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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Moments spent with family. These were pretty rare the whole time I lived in the U.K. I only had special moments with family when I flew back to spend time which was not very often due to the huge expense. I missed my family very much. I will never take these times for granted. I was so grateful to be able to have time to spend with my brother last week and with my family in general.  Dan's birthday is today (Happy Birthday Dan!) but we had a small celebration for him yesterday with his Birthday Lasagna, Cake, etc. I do not and will never take special moments like this for granted. They mean the world to me.

 

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I love the morning light on these lighter days of the year.  It wakes me up extra early, but that's okay. It has a special glow to it that warms my heart.  The morning light, the wake up song of the birds. It is one of my favorite times of the day.

 

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Fresh herbs. I miss my herb garden that I had in the U.K. Right outside my kitchen door, it provided me with fresh herbs for most of the year. I even had a bay tree.  I do have some lemon balm in my front garden here, but that is all. I tried growing herbs in pots one year, the first year I was here, but it didn't work out well at all.

 

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Salad season.  I love salad season, when we have an abundance of fresh ingredients to choose from. It is not quite tomato season yet. We have the strawberries to come first, and the blueberries.  I saw some ladies in town the other day that were up from the South to work the strawberry fields. It won't be long now. A week or two at best, and the fresh berries will be ready.  The season of abundance is right around the corner.

 

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June. There is much to love about the month of June.  The flowers are coming into their best. The days are long. The nights short. The sun is lower in the sky and brings with it a lot more warmth.  Roses  . . .  Cindy's lupins are ready to burst into bloom, the poppies are blooming. It's all go.  June weddings, they are a thing.

 

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My days are filled with small and simple pleasures. I am finishing the border around my last blanket I crocheted now. I will take a photograph of it when I am done. Crocheting coasters. Planning meals.  I used my new food processor to make power balls yesterday.  Gingerbread ones.  Recipe to come soon. I worked on my journal, penning my thoughts and feelings.  These simple acts are the measure of my days.

 

Nutmeg loves his head massages.  I saw someone doing them on Instagram and started doing them for him. Cinnamon won't tolerate such a thing, but Nutmeg loves them. He closes his eyes and leans into them. His face shows his pleasure at what I am doing, and his purring engine goes into top gear. Mine does too. If he is happy, I am happy.

Cinnamon loves being brushed and playing in her laundry basket.  With the pipe cleaners. That turns on her purr machine. She is so cute.

I know I am biased.

 

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Moments spent with the Savior.  I have them. I see His hands at work in my life daily.  In the quiet whisperings of the spirit, He lets me know He is always there when I need Him to be. It is not something that is easy to explain to anyone, but if you know, you know . . . I would not have it any other way.

 

I was looking at this photograph of me yesterday. I think I was at best 17 years old.  I never ever thought that I was pretty back then.  My hair was too curly, I bit my nails, my lips were too thin, etc. I was always too eager to see only my flaws. I thought I had it all figured out. I was very naive to say the least. I knew nothing. What would I tell that young girl now if I could??  I would tell her to be patient. To not be in such a hurry.  To value herself. To get educated before she did anything else in life. To believe in and to follow her dreams. To wait for a truly good man to come along, and only then to give her heart to him.

I cannot complain about the life I have had, however. I am who I am because of it. Because of the mistakes I have made, etc. My brokenness has built who I am now, and taught and stretched me and I like who I am now. I would not be that person without having had all of the struggles. They were worth it.

 

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I have much to be getting on with today. I love the busy-ness of life. I need to strip the bed in the spare room and then put it back together. I want to vacuum and dust. Mop the floors.  I have my regular work to do as well. It's all good. A busy life is a happy life. 

We lost our power for a time on Saturday. I went out shopping with Cindy early Saturday morning and when we got back to town, we noticed the traffic lights were not working in the town center, so we knew then the power was out. It was still on where Cindy lives, but clearly not where I live. When I pulled into my drive Sheila next door came running out to tell me. She was very distressed about it. Of course, her phone won't work when the power is out, and she really relies on it. I reassured her that it would not be out for long and it wasn't. By the time I got all of my bags into the house and unpacked it was back on again.  Sometimes it is good to unplug from everything in the world and to just be. Quiet. Peaceful. At rest.

We rely so much upon these modern amenities. It is good to take a break from them from time to time.  The key to peace is knowing that we can get along without these things if we need to, even if only for a short time.  Electricity is something I take for granted most of the time, and I would really not want to be without it for a long period of time, but I can cope without it for a short. In the Winter it would be harder as there would be no heat.

Life goes on.  My life is filled with an abundance of love and other things.  Family. Faith. Home. I stand in need of nothing.  I am blessed to be able to say that.

A thought to carry with you  . . . 

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •

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

 *.The simplest pleasures are

sometimes the most extraordinary.

~Edgar Allen Poe  ° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ 

 In the English Kitchen today, a really good Ham Sandwich. It's not rocket science of course, but it is good and some may appreciate the inspiration. With layers of goat cheese, rocket, good ham and cranberry pepper jelly.

I hope you have a beautiful day and that your week ahead is filled with abundance.  Be happy and be blessed. May you have all that you stand in need of and then some to share.  Don't forget!

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And I do too!