Three beggars came and asked for food,
Three gypsies clad in sober brown;
One had a vest of scarlet gay --
They looked like strangers in the town,
And asked for bread with lofty airs
As if they thought it should be theirs.
I gave them crumbs and bits of meat,
A piece of crust gone stale and hard;
They hopped around as if they knew
The little walks about the yard;
They chatted fast and furiously,
Like women at a quilting bee.
I'm glad I gave my tiny alms
To these brown beggars at my gate,
For one sat in the apple-tree
And paid for every crumb he ate,
With songs so sweet it seemed to me
The world was filled with melody.
And one wee mother made her nest
Under the wide protecting eaves,
(I often saw her quiet eyes
Peering out through the tangled leaves),
And so my shabby beggars three
Brought love the whole year round to me.
~Edna Jacques, Three Beggars
My Kitchen Window, 1942
Is there anything on earth more beautiful than the sound of birds singing in the springtime? I think not. (You can hear some
here.) It is the most wonderful sound on earth. Birdsong is one of the classic sounds of spring (along with the sounds of ditch peepers here in the Maritimes). As the weather begins to warm up, the birds become much more vocal, singing loud and complex songs to attract their mates and defend their territories. Its all very beautiful and a part of nature.
Female birds tend to be attracted to the best singers. Males who can sing frequently, exhibit vocal complexity, and even show vocal creativity are often more successful at attracting mates. That’s why males sing so much more than females and put considerable effort into complex vocalizations. The high levels of birdsong in spring help facilitate pair bonding between males and females prior to breeding.
Whatever the reasoning behind it, I, for one, am grateful for the joy that these beautiful melodies bring to my day. I could lose myself quite happily for hours just listening to it all. I cannot really tell one song from another. I only know that whatever bird is singing, I find it quite beautiful to hear.
I have always loved birdwatching. About 30 years or so ago, I lived in a farm house rental near Meaford, Ontario on the Nottawasaga Bay at the tip of the Georgian Bay. Surrounded by apple orchards it was a lovely place for bird watching. I had a huge picture window right outside my dining room that looked out onto a small lawn area that had a quite a large bird feeder. I also had feeders hung on the branches of the old and gnarly trees surrounding it. I spent many hours sitting at my dining room table looking out at the feeders and watching my guests as they flitted back and forth.
Nothing could match my delight when a flock of cedar waxwings would appear.
I often had my sewing machine set up at the end of the table, looking out towards the yard and those beautiful birds, all kinds . . . kept me company while my needle slipped in and out of the fabric as I created things to sell with my sister at the local craft fairs, etc. I was much younger than and had better eyes to see with.
Sometimes we would go down to the bay and sit, just watching the birds swoop down and catch fish from the harbor. It was a really pleasant pastime.
Birds at feeders have delighted me wherever I have lived for the most part. They have brought me a lot of joy through the years. I don't seem to get any at all here. I don't know why. Oh . . . Blue Jays and Crows. The odd woodpecker at the Hummingbird feeder, and I do get Hummers . . . but the other kinds do not come. I don't know why.
We have enjoyed watching the odd leftover dry leaf dance across the lawn this week however. Leftover from the autumn. They are fun to watch. The cats agree.
Nutmeg enjoyed playing with some packing paper this week that came in a box from Amazon. I was folding it up to put it into the recycling bag when I noticed he seemed to be particularly interested in it, so I just put it onto the carpet for him to investigate. He spent quite a while playing in and around it. At one point you couldn't see him in it. He had a great time.
The cats both love boxes when they come into the house. I usually leave them open and on the floor for a short time so that they can investigate them and have a good snoop around. They love to sit in them. Cats and boxes go together like peas and carrots.
Eileen gets such a kick out of Cinnamon and the way she sleeps. Arms outstretched. You would think it almost impossible to be comfortable that way, but she doesn't seem to mind it. This is often her stance when she is resting.
This is another favorite perch of hers. Right in front of the channel changer thingie so that the remote won't work. I don't know why she does this.
Nutmeg also likes playing hide-and-seek. He has not yet perfected the art of making himself totally invisible to the eye. Eileen gets a kick out of that as well.
Those two felines sure know how to inject some joy into life.
Relationships are about being more than just present with one another.
They are about bringing out the best in each other. Too often we stay
in a relationship out of comfort, out of fear of not finding something better,
or out of what we think is love.
