Posted on in Collection of Quotes, Faith, Illness and Health, Journal, medical treatment, Music, Prayer, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Worship, Writing Life

Grace in Our Helplessness

Haven Ministries publishes a monthly booklet of devotions entitled “Anchor Devotional.” The month of September, 2023 featured the writings of John Newton, compiled by writer Miller Ferrie, “to celebrate the 250th anniversary of when the hymn “Amazing Grace” was first sung.”

The entry for September 16 reads:

The grace of Jesus Christ humbles us. Hymn-writer John Newton knew this well and wrote the following:

Self-righteousness has had a considerable hand in dictating many of my desires for an increase of comfort and spiritual strength. I have wanted some stock of my own, I have been wearied of being so perpetually beholden to {God}, needing to come to Him always … as a poor miserable sinner, I should have liked to have done something for myself in ordinary circumstances, and to have depended upon Him chiefly on extraordinary occasion.

I have found indeed, that I could do nothing without His assistance, nor anything even with it. I am now learning to glory only in my infirmities, … to be content to be nothing that He may be All in All. But I find this a hard lesson, …Humbled I ought to be, to find I am totally depraved – but not discouraged, since Jesus is appointed to me by God to be wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption; and since I find that … He keeps alive the principle of grace which He has implanted in my heart.

John Newton

What a challenge I have had. In so many ways I feel like Newton. August I was exhausted by life and likely too many activities. September I had a decayed tooth cut out by oral surgeon, with anesthesia, antibiotic, gauze, ice packs and pain pills afterwards. My face was bruised and I was in a lot of pain. I kept hearing the Cory Asbury song lyric “You take good care of me.” And it is true.

A few days later I slammed the car door on two fingers of my left hand. So grateful they were not broken. As the saying goes, I “Could not win for losing!” Scalp psoriasis exploded and I began itching, not just on the scalp. Within a few days I was itching all over and hives developed on one side of my neck. Read about something called opioid itch. Wondered if it was the pain pills? Heard the song below. I love Einaudi’s compositions.

Entitled Monday. Sounds to me like the LORD giving living water into my writing.

Out of my mind with itching I began Benadryl on my own along with my usual dose of Allegra. Kept hearing Brandon Lake lyric, “Praise, give Him praise, give Him praise in the highest; I’ll praise You anywhere.” Rough going, and truly a sacrifice of praise.(Hebrews 13:15) For several days a line I wrote in April, 2013 had been on my mind, “And so misery invited agony who brought along distraction and insomnia.” With all those medications I did not have insomnia though I did wake myself several times while scratching in my sleep. Eventually insatiable itching centered on palms of hands and soles of feet with NO rash, NO blisters, NO nothing, just usual skin. Wondered if I would actually scratch my skin open? Even at times itching the skin web between pointer and middle finger. What is this??

I saw the internist. He put me on steroid tablets with Allegra and Benadryl to continue. My appointment with Dermatologist October 5 was much awaited. I just wanted some answers to why is this happening? Assuming we can get it under control, how can I avoid this in the future? Itching stopped for two days and then returned.

October 5 I wrote:

Here am I naked before You
Clearly bothered by itching and pain
Ankles, shoulders and head all ache
Steroids have surely about gone
Driven to distraction I try to contain my hands
nerve endings igniting continuously
I bring my broken self to You
Naked before Your eyes You see
within, about, and through me
Lord be my comfort I pray
Show me how to cope with this
Lead me in paths where I can write
bring You glory and honor and praise
Here am I naked before You.

Dermatologist too was stumped, concerned but uncertain what caused all of this. Did full body check up while asking questions and pondering my dilemma. She took a biopsy of my right upper arm which mimicked something on my chest.

She put me on Zyrtec in evening and Allegra in morning. New Clobetasol shampoo. Wondered if there might be liver or kidney problems. Even mentioned possibility of lymphoma. Ordered a slew of tests (at least eleven) from both blood and urine.

Eventually itching has tapered off. Certainly not gone, but live-able. The test results have been rolling in through My Chart. They are all normal. Occasional palm itch. Maybe once a day bout of sole itch.

