Spiritual Journey Thursday: Finding the Holy

Fran Haley is hosting our gathering today on the theme of holy. Her post reminded us that "...the holy is always there, like a luminous lifeline." The holy is not something to be reserved for Sundays or holy days, but surrounds us every day, if we slow down and pay attention. 

A favorite author of mine, Emily Belle Freeman, in her book Becoming His: A Daily Journey Toward Discipleship points out that becoming holy might ask us "...to lay aside the task we are focused on to look for the glory of God in the ordinary details of each day. We must learn to turn aside to witness the miracle in the midst of the mundane." She posits that it is in finding holy moments daily that we can become whole.

Thinking about the miracle in the midst of the mundane sent me in search of this favorite quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson:

“Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything that is beautiful;
for beauty is God’s handwriting—a wayside sacrament.
Welcome it in every fair face, in every fair sky, in every fair flower,
and thank God for it as a cup of blessing.”

And I want to add, "welcome it in every brilliant fall leaf." I love the glory of God reflected in nature and I thank him as I drink in the glory of fall color that surrounds and blesses me. 

These words from Fran's post, "In the end, it is all a matter of opening the soul to seeing," reminded me of this quote from Emily Dickinson:

“The soul should always stand ajar, ready to welcome the ecstatic experience.”

 

Thanks, Fran, for this reminder to open our souls to seeing and welcoming the holy, blissful moments in our days. I know they are there if we look for them. Check out Fran's post at Lit Bits and Pieces where you can find links to more posts from SJT friends.

 

Here are a few pictures of beauty and holy moments I've captured, examples of
God's handwriting in my world. 

 

I welcomed these fair faces at my door this past week:

 

I'll be visiting these cuties this month!

This collection of fall color (I limited myself to seven) 

spans many years, but the last two 

were taken this year in our new neighborhood:

This final pic captures a holy moment last month

as Grandpa readies grandson for naptime:

Slice of Life and Sharing Our Stories: Serendipity at the Mailbox!

An ordinary trip to the mailbox is transformed when a purple envelope greets me (mixed in with the junk mail and black and white of monthly bills). A sticker on the back of the envelope reveals the contents. My errands can wait! 

I sit in the car and tear open the envelope. This treasure was requested from the author by my son. He met Aubrey Hartman in college. He sent me a link to an interview she did with Mr. Schu on his blog Watch.Read.Connect.  I call my son back with terrible news. The novel is slated for publication on May 2, 2023. 

I ask my son to see if he can obtain an ARC (advance reader's copy) of the book. And the purple envelope is evidence of his success. I pull the book out of the envelope. It is wrapped in gold twine with a handwritten note from the author. 

 

 

The cover is stunning: a marvelous depiction of power (a girl riding a winged lion) and terror (a creature with ribbons of green hair, white-orb eyes, and sharp claws).

I carefully peel the sticker (a perfect facsimile of the book cover) from the envelope and press it to the back of the handwritten note. I have a bookmark that will make me smile each time I move it to a new spot in the book. 

I eagerly turn to Chapter 1:

"Far away but not long ago, there was a girl and a house.

The girl? Well, she was nothing special.

But the house . . . was magic."

And I am immediately drawn into the story of Penelope Woodlock aka Poppy, a lion named Sampson, a terrifying water nymph, and the magical Lark-Hayes Manor.

The author's bio on the back flap reveals that Aubrey Hartman, like Poppy, "believes in the kind of magic that's made up of powerful words and characters who curl up in your heart and stay and stay and stay." Welcome to a book that provides that perfect kind of magic! 

You may want to place your pre-order now (and be on the lookout at NCTE for an ARC). Order one for yourself and the middle grade readers in your life who will be entranced by the adventures and perils faced by Poppy and Sampson amidst the once-grand Lark-Hayes Manor.

Spiritual Journey Thursday: In Memory of

Better late than never. Chris provided the prompt for our Spiritual Thursday writing group this month: "In memory of..."

I'm not sure how I missed the first Thursday, but the weeks and months fly by ever more quickly the older I get. I love the theme Chris chose for our writing in October, so here I am - a week and two days late with my October post.

