My new project entails gathering the object lessons the Lord has given me over the years to encourage me and keep me walking the road laid out before me. I will likely post of few of these during the coming months. The following is entitled “Called At the Beach To Write More.”
How does an object lesson usually come to you? Mine can jump up any time I call upon the Lord for guidance. I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, so I shall be saved from my enemies. Psalm 18:3 NRSVUE
While walking the beach in Florida we were searching for shells. I came upon this one. It is called Sunray Venus Clam.
It reminds me of lined paper. (College ruled is my favorite).
Then I came upon this one.
Atlantic Pen Shell
That got me thinking about ink wells, and fountain pens. Oh my, this was a call to write more!
Then the Lord answered me and said: Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so that a runner may read it. Habakkuk 2:2 NRSVUE
Years ago a cousin older than me gave me the above verse to hold to. I was not certain she heard right. Time has shown she evidently heard exactly right for me!
The shells comprised another confirmation that I am to write and keep telling what God is doing in my life and can do in the lives of others. I keep these shells around to remind me, lest I ever doubt the call again. Or for the times I get just plain lazy about it. Lord, prod me with the shells and forgive me for being lazy, I pray.
Often the veil and the curtain are mentioned in the Scriptures. I have had this on the brain for a couple of weeks. The veil usually refers to the lack of understanding among the Hebrew population regarding the Messiah. The curtain is the fabric that was hung between the courts of the temple and the Holy of Holies where humans, (and only priests) were only to enter once a year, on the day of Atonement.
When Jesus was hung upon the cross, as he died the curtain was torn from top to bottom in the Holy of Holies. Thereby signifying the full access of man to the Father, bought by the blood of Jesus, our sacrifice.
This quote reminded me of that and the need for us to see the value and significance of ‘each other’s human plight.’
My wish, indeed my continuing passion, would be not to point the finger in judgment but to part a curtain, that invisible shadow that falls between people, the veil of indifference to each other’s presence, each other’s wonder, each other’s human plight.
EUDORA WELTY
Jesus parted the veil between people and the Father. Jesus also parts the curtain between us and other humans if we are willing to see with his eyes, the eyes of compassion.
Eudora reminds me that when I point the finger at others there are more fingers pointing back at me.
Searching for this image there were SO many images of our President pointing his finger at others. Sad. “That invisible shadow that falls between people, the veil of indifference to each other’s presence and plight.” I fear this has infected the entire nation at this point.
Lord, may we learn to fold our hands in prayer to you, not pointing at others. Open our eyes and our hearts to the needs of our fellow persons. Break our hearts for what breaks Yours. Help us realize the access for good that you have given us through the sacrifice of Jesus. Use us for the good of others. Amen.
When we drove across the country a few years ago we often saw fields of yellow in the distance. Once we asked a farmer-type of person what those yellow flowers were. His answer, “Damn yellow cross pollinators.” That was a variety I had never heard of !
Driving through our vicinity recently I saw a yellow field. I told Bob I wanted to get a photo to see what the plants were.
On a sunny day, which we have not had many lately, these were glowing in the distance!
It looked as if the folks at this construction site had sewn the seeds for this plant.
Sure looks like damn yellow cross pollinators!
“Hairy buttercup (Ranunculus sardous) is a native European weed. It’s indigenous to the Canary Islands and North Africa, but has spread throughout the world. Its saffron-colored flowers are a common sight in fields and pastures. The plant gets its name because it has hairy stems and leaves.” https://www.picturethisai.com/wiki/Ranunculus_sardous.html
That nifty app lets you upload a photo and it identifies. How did we ever live without the internet? Oh I remember, farmers who told us things like “damn yellow cross pollinators” for identification!
Enjoy your yellow fields if they appear in your vicinity! Call them whatever you like!
I was wondering aloud to Bob the other day about the stars when the sun rises and we can no longer see them. I am still pondering the wonders of the heavens several days later as I write this.
“Modern astronomy has mapped the position of every visible star with extraordinary precision. We know, down to the arc-second, where each star sits at any given moment from any point on Earth. This isn’t guesswork — it’s celestial mechanics, the same science that lets us predict eclipses centuries in advance.