I cannot say with Newton and Paul ‘I glory in my infirmities’. Guess that sounds like a hypochondriac to my ears. (Guess I need to study the commentators to gain a better understanding of the concept.) This is a very long post, but was uncertain how to shorten it. I have been enabled to write and post the blog. I went on a weekend retreat at the Convent where I have been an associate for many years. Life continues, but my body, which loves to play ‘Stump the Doctor” continues to baffle me and the professionals. John Newton was right, the grace of Christ does humble me. John 5:30a is such a powerful truth. “I can do nothing on my own.” By His grace I live and write.

During the retreat I was blessed with this portion of Celtic Compline

Calm me, O Lord, as You stilled the storm

Still me O Lord, keep me from harm

Let all the tumult within me cease

Enfold me, Lord, in Your peace.

The Felgild Compline

To read the entire Compline go to https://www.northumbriacommunity.org/offices/wednesday-the-felgild-compline/

Posted on in Challenge, Faith, Prayer, Worship, Yield

Ever Heard This One?

Awoke from a nap with this in my brain. Worked to find it to share. Recorded 1963. Sadness here in 2023 over Israel, Palestine, Hamas. Please pray for the victims of yet another war.

People being taken prisoner. Even children. So many dead. Reserves being called up. Our ship moving to the area. Retired Israeli military officers grabbing their guns to protect their family. The unimaginable occurring. Possibly more militants from another nation moving into the war. And we hear nothing about the welfare of the Palestinian people. Hamas rages on. Death toll near 1,400.

Please pray for the victims. The leaders of the world are trying to decide their next move. Please pray for wisdom.

 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth pains.

Matthew 24:6-8 NIV

It is possible we are about to see another world war in our lifetime. God forbid.

Not to mention earthquake in Afghanistan. Estimated 2,400 dead.

Lord, have mercy upon us all.

Posted on in Aging, Book quotes, Faith, Journal, Just do it, Listen, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Writing Life, Yield

Book Quotes

In Mad Honey Jodi Picoult wrote, “We aren’t here on earth in order to bend over backward to resemble everybody else. We’re here to be ourselves, in all our gnarly brilliance.”

Another author wrote, “Stop trying to be someone. You are someone.”

Are you willing to live the challenge to be your own authentic specially created self? There is no one else on earth who can be you. At almost 73 years lived I am here to tell you that you are a special creation, loved and cherished by the Father with special tasks in mind for you and you alone.

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Ephesians 2:10 NIV

In Sensible Shoes Sharon G. Brown wrote: “She said, ‘Write what you’re feeling. Tell the truth. Write like nobody’s reading.’ And just like that, I was invited to show up authentically to my grief and pain. It was a simple act but nothing short of a revolution for me. It was this revolution that started in this blank notebook 30 years ago that shaped my life’s work. The secret, silent correspondence with myself. Like a gymnast, I started to move beyond the rigidity of denial into what I’ve now come to call emotional agility.”

Have you tried this practice? Years ago when I began journaling I made Bob promise that he would not read the journal. As far as I know he has absolutely kept that promise. Then later I asked him to promise that if I die before him he would not let the children read my journals. I wrote much in there trying to work out how to parent them. It reflects on my ignorance and searching more than on their behavior and how I truly love them, even when they were on my last nerve.

I sometimes think of this blog as journaling on the screen. Some of what I post comes from my recent journals. Would you take the challenge to be authentic in journal writing? There are no rules in how to do it. At times I write paragraphs with complete sentences. Other times simply a list of words. Phrases that pop up. Prayers, things copied from others, crayon drawings, photographs. Magazine clippings. It is your journal. You can make it any way that you want. The main goal is to be authentic. Having a lousy day? Write that. A great day? Fill the page with sunlit words.

Authentic: genuine, no pretense, transparent. Below is my favorite image of transparent with the Lord.

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Ephesians 2:10 NIV

There is something amazing about putting your thoughts and experiences into words. At times you learn something about yourself that was previously hidden from you. You come across thoughts that were difficult to contact previously. At times, uncovering something you knew earlier in life but then forgot! Sort of like a pen as a steam shovel, excavating a basement, down to a bedrock belief.

The shelf with the open shell and the shelf below it up to the Bible and Harper’s Bible Commentary show my journals minus one or two.