I am no stranger to loss and the grief that accompanies the loss of dear ones. My father died two days after my 25th birthday and my mother died just before my 36th birthday. My brother, Karl, and my sister, Velma, died in December of 2020. I have one surviving sister who is nine years older than I. We get together once a year and our favorite thing to do is to look at photos together and share stories. Memories are precious to our family 

Here's a poem I wrote eight years ago about memories and photos after a visit to California to visit my sister Kay (who now lives in Texas). We hadn't seen each other for almost two years (far too long). I attempted to capture our joy of being together and the special time we spent perusing an old photo album in this poem.

Sisters

shoulder to shoulder

side by side

arms touching

hearts embracing

Slowly 

turning the pages

savoring black and white images

enticed by memories

of days long past

 

Places left behind

but not forgotten

loved ones gone

but still remembered

lovingly captured in time

 

-Ramona Behnke

Earlier this month, a church meeting closed with the hymn, "God Be With You Till We Meet Again." I turned to my daughter and explained my tears. When I was newly graduated from college and preparing to leave for an 18 month mission to Hong Kong, this was the closing hymn at my farewell. Nothing unusual about that. But my brother Karl, 2 1/2 years older than me, broke into tears and sobbed as we sang this song. So when we sang it earlier this month, tears fell as I remembered that time 45 years ago and reflected on how much I miss my brother and long for the day when we'll meet again. He left a big hole in my heart and the hearts of all who love him.

You may not be aware that October is Family History month. This blog post of 31 Ways to Celebrate Family History Month reminds us that celebrating this month can be low pressure. There's no need to do something every day, just choose an activity that resonates with you. "As long as you do one thing this month to get to know your family history better or celebrate your own personal story, you can say you’ve officially celebrated Family History Month!"

Sharing Our Stories and Poetry Friday: Goodbye Evergreen Lane

It's been awhile since I've written except for Spiritual Journey Thursday posts. Our summer was overfull with moving and getting settled in a new-to-us place (closer to daughter's family and only 30 minutes away from where we used to live). 

 

When I saw the SOS prompt for August: Say Hello or Goodbye, I knew I would need to write a goodbye post to the house we've lived in for 25 years. I made a final visit to our home on Wednesday so I could say goodbye. This is what tumbled out.  

 

 

Goodbye Evergreen Lane

 

Goodbye 25 years of memories on Mercer Island,

 

beginning with chants of “our house,” as we passed you on West Mercer

 

until our hoped for dream became a reality, and we moved in.

 

Our fifth and seventh grader ventured forth

 

to forge new friends in the Northwest.

 

Before we knew it, homecoming parades and Island Celebrations

 

and All Island Band nights became family traditions

 

and we found ourselves comfortably at home.

 

Far too soon our nest emptied as Blake and Sara

 

headed off to college and new adventures.

 

Days when they returned were the best - 

 

longed for, relished, and celebrated.

 

And then their spouses joined us around the table

 

for games and big breakfasts and laughter and love.

 

And then the longed for grandchildren arrived

 

to play with toys from their parents’ childhoods

 

to roam the bamboo trail on adventures with Grandpa

 

to bake cookies and read stories with Grandma

 

to bubble play and scooter time on the paving stones

 

to crank homemade ice cream in the summer

 

to the wintry delight of sliding down the snowy little hill.

 

Through it all we’ve loved you so.

 

Soon you won’t belong to us,

 

but our memories are rich 

 

and you will hold a forever place in our hearts. 

 

- Ramona Behnke

Spiritual Journey Thursday: How Do We Build Community?

Maureen is hosting our gathering this month with the topic of community.

I thought we might have written about community in the past, so I searched the term "community" on my blog.  Guess what? Almost every blog post I have written comes up in that search. Spiritual Journey Thursday friends are a community, Poetry Friday friends are a specific community who gather around poetry. Sharing Our Stories and Two Writing Teachers are other examples of writing communities that nurture my writing life. These communities are virtual communities (although I have met a few of you in person) and I cherish the friendships and community we share around our shared interests in writing, literacy, teaching, observing the beauty in our world, seeking for spiritual growth, and for some of us, being grandmas.