“When you give us a date, time, and location, our software calculates the exact arrangement of stars above that place at that moment. It doesn’t matter whether it was noon or midnight, overcast or clear. The math doesn’t care about the weather or the sunlight. It cares about the geometry of Earth’s rotation and the stars’ positions — and those are always known.
Isn’t it amazing that even though we cannot see them the stars are there, above us, as we circulate around the sun.
“New research led by Sarah Caddy, a PhD candidate at Macquarie University, shows that this is possible. Caddy and her team have successfully captured one of the brightest stars during daytime observations, opening up new possibilities for astronomy.
“The first time I saw stars during the day was actually whilst hosting a group of primary school students at Sydney observatory,” said Caddy. “The kids really wanted to look through the telescope, so despite it being midday, we pointed it at the brightest star in the sky – Sirius. You can imagine my astonishment – and their excitement – when we could actually see it!”
So I tried to read up about the movement of stars and other celestial things like planets. To tell the truth, the science is WAY beyond my comprehension. I do know that when ever I am able to stay awake past dark and the sky is clear I am fascinated with the stars and planets I see. I can only imagine how tremendous those creations appeared when there was no light noise created by mankind. One night in the mountains of Colorado we were able to see the Milky Way in its glory. Wow!
The book of Common Prayer says:
At your command all things came to be: the vast expanse of interstellar space, galaxies, suns, the planets in their courses, and this fragile earth, our island home. By your will they were created and have their being.
All glory to you, our mighty God! Heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest!
I may have told you previously that my friend, Debby, gave me a copy of a book entitled Amazing Grace: A Morning and Evening Devotional by Stephanie Sample. I have been thoroughly enjoying this book. On May 17 the entry called Fathom His Glory reminded me of our recent trip to GSMNP.
It begins with Psalm 19:1-2 NIV
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. 2 Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.
Imagine my joy reading this verse and then almost simultaneously remembering this sight!
Look into those woods. Saplings and full grown trees. See the many layers of creation there? The mountains are also layered. And the clouds; such a wondrous creation we live in! Part of me wonders why some creature did not eat the brown stalks during the winter. The green is soon going to outgrow those brown stalks. Declaration! Proclamation! Speech and knowledge without words.
If we lived in Tennessee I would want to return to this very spot in all four seasons to try to capture the glorious creativity of God.
What calls to your soul to notice the vast creativity of the Lord?
I am trying to write this morning and the long awaited landscapers are here mowing. The huge riding mower is so loud it is drowning out sounds about the room. The windows are rattling and I wonder how I can write about the necessity of quiet when my very teeth are on edge.
And then I remember to breathe. This too shall pass. Each moment is like a bell curve. There is a beginning, a peak, and a subsequent lessening. Okay, now I hear them in the backyard, but that too will lessen as they move to the next yard and the next down the street.
Cannot even show you a photo of the man standing behind the mower as all the photos online are pristine mowers with absolutely NO grass cuttings upon them.
The point for me is how can I return to the quiet once the quiet is disrupted? Do you have a trick to do that?
I decided to step outside and try to photograph the first bachelor’s button of the season. They seeded themselves from last year and are now starting to bloom. (May 11) I might have practiced the method I wrote about in the following poem right then, but the mower was back to shear the verge so I came inside to check the photos and write the poem out for your perusal.
Page 5 in the new book Poems.
"This poem took me into the deeper silence of meditation. For me, the center down silence of being with God is a wonderful place to be. Thus, Down repeats in the poem.
Bachelor’s Buttons
Going inward with the deep blue of the bachelor’s buttons I sink down. I take the encompassing blue with me. Down. I drop my shoulders Down I breathe the blue petals. Knowing the blue from the petals will fade. Down. For now they wrap me in stillness. Down. Wash me in the blue brightness I pray. Down. Not Mrs. Stewart’s bluing agent. Down. But the true blue of fresh flower. Down. Peculiar petals. Down To where I am nestled inside the flower. Down. Beyond pollen gathering bees. Down. Sitting still in the Blues. I am restored.
Just contacted WordPress and learned a new skill! Hope you liked this layout 🙂
Typing it and editing the photos, I stop. And drop. And roll in the restoration.
Down. Help me to stay with You, Lord. “Continuously renewed Immediacy,” wrote Thomas R. Kelly in A Testament of Devotion.
Last year at Christmas Bob thought it would be fun to own a dash camera. I was unimpressed. He has enjoyed driving around town with it. Then he hit upon the idea of recording our time in the Smokys. I encouraged him, “Why not?”
