I just love the underside of the ocean surface. Here is an an example why!
When we traveled to Cozumel many years ago I could have sat and just watched the underside of the waves for hours. Of course, I could not hold my breath that long, though the snorkel certainly helped! I was mesmerized by the sight.
How many other things upon the earth have we never seen or contemplated? What fascinates you?
Have you ridden in a plane recently? Bob caught this photo of the clouds for me when we recently flew to New Mexico. I was thinking of the underside of the waves and wanted to compare the water of the ocean and the water in the sky visually.
rmdutina
How wonderful our Creative God made all things!!
Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 1 Timothy 6:7 NIV
rmdutina
Even on days when the ocean is dark and seems foreboding, God is with us. The One who spoke to waves and winds can still command our lives.
In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also. 5 The sea is his, for he made it, and the dry land, which his hands have formed.
6 O come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! Psalm 95:4-6 NRSVUE
Things are far too serious for us to lose our sense of humor! by Terry Patten
That one is almost to difficult to type after the bombing of Iran. I am having great difficulty understanding that event.
“Let the laughter come, even if it has not been heard for a very long time, especially if times are hard and the future uncertain. Laughter is as important in adversity as wisdom and courage.” Steven Charleston
So I had this image two nights in a row.
A pianist works in the kitchen cutting up meat. Careful of those fingers, I think. Then I wonder is there a funereal fugue for pork tenderloin? Play 2 minutes and you will get the idea!
So we were driving along in New Mexico and this caught our eye at the side of the road. I found the slideshow online. Click on the link that says Home. Then choose slideshow on menu across the top. That is a pink rose I would to have in my garden!!
A friend of mine has been expecting her baby girl. The due date came. The due date passed. She tried everything she could think of to get that child born safely into this world. Had something called a membrane sweep. I did not want the details on how that is done. No progress. I teased her that perhaps she would have liberty by the 4th of July? I asked if she had tried walking in the pool. Her response, “I’ve tried it all LOL!!”
Last Sunday night they went to the hospital. As they entered the building, her water broke. The baby arrived 18 minutes later! All is well. At least they made it to the hospital!! Baby is lovely and weighs 8 pounds, 1.8 ounces. All this from a tiny woman. There was not even time for her to be medicated for the delivery! Unplanned natural delivery 🙂
This little girl is likely to be a corker! Entered the world on her own timetable and will certainly have mom, dad and big brother answering to her!
I looked out the office window yesterday and was delighted to see the first nasturtium blooming!
Speaking of humor. My daughter and grandgirls took me to a shop in Batavia for Mother’s Day. I got a “string of pearls” plant. Previously I had killed mine by over watering it. While there I saw this plastic planter. I thought, “no, I am not going ask for that.” Well, then I could not forget it. Last week I went back and bought one. Got a plant to try in it and voila!
Just makes me giggle!
Along with the rest of America we are sweltering here with high heat and tropical humidity. I am uncertain if these pansies will survive this weather. They looked nice, though leggy, this morning.
Snapdragons are blooming happily! Geranium is one I brought in the house over the winter. It should bloom again soon.
If you have ever traveled in the western United States you have likely heard the term ‘big sky’ referring to the clear vistas and blue almost beyond imagination.
The Splendor of the Sun
The pride of the heavenly heights is the clear firmament, the appearance of heaven in a spectacle of glory. The sun, when it appears, making proclamation as it goes forth, is a marvelous instrument, the work of the Most High. Ecclesiasticus or Sirach 43:1-2 RSV
This book is included in the part of the Bible called the Apocrypha or Deuterocanonical books of the Old Testament. It is not generalized recognized by the Protestant churches. Why is this sometimes called Ecclesiasticus and sometimes Sirach? Wikipedia says ….
The Book of Sirach, also known as The Wisdom of Jesus the Son of Sirach, The Wisdom of Jesus son of Eleazar, or Ecclesiasticus, is a Jewish literary work originally written in Biblical Hebrew. The longest extant wisdom book from antiquity, it consists of ethical teachings, written approximately between 196 and 175 BCE by Yeshua ben Eleazar ben Sira, a Hellenistic Jewish scribe of the Second Temple period. Ben Sira’s grandson translated the text into Koine Greek and added a prologue sometime around 117 BCE. Wikipedia
Regardless of who is right as to inclusion with other Scriptures, I do believe that ‘the pride of the heavenly heights is the clear firmament! The appearance of heaven is a spectacle of glory!”
by rmdutina
I already forgot the name of this tree. Bob took one or two photos of the tree, I took the close up .
