To be astonished is one of the surest ways of not growing old too quickly.
Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette
During an evening walk with Lucky, when I was way beyond tired, delightfully astonished to find this praying mantis on a neighbor’s car.
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4: 4-7 NIV
Present even your fatigue! Keep watching for those treasures in plain sight! Reminders of His care and the glory of His creation.
She is one of my favorite, new-to-me Christian artists. I recently ordered her CD Forever Amen. I admire so many songs on this CD I thought I ought to order it to support her work and have it on all my devices.
On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them and how He had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles.
Acts 14:27 NIV
Remember, reflect, think, review, grow. Why do we do this so seldom? As I was pondering this my pastor posted a video blog on the value of reviewing our lives. I used to do that during retreats at the Convent of the Transfiguration. Lately it seems we always schedule travel during those retreat weekends. (sigh)
But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect
1 Peter 3:15
This is a great song about the Lord’s supper adding to the message, remember. He made the altar into a table.
Praying you will take time this week to review, ponder, elevate His works in your recent life. Can you go so far as to make a list for your own use in praise?
I pray this helps those of you who are looking for that booster for well-being. May the Lord Jesus Christ bring you to a place where you too can be “chastened, corrected, purified, refined and strengthened.”
She has a boyfriend. When he shows up at the volleyball games her smile is wider than the gymnasium. She doesn’t smile like that on other days.
Smitten. She is truly smitten. I pray he is kind to her. I think it helps that they attend different schools. She is three days older than he is. The families tease her about being a cougar. He is a junior. She is a senior.
He is a baseball player. She invited him to her homecoming dance with a baseball plate sign. He said yes.
Wait, wasn’t I just getting ready for homecoming? Oh. Now I am Grammy and this is my Grandgirl #2. Oh goodness. How the years have flown!
Children’s children are a crown to the aged, and parents are the pride of their children.
It seems I have waited all spring and summer for the Jewelweed. I knew it bloomed but I had not noted when the flowers arrived last year. So fitting that the Latin name is Impatiens capensis, wrote impatient Molly Lin. Until we moved to Platform Street we had never had this lovely plant growing on our property.
Turns out this year the flowers were showing in late August. We had a flowerbed cultivated across the back of our yard. It was my sincere hope that the Jewelweed would not be erased by that plan. The good news is the Jewelweed stretches across our yard and the yards on either side of our property. It is said the name Jewelweed was given because it appears to sparkle when wet.
When I was a child l learned to recognize the tiny cornucopia-shaped flowers so I could find the seed pods when they formed. The magical pods, that when ripe, would explode at my touch and create tight coils from the edge of the pod that looked like ribbon curls at Christmas. Then I learned this was the ingenious way the plant spread its seeds.
Internet photo shows some seeds in burst pods
Rather like Shel Silverstein’s “The Giving Tree,” the Jewelweed gifts me as I watch the hummingbirds and butterflies seek out each blossom for nectar. On the edge of my seat watching sparkling jewels when leaves are wet, cornucopia flowers, feeding station for hummers and butterflies, exploding seed pods, the plant that keeps on giving. I do not contract poison ivy, but have been told if you are exposed to it you should crush Jewelweed leaves and rub on the exposed area. It will diminish or eliminate the rash.
So learn to see this plant. If you get to walk in a park you might come across it. It also grows in ditches and likes wet places. Watch for those treasures in plain sight!!
Are you old enough to remember “Sunday Drives?” Recently while we were driving around part of Eastfork Lake we went to one of our favorite little places where a road crosses a pond. With this orthotic boot still slowing me down, Bob has been very kind to try to find ways to entertain me. Going for a “Creamy Whip” ice cream and a drive is one of our amusements.
We hiked a trial here last autumn and delighted in the colors of the falling leaves. We also drove there last winter when things were frozen and cold. This day was totally different. Here is a summary from Aquaplant about Duckweed.
Where Does it Grow?
Duckweeds tend to grow in dense colonies in quiet water, undisturbed by wave action. Often more than one species of duckweed will be associated together in these colonies.
Is it Invasive?
Although Duckweed is native, it can be aggressive invaders of ponds and are often found mixed in with mosquito fern or watermeal. If colonies cover the surface of the water, then oxygen depletion and fish kills can occur. These plants should be controlled before they cover the entire surface of the pond.
Pros and Cons of Common Duckweed
Many kinds of ducks consume duckweed and often transport it to other bodies of water. Duckweed colonies provide habitats for micro invertebrates, but if duckweed completely covers the surface of a pond for an extended period of time, it will cause oxygen depletion. These colonies will also eliminate submerged plants by blocking sunlight penetration.
In the height of summer this is what the pond looked like! Kermit would be totally camouflaged!
In the background are ducks on the log like turtles sunbathing. Plant blooming in the foreground is a common Mallow. Not photo-shopped! Just Grinch green pond.
Reeds in the distance on the right
Here is part of the trail we took last October. Lucky was thrilled with new things to smell and mark. Our friend Pat from Columbus calls it “pee-mail!”
Notice who is walking the board walk! Some loose boards made us leery of it.
And this will be the scene here very soon!
Autumn is a many colored thing!
Here is the same place in winter
Yes, this is the same place in January! photo by r m dutina
We both found this so funny, decided to share it with you. Look in the center of Bob’s photo for skid marks where a duck tried to land.
photo by r m dutina
So I guess we had better be grateful for the greenness and the heat! Before we know it there will be falling leaves, ice storms and who knows what! Be on the lookout for treasures in plain sight!
