the water came from! This doesn’t make any sense. It’s like seeing no trash someplace and forgetting there is a landfill somewhere brimming over with trash! Out of sight out of mind. If I have water delivered to my house it’s still not solving the problem. How about working on putting less crap in our drinking water to begin with? Will there ever be a day we feel safe drinking from the tap? Kind of felt like I was chasing my tail yesterday about this issue and so many others. Fix one thing, answer one question and there is something else to consider. Thinking something, a decision, all the way through isn’t easy but necessary. Making hasty decisions oftentimes is a catalyst for more problems to arise. Some enjoy that – profiting from making problems and then making more money coming up with solutions. I call that profit from misery. If problems are preventable then we should work on that. Doing what is right isn’t easy always but it can be rewarding!
Sometimes things are not what they seem – sometimes we have to look deeper than what the surface shows us. Flies are considered a pest but what I figured out is they are a lot like us. They get hungry , thirsty, want to reproduce and most of all are very curious. We are taught many things that just aren’t always true. Be willing and God will show you the truth of just about anything.
Hello to you today. How are you? I hope this finds you well. As I look out the windows this morning you would never know we had thunder and lightening yesterday! Beautiful blue skies out there!
Whenever I experience thunder and lightening – especially the lightening part- a word comes to mind: thinking. Seeing all those bands of light flashing about makes me imagine what’s going on inside my own brain….my body. The phrase “as above so below” comes to mind too. Where did the concept of making beings like us come from? What was God’s inspiration to fashion us brains running with electricity? All those flashes of light from one neural path to another right in our own heads! It makes sense to me that before there was science that our ancestors saw thunder and lightening as God speaking to them. Last night I just sat and listened….watched. I could almost hear God saying, “I am God! You are guests here! Everything belongs to me!”
To me the earth is a sentient creation of God…..not just some mere blue marble. Look around you and listen beyond our human activities….despite it all the earth can make a beautiful flower grow in a tiny crack in a driveway. So much meaningful intelligence going on just to keep us all alive even as we continue to harm ourselves, each other and the rest of creation we share life with. What a merciful God! Sometimes the weather patterns seem like expression of emotion. One storm will be gentle and yet another like rage.
A couple messages from A Woman’s Spirit today – sometimes all you can do is laugh at how ridiculous life can be:
“I will not take myself so seriously. I will let laughter heal.” Jan Pishok
“Laughter promotes personal growth and health. I will practice this prescription today. “
God thinking A little boo bear cuteness this morning! I saw a heart in this Despite everything going on in our human world, God and the earth are doing this! Life giving water – a valuable resource that must be managed more carefully! Things doing things…thoughts swirling in the ether
Your brain is made up of networks of small cells called neurons that communicate electrochemically to enable you to think, feel, and interact with the world around you. Because electrical charges are responsible for brain activity, electrical stimulation can in turn be used to change the brain’s functioning.May 15, 2019
Hello to you. How are you doing today? I’m doing better. Just getting sleep, singing and praying more has been helping me. This morning I glanced at the news on my phone and after being mortified at someone suggesting the answer to ending gun violence in American schools is to arm children, I found a message that resonated with me from Pope Francis about discerning the voice of the Holy Spirit:
“The Holy Spirit will never tell you that on your journey everything is going just fine. … No, he corrects you; he makes you weep for your sins; he pushes you to change, to fight against your lies and deceptions, even when that calls for hard work, interior struggle and sacrifice,” Pope Francis said in his homily on June 5.
“Whereas the evil spirit, on the contrary, pushes you to always do what you think and you find pleasing. He makes you think that you have the right to use your freedom any way you want. Then, once you are left feeling empty inside – it is bad, this feeling of emptiness inside, many of us have felt it – and when you are left feeling empty inside, he blames you, becomes the accuser, and throws you down, destroys you.”
Looking at my own personal journey, it has been a struggle at times. It can be very alluring to think about things like revenge and power. It can be easy to try and do and be everything of this life thinking it’s just your own power and attributes propelling you forward. Where does your life force come from? It’s not just eating, drinking, exercising, making love, socializing with family, pets and friends, going to church and praying, meditating, experiencing entertainments the world offers, having a career, doing hobbies, going to school, reading books and going to seminars – least not for me. Underneath all that I am and ever hope to be is a force greater than myself – God. Whatever label, whatever name the inner force is for you I caution you to it’s motives…..the “why.” Why comes before all the what’s!
