Wednesday Witterings . . .

 

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For all our vaunted cleverness we cannot understand

The beauty and the mystery of Nature's wonderland,

The sun, the moon, the whirling stars, the sea, the sky, the earth -

All the many miracles of life and death and birth.

Man with marvelous machines can do stupendous things

But could not with his hand create a bird with voice and wings.

Could not make a rose, a rainbow, or a common weed,

A chrysalis, a dragonfly, a cabbage or a seed.

Cannot say what magic holds the planet in its place

Or how the spider spins its dainty web of fairy lace . . . 

He cannot make a blade of grass, a leaf, a cone, a pod

Yet he is too arrogant to give the praise to God.

~Patience Strong, Nature's Wonderland

 

It is so wonderful to see the world coming alive again after the cold winter months. The Maple tree in my back yard is unfurling its leaves now. It is an early leafer. There is one place across the street and down a bit that is just beautiful at the moment with blooming tulips and daffodils, hyacinths, etc. My place is looking rather drab, but I can see that the bleeding hearts that were planted last year are coming up and I have that to look forward to. I really need to get out there and to clean out the window boxes.  I am not going to put herbs in them this year. They didn't drain well last year and I really didn't get much out of them. I am just going to put in red geraniums or petunias or some such.  Some kind of plant that thrives on neglect, lol  For I am a very neglectful gardener.

 

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My oldest son and his wife will celebrate their 24th wedding anniversary this month.  It was 23 years ago that my mother and I drove over to attend what we thought was their wedding, but was actually a one year renewal of their vows. They had actually gotten married in secret the year before. They had not wanted to tell anyone as her parents were going through a bad divorce. My son told me a few days before the "wedding" that it was really only a renewal of vows already made.

They got  married in a woodland in Fredericton and my daughter in law carried a bouquet of Mayflowers.  I love my daughter in law.  She is such a kind, sweet and sentimental woman. She is perfect for my son in that regard as he is much the same in many respects. They have struggled a lot through the years, both financially and with many losses, both of her parents, two children, etc. but their love is strong and has held them together in situations which might drive many people apart. 

I have always wished that I could have a magic wand that I could wave over them to right all their problems, but I wish that for all of my children. No parent wants their children to struggle really, but I guess struggle is a part of life. Its what doesn't kill us that  makes us stronger, or so they say.  Without the pain we could not really appreciate and feel the joy with the abundance that we do. It makes the good things even better.

 

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Cindy and I are going to go to Dad's this morning and clean his refrigerator.  He has two actually. I think the one in the garage is going to be the worst. The one in the house shouldn't be too bad.  (fingers crossed) We have been saying we were going to do it for months and months now, maybe even years, lol.  Its just one of those things that gets put off and put off.  Today is the day however.

In a way I dread what we are going to find, but we will just have to do what we have to do.  I am grateful to be able to do this small act of service for our father, and I am sure he will appreciate it.

 

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I have been thinking this morning about life and how it always surprises us with its twists and turns. It is composed of a multitude of ups and downs and joys and sorrows. I have often been asked would I change anything about my life.  The knee jerk reaction is to say yes, lots, but in reality if I sit down and really think about it, I have to honestly say, no I would not.  I am who I am because of all that I have experienced in my life, and I actually like myself.  Oh, sure I would like to be thinner and I often wish that I was prettier, but those are superficial things.   The real me, and the essence of my being I would not change one whit. I have become who I am because of the struggles I have been through and the battles I have fought, and will yet fight.  And I really do like who I have become, and am grateful for the journey that I have taken to get here.

Even the past couple of years, as difficult as they were and as heartbreaking as that all was to go through . . . they have taught me things about myself and have helped to draw me into a much closer relationship with my Heavenly Father.  I often wonder how I would have, could have  . . .  ever gotten through them as well as I did without my faith.

I don't blame God for the bad stuff.  Bad things happen to good people all the time, and good things happen to bad people. This is the balance of life.  Its just how it is.  I know He has the power to take it all away or to prevent it all  . . .  but in doing so we would not be able to learn the things we need to learn.  We would not become who we were meant to be and become.  It is the struggles which help to shape us into the beautiful creatures we are.  Just as a butterfly struggles to break out of its cocoon, and in doing so strengthens its wings, so do we strengthen ours in the  battles that we fight.

Those are just my thoughts anyways . . . if we wait for the perfect life to be happy, we will  never be happy.

 

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I have been watching the latest season of the Indian Matchmaker on Netflix. I find the Indian culture so fascinating, although I have never ever wanted to even visit or live in India. Too hot, too crowded, too noisy.   For many years in this culture they have relied on arranged marriages, put together by a matchmaker and approved by the parents of both individuals involved.  The premise of this show is that it takes unmarried men and women who have not been able to find their partner in life and a matchmaker provides them with suitable matches accordingly.   She starts off by asking each person involved what it is that they are looking for.  Not surprisingly much of it is physical or superficial.  Must be tall, or have lots of hair, be muscular or thin, pretty or handsome, speak a certain language, like dogs or cats, etc.

I think that what we are looking for in a person to partner with is something which can change drastically within the different stages of our lives.  When I was a teenager, what I was attracted to was someone who was cute, with a vibrant personality, or (at one time) who had a Beatles hairstyle and played a guitar, lol   As I got older this criteria changed a great deal, being replaced with other things. Like being a good provider, or being kind and thoughtful, having the same belief system, etc.  Sure, physical attraction was a part of it, but it was the least of it.  Other things became much more important.

I am at a stage in life now where all I would want is someone I enjoyed spending time with, and who had many of the same interests, who was kind and gentle, and who shared my belief system.  Not that I am looking, because I am not. I am very content with my situation and happy as things are.

I am just saying that if I was, that is what I would be looking for.  More substance and less of the window dressings.

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Its pretty quiet here in my place.  I am a quiet person. With just myself and the cats, we don't make much noise.  Usually during the day I will have some music playing if it gets too quiet for me. I am usually too busy to sit down and watch the television until much later in the day.   I like instrumentals, or uplifting music.  Sometimes I will put on birdsong for the cats.  They like that and find it quite interesting.  I used to have a huge collection of music cd's. There is not really any need for that anymore. You can find whatever you want on YouTube for the most part.  I also have Amazon Prime and apparently there is a music app for that, but I never use it to be honest.   I am always getting e-mails telling me that I have an unused Amazon application.  I never open them. I have lots of e-mails that I never open. Most of my e-mails are junk e-mails. I only really open e-mails pertaining to my bills, my blog, my business, friends, personal and the like.  

I don't get a lot of snail mail these days.  I walk down and check my box most days but it is usually only advertising or solicitations. Occasionally I have a nice surprise like I did the other day from Paula. Those are especially special days.  I think we all need to write more letters to people actually. When I think of the joy I get from getting an actual letter in the post it makes me think that I need to write more letters to people. Maybe I will endeavor to write at least one note a week to somebody, even if it is just to let them know I am thinking about them. I know an e-mail is a lot faster, but a snail mail is special.

And with that I best leave you with a thought for the day as I am fast running out of time.

A thought to carry with you  . . . 

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •

•。★★ 。* 。

° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚

  ˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛

 ˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★

*No price is too high to pay for

the privilege of owning yourself.

~Rudyard Kipling•。★★ 。* 。

In The English Kitchen today  . . .  Easy Muffins. Only a few simple ingredients. Quick and easy to make and delicious too!  I made the date version.

I hope you have a beautiful day. Its cloudy here.  I am not sure if it will rain or not. We shall see!  Whatever you get up to, don't forget! 

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And I do too!