Some Notes Along the Way

All Saints' Day....

2011-11-01T07:54:00.000-07:00

Thinking of so many who have gone ahead of us.... the words from the old hymn "For All the Saints" comes to mind. I thought i would share them here:

For all the saints, who from their labors rest,
who thee by faith before the world confessed,
thy name, O Jesus, be forever blest.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

Thou wast their rock, their fortress, and their might;
thou Lord, their captain in the well-fought fight;
thou in the darkness drear, their one true light.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

O may thy soldiers, faithful, true, and bold,
fight as the saints who nobly fought of old,
and win with them the victor's crown of gold.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

O blest communion, fellowship divine!
We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;
yet all are one in thee, for all are thine.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

And when the strife is fierce, the warfare long,
steals on the ear the distant triumph song,
and hearts are brave again, and arms are strong.
Alleluia, Alleluia!

From earth's wide bounds, from ocean's farthest coast,
through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,
singing to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost:
Alleluia, Alleluia!
William W. How, 1823-1897

Yahzreit... a candle for Mom

2011-06-23T09:56:00.001-07:00

Yahzreit…
(Yiddish for “A Year’s Time”)
Lighting a Candle for Mom.

A year ago today you lay so still
Barely breathing
The life just ebbing away.
Your body, stilled. Your soul releasing.Your spirit heading home.
Is this not an incredible fact… Why hadn’t I sensed it before?
The opposite of “incarnation” occurring before our eyes!
Spirit and flesh
Form and soul
The seen and unseen joined.
The flesh once lifeless,
Comes alive to dance its days on earth.
Your joyful smile, the girl on the beach,
Running at Malibu’s edge.
The fun-loving friend … the sister… the bride.
A beauty, both inside and out.
The wife, the mother, the volunteer—
The “Nana” extraordinaire!
The widow, the friend, the loving soul.
A beauty both inside and out.

Your spirit lives in an unseen place,
that one day I too will know.
Perhaps there the dove still coos her morning song
When I see your smile again.

CWB

....I'm off to London to visit the Queen! well, soon...

2011-03-28T08:11:00.000-07:00

The land of Royal Weddings, Castles, poets, cathedrals, monks, and monasteries... not to mention nursery rhymes, Paddington Bear, Beatrix Potter and of course, Winnie the Pooh... I cannot wait!
Here's a link to the tale behind the nursery rhyme, Pussy Cat Pussy Cat, Where have you been?...Windsor Castle is where we will be come next weekend! I am going to see if i can find that little kitty who frightened the little mouse under her chair!
Stay tuned for more info!

11 days, and Counting!

2011-03-20T08:22:00.001-07:00

Just like Christopher Robin getting a little help pulling his Big Boots for the "expotition".... i am beginning to get helpful pointers from dear friends who have been to London before me. Also, long talks with Michael, reviewing our itinerary... purchasing tickets for palaces in advance, meeting with Mary and looking at maps and guidebooks... developing a "plan"....what can i say, but "this should be a most wonderful adventure!"?

Closer than breathing...

2011-03-08T09:09:00.000-08:00

a reflection on today's 24 hours a Day Devotional and Prayer

'Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.

Revelation 3:20

Just when i think that i am alone in a situation God always reaches out... a call from a friend, an email that says just what i needed to hear... a bird, flying close by my window. He meets me in ways that, if i am open to God's presence, however He chooses to touch me, i can depend upon it.

Dear Lord,
I pray that I may be helped and healed by true spiritual fellowship. I
pray that I may sense Your presence in spiritual fellowship with those i come in contact with today. Help me to remember You are always at the door of my heart.
In Your Name, I pray.
Amen

Psalm 16

2011-03-04T05:50:00.000-08:00

Psalm 16

Protect me, O God, because I take refuge in you.
I said to the Lord,
“You are my Lord. Without you, I have nothing good.”

be with me as a start this day. when i walk out the door, let me know You are by my side.

Those who lead holy lives on earth
are the noble ones who fill me with joy.
Those who quickly chase after other gods multiply their sorrows.
I will not pour out their sacrificial offerings of blood
or use my lips to speak their names.

too much bad news and gossip on the TV and in the papers. Jesus, thank You for bringing Your Words to mind as i begin another day.

The Lord is my inheritance and my cup.
You are the one who determines my destiny.
Your boundary lines mark out pleasant places for me.
Indeed, my inheritance is something beautiful.

when i see the edges of my life hemmed in by Your grace, there is peace and beauty. Yes, truly, my inheritance IS in You!

