All things bright and beautiful

I've been thinking about beauty.

It's everywhere. Irrepressible, resilient, in unlikely places, inhospitable places. Defiant. Glorious. Bold.

The way a flower might push its way through a fissure.

May we shine brightly, even in the hard and dry places of our lives.

The brittle and the broken places.

The hard to reach places.

Encouraged that, "there is no pit so deep that God's love is not deeper still." Betsie ten Boom

Mindful Monday

Daily blessings

of extravagant love,

His heart poured out....

11. Mary's ready laughter

12. Sherry's joy at knitting her very own scarf

13. Dawn's gift of chocolate & prayer book in the mail

14. A table set with candles & family gathered

15. My mother~in~laws' surprise thank you note hidden beside my tea canister

16. The exciting, new chapter for my daughter researching university options

17. Singing the Faith concert; five choirs assembled, the santuary filled, voices lifted in worship

18. my uncle's message...Faith In Action, "I hope God will give everyone of us many small chances everyday to be the people God called us to be."

19. Late night scrabble with my husband

20. my church family

"Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name." Psalm 100:4

in the eye of the beholder....

"Earth's crammed with heaven,
And every common bush afire with God;
But only he who sees, takes off his shoes..."
Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Things I heart....

"We are shaped and fashioned by what we love." ~ Goethe

Knitting
Tea from a teapot
A log fire
Hand sewing
Baking

Autumn in all its glory

Books you just can't put down
Farmer’s markets & organic produce

Friends who lift my heart
Freshly cut flowers

Crafternoons spent with my children & nieces

The sound of my daughters laughing

The smell of newly mown grass

Fresh linens on my bed
Coming home from the library with a large stack of books

When scripture speaks directly to my heart
Christmas Eve….oooh the anticipation!
Cranberry orange scones
Morning glory muffins from Planet Organic…oh my!

The smell of new books and glossy magazines
Seaglass
Community gardens
When bus drivers wave at each other as they pass by

Watching my daughters dance

Tenderness

voilà!

I needed a quick, satisfying knitting project to decompress after completing the quilt. With the help of Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, her 'One Row Handspun Scarf' pattern and two skeins of Noro, I was off to the races! I love it. A dash of colour on grey & gloomy days.....

Why not give it a try!

a quilt for my mother~in~law

ok, so this has been a loooong project. Namely, I've missed two deadlines; Mother's Day 09 and my Mother~in~law's birthday....ho~hum! Oh well, I managed to finish in time for Thanksgiving, (with some wonderful help here) and I feel thankful for that! Seems an appropriate season to give her this..... 15 handprints of all her grandchildren. Thankful hearts all.

Peace

Wednesday's "To Do" List......

make school lunches
make breakfast, see girls off to school
tidy up, read emails
run errands
spend afternoon with the Dalai Lama
go to bible study

wait, wait, wait, I hear you say....
"spend afternoon with the Dalai Lama"??

Well yes, yesterday I had the privilege of seeing the Dalai Lama & hearing him express his thoughts on peace, compassion, kindness & the way of non-violence.

What an afternoon, just me and ummm 19,999 other people!

Such a warm man, with a ready smile and infectious laugh. What a joy to hear him speak.
His message? He asks us to make an intentional and sustained effort to BE peace, to choose the way of gentleness & kindness, to promote & foster joy.

As a Christian, I see the Way in the person of Jesus Christ. By grace He extends the fruits of the Spirit to us; love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. Gifts of grace.

Yes, the Dalai Lama ~ 'Ocean of Wisdom' indeed.

Peace be with you, gentle reader.