All Things Nice . . .

  

"It is easy in the world to live after the world's opinion;

It is easy in solitude to live after our own;

But the great man is he who in the  midst of the crowd

keeps with perfect sweetness the

independance of solitude.

~Ralph Waldo Emerson 

Today I am flooding my page with all things that are nice, because in the light of what we have been going through in the year 2020 to date, we could all use a little bit of nice.   

  

All my life long I had panted

For a drink from some cool stream

That I hoped would quench the burning

Of the thirst I felt within.

Feeding on the husks around me

Til my strength was almost gone

Longed my soul for something better

Only still to hunger on.

Well of water, ever springing

Bread of life, so rich and free,

 Untold wealh that never faileth,

My redeemer is to me.

Halleujah! I have found him --

Whom my soul so long has craved!

Jesus satisfies my longings;

Through His blood I now am saved.

~Clara T Williams 

 

The medieval name for the moon in June is Rose Moon, reflecting the dog roses that are scrambling over the hedgerows, their simple, pale pink petals catching the moonlight, not to mention the abundance of roses wafting fragrantly from midnight gardens. 

It is also known as the Dyad Moon, "dyad" meaning  "pair."  This might be in reference to June being named after the Roman goddess of  marriage called Juno, with June being the month thought to be particularly favourable for weddings. 

 

MUSICA 

The Summer Solstace falls today at 22.44, when the North Pole is at its maxiumum tilt towards the sun. The sun (should we be so lucky to see it!) will be overhead at the Tropic of Cancer (the Northernmost latitude at which the sun can be directly overhead). The word Solstice comes from the Latin  solstitium, which means  "sun stopping," as the position on the horizon at which the sun rises and sets stops and reverses direction today. 

This is the longest day of the year and the days will start drawing in from now on, being one second shorter on the 21st. 

 

Marriage is still very much a living institution, worth 

all the time and patience invested in it.  Marriage is the stable

structure that encircles and supports two clumsy individuals,

learning to love and live with each other.

~Ronna Romney & Beppie Harrison, 

Giving Time A Chance  

When you are young and raising a family it is hard to believe that one day your children will be grown and gone and you will be left alone at home with only your husband to keep you company. True joy comes to the couple who has invested the time and effort to develop the kind of love and friendship that will be delightfully enduring. A love that stands the test of time. 

It is hard to believe that Todd and I will be celebrating our 20th anniversary this year.  We have only ever been alone, without family around to distract us from each other or to swallow up our time. We get along amazingly well most of the time. We have even worked together for many years off and on during that time.  I did not dream when we first got married that we would have so many years together, but I feel very blessed that we have had. He will be 82 in September.  These last six months I have noticed him slowing down somewhat.  He walks with a bit of a stoop now and seems to get confused a lot  more than he did. He repeats himself a lot. Yesterday we made the difficult decision to take our car off the road at the end of the month. (Our insurance and car tax has been paid until then.) I knew this time was coming. It will be good for us to have to walk to where we can get the things we need and we are most fortunate to live in a country when most things can be delivered to our home.  

 

When the voices of children are heard on the green

And laughing is heard on the hill,

My heart is at rest within my breast

and everything else is still.

~William Blake, Nurses Song

The berries are coming fast and furious now.  In my younger years, when I was raising a large family, our  kitchen and home would be filled with the smell of berries, sugar and jam making. Hours spent in picking, washing, cleaning, and hulling the berries, and then spent over the hot stove on some of the hottest days of the year.  The row of glistening and ruby coloured jars, sparkling like gems along the countertop, being well worth all the effort because we knew that in the Winter months ahead we would still be able to enjoy the delightful taste of summer on our toast, bread, between the cake layers and spooned over our ice cream.  Sometimes I would make freezer jam, which was  not quite so hot a chore and labour.  I am not sure which one I liked the most of all  . . . 

 

The greatest gift that God in his bounty made in creation, 

and in the most conformable to his goodness, and that

which he prizes the most, was the freedom of the will, with

which the creatures with intelligence, they all and they

alone were and are endowed.

~Dane Alighieri 

Our days and lives are filled with choices that we make and need to make, one after another.  When we made wise and good choices, the end results are much easier to live with than when we make not so good choices.   At the end of the day the two choices which matter most of all is whether we choose to be happy or to be sad.  I have lived long enough to realise that there is some joy to be found in even the saddest and more dire of our circumstances. Finding it is my choice to make.  

 

Be your own sunshine.

Dance in your rain,

Feel the earth between your toes,

Make puddles part of the game.

Rise up, sway, seek out the light,

Create your own perfume,

Be the flowers, rainbows, stars, the night,

Life's in your soul and you're its bloom.

~Carly Dugmore 

 

 

 

 

 

Were I ever to come across such a cookie as this I do not think I could ever bring myself to eat such a work of art. Could you?  Its so beautiful.  It must have taken hours and hours of work.  A great labor of love  . . .  but then when I think of it, what is a labor of love for but for us to enjoy completely?  

 

 

 

 

A hug is a hug is a hug.  Can you feel the love??

 

 

  

 

Mine is the sunlight! Mine is the morning

Born of on light Eden saw play!

Praise with elation, praise ev'ry morning,

God's re-creation of the new day!

~Eleanor Farjeon, "Morning Has Broken." 

 

Start every morning believing that something wonderful will happen today. Have faith that it will and you might be surprised at what will transpire. Every  morning, after all, is the chance for a new beginning.  

 

 

 

 

In The English Kitchen today, Pecan Swirled Strawberry Shortcakes.  Yummy!  

 

Have a beautiful Summer Solstice! Do something summery.  Grab whatever rays are there to be found.  Be happy. Find joy. Be at peace, healthy and safe.  Don't forget! 

 

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And I do too!