Here is a photo tour of parts of my birthday celebration. Bob made my favorite cake, coconut!
Oh yum. We HAD to taste it the night before!
He also took me to Andy’s Mediterranean Grill. It has gotten mixed reviews lately. We had not eaten there for a long time. It was going to be one of those experiments. If it had gone down hill substantially, it would be our last visit. It was as delicious as I remembered. They make chicken shwarma like no one else I know.
For appetizer I chose spanakopeta – filo dough wrapped around spinach and cheese
I have only had spanakopeta oven baked. Theirs was deep fried. Oilier but still delicious.
Bob ordered Hummus for his meal. He did let me share. I also shared with him! And there were still leftovers to take home.
And then for my entree!
I gave Bob the raw onions and olives off the plate. Oh my! So very good and had left overs for a second meal.
We chose to skip dessert as we had coconut cake awaiting us at home! Yes, their prices were quite a bit higher than in times past, but that is true of every restaurant we have been to this year. We will return in 2024.
I had phone calls, snail mail cards, electronic cards, text messages and many folks celebrating with me. A great celebration all around! My sister sent a flower arrangement. She is out of town and we will go to lunch at a later date.
Since Bob and I celebrate birthdays with only 3 weeks between us, our daughter bought us tickets to the theater to see “Girl from the North Country.” Great fun seeing it with Emily and Lizzie!
Thank you O Holy One for another year of living and loving!
Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.
Have you read books by Rachel Remen, MD? I first found one in Albuquerque one the shelf of a coffee shop where you could take a book or leave a book. I have only read these two so far:
When we down-sized to moved I disposed of them. Recently I got one back. Now I will purchase the other one once I have finished the first again. The stories are short and great for those who might not have the attention span or stamina for long reads. Everything I have read from her though has been powerful. When this quote came in daily email from Gratefulness I wanted to share it and her writings with you.
Perhaps the secret of living well is not in having all the answers but in pursuing unanswerable questions in good company.
Rachel Naomi Remen
Isn’t that a wonderful thought. Years ago I thought I might have the answer to some things. As I turned older and older I realized I not only did not have the answers, I wasn’t even certain what the questions were! However, pursuing unanswerable questions with my husband and other other good friends has made for a good life.
I wish the same for you!
Rachel Naomi Remen, MD is Clinical Professor Emeritus of Family and Community Medicine at the UCSF School of Medicine and Professor of Family Medicine at Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine in Ohio. In 1991 she founded the Remen Institute for the Study of Health and Illness (RISHI) a national training institute for physicians, nurses, medical students, nursing students, veterinarians and other health professionals who wish to practice a health care of compassion, meaning, service and community. She is an internationally recognized medical educator whose innovative discovery model course in professionalism, resiliency and relationship-centered care for medical students, THE HEALER’S ART is taught at more than 90 American medical schools and schools in seven countries abroad. Her bestselling books Kitchen Table Wisdom and My Grandfather’s Blessings have been published in 23 languages and have millions of copies in print.
In recognition of her contribution to medicine and medical education, she has received numerous awards including three honorary degrees, the prestigious Bravewell Award as one of the earliest pioneers of Integrative Medicine and Relationship Centered Care. In 2013, she was voted the Gold-Headed Cane award by UCSF School of Medicine for excellence in embodying and teaching the qualities and values of the true physician. Dr. Remen has a 70-year personal history of chronic illness, and her work is a potent blend of the perspectives and wisdom of physician and patient.
No amount of regret changes the past. No amount of anxiety changes the future. Any amount of gratitude changes the present.
Ann Voskamp
Many times I begin my prayer thanking the Father for another day of living and loving. Reflecting upon my recent birthday I thank the Holy One for another year of living and loving.
Best birthday card ever!From my sisterMy sister, PaulaMe
“At our age there are not lots of new friendships, but the ones we experience we hold dear.” Our neighbor, Kathy, has only been known to us a couple of years. Through her first year of struggling to get her brain around what it takes to live with a chronic illness and that illness being also a rare one, we became close. It is difficult to communicate with people who have never suffered from chronic illness. As Kathy says, “They just don’t get it.” Her diagnosis, antisynthetase syndrome, is rare and causes much misery. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antisynthetase_syndrome Fewer than 50,000 people in the US are thought to have this. Together we have re-affirmed Ann Voskamp’s wisdom that ‘any amount of gratitude changes the present.‘ This year when she returned to Florida, as snowbirds have a tendency to do, it was harder than ever to let her go. We have been married the same length of time, we are the same age, we each have a son and a daughter. Both of us have 3 grandchildren! Her wisdom and friendship bless me deeply. We share our faith freely. When I developed scalp psoriasis I told her I was getting tired of being like her! We don’t speak about dandruff, we refer to blizzards of skin cells falling from our heads after we scratch. We both need to vacuum our beds, our chairs and our cars. It is almost impossible to NOT scratch this sort of itching.