Oh, that sky! When the New Mexico morning air was cool I would just step outside and breathe deeply. In fact, you could do that now as you look at the photos! 🙂
Thank you, Lord, for the beauty of the earth. Thank you for the privilege of seigneur our dear friends again in their home. Thank you for the splendor of New Mexico.
Once while in Los Cerillos (fondly called Cerillos) Dan and Bob visited a rock shop where they found a lovely tube of yellow stone from a mine. It sat for years on my windowsill or as a paper weight in my office. Recently a strong wind blew it out of the windowsill and a piece of the end broke off. It is much too rough for me to try to grind down.
Our trip 2-1/2 years ago to New Mexico Dan tried to take us to the same rock shop. Though the sign said open hours, they were closed. This visit we tried to visit there again. They were open!
This man is the actual owner and quite a character!
The shop was much cleaner than when we looked through the windows.
We found another yellow calcite tube for our son. My favorite new rock is the photo above, orange calcite. It seems to draw light to it and through it.
Dan also found a restaurant listed that seemed to have a great menu. I wanted to order my first elk burger. The Blackbird Saloon was very historical from the old wood floors …
to the neat idea for beer pulls …
The elk burger was tasty and not too gamey like venison. I can likely purchase it at Jungle Jim’s, though I hate to think what that would cost! The burger very very thick. I asked for it well done, no blood. It was served with blood on the plate. I sent it back. It was still too raw in the center. drats. I ate around the edges and took the rest home to have for supper. If I was running the restaurant I would have made it into 2 patties and cooked them through before serving. But, no one asked me!
We had a nice ride on another lovely day. If you get to Albuquerque try to visit Los Cerillos. It was fun!!
for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers—all things have been created through him and for him. Colossians 1:16 NRSVUE
I cannot remember the date we actually met the Cookseys. It had to be at least thirty years ago.
We went to church together. They taught us so much about prayer. Dan lead classes that instructed us deeply in how to shepherd the Lord’s people. We also led marriage workshop weekends together. Dan used to joke that God chose four introverts to lead those groups.
There was a time when we traveled with Dan and Betty Cooksey. We have a photo on our office wall of a lovely owl I spotted in a tree during a drive around Reel-foot lake. I told Dan, “Back up! Back up!” He slowly backed the car up until I could point out the owl to everyone. Bob and Dan are both great photographers. I will never forgot practically lying down in the car seat so Bob could get the right angle! Sweet memories, indeed.
When they moved to New Mexico we were stunned and saddened. After we visited the first time Bob asked if I wanted to move there, too. I decided I could not leave my maple trees. Then we discovered that if we visited New Mexico we had a place to stay, always! We have visited several times over the ensuing years. From American Indian pow-wows to visiting birding sites. The Taos pueblo and other ancient settings. The adventure and delight of watching the farm market roast green chilis! Ah that fragrance 🙂 And then Dan and Bob peeling the chilis together.
Two men who remain such good friends though miles separate them
As couples we are not clones. There are some things we do not agree upon, but it is always possible through love and Christian fellowship to have warm discussions about any topic. The Psalm below always reminds me of the four of us.
Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! 2 It is like the precious oil on the head, running down on the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes! 3 It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the Lord has commanded the blessing, life forevermore. Psalm 133
Now we are all aging and slowing down. We have not been to ABQ for 2-1/2 years. We are visiting there as you read this. I trust we will have a wonderful time as usual. I am fervently praying this is not the last time we get all four of us together. They are older than we are (only by a few years). With my heart scan looming in August and the prospect of open heart surgery I take nothing for granted anymore.
Many years ago when we went with our family to the beach for the first time our oldest Grandgirl at a tender preschool age called flamingos, “Falingos.” On our recent trip to Florida we visited the Sunken Gardens and saw “Falingos!” Of course, I had to text and remind her of the name she chose for these weird, unusual birds.
