silver linings

Celebration...my honey is home...

Praying For...Claire and Jarrod that they find happiness and safety and love and peace...Leaders of nations that their hearts are softened and they seek out the right...little children that they can be blessed with happy families, the necessities of life, and happy childhoods...

Scripture Meditations..."For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him..." 2 Chronicles 16:9 I want to make my heart perfect toward the Lord.

Commitment to Movement and Health...Getting back into my real schedule has been wonderful for my pain level. I once again schedule exercise like an appointment. True, I slacked, when my Mom visited. However, each morning weekday morning, I get up between 5 and 6, make my bed, drink a quart of water, T.Tapp for 15 minutes, and walk for 15-30 minutes. Afterwards, I have a little devotional, drink a green smoothie, shower, do my homemaking areas, and get myself to work by 8ish. Sometimes I do the devotional before the exercise. I work from home at very sedentary work. At lunch, I eat a huge salad and a bit of bean or lentil soup, clean up, and walk for 20-30 minutes. At dinner I eat steam fry with black rice and tofu or some other vegan delight, clean up, and walk for 20-30 minutes. If the weather is crummy, sometimes I do the walk at the end of Tape Core. This is the only reason the TV still exists in our home. If I don't care enough about my health to make it a priority, nobody will.

Commitment to Healthy Deliciousness...I love to cook but love to eat even more. Made my delicious Tortilla-less Soup for my mom's visit, which she seemed to enjoy. It was a serendipitous find one day. I made all the stuff for Tostada Salad and discovered I had no salad greens. So I dumped the pico, cilantro, zucchini, radishes, lime, and avocado into the pot of pintos. Oh my, it was delicious. I make it now from time to time and still enjoy its complex flavors and textures. Now I have added shredded raw carrots and cabbage and keep the stuff separate from the pintos to allow others to make the soup according to their tastes--a sort of soup bar. Plus, I usually make a big green salad with various dressings and some sort of seasonal fruit salad.

Commitment to Modesty..."From all that I had read of history and government of human life and manners, I had drawn this conclusion, that the manners of women were the most infallible barometer of ascertain the degree of morality and virtue of a nation. The Jews, the Greeks, the Romans, the Swiss, the Dutch, all lost their public spirit and their republican forms of government when they lost the modesty and domestic virtues of their women."  John Adams  It seems it's not enough to be outwardly modest or that women "not wear that which pertaineth unto a man." Modesty and domestic virtue of manners are as or more important than dressing modestly.

Commitment to Loveliness...Joseph bought me two delightful, flowing skirts, while he was attending an IRS training in Las Vegas. One is the color of the ocean, while the other is like a pink flower garden. I'm done being drab and feel so happy in the colors of nature.

Sound of Music...my old friend made it out of surgery, through intensive care, and recovered nicely...she'll come home to sing once again, as soon as I can get back to the Valley of the Sun and retrieve her...when I don't play it's as if I don't pray and feel rather lost...

Thimble News...Did work on my tutorials a couple days this week. Slow progress comes from my waining energy...I've simply got to get a handle on this problem...

Toward a Real Eduction...While I'm enjoying my studies and writing, it is a bit overwhelming at times. Still learning all these subjects in this thorough way is exciting work. I suppose the overwhelming part is being responsible for the education of hundreds of children. If I try to remember God's instructions and move forward with faith, I do fine. At times feelings of inadequacy and doubt creep in, then I am scared witless. I know I can do this if my health holds out, if I can keep uncertainty at bay, and if I can remember that this project is guided by something bigger than my insignificant, mortal strength.

Garden Gate...tomatoes getting ripe...eggplant at fingerling size...kale, parsley, and basil going crazy...not too bad for an off year...

The Dispensary...I've decided that although I benefit greatly from a few herbs and use them regularly, real healing comes from diet, sunshine, a happy spirit, and exercise. Whenever I allow sadness, anxiety, or other negative emotions to enter my thoughts, my health takes a huge plunge. Last fall and winter, caring for my aged inlaws and my young but infirm son, my health retreated nearly to my lowest point of two years ago.  If there is any hope of recovering, I must not allow myself to indulge in negativity or become stressed but choose to be optimistic and look for silver linings and follow the health instructions of my Father in Heaven. Vibrant health seems to be mostly my choice.

Bee Buzz...I read the other day that honey was once used to clean the body similar to soap...seems like a strange use for it...

Contemplating...a whole new world...