Eternal Perspective

Each morning this year, I'm taking a little extra time in my morning prayers and scripture reading to become acquainted with some Christians from the past. I found an old (1959) edition of Butler's Lives of the Saints while living in Lompoc, California. At a Thrift Store--that was having a sale! Five books for $1. I got these because I had some book shelves that needed filling, and these looked good. This was in my tearoom days, and I was way to busy to read these old-fashioned books. There is a time for everything. Now, I have time. And I have more of an awareness of how quickly time passes. How do I fill my time. I listen to the concerns of others and I think about my own concerns, and sometimes I feel we overlook the big picture, maybe the most important part. This morning I ran across this advice from St. Augustine:

"Not only think of the road through which thou art travelling, but take care never to lose sight of the blessed country in which thou art shortly to arrive. Thou meetest here with passing sufferings, but will soon enjoy everlasting rest. In order to labour with constancy and cheerfulness, consider the reward."

I might say something like, don't sweat the small stuff, the best is yet to come. But I like the way St. Augustine said it, back in the A.D. 400's. He had a way with words.

Never forgotten

Just two years ago, many of our large extended family gathered in Oklahoma to savour the final days of my mother Phyllis with us. Sometimes I like to reflect back to another time to gain perspective on the present. Our whole world revolved around the crisis of mom's brain tumour in 2010. Each of us had to grapple with how we would deal with the loss of our mother, sister, aunt, wife, grandmother. She left a big emptiness in our lives when she left this earth. But, thanks be to God, He is big enough to fill any gap, and we can carry on until our time comes to join Him and our loved ones in heaven. I thank God for the heritage of faith that my family has nurtured in us. My aunt Lois has left us now too. What comfort we shared with our aunt and uncles who remain and share that faith, our most precious gift, as we gathered in Arkansas this time to bid farewell to Aunt Lois.

Cousins Then & Now

We six were great chums growing up on Park Point in Duluth, MN. Butch (Ruben Jr.) was the oldest, then me, the twins, Howard & Harry, then Nancy, and then Rod. Our moms, Phyllis & Lois, made sure we had lots of beach time, birthdays, and holidays together. Fast forward nearly 60 years as we gathered at a picturesque cemetery in Heber Springs, AR to lay Butch, Nan, & Rod's mom and our Aunt Lois to rest. Just two years after our mom, Phyllis went to heaven. We've all lived full lives and haven't seen each other much over the years, but it was good to be together for a brief time and reconnect before going our separate ways again.

Happy Homecoming

This is a picture of my mother, Phyllis, and her sister, Lois, as young girls and best pals growing up in Duluth, Minnesota. My mother died nearly two years ago. Aunt Lois passed away just yesterday. I imagine after a warm embrace from our Lord, Aunt Lo would squeal with delight to see "Phyl"! Please click on the picture to make it bigger to better see the cute expressions on their faces. Thank you Lord Jesus for giving me this happy picture of two sisters who are now with You! Aunt Lo was 84, mom was 80 when she passed. They both had lived full lives and taught us much. They are both missed, but we look forward to a GREAT reunion some day.

"Lawn Boy"

Two days ago. It was so warm and lovely, Martin couldn't wait to fire up the old Lawn Boy. Just in the nick of time, too. Because a couple of hours later the clouds rolled in and the temperature plummeted. Spring can be fickle. Martin restrung my clothesline and I hung out my first load of laundry for the season earlier that day. Today it's raining cats and dogs and we are staying warm and cozy indoors.

Yellow Spring

This cute little house is across the street and a few doors down from us. When the yellow daffodils bloomed the other day, we finally realized these folks really like the colour yellow! Notice the heart on the front door that says, "Welcome." this cheerful house always makes me smile! Notice the yellow forsythia on the right also. It's in shadow in this picture so it doesn't look as bright as usual. I wonder if there will be other yellow flowers coming up later. We'll be watching for them.

Maple Syrup

One Saturday in early March, Martin & I set out to the little town of Alvinston for their annual Maple Syrup Festival. We enjoyed a pancake breakfast, served by the local firemen in the community hall, with lots of good Canadian maple syrup. Canada produces 70% of the world's maple syrup! (Maybe that's why there's a Maple leaf on the flag!) After breakfast we drove to the nearby conservation area where we learned a bit of Maple sugar history. We were shown different ways to tap out the trees, and different ways to cook it down. A very "sweet experience"!