I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul makes its boast in the Lord; let the humble hear and be glad. O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together.
I have published a bit of my poetry on this blog. Recently I finally ordered a new-to-me book that I have wanted for a couple years. It is titled Every day is a Poem, by Jacqueline Suskin. If I want to be a good poet I need to practice and work on that skill. This book is already helping me take that discipline seriously.
On one of our recent vacations to North Carolina the shelling where we were staying was lousy because they were dredging to fill in the shoreline only a mile or so from our Air B & B. My eyes are always peeled for not only shells, but stones and other things that draw my attention and speak to me. I found a lovely yellow rock with I think a bit of quartz in it. The rock went nto my hand, then eventually as hands got busy, into my pocket. Then into my suitcase. Now in my bedroom windowsill. (I just love that Bob paid to have a few windowsills built and installed for me!)
Here she is on the kitchen counter in the brightest light.!
When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:
38 “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!”
40 “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”
Luke 19:37-40 NIV
Praise Him and rejoice that He gives us the Word of God, stones and shells, countless ways to praise the God of heaven and earth.
Recently Bob tried to catch a photo of this squirrel in a portrait pose. He ran to capture the image and voila! {I do not know how to add that appropriate accent in Word Press 😦 }
r m dutina squirrel portrait
And then I had a session with the pleading squirrel. The feeder is designed to foil the squirrel. It entertains us wonderfully. Too bad for the squirrel.
Anyone else have a feederMight as well rest for a spellOh pooey!Graceful on balance beam!Another frustrating visit to Dutina’s
“I wonder who else can feed me today?”
Though the squirrel is not mentioned specifically in Scripture, Psalm 150:6 does say “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.“
Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying:
“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!”
Brandon Lake published/released a new CD called “Help!” in May of this year. The writers have nailed the hearts of so many Christians with these insightful lyrics. One song is written from God’s point of view instead of ours. The title is “Don’t You Give Up On Me.” With so many seeming to turn their backs on God this is a timely and true call to come back to the Shepherd of our souls. He loves us more than we love ourselves or each other.
The writers are Michael John Fatkin, Benjamin William Hastings, and Brandon Lake. Part of the lyrics read:
I see you child
Though you can't see me
And I know your thoughts
Before you even think
I heard every last prayer you prayed
Though I answered all the time
You just didn't hear my reply
And I know it's not easy, oh
Don't you give up on me
'Cause the darker the night gets
The brighter the light hits
Don't you give up on me
You ain't seen what I promised
Child we're just getting started
Oh There is so much more
That is just a portion of the lyrics. When I heard the song the first few times I thought he sang, “I heard every last prayer you prayed, Though I answered all the time, You just didn’t heed my reply.” When I actually printed the lyrics I saw it was written “You just didn’t hear my reply.” Hearing and Heeding.
Just as we are called to trust and obey, we are also called to hear and to heed. What good is hearing His reply but not heeding it, not walking in step with His will and ways?
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.
James 1:22-25 NIV
The line “I heard every last prayer you prayed” has a different emphasis from any other line in the song. Trust me, I have listened to this one repeatedly. The writing is genius. Even after I have listened I sometimes hear this one line echoing in my spirit, “I heard every last prayer you prayed.”
You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely.
You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.
Psalm 139: 1-6 NIV
Have you been tempted to turn your back on God and run with the ways of the world? Have you ever known a reliable source in the world that can say the following?
I'll be your way
Whеn there's no way out
And I'll be your strеngth
When your strength runs out
And if you walk into the fire
I'll be right there in the flames
I wouldn't have it any other way
'Cause loving you's easy, yeah
We are also reminded that God is not finished with us yet.
Open your heart, open your hands, open your eyelids
I've got more dreams, I've got more plans, I've got more blessing
Don't lose your hope, don't lose your faith, that's where your fight is
I've got more dreams, I've got more plans, I've got more blessings
Here is Brandon speaking about how they wrote this song over Zoom. If you wait there is a few seconds and the link will play the song.
Whether an afternoon rest or in bed for the night, I rest best if I read first. I often read books in bed on my iPad mini. Sometimes as I am falling asleep I will accidentally drop the iPad over the side of the bed. The thud rarely wakes me.
Last week I awoke one morning and retrieved from the floor a new paperback book I had been reading. I also saw the dark form of the iPad cover and reached down for it. I could not grasp it, so I reached further down and grasping again, pulled to get it out from under the edge of the bed, but it weighed more than usual. In a split second I realized it was wet on the edge.
Oops. That was not an iPad mini. That was the dog’s snout. Poor Lucky! What a way to be awakened at 6:45! As she scooted out from under the bed she looked at me with so many expressions. “What the heck?” “Are you certain you are awake, Molly?” “Really? Is that the thanks you give to your constant companion?”
I started laughing and have not stopped since. Every time I think of it I get the giggles. Such a good thing that she is a gentle dog! What has tickled your funny bone lately?
This beagle sheds like a maniac. I can brush her out in the yard and gather wads and wads of fur. I have noticed this especially around her hind quarters. I am considering having her shaved there. But then I knew a Sheltie who was shaved and never looked quite the same again. Guess I will just order a new brush and see if I can keep up better with the Hairball/Shed maniac. But she is so cute! Don’t you agree?
Treasures in Plain Sight, A Christian Blog 