I will praise the Lord, who advises me.
My conscience warns me at night.

If i listen i will hear You. quiet my chatty mind so i may hear Your voice.

I always keep the Lord in front of me.
When he is by my side, I cannot be moved.
That is why my heart is glad and my soul rejoices.

My body rests securely
because you do not abandon my soul to the grave
or allow your holy one to decay.

and so i enter this new day. renewed and reminded that You are with me... every step of the way.

Amen.
You make the path of life known to me.
Complete joy is in your presence.
Pleasures are by your side forever.
and Amen.

Morning Directions...

2011-02-25T05:53:00.000-08:00

Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love,
For in You I trust.
Make me know the road that I should go,
for I lift up my soul to you.
Psalm 143:8

so often i wake up in the morning and when the first thought could be "thank you Lord for safety through the night" i immediately jump to the list of what's on my calendar. i did that this morning. Fortunately i opened the page of a devotional (not really thinking it would lead to an hour of quiet and study)... and read the Psalm 143. It sets me back into a place of humility and trust in the Lord's plans for my day. not mine.

I remember the days of old, I meditate on all that you have done;
I Ponder the work of your hands. I stretch out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land
Psalm 143:6

yes i feel a bit like that parched land. fighting a cold all week, that is full blown this morning. one more day to the office. but like the psalmist, i too can reflect on "the days of old". i can meditate on "all that you have done." and i am released from the stress of heading into a new day, feeling i don't have the steam to make it through. i may not. but God does. and together, we will.

Dear Father God,
I thank you that you remind me in loving ways that i do not head into the day alone. You are with me. and it is not my list that i pray to be done, it is your will. Thank You for your guiding light... all my days
in Your Name i pray. Amen

Bright Morning Star... a morning meditation

2011-02-24T09:54:00.001-08:00

I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this message for the churches. I am both the source of David and the heir to his throne. I am the bright morning star.
Revelation 22:16

I often walk our dog early in the morning. As I step outdoors there is a crunch of frost on the lawn and the overhead sky is still dim, a bright star hangs on the edge of the dawn. When Jesus calls Himself “the Bright Morning Star” I am reminded that He also told us He is the Light of the world (John 8:12). Revelation 21:23 says that in the new Heaven and Earth, “The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.” Jesus Himself is all the Light we need. Whether early in the morning of a new day full of hope and promise, or in the midst of a long, unsettling dark night, we can be assured that He will be with us giving us all the Light we need.

Dear Jesus, our Bright Morning Star,
Night and the day are the same to you. Shine Your light so brightly that I may never forget that you have promised whoever follows you will NEVER walk in darkness. Let me walk in your light forever.
In Your Most Radiant Name, I pray,
Amen

Preparing for England

2011-02-16T08:20:00.000-08:00

i have three new travel books... Eyewitness Travel Guide to Great Britain and London, and a beatuiful guidebook by Knoph Guides on England and Wales
Recent movies, The Queen with Helen Miren, Young Victoria, and of course Harry Potter! I have been looking forward to seeing for myself the place that Pooh (Winnie the Pooh, that is) was born.

My current bedside read is Ken Follet's "The Pillars of the Earth".

It's a drizzly day here in Poway, and i notice that the weather gadget on my laptop tells me it is 48 degrees and sunny in London. Enough of this for now... 43 days to go, and counting!

Proverbs 16:9 a verse for today

2011-02-15T06:32:00.000-08:00

Last night Earl and i were driving back from town... Valentine pizza at the local shop... and the heater in the car wouldn't get warm. hmmmm then he noticed the thermostat reading warmer and warmer... we gingerly made it to the house and determined that today, Tuesday, we wouldn't be heading home right away.

instead of packing, we are waiting for Napa auto parts to open. I have taken Butters for a morning walk... and sit here at the kitchen table watching a mountain jay on the porch.

Proverbs 16:9 We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps.....

so today will unfold for us. not according to our plans... but the Lord's. "Thy will be done." A sweet reminder this should be my prayer not only when i bump into a change not of my making, but every day.

Valentine's Day...

2011-02-14T06:29:00.000-08:00

I've always loved Valentines Day. First in school... making a Valentines Box. a shoebox covered with paper lace, hearts, ribbons and doilies. I loved making a card for everyone in the class. Even the teacher. It was like remembering how God loves us. All of us... no matter what. Not only the giving but receiving. Some funny. Some sweet. the one from the boy i wish would remember me....

now i sit by the fireplace in this mountain home. Earl is still sleeping.
Butters and i have been for an early walk. Stars were still set like diamonds in the morning sky. the silence here wraps me in its arms and holds me. sweeter than candy is this place. more beautiful than lace and ribbons is the quiet.
being loved frees me to love and today i celebrate that freedom.
today i still love Valentine's Day. and even more, i still love you.