On our last drive through Cades Cove, after the ranger comfort station, we got behind a car going 10 mph. He went 15 tops. We kept hoping he would use a pullout and let us and the huge line of cars behind us pass him. He did not.
We thought about flashing our lights, honking, putting on turn signal. We did not. Frustrated to 10th degree we tried to imagine was it their first time there and they were fascinated? Afraid they’d miss something? We imagined she was dying and this was the last time she would see this? Anything to keep our blood pressures down and try to find grace for these persons.
We got to the end of the Cades Cove Loop road and they signaled for campground then changed their mind. We groaned in agony fearing they would go this slow all the way back to Townsend.
screenshot of video recording
Then they turned into a picnic area to which we cried, “Let them!”
screenshot of dash cam video
We slowed at the yield sign. As we began to pull out on main road a bear cub jumped in front of our car. Bob missed him and saw another on the hillside.
We eventually decided there was such a long time since a car had gone past the mom probably decided it was safe to cross the road and then we broke through the clog. If we had not been delayed for so long behind that creeping slow car we would not have seen these cubs.
As we traveled down the main road we imagined conversations. “We were not planning on cub patties this evening.” “Really Ranger, we did not mean to hit him!” It was a close encounter of the kind we would not want. Imagine the car damage and THE PAPERWORK!!
How difficult is it to extend grace to someone who frustrates you? Whew! The Lord insists that we love as God loves us, that as we forgive we are forgiven. Matthew 6: 14-15 Have you ever had a frustrating experience that later you become thankful for?
For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. Matthew 6:14-15 NIV
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:34-35 NIV
Hoping you will cruise slowly through this day and take in all the sights!
It is not unusual when I complete a project to feel a release, a let down, perhaps a turning loose of the tension. When I was in retreat and folks around me were celebrating the publication of the book of poems, I was asking the Lord, “What next?”
Several times during the appointed times of prayer at the Convent we read Psalm 139. Verse 4 in the prayer book, which is verse 5 in most Bibles, struck me. The first time I just noted it. The second time I wrote it out. Now I have been doing some study through the Logos app regarding that verse.
The promises here are astounding. You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Even though I do not feel your touch, your word assures me you lay your hand upon me. I am yours. I am never abandoned, never alone. You shall lead me and hold me fast.
Matthew Henry wrote: “Thou knowest me in every part of me: Thou hast beset me behind and before, so that, go which way I will, I am under thy eye and cannot possibly escape it. Thou hast laid thy hand upon me, and I cannot run away from thee.” Wherever we are we are under the eye and hand of God. Perhaps it is an allusion to the physician’s laying his hand upon his patient to feel how his pulse beats or what temper he is in. God knows us as we know not only what we see, but what we feel and have our hands upon. All his saints are in his hand which tenderly holds their aching head.
U wrote: In proportion as we are fully reconciled to God, and love Him, and rejoice in Him, it will become a cause of joy to reflect that our best Friend is never away from us, that our Protector’s hand is never removed, that the great observant eye of divine love is never closed.
He continues, “We may judge as to our position before God by this test—is the thought of His constant observation of us a subject of joy or of dread? If we dread it, surely we have the old spirit of bondage still upon us. But if we rejoice in it, then we may know that we have received the Spirit of adoption whereby we cry, “Abba, Father.” Spurgeon went on to take a military point of view with the idea of Beset me behind and before. My response was, “Really? Do we have to take that view?”
Nelson Study Bible said, “The purpose of His intimate knowledge of His servants is protective and helpful, not judgmental and condemning.”
Yes Lord, I believe this. You protect and help me. As I confess my sins you are faithful and just to forgive me my sins and cleanse me from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9) Therefore, I can rest in your encompassing care and closeness. You are my Abba, Father.
And the New Commentary on the Whole Bible by J D Douglas 1990 says,”laid thine hand upon me—This is the body language of blessing (Gen. 48:14, 17). This level of being known and accepted overwhelms the psalmist.”
For me there is nothing to fear in these verses, nothing to run from. Why would I not accept the hand of blessing from my God upon my head? We are known and loved. Do not be overwhelmed. Sit with your God and receive.