I have had folks tell me they cannot write. I always think to myself, “Well you can think. We all think (unless there is a brain injury of some sort.) Write what you think about.”

“Here to be ourselves…Be the someone we are created to be.” Stop apologizing for who you are. Sharon Brown called journal writing ‘secret, silent correspondence with myself.’ I would expand that thought to include correspondence with the Father. When I write it is often a revelation to me what I am thinking. Many times also, there comes a revelation of what the Father thinks about what I hold as truth. Holding a wrong interpretation, if I am willing to yield, that concept can be corrected.

One of the stories Bob was always glad to read to our children was Mike Mulligan. The story is about Mike and his steam shovel, Mary Anne.

The newer types of shovels took away jobs from the steam shovels.

I think journaling can be a form of self examination. Why not give it a try? You might begin like in a child’s diary just recording events that occur. Given time and prayer and a willingness to go below the surface I believe you can find treasures within your own life experiences.

You will never know unless you give it a try! Use your pen as a steam shovel. You just might come upon treasure you buried a long, long time ago!

Posted on in Amazing Creations, Beagle, Faith, Nature, Thanks, Worship

Paw Paw Tree

When we lived on Siesta Drive we had a pawpaw tree in the back yard. I never once saw fruit on it, but the unfolding leaves were dramatic!! Sadly I did not get a photo.

And yes, there are two acceptable spellings.

We were walking recently at the Cincinnati Nature Center. We took a trail we do not usually take. As we were wandering along I remembered there had recently been a guided walk showing participants native fruits. As we walked amidst the pawpaw trees, sadly I thought,”Huh, I have never ever seen a Pawpaw fruit in the wild.”

As Bob took various photos and the dog moseyed along sniffing the myriad scents along the trail, I noticed a rounded rock. “Hmm,” I thought,”the gravel here is rough not rounded.” I nudged it a bit with my toe, then I bent to pick it up. NOT a rock!! A pawpaw! And they really do smell like fresh bananas!

Bob captured this photo for me and for your enjoyment!

It really smelled delicious! I have had a queasy stomach so I could not bring myself to taste it, though I really wanted to! As the dog and I strolled along I carried it with us. Trying to take a photo of something else, I accidentally closed my hand over it. It had burst the skin. Yep! it was sticky. I put it on a log hoping someone else would delight to discover it. Of course, all of this lead me to look up its details when I got home!

The pawpaw plant can grow up to 12 metres (40 feet) tall and has pointed, broadly oblong, drooping leaves up to 30 cm (12 inches) long. The malodorous, purple, 5-cm (2-inch) flowers appear in spring before the leaves. The edible fruits are 8 to 18 cm (3 to 7 inches) long and resemble stubby bananas; the skin turns black as the fruit ripens. Depending on the variety, pawpaw fruits vary in size, time of ripening, and flavour.

Brittanica

The pawpaw is a patch-forming (clonal) understory tree found in well-drained, deep, fertile bottomland and hilly upland habitat, with large, simple leaves. Pawpaw fruits are the largest edible fruit indigenous to the United States. Pawpaw fruits have a sweet, custard-like flavor somewhat similar to banana, mango, and pineapple, and are commonly eaten raw, but are also used to make ice cream and baked desserts. The bark, leaves, and fruit contain the insecticidal neurotoxin, annonacin. Native Americans used the fiber of the pawpaw tree to weave ropes and nets.

Because of the lack of human propagation and the abandonment of much farmland in the Southeast during and after the Great Depression, pawpaws became extremely rare by the late 20th century, but are making a comeback. In fact, the State of Kentucky has established an experimental farm and agricultural labs in order to develop commercial varieties for international marketing. The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and the Catawba Nation of South Carolina and North Carolina have initiated major pawpaw cultivation and experimentation programs in order to encourage Native Americans to grow the delicious fruit.

https://apalacheresearch.com/2021/06/24/the-indigenous-agriculture-of-the-americas-pawpaw-fruit/

Could it be that in my lifetime Pawpaw fruit might hit my local market? Well, after getting a whiff of the fragrance I would encourage you to purchase and taste some if you come to it in the market!

Largest edible fruit indigenous to the United States! Wow!

photo from Apalacheresearch website

Keep your eyes open for those treasures in plain sight!! Never now what you might find!!

 Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. 9 The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

Genesis 2:8-9 NIV
Posted on in Amazing Creations, Beagle, Faith, Humor, Memories, Thanks

Because of You

I miss the possibility of more Tony Bennett music, may he rest in peace. I suppose my mother liked this one, probably why I remember it. At times a line of a song will flit through my mind. This one did and asked me to write new lyrics. Only a three minute listen, but it might help to make sense of the new lyrics.

Because of Lucky© Molly Lin Dutina 2023

Because of you, there are shoes on my feet
Because of you I head out four times a day
Because of you plastic bags always on me now
I experience the seasons and moon phases
And bend to the ground because of you

I only live to feed and give you treats
It’s paradise when I come home 
There are toys on my floor
And I can smile when you sleep next to my bed
You are my dog, so I am glad because of you!

Because of you I bought an extension leash
Because of you I have someone near my feet
Because of you certain kibbles are in my pantry
Flea and tick tablets empty my purse every month
We pet you, you shed, the process then repeats
Cloth covered furniture because of you

Sun, rain, sleet, snow out the door always with you
Left to yourself you would run for hours free
Coming home filthy from chin to tail
Bucket bath for mud-packed paws and fur
We guard the doors because of you
Posted on in Amazing Creations, Humor, Listen, Memories, Nature

Speaking of Cicadas

If you missed my earlier post where I mentioned this cicada you can read about it by clicking the link below.

https://wordpress.com/post/treasures-in-plain-sight.org/14569

I captured this cicada that spent the morning on our driveway in the rain. I thought maybe it was dead, but not totally as the legs moved a little. I went to get a clear cup and a piece of paper. Went back outside and scooped it up.

Did not realize until I took these photos that the government rearranged George Washington on the newer quarters and gave him a new hairdo! This is about fifty cents worth of 2023 cicada. Not the periodic cicada that I posted about a year or so ago.

I have often wondered with the abundance of insects that cycle through the seasons where do all those wings go? I rarely see just a wing outdoors!

Can you imagine being a small bird and coming up those white dots that look like eyes?

Or these actual bug-out eyes?

Well this cicada for one is battered and shell might be dented? It was fun to day dream with you about this noisiest of bugs!

Later, I took the cicada outdoors again. I was going to slide it off the paper onto the top of the power box so Lucky would not try to eat it since it seemed to be dying. Much to my surprise, with a noisy flurry of cicada wings (even though battered) it took off into the sky! Guess it came to visit for notoriety on this blog!! Hope I did not traumatize it too much.

Posted on in Humor, Memories

Milkman

I remember the cry at the back door as he delivered the bottles in the box, “Milkman!” Well we have a new Milkman in town this year. In downtown Cincinnati there is a restaurant called “Milkman.” We were downtown doing advance purchase of theater tickets and decided to drop in there for lunch. It is located across the street from the school for creative and performing arts. Hopefully the adults in there who were on their school lunch break were getting non-alcoholic shakes!

And they were not kidding! You could get a plain milkshake, or one with alcohol!

We had to try one so we split a shake with Kahlua and vodka, etc.

The burger was a “smash burger” and quite tasty.

It was almost too large for me, but I finished it!

And the fries were worth every bite! And yes, every carb!!

We shared these, too.

Unaccustomed to alcohol at lunch time, but we did okay. If we were attending an affair at Washington Park in late afternoon or evening, this would be a fun place to visit beforehand and carry the milkshake to the park 🙂

Posted on in Amazing Creations, Faith, Just do it, Listen, Nature, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Yield

Got Nourishment?

by r m dutina

Where do you draw nourishment for your soul? I asked Bob to take the photo above because it stirred something in me. You can see not only how the leaves are attached to the branch, but how the leaves have a nourishment system.

Walking to our garbage can storage area we have been watching the elephant ears develop and then open.

M L Dutina

Again the nourishment avenues within each leaf.

M L Dutina

Can you trace the nourishment in your soul from the river of living water flowing inside of you?

I love the photo above. If you look at the top center of the leaf you can see the rough corner of decorative stone on the house. I can only suppose that a wind storm caused the creases on the left side of the photo. Such contrast between rock and leaf.