A relationship should never make you forget your worth.
~Charlotte Freeman
Eileen and I have had some deep discussions this week about love and relationships. I think I have been able to get her to recognize that you can love people and still not like them, or the things that they do and that's okay. That it's perfectly normal to feel confused after what Tim has put her through. She loves him, yes. He has only ever been the only person she has loved in that way and it has been for a very long time. Its also perfectly okay for her not to like what he has done and perfectly normal to feel angry and hurt. It is a natural thing to grieve the relationship. And those are not feelings that will necessarily go away overnight, if ever. Sometimes we just have to learn to live with those feelings. We can live with them without wallowing in them. To wallow in them is to give that person power over us that they don't deserve and to deny ourselves the right to have a happy life. We often love people who don't deserve our love, and who don't bring out the best in us. If that is the case, it is perfectly alright to move on and away from them. It's okay to love them, but it's also okay to not like them. That doesn't make you a bad person. That is all a part of healing.
Will I ever not like this chair? I think not. I am destined to never have it, but that doesn't stop me from falling in love with it every time I see it. I know. Pretty busy. I just love the pattern and the colors and how comfortable it looks. Its a bit pricey at $2,899.99 before taxes. You would have to win the lottery to afford a chair like that.
I think it is the style that I love most. Old fashioned, comfy, granny style. But then I am a granny and I do so love comfy. This is the type of chair that my bosses had at the Manor. Which says a lot.
Oh what a blessing it was to have gotten to work amongst such beautiful things. They were not mine but I got to take care of them and to enjoy their beauty without enduring the cost.
That's why I like Pinterest. I get to collect things and admire them without actually having to own them.
I discovered a new YouTube channel that I really like this week.
The Farmer's Wife. I could watch her videos one after another if I let myself.
"The timeless art of homemaking and the simple beauty of everyday life. As a mother of five and lifelong homemaker, I share comforting recipes, cozy routines, and old-fashioned wisdom for creating a peaceful home. My goal is to inspire women of all ages to find joy and meaning in their daily work — through from-scratch cooking, simple homemaking, and a heartfelt connection to the seasons."
She also loves vintage recipes and cooking them, just like I do. I have many of the same cookbooks she has. She reminds me very much of myself when I was younger and raising my family. I really identify with her I guess.
She made a lasagna in one of her videos that seemed so simple and looked incredibly delicious. I am supposed to bring a lasagna to my friend Glenna's for dinner later this week. She is having the missionaries over, as well as another couple (as there also has to be a man there). There will be seven of us altogether. Glenna is making a salad and an apple pie. I had mentioned lasagna and everyone's eyes lit up so I guess I am committed. My son said it cost him $100 to make the lasagna that he made for his family the other day. Outrageous.
This gal's lasagna looks to be a fair bit cheaper to make so I am going to make hers. I might make a trial one first just for Eileen and myself (on a much smaller scale.)
I made a bit of headway yesterday gathering my stuff for my taxes and also some thinking on the talk I am giving later in April. I felt good about that. I wasn't feeling all too great yesterday. That old indigestion problem that has sent me to the hospital on various occasions. I have been trying my best to just ignore it. It is no different than it's ever been. So I just settle myself, stay quiet and relax and wait for it to pass.
That is the best thing to do and doesn't cost me a bazillion dollars like an ambulance does. (an exaggeration I know but still $147 is an expensive case of indigestion don't you think?)
And with that I best end this as I need to wake up Eileen. She wants me to take her to the shops this morning and I want to get it over and done with early while I still have lots of energy!
A thought to carry with you . . .
☾ ° ★° * 。
• ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • •。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★
*She did not change
everything overnight
but little by little
she made her life into
something she loved.
~unknown
In The English Kitchen today . . .
Easy Lemon Bundt Cake. This is a simple cake that is a bit of a cheat in that it uses a cake mix and a pudding mix. It is delicious however with a tender and moist crumb through the use of sour cream. A lush Lemon Buttercream frosting tops it. I dressed it up a bit for Easter.
I hope you have a lovely weekend. We have our Palm Sunday service at church tomorrow which I am looking forward to. Shopping today. A bit of this and a bit of that. Whatever you get up to I hope it brings you joy and peace and a bit of birdsong. Don't forget!
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And I do too!