Once I heard that they have their coral coloring from the shrimp that they eat. “For flamingos, carotenoids are consumed through their primary food sources—algae and small crustaceans such as brine shrimp. Once ingested, these pigments are broken down by enzymes in the flamingo’s liver and absorbed into fats that are later deposited into their feathers, skin, and even their beaks.” https://learnbirdwatching.com/why-are-flamingos-pink/
I would call the birds we saw a medium pink. Not the vibrant they showed on the website above.
Our first view of the flamingos
In “Alice in Wonderland,” the flamingos were used as mallets in a game of flamingo croquet. The Queen of Hearts ordered her subjects to use the live flamingos as mallets. This certainly slanted my opinion of the flamingos as we walked through the gardens.
Finally we came upon a closer view of them. At first they all seemed to have their heads under the water. Diving they sort of resembled frozen pink turkeys! Waiting and biding my time I finally I got a better photo of them.
We enjoyed the gardens. The many tropical flowers reminded us of our trip to the gardens in Hawaii. The pond where the birds were located attached to a running stream throughout the gardens. At one place, I noticed a flamingo feather floating the water. It was away from where the birds were. I SO wanted that feather, but it was too far in the water for me to reach over the plants and retrieve it.
As we moseyed along taking photos admiring the “angel trumpet flower” (Brugmansia) which we had seen in California I was delighted to find it in more colors than we previously had seen! Not just yellow, but pink and white, too!
And rounding a bend I saw it! The lovely flamingo feather that wanted to travel to Ohio with me!
It was soaking wet, but floating where I could easily reach it. Retrieve it I did! First I tried to put it inside my sunhat, but it poked through. So I simply wrapped it in our folder about the Gardens and took it home. I had to think a bit when we returned to Ohio about how the folder got all wet!
Yep, she is one of my very best souvenirs! Thanks, Lord, for helping me see and retrieve it!
Unpacked. Mail read. Laundry still whirling in the machines. inches and inches of rain. More spring birds than before we departed. Went to church Sunday morning and reconnected with our loved friends there.
Then joy arose as I cooked Sunday after dinner with worship music playing and me singing to the Lord on high, the Christ within. One neighbor recently lost his wife to Alzheimer’s. I told him when we returned I would bring him food. He has lost so much weight. Joy at being home. Joy at being able to provide for another. The joy of the Lord is my strength!
Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10 NIV
Huh! I knew the part about the joy of the Lord is your strength. I forgot the part about sending to food to those who have nothing prepared. God surprises me SO often! What a delight our God is.
The break from routine going to Florida was fine. The motel room more than livable. The bed so high off the ground that I practically fell out the first night.
Eventually we longed for our home with better lighting. Our usual surroundings. Our familiar abode. Our bed. Our own pillows. Even the dog who was suffering through continuous thunderstorms. (Actually, she was sleeping in bed with our Grandgirl and getting spoiled rotten!)
And now we are here. And we both hope to thrive more for the respite from routine, even as we participate in the routines again. I have so much work to do to edit selections for a booklet on prayer. I was able to set it aside for the duration of the trip. Now I need to figure out how to rearrange my schedule to accommodate editing and contacting the newly hired editor.
So if I miss a few days posting to this blog I hope you will understand and will be praying for me?
We found a very few shells. Enjoyed the breeze off the ocean tremendously!
We made it by car all the way to the upper peninsula of Michigan and home again! What an adventure. Some of the things we had hoped to experience were thwarted, but we still had a good time. I find a dose of humor always helps with frustration.
The first afternoon on the road we were both desperate for a bathroom and some coffee as we were skipping our usual afternoon naps. We found a Starbucks location and pulled in. Jumped out of the car, hit the door and said, “First, potty!” To that the employees replied, “We are so sorry. There was a fire in another shop in this strip mall and we have no water.” Not understanding, I asked, “Well, can we at least use your toilets?” Oh, no water to flush either. UGH.
We returned to the car to try find another place, any place that sold coffee and had a toilet. We finally did. That night we stayed in Gaylord Michigan at a Comfort Inn and Suites. It was only 3 years old. Lovely facility and for the first time ever in our experience the room actually had MORE power outlets that we needed!
The Soo Locks are a remarkable feat of engineering and human ingenuity that connect Lakes Superior and Huron. The locks operate by raising and lowering boats between the levels of Lake Superior and the lower Great Lakes using a series of gates and chambers. Water and boats are moved solely by the force of gravity. The Soo Locks date back to the mid-1800s and are a popular tourist destination, attracting an estimated 500,000 visitors annually.