As I unwrap this gift of a new year of life I will try to remain present to all that is given. Life is truly a gift.
With another year of aging, I cling more and more to this verse in Corinthians
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
2 Corinthians 4:16 NIV
Less energy, true that. Less flexibility, true that. Undiagnosed hand and foot itching, yep. More renewal, thank the LORD for that! The Scriptures declare He will never leave me or forsake me. And it is true. There are times when I move away from God, but He is ever near and holds me in His nail-scarred hands.
“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! 16 See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.“
Isaiah 49:15-16 NIV
I truly live a varied and pleasing life, rich in adventure and blessings. There is no way I can account for it. One friend tells me I see things others do not when I take a walk. I am blessed to be married to the best man in the world. This year I have continued to work on finding some of the best recipes to cook. (I already miss fresh Ohio tomatoes!) My desk remains stacked about 6 inches deep. If I ever get ‘caught up’ I suppose it will be time to die? Let’s not even discuss how deep the sewing table is with projects.
I have out lived both of my parents. Bob calls it the ‘miracle of modern chemistry.” This year I promise to continue to write this blog as long as I am enabled to come up with new thoughts and inspirations.
May you cling to the One who has you engraved on the palms of His hands. May you rest in the knowledge that the same Holy One is able to renew you day by day. Peace and all blessings to each of you, my dear readers.
Joan Chittister is a well known Benedictine nun and author of a tremendous amount of books. Over many years she has inspired me to grow deeper with Christ. I get a weekly newsletter from her ministry. Here is a quote from a recent newsletter and a link should you want to read the entire article for yourself. Much of what they put in the newsletter is taken from her books.
Because of beauty
Confucius may have said it best: “Everything has beauty,” he taught, “but not everyone sees it.” Seeing it, the spiritual person knows, is the task of a lifetime. It is also the reward of a lifetime well-lived, lived in balance, lived from the inside out as well as from the outside in.
Open your eyes to the beauty around you today. This morning was my turn to walk the dog. It was the coldest morning this season. Just meant time to get out my winter coat, and gloves, etc. Had to stop to capture this leaf for you.
After the many days of glorious yellow, red and gold leaves raining down upon us this frosted outline was too lovely to not admire!
Watch for treasures in plain sight. They truly are all around you!
We must risk delight. We can do without pleasure, but not delight. Not enjoyment. We must have the stubbornness to accept our gladness in the ruthless furnace of the world.
“Ruthless furnace of the world” certainly describes the daily worldwide news. May you risk delight today and give the LORD all the glory.
I have now turned 73 years old, or as one friend quipped, “37, until I can no longer reverse the numbers!” Anyway you look at it, aging has been galloping down the road towards me. The trouble with seeing all those specialists and the dentist a week or two before a birthday is they all bring it to your attention! “Oh, I see you are about to have another birthday!” My Dentist says I need all these filings because of “TMB”, Too-many-birthdays, i.e., my gums have receded and there is now new enamel to decay!
Ha! But we must risk delight! We must continue to seek treasures in plain sight! If our eyes fail then we must seek humor in every place that we go. If we cannot go then we must remember humor from past experiences. Hold to that “stubbornness to accept our gladness in the ruthless furnace of the world” and the ruthless march of decay our body experiences.
So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day.
If you might be wondering where I went or why I quit posting here are a few reasons.
We traveled to Holmes County Ohio last week. Took a break for a couple of days. The last day there I had to stop taking all antihistamines as I will have allergy testing this week. The stoppage brought the symptoms of itching back like a herd of wild horses running in a stampede from a predator. I have been a basket case of misery.
We celebrated Bob’s 75th birthday with dinner out and then homemade carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. (His favorite.)
Someone gave me this recipe years ago. It is such a favorite that Bob will drive miles to share a piece with two co-workers who have now also retired. This is one carrot cake that does NOT sink to your tummy like lead.