I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

John 15:5 VIV

How is your connection to the LORD? Are you remaining in Him and giving way for Him to remain in you? Then the admonition, “Apart from Me you can do nothing.” Nothing that lasts, nothing of eternal significance and meaning can be done separate from Him.

As you pass growing leaves or perhaps fallen colored leaves, take a moment to pause and look at the vein system. Is your path of nourishment as clearly defined? How might you deepen and improve that nourishment path?

Steve Green recorded this years ago, 2017. When I heard it for the first time it stopped me in my tracks! Two minutes of challenge. Hoping you will listen!

I am praying that you listen to what the Lord is saying to you personally. I pray you make whatever changes He wishes for you to have better nourishment for your soul and spirit. Will you?

Posted on in Aging, Challenge, Faith, Family, Humor, Illness and Health, Spiritual discipline, Spiritual growth, Thanks

A Most Enjoyable Day

We stopped at Marcella’s donuts at 7:05 AM on the way to Mason, Ohio to watch our Grandson play soccer. This is his first year to play a neighborhood sport. So far it has been a rather dismal event to watch. When we went to pick him up our son was still at home. We don’t usually get up so early for soccer (35 minutes from our house), but our son had an out-of-town event and asked us if we were willing to attend an early game this once.

Much to our surprise they not only won, but our grandson actually kicked the ball 3 times! There was so much dew on the early morning field that most parents agreed when I said, “They did not tell us to wear our boots!” When the ball was kicked at certain angles you could see a stream of water flowing over and around it. We were delighted to witness the team’s first win and Rowan’s increased participation. In fact, he was on the field the entire game!

# 9 our Grandson
Such a wet morning!

Then we drove back to Batavia, Ohio where our youngest Grandgirl had a volley ball game with University of Cincinnati Clermont. Recently she was diagnosed with stress fractures in both calves and has been on crutches. She will miss playing the rest of the year. 😦 She is, however, required to attend all practices and games. When we arrived she was seated at the scoring table.

Our Ellie is #20 at the net, almost in center

Our daughter and son-in-law were also there. We knew our daughter had a funeral to attend. Much to our delight when it was time for her depart our eldest Grandgirl came to get her.

Wait a minute, except for Jeff’s wife, we were able to greet and hug the entire family as an unplanned event in a single day!!

Normal day, let me be aware of the treasure you are. Let me learn from you, love you, savor you, bless you before you depart. Let me not pass you by in quest of some rare and perfect tomorrow.

MARY JEAN IRION

This is a wonderful day. I’ve never seen this one before.

Maya Angelou
Posted on in Aging, Family, Humor, Memories

Happy 170th Anniversary

Recently while driving, we passed a woman drinking from one of these. I was immediately taken to the past!

Growing up we had drinking fountains like this in all the city parks and on the playground at school. Water never tasted as good as on a hot day when it gurgled up from below ground (I could hear it arriving) and splashed up to my mouth, into the dish, down the overflow drain. There are many modern versions of this from the same company, Murdock.

Murdock’s M-1776 Old Style was one of the very first water fountains to exist, and it’s still manufactured in our factory today. While fabrication methods might have changed with the invention of new technology, our commitment to durability, longevity, and style remains unchanged. In fact, many of our century-old models are still in operation today and can still be repaired with original parts.

https://www.murdockmfg.com/history

Just one glimpse of that drinking fountain and it might as well have been 1958 for me. Eight years old, playing in the park. And if you can imagine, unsupervised by adults.

What was your favorite? The swings, the monkey bars, the teeter/totter?

Enjoy Bob showing the Grandgirls how to dominate a teeter totter!

Summer of 2009

When was the last time you let yourself go to a park? Outside to play? Drink from a drinking fountain? Better hurry, because in winter they turn off the water to our fountains in the parks.

Celebrating the company’s 170th anniversary in 2023, President Bob Murdock reflected on the Murdock legacy and looked forward on new innovations: “If you had the opportunity to go out there and be in a park, chances are you were out there with your family, at a picnic, and Murdock was there in the picnic shelter. Having that long history of involvement with the public is, more than anything else, why the Murdock brand remains strong. As we continue the innovation, all the things that we’re doing to make it a much better product, we’re building on the legacy of what it was in the very beginning.”

Bob Murdock