The Soo Locks, located on the St. Marys River, allow freighters to navigate between Lake Superior and the lower Great Lakes, the St. Lawrence Seaway, and international markets. This essential transportation link moves nearly 86 million tons of cargo annually, including 95% of the United States’ iron ore.
Well, as this adventure would have it, the Locks were closed up tight that day for a disaster drill. The area was swarming with Police and Border Patrol officers. As one commenter on Tripadvisor stated, “When we got there, the park is barricaded with only one entry point with an armed guard.” Even a ship worker we saw at the gate had to wait for special permission to enter. Very disappointing for us. After we watched big ships going along the Saint Lawrence River at our friend Pat’s house we had looked forward to this visit. Here are a few snapshots from outside the fence. To me it looked like a five story building on top of an enormous ship! I could not find the height listed, only the dimensions listed below. 223 meters in length is about 731 feet or 2 football field lengths!
Vessel type
Bulk carrier
Operating status
Active
Flag
Canada
Gross tonnage
23306 tons
Deadweight
34752 tons
Length
223 m
Breadth
23 m
Year of build
1987
photo by r m dutina
So though we were disappointed we figured we would go on to Clyde’s drive-in, famous for burgers and shakes. Yes, it was still morning, but we had waited for a famous milkshake for a few weeks and now we were here. Pulled in to the parking lot and there was one guy on a motorcycle. Before we could emerge from the car a woman came out of the place and told us she was sorry, but they had no electricity. “WHAT?!?!” Yep no electric, so no food service or ability to ring up sales. We told her our unfortunate experience at Starbucks and at the Locks. She replied, with a gleam of humor in her eyes, “Well it must be you guys! Every place you go is not functional!” We drove away with no milkshake. There were a few other sightings of Clyde’s in other places in Michigan, but we did not stop.
That night we stayed at the Boarders and Suites by Cobblestone in Munising. It was very nice. We were somewhat mollified by our luck so far. We were finally sleeping and traveling the Upper Peninsula, or as the locals say the “UP” or we were among the Yoopers.
Several of the motels we chose were disappointing and one was downright depressing. However, all of them were quiet and clean so we did not do too badly by doing it all online by ourselves.
Each day we listened to our favorite faith podcasts and music we brought from home on data sticks in the car. We were praising God as we went along!
I have been reading Jim Wilder’s book “Renovated: God, Dallas Willard and the Church That Transforms” and Tyler Staton’s book, “Praying Like Monks, Living Like Fools.” Both have me taking notes and being challenged in my walk.
Jim Wilder studied under Dallas Willard. Most of the things I have noted from the book are Dallas’s words. It is such a meaty book that I read it in small portions at a time. I am about 45% finished with it. If I am quoting Jim instead of Dallas please forgive me.
Here are some quotes that have had me thinking.
“Christian formation is the process of taking on the character of Christ. That means the person begins to think with – to have beliefs and images and ways of interpreting things that are characteristic of – Christ. This process begins at what we call “the birth from above” – the impartation or implantation of a new life in the person. The record of history and Scripture testify that salvation is best thought of as having a new kind of life.” from Renovated
There is debate within the church as to when exactly this process occurs. Tyler Staton notes that at some point we will notice the change within ourselves. More importantly for me recently, I must ask myself if I am truly interpreting things I ponder within me through the new life Christ has given to me.
Often I fail at this and need to confess and begin again. (Love that booklet from the Benedictines that is entitled, “Always we Begin Again.“)
The activity of the new kind of life that we mean by “birth from above” is reliance upon Christ and God for everything – the restoration of the relationship to God intended for us in the first place and that alone enables us to fulfill our nature. To “seek first the Kingdom of God and His kind of righteousness” is the natural response to the new life that has come to you. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 12:3, “If you believe that Jesus is Lord, that is because of the Spirit that has moved in you.” You actually believe that. from Renovated
Taking on the character of Christ. I love the recent lyric from Abandoned by Benjamin William Hastings that says, “My one life’s endeavor, to match Your surrender, to mirror not my will but Yours.” Father, help me to yield to this goal!