My First Shepherd

2010-12-07T05:52:00.001-08:00

Before I had any sisters or brothers, there was my German shepherd, Deena. My first childhood recollections begin in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. I wasn’t even two, as that was when my sister Rebecca was born. But I do remember those early days and Deena. Clearly, I see myself climbing up on the kitchen counter. Deena was sitting and waiting eagerly below me. It’s funny, I don’t often think of myself as ever having been so little, but surely I was, because I stood on the Formica counter top and reached up to open the dark green cupboard door. We knew we shouldn’t be doing this, but she was my “guard dog” and she was doing her part. I reached into the cupboard and took out the box of dog biscuits. I climbed down from the ledge and out we went! When Deena and I were safely on the back porch, she had her biscuit, and I must confess, I had mine.
So many years have passed. Recently my Dad gave me a box containing old photographs from when I was quite young. There is one that just lifts my heart to see. It was taken on a snowy day in Massachusetts. I am dressed in my little wool coat and leggings, with my hat and mittens, and I am holding a large shovel. I had been “helping” my father clear some of the snow. And Deena, beautiful shepherd that she was, sits next to me. What amazes me so is that even though she is seated, she is bigger than I am. She is big and strong and beautiful and was my first friend. And she was my shepherd.

All of my life, I have been blessed to know I am loved and protected by God. Not always an obedient child, I have always been willing to help my Father in whatever way I can. He’s given me the tools, whether a shovel or a pen. He’s dressed me for the day’s weather and like the beautiful shepherd, He has always been by my side.

"... with God Alone"

2010-04-16T08:28:00.000-07:00

A week ago i was in the air... on my way back to the States. Today i am at my desk, feeling grateful i was not delayed by a volcanic eruption in Iceland as many thousands of travellers to and from Europe are today.

Michael's blog, a reading from "Imitation of Christ" posts one of my favorite sections of it. A great reminder of the importance of sitting quietly in the presence of God. Alone... but not alone. Empty, but full. Still, but fully engaged in resting in God.

It makes me think of one of my favorite excerpts of poetry. John Greenleaf Whittier's poem "The Meeting" contains this verse:

...And so i find it well to come
For deeper rest to this still room,
For here the habit of the soul
Feels less the outer world's control
The strength of mutual purpose pleads
More earnestly our common needs;
And from the silence multiplied
By these still forms on either side,
The world that time and sense have known
Falls off and leaves us God alone.

May you experience today the peace that comes from the quiet moments, "with God alone".

ps... for the "Imitation of Christ" reading, check out Michael's blog:

http://www.lifearoundthecollar.com/

The photo is in the Benedictine Stift Melk in Austria. Mirrors and space... reflection and silence.

Stift Klosterneuburg --

2010-04-12T05:38:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of me in front of the Stift. It is so large that it is difficult to take pictures that ever have all of it in them. These two towers are the steeples of the church... i will show you the inside of it next.

I'm Home! My Journey.... from the beginning

2010-04-10T10:38:00.001-07:00

4/1/2010 Thursday Morning, Packed and ready to go to the airport. San Diego to Dulles, DC.... Dulles to Vienna

The first view of the Austrian Alps...

Michael... Looking wonderful and showing me my room.

This trip lasted only 9 days, but as i review the pictures and notes, it unpacks like a zipped file to be so much more than that!!!! I have figured that each day was more like three days long, and i certainly took the nearly 1000 photos to prove that! Don't worry though, i won't drag you through all of them. I think i will post a few at a time, chronologically. If nothing else, i look look forward to reviewing my journal... through pictures, sounds and words with you. I hope it is not too much of a bore.

Auf Wiedersehen!

2010-03-31T10:26:00.000-07:00

Well, i will be off to austria in the morning! i am sure the Earl won't mind me not waking up at 3 in the morning to weigh my suitcase! As i was looking at the Canons Regular site, to see where i am going to spend the next week, i found this page with Michael and Jason's photos.... as well as a pic of Michael and Jason when jay was visiting over Christmas. http://www.augustiniancanons.org/Whats%20New/News.htm

2 Days until Vienna!!!

2010-03-30T11:02:00.001-07:00

"This place where you are right now
God circled for you on a map."
Haviz -- 14th century Persian poet

i will be staying with Michael at Stift Klosterneuburg. if you are interested in finding out "what is a stift" please check out this link to Michael's blog. http://www.lifearoundthecollar.com/category/lifearound-thecollar/what-am-i-doing-where-am-i-going

2 weeks until Vienna!!!!