Spiritual Journey Thursday brings us together for a sacred pause each month to check in with our spiritual batteries. I love the insights that each member brings to our topic of the month. Our backgrounds are varied, but we share an interest and desire to strengthen our spiritual lives.

We moved from our home of 25 years in July. I feel bereft without that community of friends with whom I have shared so much. We moved 30 minutes away in order to be closer to daughter and son-in-law and the grand boys. And so we have a new church community and a new neighborhood. I'm working to be a builder, to reach out to create community in this new neighborhood and church congregation. 

I'm close enough to my old friends to make occasional trips there to stay connected. But I want to build community in my new setting. My niece, who also moved this summer, sent me this text on Sunday: "Yesterday was the first Sunday I started to feel 'at home' in my new ward (congregation). It's taken a lot of me being very chatty and friendly on Sundays." Wisdom from the upcoming generation! Community is created by being chatty and friendly. I'm hoping I remember that next Sunday.

Spiritual Journey Thursday: Nurturning our Summer Souls

I totally planned to write this post on Thursday. We had a carpet cleaner coming to our old house and I was looking forward to some time to write and think. Well, by the time I made a drop at the thrift store, stopped by the grocery store and returned home, the carpet cleaner was finished and so was my window of quiet. I did take some pics as I walked around our home of 25 years.

We're headed to a vacation house to celebrate our 40th anniversary with our son's and our daughter's families: with six littles six years and under. It promises to be an adventure, filled with fun memories and happy times together. Little did we know when we planned this trip, that we would be moving just three weeks prior to the trip. 

 Come stroll with me around our soon-to-be-sold home:

 

Daughter brought taco salad and we dined outside last week with these very important guests who now live six minutes away.

 

 

We drove to Chimicum this week and discovered a story walk in one of the parks. When you walk back, there's a second story on the reverse side. I can't wait to read and experience it with the grands this week.

One of my favorite summertime activities is reading outside. An article in last week's NYT book review spotlighted summer readers around the country, including a ferry rider in Seattle.

 

 

My summer reading's been sparse this year, but I finished and enjoyed this memoir for my online book club.

 

I picked this delightful children's book up from the library holds shelf this week.

And I started this one while sitting in the cell phone lot

waiting for the arrival of our son and his family.

Doesn't everyone love to read a Christmas story in August?

Here's hoping you find moments to treasure and nurture your summer soul 

in the middle of your busy summer!

Spiritual Journey Thursday: Celebrations

I spaced out and totally forgot our SJT last week. I didn't even realize that the the first Thursday of the month had passed, but thanks to our friend Margaret, here we are, one week late. I selected Celebrations as my theme for June, probably because June is my birthday month. But celebrating feels hard right now. I like that when we got together via email (thanks, Margaret!), someone suggested we write about small celebrations.

"This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it." (Psalms 118:24)

In no particular order, here are some recent celebrations (both large and small): 

June 1 marked the end of my quarantine from a mild case of Covid! 

Our rental has air conditioning. My family laughed when I mentioned that it was something I was looking for in a rental. It's a rarity in the Pacific NW and no small thing to celebrate. 

I've been so busy saying goodbye to all my flowering plants at home (we've lived here 25 years), that I hadn't even looked around the yard at our rental, soon-to-be home.

These day lilies are just beginning to bloom! 

Our rental is this lovely shade of blue and we have a yellow front door.

And these rhododendrons in the front yard.

 

This deer who grazed beside me on Tuesday's walk 

while I walked slowly and snapped photos.

"She didn't hurry./ She wasn't afraid.

I saw her eyes/ and she saw/ mine.

That look/ held us/ together." 

 (I'm In Charge of Celebrations by Byrd Baylor) 

Our new place is walking distance from a state park.

A Wednesday evening spent with a favorite group of friends, our book club. And yes, I'll be traveling 30 minutes to be together with these ladies once a month. We've headed for our 25th anniversary year soon.

I never tire of celebrating life with the grands, an ever present comfort (whether in person, by Zoom, or by photos snapped and sent to me).

 

This new growth green that is soft as a baby's bottom. 

I love it and celebrate its arrival every year! 

 

Please leave a link to your post in the comments.