Will you say 'amazing', or, 'beautiful' first? Maybe you'll say, "I can make that!" That is the way to go for wedding flowers, if you can afford it! Check out Lauren and Kurt's wedding (like I know them), the cake with dark chocolate frosting and white paper flowers is marvelous. Which is more sad: that you and I didn't get to eat any, or that those gorgeous white flowers got chocolate frosting on them?
This may not be for everyone but there are several people in my family who will enjoy it. The Wilderness Interface Zone (I'm not super excited about the name, let's say it's the Nature Story Center or something.) Those who enjoy a good long walk or a Sunday drive and a story are the ones I'm thinking about. It definately has me missing the dry, sandy hills and real mountains: something rock solid that rises higher than the treetops.
The second entry in Exponent II's The Best of the Blog means so much to me I need to send for a hard copy, if it's possible. It's called In the Shadow of His Wings by Deborah F. Kris. Read it, then come back and finish reading what I have so say about it (it is short). Really, I mean it. Now...
This part, "On her exhale, I felt a force from Elsewhere, felt more love than my body could hold, as if God wanted to touch her for just a moment in this lonely world and my lap was the nearest conduit." I have felt that in my work with children in Allentown. With foster children in my home, teenage girls who need a ride; and the strong, yet vulnerable children I see on Sunday. Even for just a moment in this lonely world, never seems enough. But then the comment from a reader after the essay makes me feel like the little I do may be good.
Guess what? David Archuletta attended church in our building today! After church we were hanging around chatting and someone whispered that he was in the congregation that was meeting then. I went out to the car and told A and J who definately wanted a chance to catch a glimpse. It was hard to resist the chance to see him, but not wanting to turn church into a mob scene we waited in the foyer. It was a 50/50 proposition and we lost out, he left out the other foyer. A. said it was OK that we didn't see him, it was exciting anyway, and she can't wait to tell her class. David is playing at a club nearby this evening. DH said it is neat to know he makes such an effort to attend church even on the road.
Today our little branch fasted for unity. It is amazing what effect these fast days have on me, now that my attitude toward scripture study has changed. It is a peaceful rolling of the spirit, over and throughout me. I shared feelings about my gratitude for being in a Spanish congregation and the love and sense of belonging I feel here, the mourning I feel for those who are absent and shared my knowledge of those things I know are true.
Sometimes, saying things out loud cements them in your mind- In the last two months I have had a change of heart concerning some things in our branch. Nothing about the branch has changed. God has changed my attitude, my humility, and my belief in myself: that difficult things can be borne. It seems, I constantly have to be reassured.
Teichert, Minerva: Rescue of the Lost Lamb.
My favorite paragraphs? The first and the last. I too loved the picture of the chocolate cake with white flowers. Simply stunning and beautiful. I'm also grateful for your last words of conviction. It's a strength to me, more than you could ever realize.
Posted by: Sweet Escape | March 01, 2009 at 10:21 PM