• Photo by Anastasiya Romanova on Unsplash
    Random

    Beautiful June

    We had beautiful irises blooming along the rock hedge at the top of the hill at the farm. Mom used to call them “June Bloomers”. I didn’t know until I was several years older that they had another name…Irises. Every year when the calendar turns over to June, I think of Mom and those flowers. I love summer because the sunlight lingers. In the winter it seems the sun dashes across the sky on its way to warmer places. Thankfully, we have had rain this week. Lots of it. As I listened in the middle of the night, I wondered how much weight the sky was expelling as the downpour…

  • Photo by Megan Stallings on Unsplash
    Journeys,  Random

    Treasured Days

    Many moments, smiles, tears, laughter and love…the memories of my Mom are strong this evening. I suppose it’s because Mother’s Day is tomorrow. I discovered that I still have text messages from her on my phone. It was a treasured find. Some asked if I was okay – one asked me to call her because she needed a little TLC. How I wish I could hit the “dial” command and hear her voice again. A hug would be awfully nice, too. I’m not maudlin or gloomy right now – merely remembering some lovely times we shared. I also received an amazing photo of my Dad from my cousin this week. It…

  • Photo by eskay lim on Unsplash
    Journeys,  Random

    Unexpected Gifts

    Have you ever really had to wait? There are different kinds of waiting, you know. Here are a few off the top of my head… There is the kind of waiting in the “waiting room” of a surgical center to hear the report on the condition of a loved one. This one is grueling! There is the expectation of a grade on a test or an audition. Your heart is pounding, there are shivers coursing over your body as the results are revealed. There are the weeks and months of an expectant mother anticipating the arrival of her newborn. And there is the steady tread of trusting, walking and waiting…

  • Photo by Mads Schmidt Rasmussen on Unsplash
    Meditations,  Random

    The Stillness of Holy Saturday

    I wonder what they were doing that Saturday? Were some huddled in a room somewhere terrified they would be next? Were they exhausted? Did they jump at every and any unexpected sound? From Biblical accounts, it seems this may have been the case. Were they hopeless? We tend to look at these heroes of the New Testament – the Disciples, Mary, the mother of Jesus, Mary who had been set free from her past and others as larger than life. We view them from the resurrection side of history. We know how this one ends – they didn’t. Saul (who would become Paul) was likely celebrating Passover in the strict…

  • Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on Unsplash
    Journeys,  Random

    Before Dawn

    It is quiet this morning, and the birds are singing springtime songs outside my window. They begin before the sun comes up, and it is a welcome sound. The harbinger of a new day. As this Sunday awakens, the jumbled thoughts of the night seem to realign themselves in a more orderly fashion. The uncertainty and worries have been washed away by the light of day. Isn’t it funny how things seem much more manageable after the rising of the sun? It feels as though this week will be significant. Maybe that’s why the hours between midnight and three were so unsettled earlier? Who knows? As I face the coming…

  • Photo by Jason Leung on Unsplash
    Journeys,  Random

    Springtime Flowers

    Looking at my back patio was dismal. Last year’s plants had faded into wisps of yellowed memories. It was a site that caused my palms to itch, longing for my gardening gloves. So, off I went to the local nursery. Now, I know some people are addicted to different things – I have to be very careful when I decide to go to this place. I always have a dollar amount in mind, because if I’m not careful, the next stop is a Rehab Center in a group called “Gardener’s Anonymous”. Yep, it’s that bad. 🙂 Today, I was moderate. I only slightly exceeded my budget – but it was…