2010-03-18T18:28:00.000-07:00

I am getting so excited about this visit to Michael. I have been reading guidebooks and looking at websites for 2 months. Jess has loaned me her suitcase and carry-on and Mom got me a little day pack that i plan to put to good use! It is hard to believe that it was 33 years ago that Steve and i went to Greece... so long ago. Michael was 3.... no Jessica, no Jason, no Sarah. I had no idea of all the days ahead. Wonderful and terrible. such are the days of our lives. Today i am happy with my children grown, and Earl as my husband. God has never let go of me, and i feel that this trip is certainly one of His blessings to me!

Getting ready for Klosterneuburg!

2010-03-11T06:41:00.000-08:00

I am so excited about my trip to visit Michael, aka Kilian, in Austria! I hope to keep a journal and perhaps get a piece or two written while i am spending my week there.... but what i seem to be preparing for is to sketch with my notes along the way.

I have been searching sites, starting to sketch license plates or little scenes of my day. Here's a link to another blog i am finding helpful. travelsketch.blogspot.com Trust me I am NOT an artist!!!! However, i do see things that grab my attention, and i want to hold in some permanent way.

This sketch was from yesterday on my way to work. Our community has been hit hard with the murder of Chelsea King... and seeing this just made me think how grateful i am for each moment i have with the people i love.

A Day with a Friend....

2010-02-19T06:22:00.000-08:00

Flo moved to Arkansas three years ago. She is visiting her sister this week and on Wednesday she and i got together for some catching up time. We had lunch at "The Spot" in La Jolla. After lunch we walked down by the Children's Pool....the place where the seals have caused so much controversy. But what a beautiful day! Two friends who have long been on the Journey... raising families, loving God, going through difficult phases, and truly, in the long run of it "counting it all joy!" Flo is one of those people in my life that truly brings Christ to me. Her loving spirit is a gift. Our afternoon together, a serendiptous pleasure, indeed!

A New Life Verse

2010-01-25T10:38:00.000-08:00

For the last 8 years, Ephesians 2:10 has been my "life verse". For we are his workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God has before prepared that we should walk in them. However, last Saturday as i was doing my morning meditation i read Hebrews 12.... specifically Hebrews 12:2 " Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
there are a few things in this verse that grabbed my attention. First, "let us fix our eyes on Jesus".... i realize how easily my "eyes" are diverted. Even after so many years of faith, the distractions of this world, well, to put it simply, distract me. The class i am taking now (New Testament Survey) has me reading through the NT. No commentary. Just reading the Bible, one page at a time, one book at a time. It has convicted me of how my reading often has deteriorated into soundbites of verses. Reading the Gospels, pure and simple, reminds me of fixing my eyes (again) on Jesus.
The second standout for me in this verse is the wonderful description as the Lord as the Author and Perfecter (or Finisher) of our faith. It is in Him we were created, our life stories begun, and in Him will finish. Again, the distractions of daily living, the news on TV or the Internet, leave this wonderful fact alone. The mess of the world... well, there is more to it than one party or the other, one greedy corporation or another, one country or another... and the truth of peace for me today lies in this fact...God is the Author and Perfecter of, not only my faith, but my life.

(to be continued)

from my morning meditation....

2010-01-15T08:11:00.000-08:00

Meditation For The Day

I will relax and not get tense.
I will have no fear, because everything will work out in the end.
I will learn soul-balance and poise in a vacillating, changing world.
I will claim God's power and use it because if I do not
use it, it will be withdrawn.
As long as I get back to God
and replenish my strength after each task,
no work can be too much.

Prayer for the Day
I pray that I may relax and that God's strength will be
given to me.
I pray that I may subject my will to God's
will and be free from all tenseness.

From “24 Hours a Day”
January 15

This has been a busy week. Work, tax prep, Mom started her chemo treatments and had her first blood transfusion since i was born (yikes! That was a while ago!)... and today i will meet her doctor.

This meditation is perfect for me today. Understanding that the Lord can (and will) meet all my needs today, for the things that need to be done is something i can rely on.

Some notes along the way....

2010-01-08T06:04:00.000-08:00

2010 is the calendar year in which i will turn 60. I have been taking notes along the way for many years in little journals, of which i have so many it is embarrassing at this point in my life. However, it is at "this point in my life" i find myself today, and writing in a blog seems a reasonable thing to do.