Now THAT'S Better!

 Finished and reset.

And while my husband was applying the protective finish,

I asked him to add it to this puppy

which had set outside and lost its original painting.

I simply sprayed it and added two black spots to the eye sockets.

I'll find a place for him outside.

He already HAS a place in my heart!

The "Juices" are Flowing

 A brief visit yesterday to Barnes and Noble got my creative

juices flowing.

Today I sewed rod pockets

in these light curtain panels.

They SHOULD have been

hanging all summer

but I'll enjoy them into autumn.

And, can you see the yard art here?  Three pieces created by my husband and father

have found their place in the sun!

Teamwork!

Why Not?

Why not?  This lamp shade was collecting dust inside the house.
I may center it on the stump and place the bird on the stump in the background,
but I think I'm going to leave the shade outside to add interest to the shade garden we're developing.

(I know I "stole" this idea from SOMEone.  Just can't remember who.)

“Nothing is original. Steal from anywhere that resonates with inspiration or fuels your imagination. Devour old films, new films, music, books, paintings, photographs, poems, dreams, random conversations, architecture, bridges, street signs, trees, clouds, bodies of water, light and shadows. Select only things to steal from that speak directly to your soul. If you do this, your work (and theft) will be authentic. Authenticity is invaluable; originality is non-existent. And don’t bother concealing your thievery - celebrate it if you feel like it. In any case, always remember what Jean-Luc Godard said:  'It’s not where you take things from - it’s where you take them to.'"  (Jim Jamusch)

In the end, "History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new."  (Ecclesiastes 1:9, New Living Translation, Bible)

Yes.  I like this better...

Three To-Dos

On what would have been travel-home day of my Gethsemani week (see previous post), 

my husband and I spent a couple of hours at Barnes and Noble. 

 I settled in with a stack of magazines, my journal and four-colored fine-tipped pen.  

I ended up taking a few photos which I've already posted on another blog

 and recorded three (yes, only three) "to-dos" in my journal.

Placing this bird on this stump was one of the three--

the only one accomplished so far.

In commenting on my prior post, Terra thanked me for my honesty about following
and not following my plan. To this I replied:

"Had I made no plans, I probably would have never lit a candle,

would have pigged out on sweets, prayed and journaled less than I did etc."

While I hope to get to the other two items I jotted down at Barnes and Noble,

I'm ahead of myself just by having accomplished ONE of the three!

At least that's the way I look at it.
Reminder to self:  Don't be discouraged by not accomplishing EVERYTHING on my lists.
***

Oh, and while I was out there placing the bird on the stump,

I pulled a bunch of weeds and called in the reinforcement (that would be my husband)

to cut off some branches that had been damaged by the storm the night before!

Commit your work to the Lord,
    and your plans will be established.

Proverbs 16:3

In My "Mature Years"...

 I really DO enjoy spending time taking in the

beauty of our simple yard and flower beds.

  I forget names,

 I forget to water,

 I never fertilize....

 so easy-to-care-for perennials are what are called for

here at Gatescroft.

 I spent the early (cooler) morning hours this morning

deadheading our white rose bushes and picking a few mulberries

to add to some other mixed, fresh berries for a healthy, fruit snack.

 But mostly, I just like to stroll around with my cell phone camera

and capture the latest blooms.

 Frequently, while editing the photos, I see SOMEthing to tweak, rearrange,

pull or trim back--

like the foliage of these two plants below

that I've already forgotten the name of!

This appreciation and desire for tending yard and flower beds came late to me. 

What interest, skill or activity have you acquired or developed 

in YOUR mature years?

Isaiah 58:11 
The LORD will always lead you, satisfy you in a parched land, and strengthen your bones. 
You will be like a watered garden and like a spring whose waters never run dry.

All God's Birds

 Hearing the joyful songs of the birds this fresh and cool Friday morning,

I strolled outside and took a few photos of the faux birds around our yard.

(I'll post the rest of them on my Yard and Garden blog.)

 As I strolled, I remembered that just a few short days ago

I was sitting on the peaceful patio at the Abbey of Gethsemani

enjoying the birds' songs and the birds themselves--

so MUCH so that I composed a simple poem and gave it a place in my journal.