Does your home church foster this sort of growth? ‘Restoration of the relationship to God intended for us in the first place’?
Pursuing this type of life, “the restoration of the relationship to God intended for us in the first place” requires my constant awareness of my motives and purposes. Tyler notes that sin is agreed upon as a major problem in the world by every ‘historical era, cultures and philosophies.’
Believing in the existence of God has never really been the hang-up for us humans. Across cultures and eras, the existence of something bigger than us has always been the popular opinion. Even today, in a post-Enlightenment, highly skeptical society bent on deconstruction, the majority of people believe in some kind of deity who is running the show. from Praying Like Monks, Living Like Fools
The hang-up is, and has always been, trusting the God we believe exists. …Adam and Eve trusted themselves, not the God they believed in. And that is what the Bible calls sin – good desire channeled through the wrong means. Sin is shorthand for any attempt to meet our deep needs by our own resources.from Praying Like Monks, Living Like Fools
If I am to truly live from the new life that has been given to me, I must lay aside my mistaken attempts to meet my own needs and trust that God will take care of me. In every way. In every single day.
As you read this Bob and I are traveling to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. This looks like a daunting trip to us! We planned it without realizing at first that we will be in a different motel every single night. There is one place where we stay 2 nights, but overall it means moving suitcases, etc. back and forth to the car daily for a full week. We have not done this since we began aging so dramatically! Oh my! What have we gotten ourselves into? And it is all our own doing. We are so accustomed to going on vacation, unpacking the first day and making small car trips from that location. I will spend a few hours trying to figure out how to pack differently for myself so there is not all this perpetual suitcase hauling. (I just realized I like the instrumental music playing as I write. The song is entitled Fossils. How appropriate! LOL)
So Father God, I turn over our travel needs to You. Show us how to see all these Michigan sights without completely wearing ourselves out. If there is any way possible help us to witness the northern lights with our own eyes at Copper Harbor! Show us how to find an agate on the beach. Help us to live the imparted new life Christ has given us as we meet new people, with different accents, different lifestyles and foods. Most of all, help us to not only glorify Your name but to look to You in all things. We seek Your Kingdom and Your righteousness in Ohio and in Michigan.
Yesterday. September 1, daughter’s family was robbed while they were in a Safeway grocery store in Oakland, California. They had not yet checked into their Air B & B and all their backpacks (packed with electronics and medications from air travel) were still in the van. Some how Safeway does not sound like a safe way to shop! The parking lot is on top of the grocery as land in that area is at a premium. I have been there often with Bob.
Thieves broke the back window and swiped all but 1 backpack. Go figure! Four laptop computers, oh my! And one grandgirl became hysterical over all of it. They thankfully left the suitcases with their clothing.
This morning I am rejoicing that no one was injured or confronted. My son-in-law and one Grandgirl ran down the street following the pings the computers put out for location. They found nothing. The ‘security guard’ in the parking lot was useless. He evidently was to one side talking with friends when it happened.
Yes, Police were called and proper reports filed. My daughter waited 4 hours for a tow truck and replacement van. Never showed up. Finally drove to nearest location of the car rental place to get a replacement.
She is working with pharmacies in Ohio to get refills on medications. Of course, on a holiday weekend that is very difficult. If no refills remain it could be hard to reach a prescribing doctor!
They will likely never face the thieves in a courtroom. They do however now come face to face with the quote, “People are more important than things.“
And the power of prayer. I sent out numerous prayer requests as soon as Bob notified me of the robbery. It was extremely difficult to get the one Grandgirl to calm down. Eventually she did. Two family members thanked me via text for praying. I hope they each realize the power of God to comfort us. I cannot imagine how those male family members would have reacted had they seen the robbery in progress? Just the fact that 2 of the family relied on Apple to help them follow pings makes my heart skip a beat.
Puts me in mind of a plaque in our home.
I also have a calligraphy that I read often to help me regain my center in times like this.
Prayer by Tod Loder, art by Holy Monroe
Lord keep my family in all of their ways, I pray. Help them to know Your closeness in times of feeling violated. If possible, show them how to recover the stolen items. Regardless, open their eyes and hearts to know Your presence and protection in all situations. I pray You will keep them in the remainder of their vacation time.
Treasures in Plain Sight, A Christian Blog 