Monday 26 September 2016

Small and Wonderful Things . . .




"The world is fairly studded and strewn with pennies cast broadside from a generous hand. But who gets excited by a mere penny?...It is dire poverty indeed when a man is so malnourished and fatigued that he won't stoop to pick up a penny. But if you cultivate a healthy poverty and simplicity, so that finding a penny will literally make your day, then, since the world is in fact planted with pennies, you have with your poverty bought a lifetime of days. It is that simple. what you see is what you get." ~Anne Dillard

A few of the small and wonderful things which bring untold joy into my life. It's the small things in life which truly mean the most. Simple abundance . . . it's the best.

 

Getting to spend some time with my mother on the telephone on Sunday afternoon.  It would be lovelier if we could spend this time together in person, but this is the next best thing.  I love to hear her voice and to hear how happy she is.   To know that my mother is safe and happy and cared for means the world to me.  I am ever grateful to my sister for this gift she has given the whole family.  I hope she knows this.   My mom has always been a great talker.  She loves to talk.   The hour flys by and I am always disappointed when we get to the end of it.  Sure enough we often talk about things we have talked about already as her memory is not the greatest at times, but that's okay.  I just love to hear her voice and to laugh together and to share this time with each other.  I love my mother very much.



The sound and the pattern of wild geese flying overhead on an autumn afternoon.  They are flying South for the winter.  It is haunting and yet comforting at the same time.   To me a bit miraculous.  That same God who set the stars in the heavens and who knows me by name has instilled this instinct in them, this inner knowledge to know when to do it and how to do it, and where to go.   It makes me wonder at the inner knowledge He has instilled in me.  I do believe that inside each of us is a God shaped hole that only He can fill . . .  call it what you will.  A Higher Power, Allah, God . . . there is a part of the Divine woven into each of our DNA.

 

From where we live we can see the Clwydian Hills in the North West of Wales.  It is a view which changes with the seasons . . .  clear and green on a summer's day . . .  with a purple flush in the autumn from the heather, snow covered in the winter . . . tender green in the spring.  Driving through them is even more beautiful, no matter the time of the year.   Some days we cannot see them at all . . . if it is misty or raining, and other's they are as clear as a bell.

 

"The Bridge of Sighs" in Cambridge.   Just one of the many beautiful things in this wonderful country I get to live in.  When I was a child I would never have believed that one day I would find myself here, but . . .  here I am.   It is a miracle to me!   This country ooozes history and secret places . . .





Its time to break out the woolen throws . . . the beginning of the season of cosy is upon us . . .



Apple pies and apple cakes and apple sauce  . . .  nom nom!




“Once in a golden hour, I cast to earth a seed, 
and up there grew a flower, that others called a weed.”

I love knowing that within all of the dried seed pods that I see wherever I look at this time of year lays the promise of the next year  . . . 

It is an eternal round . . . 

 

Acorns . . . with their little fairy caps . . .

 

Homemade jam, even if I cannot indulge.  I am going to make pear butter and pear jelly this year.   I love pears, don't you?

 

Its time to dry the hydrangea blooms   . . . .  they make lovely floral arrangements that stick through the winter.

 

Peek-a-boo . . .  I see you . . .

A thought to carry with you through today . . .

⊰✿⊰⊰✿⊰⊰✿⊰⊰✿⊰⊰✿⊰
Morning is God's way of saying
one more time, go make a difference,
touch a heart, encourage a mind,
inspire a soul and enjoy the day.
~unknown
⊰✿⊰⊰✿⊰⊰✿⊰⊰✿⊰⊰✿⊰

Spiritual Enlightenment

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In The English Kitchen today  . . .  Lamb and Damson Stew with herby dumplings.  Delicious!  Todd loves his dumplings.

I hope the week ahead of you is filled with many small and wonderful things. May you be truly blessed. Along the way don't forget . . .

═══════════ ღೋƸ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒღೋ ═══════════ ⊰✿░G░O░D⊰✿⊰L░O░V░E░S⊰✿⊰░Y░O░U░⊰✿
═══════════ ღೋƸ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒღೋ ═══════════


and I do too!


8 comments:

  1. Good morning darling Marie,

    Yes the seasons are turning. Today was 28 in the shade and we felt it! As I prepared dinner mum was peeling a pile of apples. We bought a supermarket bag full for $3. We have wasted too much food of late. So we will have a pile of apple sauce etc until next winter.

    God bless your day.

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  2. My hydrangea didn't flower this year. I'm not sure, but I think it was just too hot and dry for them. I do have some that I dried from a previous season though and they are still quite beautiful only very fragile. I almost hate to touch them. Hope you have a great start to this new week ! Happy Monday !

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  3. I'll be cutting everything back soon..it should be a touch warmer next week so that's when I will start..
    I love when you talk about your mom:)

    Have a beautiful day.

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  4. Suzan I love applesauce. So does Todd. I would rather eat applesauce than a fresh apple. Bad I know! I cannot imagine the summer temps you have to live with. I could not do it. Blessings and hugs. xoxo

    They do become very fragile once dried Pam! I suspect that you are right about it being too hot this year for them to bloom! Hoping that you get some next year! xoxo

    Aww thanks Monique! I treasure her very much. I had always thought that I would be the one caring for my parents in their old age, but it hasn't worked out that way. I was always the one who went home whenever they needed me through the years, and I was fortunate enough to live quite close to them several times, but fate has now taken me too far away for me to be there for them. I am so grateful for my sister. You have a beautiful day also! xoxo

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  5. It is wonderful that you can chat to your mum each week Marie, I wish my mum was still around....I've been seeing that you are losing some of your wee fishes, I wonder if you have a heron hanging about anywhere. Friends of mine had quite a large pond and one year first one then two and so on disappeared they were baffled until John got up early one morning and blow me what did he see...a heron....happily grabbing his fish, by then there were few left..after that he had to put mesh I think it was all over the surface of the pond.....
    Today I took my friend up to Heathrow to get her flight home to Texas she will be home around midnight our time. It is so sad that she developed a full blown cold yesterday and felt really bad this morning, I am praying she will have a safe flight...
    I now look forward to an early night, and, I might even stay in bed a bit longer now that the mornings are so,dark....hope you and Todd are both feeling well and able to enjoy the Autumn colours. Peter and I were speaking about going to Scotland we are going up 14 th and home maybe the 18/19th on the way home we might be able to meet up ?...

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  6. I love that you love your mom, That says a great deal about you, if I don't know anything else I know you are a very special person. She's lucky to have such a wonderful daughter.
    Your pictures are very lovely!
    Take care,
    Saimi
    mydogarchie.blogspot.com

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  7. So lovely that you had a nice talk with your mother. That stew looks very delicious. Have a wonderful week!

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  8. These fish are in the house now Sybil. WE got rid of the pond this summer and gave those fish away. So I have no excuse really except ignorance in the ways of housefish. We are learning as we go along, but it is a fascinating hobby! Would love to meet up on the 18th/19th. It sounds like a plan! Love and hugs! xoxo

    Thanks so much Saimi! I am intrigued now about a dog named Archie! I have always loved that name for a dog. xoxo

    Thanks Deb! The stew was great! You have a fab week also! xoxo

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