 "birds", I titled it...

 birds
little birds

big birds

black birds

brown birds

screeching birds

singing birds

single birds

double birds

sitting birds

flying birds

birds on the ground

birds in the trees

birds flapping

birds gliding
social birds
solitary birds

excited birds

calm birds

timid birds 

bold birds

bossy birds

docile birds

busy birds

idle birds
birds

In the margin of my journal (beside the poem)

I wrote "All God's Birds".

Yes, we are...
Profound, huh?

Two are Better than One

Two are better than one, because they have a good [more satisfying] reward for their labor;

   For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow. 

 But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!

 

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

It is SO true. Two ARE better than one.

We've spent a lot of time in our yard the past few days.  One afternoon, I noticed several "pairs" here and there and was reminded of the truth of these verses.  I thank my Heavenly Father for my husband, the other half of a life-long pair...and also those who" pick me up when I fall"--whose encouragement and friendship have blessed me over and over and over again.

As I look at the pairs in my photos, I'm reminded that the other half of a pair need not be a duplicate of its partner.  Rather, there is at least one common feature the two share, and they exist in close enough proximity to each other to "interact" or simply and quietly share space with each other.

Today I'm especially aware that there will be people who cross my path today who feel "alone" and may in fact have  no human presence to help when they fall down.  I pray that God will help me to interact unselfishly, simply and quietly with those whose space I share. 

I Never Promised You A....

The piece of slate was accidentally dropped in the activity around the potting bench the other day.

It broke nicely into two pieces.

I asked my husband to drill a second hole in the larger of the two, cut the cord,

and fitted it to serve two pieces.

It sat on my counter awaiting transformation.

"We don't need to retire to the desert to meet with God. 

He can come to us at our ordinary duties."

 (A. Bonar) 

The inspiration came a day or two later

when in a sense, God came to me "at my ordinary duties".

Stencils. a little bit of  paint, and two words.

 I placed the two in different flower beds.

Only when I downloaded (or is it uploaded) the photos

did I realize what I had!

From a broken piece, a ROSE GARDEN!

A fall, a break, a hole drilled, a cord cut.  

Kind of the story of my life...

Not always "feel good" moments, but a fine outcome!

"Even though you planned evil against me, God planned good to come out of it."

Genesis 50:20

Garden Walk in Norwalk

We found this garden walk advertised in one of those free newspapers

that you find in restaurants and other public papers.

 You will see that I am attracted to objects as much as plants in yards and gardens!

 Below:  A copper watering decoration (water comes from the beak of the bird).

Can you see the wheel of the old cultivator below?

A flowering vine twines about the wheel.

The owner of this house selected the sandstone from a local quarry

and moved it to act as a step outside the patio doors.

He was quite proud of it!

 I would love to put some succulents atop one of 

our birdhouses like this! 

 Above and below - spots along paths on a hill behind 

my favorite garden on the walk...

 Definitely a relaxing way to spend the first day

of our actual vacation!

(We left our convention after the final session this morning.)

Having driven through breath-taking vineyard country
and quaint villages late this afternoon, 

we are lodged and relaxing at a Days Inn 

several miles into New York State.

WATCH -THE -SNOW- FALL -WITH -ME TUESDAY

8:30 a.m.

What Do These Stones Mean?

Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder...to serve as a sign among you.  In the future, when your children ask you, "What do these stones mean?" tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord....  (Joshua 4:6-7)

Part of a renaissance includes the resurgence of artistic vigor.  One of the ways it shows itself in MY case is on the canvas of our yard and garden.  Young friends of ours were wanting to get rid of these rocks and stones.  We were more than happy to take them off their hands! 

Using the small wheel barrel that was being trashed by someone disenchanted with the rust inside, I plan to transport the largest rocks for decoration in a flower bed, the medium-sized rocks to add to a rock border, and the smaller ones to fill in various spots around the yard.

"What do these stones mean?"  God has given me dreams to dream, strength to work, and supplies with which to bring my dreams to fruition.  I MUST be sure to tell my children!

As the deer....

As a deer pants for flowing streams,
so pants my soul for you, O God.
Psalm 42:1

Ever since we saw one of these in a flower bed on a Garden Walk earlier this summer, I have wanted one for our yard. Last night, Andy introduced my husband to the art of welding and they created this buck. It took awhile to figure out where to place it, but wherever it stands, it will be a reminder of the innate proclivity of mankind to seek and find God. He alone satisfies my soul as a flowing stream satisfies a panting deer.

I welcome you to view more pictures of the buck
on my garden blog.