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Speak well of people -- tell kindly things
The neighbors do and how they always try
To make the day a little easier,
Talk about sun and wind and open sky,
Have praise upon your lips like jewels rare;
Talk about peace and eventide and prayer.
Speak well of neighbors, let your voice be raised
In words of comfort for the sore oppressed,
Take time to listen to an old man's yarn;
Greet every morning with a happy zest,
And pass along to others on the way,
The lovely tidings of a brand new day.
Speak well -- for I have heard the old folks say
That words are arrows made with golden tips,
And each will find a target ere the day
Is gathered to its close -- so guard your lips
Lest you might wound a heart already sore,
And give a tired back one burden more.
Speak kindly words, they are such precious things
To brighten up a day and give it wings.
~Edna Jacques, Speak Well
Back Door Neighbors, 1946
I know that this can ofttimes be very difficult to do. There are times . . . and I do have them, when you just have to bite your tongue and hold back the cutting retort or remark that you wish to say. I can say with all honesty however, that there are words which I have spoken in haste that I have regretted passing my lips, but I have never had any regret for anything spoken with kindness. A tiny bit of grace can go a very long way.
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It was such a beautiful day here yesterday. The sun shone brilliantly all the day through and the sky was a rich and beautiful shade of blue. Nary a cloud in sight. The temperature got up to 16*C/61*F. So very mild. I was able to keep my inner front door open most of the afternoon and into the early evening and we were treated to the first sounds of the peepers for the year.
When the peepers raise their little voices you know that spring has well and truly arrived. They are the little loudmouths that signal springtime.
There is a drainage ditch that runs along the main road that walks past the end of our street and in the Spring it is full of these little male frogs looking for their mates.
I know that many find the sound annoying, but for me it is a very comforting sound to hear. A rite of passage that follows as the seasons of the year march along. A little gift from God. Can the daffodils be far behind? I think not.
Yesterday the grounds people were out sorting out the damages they had done to our lawns through the winter. Raking up and returning clumps of grass that they had torn out with the edges of their plows, sprinkling grass seed down onto the bare patches in the corners of the yard where the grass had been peeled away. Hopefully soon someone will be around to spray for ants. I do have plenty of ant bait ready to put down and I think I will get it down this weekend.
The temperatures are supposed to drop today until about Wednesday, but it will still be fairly mild.
The maple tree in my back garden is full of little red buds, waiting to burst, and I can see clearly that a few more warm days will bring Glenna's forsythia aflame with the golden flowers of spring. It is such a cheerful sight when it is in bloom.
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Is this not beautiful?
I had not long since dropped Eileen off at her Bible Study yesterday morning when a white car pulled into my drive. I thought to myself, who can this be. They probably have the wrong house, but it ended up being my ex and his wife. She had been to Walmart and bought Eileen some sports bras. Very pretty ones too. That was very kind of them. And she was very pleasant at the door. She couldn't come in, of course. I have cat insurance. hehe That's what I call it. She is very allergic to cats. Anyways. she was quite chatty on the doorstep and it wasn't unpleasant or uncomfortable. Not for me at any rate.
Cindy said that she would have had a very difficult time being nice. I said to Cindy, it's not hard to be nice. It was probably a lot harder for her to be nice to me than it was for me to be nice to her.
When faced with the choice, I would rather take the high road. The view from there is much easier to endure. No regrets or self recrimination. No bitter words to have to chew on . . .
Anyways, it was very nice of her. She also said that they would be going up to the apartment to see what they could get for Eileen at some point. Which was also nice.
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I have often pondered why it is so much easier to be kind to others than it is for us to be kind to ourselves. Kindness is compassion in action. Grace, extended towards others. But why is it so hard to extend that same compassion and grace towards ourselves. We are more often than not our own worst critics. Why is it easier to offer words of encouragement to friends and so easy to hold ourselves to much higher standards??
In ancient times, self-criticism helped humans to survive. It kept them alert to threats and mistakes, but in modern times this instinct can just turn into an inner voice that is far too harsh. We think that if we are tough on ourselves it will make us better people. Truthfully however, research has shown that self-compassion is really what helps us to grow and stay motivated.
No one is perfect and failure is part of the process of being human. When we know better we do better. A it of self-compassion can help us to acknowledge our mistakes, learn from them and move forward. Its not about making excuses . . . its about allowing ourselves the grace to be human.
I have been trying really hard to speak kinder to myself this year and to not be so self-deprecating. To value myself more. It is not conceit to value yourself as much as you do others. That inner voice you talk to yourself with? Its probably just as important or even more so than the voice you use to talk to others with.
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I picked up Eileen a few craft kits at Dollarama yesterday. A kit to make friendship bracelets with and another one for some diamond art sun catchers. I couldn't find any real diamond art kits. She likes to do diamond art and is actually working on a really pretty one at the moment. It is helpful for her to keep busy and distracted from thinking too much about what is going on.
She has been getting great sleep nights using that machine of hers. It is not noisy in the least. I still am not sure that I could sleep wearing a mask over my face like that, but I am a tummy sleeper. She is a back sleeper so it is probably not as difficult for her.
Yesterday I made us Turkey burgers for our supper. She really enjoyed them. They also had those Taylor's Farms salad bags on offer at Sobey's for only $3.99. You could not buy all of the ingredients to put one together for that cost so I had picked up a really nice one that had apple pieces in it, spring mix and a lovely balsamic dressing. It went really well with the turkey burgers. I told her that turkey burgers are probably a bit more healthy than beef burgers. Turkey is one of the superfoods. She did have some potato chips with hers. I had been going to do some frozen chips in the air fryer, but then I just thought potato chips would also work well. I didn't have any of them myself. Just the burger and some salad. It was a nice supper.
I got her some socks at Walmart as well. Hello Kitty socks and Strawberry Shortcake. Just the ankle ones. I figure I could get her some small thing like that each week. When she came to stay with me, most of what she had was rags. Seriously. I have been working at replacing much of it.
She was feeling much better yesterday than the day before. The bleeding has slowed down a lot, thank goodness. Menopause. When was it ever fun?
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Now there is a sweet and happy photograph. I love to watch ducks and geese with their young. When we were living in Brenchley there was a large duck pond in a nearby village next to the village green. They actually had a sign on the road for a duck and ducklings crossing as they often strolled across the road to visit the old post office. It was so fun to watch them. This time of year the pond was surrounded with the bobbing yellow heads of daffodils. It was a very pretty place to go for a walk.
I am so blessed to have lived in such pretty areas. I really am. Life has been very good to me.
I best get off here now. I am going out with Cindy this morning. We are going to go to the Super Store and then up to Peltons. They should have some fresh bread in today. Eileen wants to stay home and have a pajama day. Everyone needs a good pajama day every now and then!
A thought to carry with you . . .
☾ ° ★° * 。
• ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • •。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★
*A good friend is a connection to life,
a tie to the past, a road to the future,
the key to sanity in a totally sane world.
~Lois Wyse
In The English Kitchen today, Gingerbread Cake for One. This delicious little cake cooks quickly and easily in the microwave. You can be enjoying this in less than five minutes which included the putting it together time.
I hope you have a beautiful Saturday, and weekend. May it be filled with light and with love. Don't forget!
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And I do too!
