Wednesday morning thoughts . . .

"A pebble held close to the eye appears to be a gigantic obstacle. Cast on the ground, it is seen in perspective. Likewise, problems or trials in our lives need to be viewed in the perspective of scriptural doctrine. Otherwise they can easily overtake our vision, absorb our energy, and deprive us of the joy and beauty the Lord intends us to receive here on earth."
~Richard G Scott, "Finding Joy In Life," Ensign May 1996

I got this little nugget of inspiration in my e-mail the other day. It was a very timely reminder of how I need to keep my eye on the greater picture, instead of on the minor irritating things that cause me to stumble along the way. We will all face difficulties in this lifetime, some of them small and some of them large, the difference comes in how we handle them.

I am reminded of the song thrush. Our garden is full of song thrushes and I love to listen to the beautiful music that they treat us to every single day. Not much to look at, they are a very plain bird to the eye, but my what a beautiful song. It doesn't matter the weather. On a sunny morning, he can be seen sitting on the peak of the roof next door regaling us with his lovely tune, and when the storms hit, he can often be seen on the top of a large cedar that sits at the front of the house, swaying in the wind and singing his heart out. The worse the storm . . . the louder he appears to sing. I reckon if he can do it, so can I.



What a blessing it is to be able to sing my way through life's storms, and to be able to put any problems that might come my way into an eternal perspective. I am reminded daily of that well known phrase . . . "This too, shall pass." And the truth?? It always does.



I did another one of my paintings yesterday afternoon. I call this one, "Wherever Two Are Gathered." The Lord told us when he was here on earth that . . .

"where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them."~Matthew 18:20

As usual, this piece is available as either a print or a card. If you would like to see the whole piece you can see it here, on my art blog.

I was able to pick up a nice piece of spiced beef in the grocery store last week. I don't often see it there, so when I do, I always grab a piece. It is very similar to the corned beef brisket from back home, both in appearance and in flavour. I did Todd and myself a lovely boiled dinner in the crock pot for our tea yesterday and it was delicious!



*Slow Cooked Spiced Beef*
Serves 4

This smells heavenly when it is cooking. I put this in before I left for work yesterday morning and by the time I got home in the afternoon, it was pretty much done. It was delicious . . . the meat thinly sliced along side of the vegetables and served with some horseradish sauce. Ahh . . . bliss!

2 - 2 1/2 pound piece of spiced beef
1 medium onion, peeled and sliced
1 stalk of celery, trimmed and cut into pieces
4 large potatoes, peeled and cut in half
4 carrots, peeled and cut in half
1 small swede (rutabaga) peeled and cut into chunks
1 cup of beef broth
1 bay leaf, broken
1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp dry mustard

Place the piece of spiced beef into a large slow cooker. Pile the vegetables all around it. Whisk together the beef broth, bay leaf, garlic, Worcestershire Sauce and dry mustard. Pour this over top. Close the lid on the slow cooker. Cook on low setting for 8 to 10 hours, or on medium for 5 to 6.

To serve, remove the meat and cut into slices. Serve on hot serving plates, with some of the vegetables along side and some of the juices spooned over top. We like horseradish sauce with this, but mustard is also good.

*Note - You can also do a corned beef brisket in the same way. You may also add wedges of cabbage in the last hour of cooking, if desired.