Small and Wonderful Things . . .

 

"The world is fairly studded and strewn with pennies cast broadside from a generous hand. But who gets excited by a mere penny? It is dire poverty indeed when a man is so malnourished and fatigued that he won't stoop to pick up a penny. But if you cultivate a healthy poverty and simplicity, so that finding a penny will literally make your day, then, since the world is in fact planted with pennies, you have with your poverty bought a lifetime of days. It is that simple. what you see is what you get." ~Anne Dillard 

 A few of the small and wonderful things which bring untold joy into my life. It's the small things in life which truly mean the most. Simple abundance . . . it's the best.

 

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Going to church on a Sunday morning. This helps to set me up for the week ahead, starting my weeks off in the best way possible.  Slowing down, being able to renew my Baptismal covenants by partaking of the Sacrament, focusing on the Savior, feeding my spirit in the best possible way.  Looking at it from another perspective, you might also say that it is the perfect way to end my week.  Whether it is a beginning or a ending of a week, it sets my week up in the best way possible, affording me the great opportunity to bookend my weeks with the Savior.  Sundays bring my focus back into line with who and what I want to be and how I want to live my life.

 

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Sunday Dinners with family.  This was something I missed out on the whole time I was living overseas.  I would see other people getting together with family for Sunday Dinner and long to do the same myself.  Being back here in Canada, this has been a great blessing to me. This being enveloped in the warmth of my family again, instead of being so far away. I know I was never far away from them in my heart, but being close to them in body is a pretty wonderful thing. Most of the time my sister hosts it, but occasionally I get to.  My sister always cooks  wonderful meal for us.  Yesterday we had a roast dinner and she made the first of the season's Strawberry Shortcake for dessert. To be gathered around a table like this, breaking bread together is one of my life's greatest blessings.

 

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Going out and about and doing things together with my sister.  Whether it is shopping, or gardening, or painting, etc. I love spending time with my sister.  She is my best friend and more often than not the voice of reason.  She is very practical and I am very impulsive. She helps me to reign it in most of the time.  She has always been the voice of reason for me. When I have an important decision to make or something important that I want to say, she is who I go to for advice, more often than not. She has never given me a bum steer.  I trust her implicitly with everything.  Had it not been for her advice and my listening to it, I would have never gone with Todd to his lawyer that last time, and I would have been slammed and taken completely unawares when he got sent down.  Her advice sent me there with him and brought me into the know about what was going on.  She gave me a safe place to come home to.  She and Dan supported me emotionally in those first few months and helped to give me a new start again after having been broken in two.  I will be forever grateful.

 

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At the weekend, someone left some really cutting comments on my English Kitchen Facebook page, more or less accusing me of being a scammer.  They attacked my integrity in the worst way, simply because I had used the word Mom and because I choose to use both North American and British measurements in the recipes that I share.  I know that I should have a thicker skin after all these years of putting myself out there, but I am afraid that I do not.  For some reason I am a person that people find it easy to be mean to.  I must put out a "kick me" aura. Anyways. I addressed it on the page and I was overwhelmed with the support of all of my readers.  

I had collected quite a few new visitors in the past few weeks and so thought I would give them an update on who I was and a bit of my history, without going into too much detail. The support given to me was overwhelmingly positive and I was very humbled by it. I think that the attacker actually gave me a great blessing in disguise, as I would not have known otherwise how well thought of I actually was. 

Not that I go around looking for accolades.  I don't, and would never do so, at least not consciously.  But to know how much I am actually appreciated was no  small thing to discover. I am so grateful for their support in what I do each day, which is to share what I am creating in my little kitchen. It is very nice to know that you are trusted.  I don't take that lightly. I am honored.  

 

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I have aways tried to respond to each and every comment on all of my social feeds, and here on the blog. Sometimes I fall way behind. I certainly did this weekend.  I have always thought that if someone could take the time to comment on something I have posted, they deserve the time it takes for  me to respond in return.  I was very overwhelmed this weekend by literally thousands of comments on my FB feed, and then there is the Twitter, Instagram, and my two blogs.  I can remember when Ariana lived with us, she could not believe the time I spent each day responding. She said that she wouldn't bother if it were her. I can't not bother.   It is not in me to not bother. I think it is also rude and impolite.  Know that I will always try to respond in some way, even if it takes me a bit longer at times than it should.    Appreciation and love are a two way street. I hope to always do my part.

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"Always do the next right thing."

Someone said this in one of our lessons in church yesterday. I cannot remember in what context or which lesson, but It resonated with me.  Sometimes we make mistakes, we fumble, we falter  . . .  we may even fall, but if we always try to do the next right thing, who can fault us really. We are trying our best.  Nobody can ask any more from us than that!

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There is something incredibly wonderful about getting into a well-made bed at the end of the day.  I take some time each morning to air out my bed and then to make it up properly.  This is all in anticipation of getting back into it at the end of the day.   There is something so comforting about the well-made bed.  Clean, unwrinkled sheets and pillow cases.  I like cotton best of all. I did try some of that microfiber bedding and I do not like it one little bit. Too slippery and alien feeling. Give me good old cotton any day of the week. It is not so bad if you get it out of the drier right away and fold it up neat and tidy.  There is not a lot of need to touch it up with the iron if done right.  Although I do love the smell of freshly ironed linens. Had I a clothesline it would be even better.

Dan gave me a red geranium to place into a pot on my front deck.  I picked up a pretty pot when Cindy and I were at Dollarama last week.  He is quite the guy Dan. He knows a lot about gardening.  He started all of these geraniums himself.  Its a really lovely one. I adore red geraniums. It was so good of him to give me one.  I am one very lucky girl!

Strawberry Season. It is one of my favorite times of the year. I miss my British Berries. They were so sweet right off the vine, the warmth of the sun still gilding their juicy flesh.  There is no better taste on earth than that of a berry within seconds of being picked.  It is one of life's greatest pleasures.

My life is filled with abundance.  I feel like I should pinch myself to make sure I am not asleep and dreaming. That feeling overwhelms me every day.  I am truly blessed.

A thought to carry with you . . . 

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
•。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★

 *My bursting heart

must find vent at my pen.

~Abigail Adams•。★★ 。* 。

In The English Kitchen today  . . .  Easy Pork Schnitzel. For two. Quite simply delicious!

I hope and pray that you have a week filled with an abundance of the things which really matter most of all! However it goes, don't forget!

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And I do too!