Rich Mountain Road is one of Bob’s favorite drives in the Smoky’s. The other is Parson’s Branch road. That one was still not open for the season. Drats.
Rich mountain is described as “a one-way, 7-mile journey on a twisting gravel road that leads north out of Cades Cove and ends in the town of Townsend. The road winds through quiet forest that often features excellent opportunities for wildlife viewing and nature photography.”
“Are you staying put?” she asked.
We stopped the car. Mom thought about challenging us. She had walked towards the car aggressively, (first photo). Then must have realized we meant no harm. (second photo). We waited quietly to see what she would do.
Excellent opportunity indeed! Look who we got to see. The mother was small. Maybe her first cub?
photo by r m dutina
To our amazement they crossed the road in front of us. The remaining photos are taken by me from inside the car!
I think the baby could not have been more than 2 days old?
It reminded both of us of a very small puppy!
As we drove on in amazement, I realized except for the photos, we might be the only people to actually see these two this spring! What an awe inspiring event.
Dana and I read the proof copy. I listed edits that I found in the text. I changed the publication date so that we would have plenty of time to make said changes. She went to a Dulcimer convention out of town. One night, right before bed, I checked my email to be certain there was not something there concerning Prayer Team that I might need to tend to. I was shocked to see that Kindle had sent me a message that I only had a little over 24 hours to make changes.
After the dust settled I had to write it all down to decompress. The following is what I wrote. Seems funny now. At the time it was NOT funny. Bob said I should post this.
They say that having a book published is like giving birth. Tonight I felt as if the Kindle machine was starting Pitocin and the father was not present. It was too soon. The edits were not yet submitted. I panicked. (Where was my faith?)
I went from the iPad mini to the desktop to try to change the publication date again so that the edits could be made next week. Nothing was working right.
I finally hit the place where you talk with a bot. That was not real effective so I chose chat with live person.
Helan assured me I could change the date. Then I had to submit the change, keep approving until I got to pricing page and then hit Publish. I really froze up then. IT IS NOT READY. She basically said trust me. I did what she said. The Kindle Direct machine then said it would review my manuscript and that could take up to 72 hours. Until then the account would lock. I took screen shots of the texts. I wanted proof if this thing got printed without the final edits.
I realized there was nothing more I could do until Monday. Except I could pray. I left Grogu in my desk chair to watch over the book.
Physical therapist had pointed out that I need to smash down my new pillow closer to the thickness of my old worn out one. I got the new foam pillow out of the closet and literally knelt down on the floor on the pillow in prayer. This is God’s book, not mine. I prayed for the prayer teams who will be serving this Sunday. I prayed for forgiveness that I did not trust the Amazon tech more. I prayed for forgiveness that I do not trust my Father more. I prayed Dana has a great time at her dulcimer convention.
I got up from my knees and went to get a clean pillow case. I realized then I feel like an imposter. I understand imposter syndrome. Someone said to me this week, “You really are an author!” Not so certain about that but I am dizzy with anticipation and steroids and neck pops. Praying I actually get sleep tonight. Lord, Your lamb needs You.
The contractions have subsided now. The panic is receding. Hoping sleep is just around the corner. This woman is beat!
Guess I better tackle this imposter attitude before it makes trouble. “The original imposter syndrome study in the 1970s revolved around high-achieving women who had trouble attributing their own success to themselves”, one on-line source said. Perhaps I am guilty of that?
“Imposter syndrome is the voice inside your head telling you that you don’t belong, while discrimination is the voice of others telling you the same thing,” explains Dr. Albers. “The distinction is crucial because it highlights that imposter syndrome is a personal struggle that can be addressed through self-reflection and cognitive reframing whereas discrimination requires societal change and advocacy.” https://wockr.org/a-psychologist-explains-how-to-deal-with-imposter-syndrome/
So, this is just a bump in road at 10:45 PM after a long day and a chaotic week. Things are not awful and perhaps locking the account is good. No worries about it over the weekend.
I found the copyright information the next morning and updated the Proof Changes for Dana’s use. I sent it along to her. The new final date for changes came through email. I likely missed some errors, but that is done for now.
So my friends, the new book ought to be available to you on May 1, 2026 through Amazon. (I already found an error in the Table of Contents. Will be amazed if that is the ONLY error!) If you can’t find the title Poems, just type in my name. That ought to bring it up!
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