CARROT CAKE serves 10-12
MIX 1-1/2 T. oil 4 large eggs
-2 c. sugar 2 c. grated carrot
WITH 2-1/2 c. flour 2 t. cinnamon
1 t. soda ½ t. salt
½ t. vanilla
ADD 1 c. chopped walnuts ¾ c. currants or raisins
1 c. crushed pineapple in its own juice
POUR into large greased pan 13 x 9, or Bundt or large bread pan
BAKE 1 hour Bundt or 40 min. 9 x 13
ICING Blend ½ lb. 10x sugar 4 oz. Cream cheese
¼ lb. Butter 1 t. vanilla
I always bake it 9 x 13. The cup of crushed pineapple in its own juice can sometimes be found in a can in just the right measurement.
I see the allergist tomorrow. They just told me to go ahead and take the antihistamines. Doctor will decide a treatment plan and when/how to test me. Geesh. Lots of misery for nothin’.
I attended an Associates retreat at the Convent of the Transfiguration in Glendale, Ohio. The theme was the Life and Inspiration of St. Clare. There is not much known about her. She was friends with St. Francis of Assisi. Like him, she removed herself from her aristocratic family and embraced a life of poverty and dedication to Jesus, praying in a cloistered monastery for 42 years until the end of her life. We are encouraged to follow her courage in finding our own place to follow Christ.
Here is a short prayer (called a collect) regarding Saint Clare.
O God, whose blessed Son became poor that we, through his poverty, might be rich: Deliver us from an immediate love of this world, that we, inspired by the devotion of your servant Clare, may serve you with singleness of heart and attain to the riches of the age to come; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Recently I learned that there is a Poor Clare convent in Cincinnati! I was thrilled to learn that the “female branch of the Franciscans” exists here. For a time I was a Third Order Franciscan through the Episcopal church. Below is a short video about the Poor Clare’s life together.
There are 20,000 Poor Clare’s worldwide in 70 countries. Francis wrote their initial rule of life. Clare added the commitment to poverty. The Poor Clare’s are a Catholic order.
The life of poverty centers around the beatitude in Matthew 5:3 when Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs.” And also
Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
Matthew 19:21 NIV
Clare’s goal was to imitate Christ though total obedience to God. Francis said “You only know as much as you do.” Poverty was her way to unity with the Lord. The sisters made altar linens as a way to support themselves, as well as asking for alms.
Clare encourages us to transform our entire being into the image of God by contemplation. She urges us to go towards the margins, the edges of society and find the risen Lord there.
May her challenge lead you to a closer walk with the Risen Lord.
Observe the wonders as they occur around you. Don’t claim them. Feel the artistry moving through and be silent.
Jalaluddin Rumi
(I had to look this up to be certain this is the work of Rumi the poet I am familiar with. Indeed, it is the same man. Never before saw the first name attached. Go figure.)
Made a retreat at Convent of the Transfiguration recently. As I left the last service Saturday evening it was almost dark. As I walked from one building to another, movement caught my eye. From behind the ‘chapel’ and over its roof a flock of birds flew. And then there were more and more of them. I stood in awe for several minutes. When I got back to my room I wrote,
"And billowing over the roof of the church
Comes tens, no twenties,
No, countless birds
Occasional chirp or call
But mostly just flying in formation
Over the roof into the sky with a swirl
Seemingly hundreds in the dusk murmuration." Molly L Dutina
This wonder which I have seen in other autumn skies was never this up-close or so personally touching before. Had I exited the convent earlier or a few moments later I would have missed it entirely.
Rumi wrote, “Feel the artistry moving through and be silent.” Truly this was holy artistry from the hand of the LORD on high.
These formations are not limited to the USA. Watch the evening sky and I pray you get to see one for yourself!
Here is a short film of a massive murmuration
If you watch to the end, you can sigh and say, “And then they are gone!”
Praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise him in the heights above.
Wild animals and all cattle, small creatures and flying birds,
Psalm 148:1, 10 NIV
Yes, LORD, with all of creation we praise You. Thank you for this blessing. You know I do not appreciate starlings when they empty our feeders in a matter of minutes, yet they do fill Your sky with wonder when they form their murmurations. Thank you for letting me see this one up close and share it with my reader friends. You are the King of all glory. Amen.
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.
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.
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.
Treasures in Plain Sight, A Christian Blog 