What is inspiring you or bringing you joy currently? Please join me in comments, in your journal, or on your blog!
π·Iβm grateful today forβ¦π·
||for newly minted 14 yo daughter π₯°||her delight in completing her Redwall Series collection ||reliving memories and enjoying photos of almost 2 months of participating in a local production of The Lion, Witch, and Wardrobe, what a wonderful experience and lots of new friends ||people who devote themselves to care for others in dangerous or difficult places|| those who are adoptive or foster families || new to me music, Sarah Sparks || for Jane Brocket, Sarah Clarkson, Tresta Payne, andTerri Conlinβs email newsletters, full of beauty, encouragement, and delight || for my church ladies Bible study on Philippians||
||sunlight on forsythia and Charlotte Mason, glimpses of spring hope || springy play lists || for little boys who ask for Christmas trees π during spring snow storms || friends who send me videos and photos of our local Aurora Borealis sightings || prayer π || daffodildowndillys and the promise of tulips π || clothesline flapping noise|| cat snuggles, whiskers and darling purring with contented closed eyes || lovely return visits to favorite reads, in this case The Alpine Path by LM Montgomery || warm, brown sweatshirt and oversized cozy black sweater || warm, cozy glow of lamps||
|| birds daintily eating dog food on deck|| wrestling with a short piece on Gerald Manley Hopkins for friendβs magazine β₯οΈπΏβοΈπ||time away with hubby learning about serving our world with love, with a bit of space for quiet contemplation|| delicious, quiet breakfast with our pastor and his wife|| enjoying the nooks and crannies of our hotel|| long car conversations with my husband ||birthday surprises arriving and special food ingredients waiting on countertop ||little boy excitedly helping me wrap gifts for sister|| trying how to figure out how to send a surprise to Canadian penpals πππ€ππ¬π¦ πΈπ€π|| lovely books stacked everywhere here to dip in and out of||
||our friendly local public library || a felted bit of sunrise, gift from a daughter, shining into my soul||magazines +coffee + Trader Joeβs + my sisters = β₯οΈβ₯οΈβ₯οΈ||contemplating books that impacted as a woman/mother/caretaker in an ongoing series|| sunshine π in Wisconsin, never take it for granted ||plan to take daughter & friend to craft store and fancy ice cream π¦ soon, sheβs so excited ||
I believe this is βLa Discessa dello Spirito Santoβ mentioned on pg 155, School Education by Charlotte Mason ~ so gorgeous! {Google image} If itβs not the right one, oh well, I still love it! πβ₯οΈ
Simplicity is the special quality of Kindness; people can be kind only when all their thoughts are given to the person or creature they are kind to, and when there is no backward glance to see how the matter affectsοΏΌ self.
β’monochromatic children playing in school yard, black & bright splashes against the drab gray of early springβ’ puddles fizz-pluming under my tiresβ’theater life, two childrenβs makeup-encrusted smiles, as they see me gazing up at them, role reversalβ’spring yard clean up, imprints left in the soaked grassβ’ bags of purge waiting to be someone elseβs treasureβ’ruddy grinning cheeks, watery eyes, runny noses, muddy springy play, cold wind grasping at strawsβ’
β’bookish mugs for bits & bobs, gifts from friends β’ soft-colored sticky tags, enough to shareβ’ splashes of color against red-brown brickβ’ discussing Grapes of Wrath, sipping oat milk latte, and conversation with a sweet friendβ’ foam heart on latte, day of small thingsβ’ little boy with bandana, ninja, he saysβ’ blocks on book shelf in alternating patternβ’ epic soundtrack as I slip through gray countryside, just a hint of green under her skirtsβ’an unexpected flash of stain glassβ’
β’little bodies being compass roses, pointing arms northβ’almost 14 yo birthday gift buying, disconcertingly not little girl things anymore β’ shafts & shadows of longer sunlight β’shockingly orange chairsβ’ midwestern goodbyes β’surprise book won, Katherine Wentworth by D.E. Stevenson β’ reviewing, revamping, & renewing rhythmsβ’ charming nooks & cranniesβ’
The goal of my spiritual life is such close identification with Jesus Christ that I will always hear God and know that God always hears me. If I am united with Jesus Christ, I hear God all the time through the devotion of hearing. A flower, a tree, or a servant of God may convey Godβs message to me. What hinders me from hearing is my attention to other thingsβ¦