Some lovely flowers from the walks yesterday- they smell so good!
Christianity. In Christianity, the word may have several meanings. Discernment can describe the process of determining God’s desire in a situation or for one’s life or identifying the true nature of a thing, such as discerning whether a thing is good, evil, or may even transcend the limiting notion of duality.
Hello to you. How are you? This morning I’m feeling grateful for so many things – I don’t want to be sad again today! These past couple of weeks have been so heavy! When I’m feeling low it’s gratitude that is my life preserver. With thoughts of gratitude comes my love for God and music. What an amazing thing for God to inspire us to create. Even if all you can do is hum a few bars! To me expressing ourselves in music is a fantastic form of praise to God and this earth.
Music in it’s many forms has always been something I could turn to for every facet of life experience. Whether it be a happy, sad or confusing moment, there has been some sort of song. This morning I wanted to remember happier, sillier times in my life and the B-52’s came to mind. I think it’s so wonderful that after all these years they still perform together:
This psalm, 147, has a little bit of everything in it. God mending the hearts of the broken hearted and giving praise in song. I thought it was beautiful that there was music to honor the victims at Uvalde:
How good it is to sing praises to our God, how pleasant and fitting to praise him!2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the exiles of Israel. 3 He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. 4 He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name. 5 Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit. 6 The Lord sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground.7 Sing to the Lord with grateful praise; make music to our God on the harp.8 He covers the sky with clouds; he supplies the earth with rain and makes grass grow on the hills. 9 He provides food for the cattle and for the young ravens when they call.10 His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of the warrior; 11 the Lord delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.12 Extol the Lord, Jerusalem; praise your God, Zion.13 He strengthens the bars of your gates and blesses your people within you. 14 He grants peace to your borders and satisfies you with the finest of wheat.15 He sends his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly. 16 He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes. 17 He hurls down his hail like pebbles. Who can withstand his icy blast? 18 He sends his word and melts them; he stirs up his breezes, and the waters flow.19 He has revealed his word to Jacob, his laws and decrees to Israel. 20 He has done this for no other nation; they do not know his laws.[b]Praise the Lord.
Voices and talents shared to help console a broken hearted Texas community:
Sometimes you need a power ballad to encourage yourself to put your feet on the ground and engage with gravity! When I hear this song it just takes me to such wonderful places. Thank you Etta!
Itty bitty roses An example of cross pollination
Yesterday Link and I had an experience I hoped not to face again with another dog. We were walking in the neighborhood and a dog we pass, that is normally on a leash, wasn’t and he went after Link and I. Link and I were both screaming and trying to get away when finally the dogs owner came out. He had to get another neighbors help as his dog just took off. This experience triggered feelings from when something like this happened in Alvarado when Spot and I were attacked by two pit bulls that had gotten loose. The town ended up passing a viscous dog law because of what happened! I’m not mad at the dog in all this. Dogs that don’t get regular exercise and stimulation get pent up and bored – they “do shit!” All those times Link and I had walked past while he was secured and would lunge at us I guess was foreshadowing for what happened yesterday.
It’s important to remember that the animals we choose to share our lives with have feelings, emotions and needs. These things unmet, neglected or ignored can have scary consequences. They don’t handle what’s going on inside like we do and as was the case yesterday, can’t really be reasoned with! Thankfully all that happened was rattled nerves and in Links case, a normally curly tail gone flat and between his legs. It was hard to get over hearing him scream like he did.
Thinking of St Francis, a saint that loved animals:
Franciscan and Other Common Prayers
Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred let me sow love; Where there is injury, pardon; Where there is doubt, faith; Where there is despair, hope; Where there is darkness, light; Where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek To be consoled as to console; To be understood as to understand; To be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; It is in pardoning that we are pardoned; And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Glad to see change is being considered in light of recent events in our country. I hope it will go beyond just consideration and become action.
To be 