News from the Creek
I have been so busy enjoying the Autumn season, I haven't had much time to write about it!
There have been several trips to the mountains, adventures in new places, funny stories and deep thoughts ... the kind you only seem to find at the end of a trail listening to a waterfall that mirrors the colors of fall and sings it's own kind of song down the river valley ...
I have thought about some of the things some of you have said ... I've wrapped my mind around some and discarded others that didn't stand up to close inspection. I've stood back and monitored my own reactions. I've stopped by your blogs, sometimes without commenting, happy to just swim the data stream and enjoy the ever changing view.
I have looked at the view and asked the question, "What is that to me?" My answers were varied. I admire the over-comers. I cherish the thoughtful and kind. I celebrate the victories and blessings. I watch some and wonder why they choose the things they choose, shrug my shoulders and think, "Well, they must have a good reason though I can't imagine what it might be" and go on without judgment of them or their choices ...
I've thought a lot about discernment. I learned discernment from my mother. She taught me that seeing and knowing are sometimes two different things. She taught me that sometimes, knowing doesn't mean we have to DO anything about it ... that knowing sometimes is simply so that we can avoid some thing in ourselves or someone else. She also said that discernment is a responsibility. When something is revealed to us, it is our responsibility to pray for the person, the situation or the dilemma, but it NOT our responsibility to make that knowledge public. Discernment is a spiritual gift, but that gift can be taken away as easily as it was given if we use it to harm another or make our self look BIG and important.
I've thought about how my mother taught me about spiritual gifts and I wondered if I had taught my children? I don't know if I taught them but I do know I have witnessed them using discernment before and a few of them have shared a story, saying, "Mom, you know how we are? Well, I was ..."
I have looked at the view and asked the question, "What is that to me?" My answers were varied. I admire the over-comers. I cherish the thoughtful and kind. I celebrate the victories and blessings. I watch some and wonder why they choose the things they choose, shrug my shoulders and think, "Well, they must have a good reason though I can't imagine what it might be" and go on without judgment of them or their choices ...
I've thought a lot about discernment. I learned discernment from my mother. She taught me that seeing and knowing are sometimes two different things. She taught me that sometimes, knowing doesn't mean we have to DO anything about it ... that knowing sometimes is simply so that we can avoid some thing in ourselves or someone else. She also said that discernment is a responsibility. When something is revealed to us, it is our responsibility to pray for the person, the situation or the dilemma, but it NOT our responsibility to make that knowledge public. Discernment is a spiritual gift, but that gift can be taken away as easily as it was given if we use it to harm another or make our self look BIG and important.
I've thought about how my mother taught me about spiritual gifts and I wondered if I had taught my children? I don't know if I taught them but I do know I have witnessed them using discernment before and a few of them have shared a story, saying, "Mom, you know how we are? Well, I was ..."
I haven't spent the whole month in deep thoughts ...
I have watched the leaves turn ... Did you know that the changing colors aren't because the leaves become gold or orange or red ... They change colors as the chlorophyll withdraws from the tree. The leaves were always that color but the chlorophyll made them seem more green!
We had rain for two days and a few windy days too so a lot of the leaves have already fallen while others have hung on and continue to turn to gold and orange.
There have been a few days where the leaves fall like snowflakes in the woods. It is so peaceful to watch them float to the ground ... ON those days, they even sound like snow falling and occasionally, they drift up the way snow sometimes does ...
The branches and the wood are starting to show through and with less leaves, the especially blue sky shows more and light plays with shadows in the most intriguing ways, shining on places that hardly ever see that kind of light. It's beautiful to watch the woods change.
I wonder if change looks that beautiful when it happens to us?
It must!
I have been cooking a bit more and I have found two things you might like to try.
The first is to make your favorite chili and add cinnamon! That's right! Try it! It's good! You can do it like I did ... I added 1/4 teaspoon at a time until it was PERFECT ... BEST chili I have ever made! I'm not sure any one would recognize the cinnamon but it adds a savory quality that is deeper and warmer somehow ... It is really good ... try it!
The second was a whim. I noticed that JELL-O is making a new flavor this year: pumpkin pudding! I made a dessert:
PUMPKIN DESSERT
PUMPKIN DESSERT
1 2-cup package of pudding, prepared with 2 cups milk.
Whip together and add 1/2 of a cool whip container to the pudding.
Put the bowl in the fridge for 10-15 minutes to get more set.
Fold it into a graham cracker pie crust and top with the rest of the Cool Whip!
It tastes like pumpkin mousse! Yummy and perfect to follow behind a full course Thanksgiving dinner because it's so light! A friend suggested adding 8 ounces of softened cream cheese to the pudding mix and that sounded good too ... I might have to try that next!
Oh! While we are talking about domestic things, I have found three "tricks" that have saved me tons of time this month when I obviously would rather have been outside than cleaning inside:
Oh! While we are talking about domestic things, I have found three "tricks" that have saved me tons of time this month when I obviously would rather have been outside than cleaning inside:
Cool Trick #1:
Swiffer makes a duster that just sucks up the dust! I feel like that lady in the commercial. It makes light work of getting dust off all surfaces in a fraction of the time and it really works!
Cool Trick #2:
Clorox Disinfecting Wipes make short work of cleaning off countertops in the kitchen and baths. You could use them to give a quick surface cleaning to appliances and toilet fixtures as well ... again ... takes NO TIME!
Cool Trick #3:
Fabreze has a limited scent called "apple spice and delight" that makes the whole house smell like fresh baked apple pie.
Those three things and a quick vacuum of the house and you are ready to go! How cool is that? I can be my own Maid!
Outside, I hate raking and the back ache and blisters that go with it ... but a mulching lawn mower can reduce all those leaves into a fine layer of mulch that covers and protect your yard from the winter frost ... again ... no blisters ... no fuss ... done in half the time! I can be my own gardener too!
Outside, I hate raking and the back ache and blisters that go with it ... but a mulching lawn mower can reduce all those leaves into a fine layer of mulch that covers and protect your yard from the winter frost ... again ... no blisters ... no fuss ... done in half the time! I can be my own gardener too!
Life is good! Hope you find time for all the things that matter!
Love and Light from Healing Creek,
Taylor
P.S. Important Scam Warning!
I hate it when people forward bogus warnings...but this one is
real, and I think it's important. If someone comes to your door saying they are conducting a survey on deer ticks and asks you to take your clothes off and dance around with your arms up,
DO NOT DO IT!! IT IS A SCAM; they only want to see you naked.
P.S. Important Scam Warning!
I hate it when people forward bogus warnings...but this one is
real, and I think it's important. If someone comes to your door saying they are conducting a survey on deer ticks and asks you to take your clothes off and dance around with your arms up,
DO NOT DO IT!! IT IS A SCAM; they only want to see you naked.
I wish I'd gotten this yesterday. I feel so stupid!!
No comments:
Post a Comment