The End will Explain

Will not the end explain
The crossed endeavor, earnest purpose foiled,
The strange bewilderment of good work spoiled,
The clinging weariness, the inward strain,
Will not the end explain?

Meanwhile He comforteth
Them that are losing patience, 'Tis His way:
But none can write the words they hear Him say
For men to read; only they know He saith 
Sweet words, and comforteth.

Not that He doth explain
The mystery that baffleth; but a sense
Husheth the quiet heart, that far, far hence
Lieth a field set thick with golden grain
Wetted in seedling days by many a rain;
The end -- it will explain.

- Amy Carmichael

40th Anniversary

Happy 40th Anniversary, Dad and Mom!

Celebrations began with a couple days at a favorite state park with canoe, camera, hiking shoes and games.

Photo credit, Maren

Celebrations continued in an evening with Maren and Jason, who brought a favorite pie: rhubarb cream pie with fluffy meringue on top. (Elsa made rhubarb-strawberry crumble for the two of us.)

Today's Bouquet - 7.22.2017

Contented, Yet Discontented

Teach me contentment, Lord, whate'er my lot,
keeping my eyes on You in trust,
knowing Your love is true, Your way is just.

Teach discontentment, Lord, with what I am;
daily striving, growing daily nearer,
finding You are daily closer, dearer.

Contented, Lord, yet discontented make me,
both together working, blending
all in Your own glory ending.

- Ruth Bell Graham
from Sitting by my laughing fire...

June Bouquets 2017

The first flush of roses was a joy to eyes and noses!

Large and small...

  

Even the dropping petals create their own wild beauty.

Nautically Patriotic

Red, white, and blue were the colors of the day wherever we looked on the Fourth of July. Even the tables of pies brought to our annual gathering at the lake were festive. Thankfully there were enough for the 125 family and friends who came - with leftovers for supper!

Meanwhile, I have been enjoying working with patriotic colors of wool yarn, though the flags Elsa and I are knitting are international symbols rather than belonging to any one country. Knitting maritime signal flags is the closest we are currently getting to the sailing we used to enjoy.

This addition to the Hand.maid.en Etsy shop has been a long time under development and is still awaiting the official photography before it will be posted. The first pillow sham took days and weeks to turn out the right size for Elsa, and it has been undergoing "stress-testing" for some months to help fine-tune the final design.

Meanwhile, the initial knit in relief on the back of the pillow (showing which letter each flag represents when used in combination) takes much knitting and un-knitting for Elsa to perfect. I have also re-done all of the sewing on the side seams since we recently hit on the best way to do it. But the angled color designs of some flags are totally up to Elsa for now. I stick to the straight lines!

Part of the fun of these pillows is the meanings behind the flags. "C," called "Charlie" stands for "Affirmative." While "T" as in "Tango" means "Keep clear of me; I am engaged in pair trawling."

What do I love?

Suffering doesn't teach me about myself from a textbook, 
it teaches me from my heart. 
It will always show me what I love -- 
either the God of all comfort 
or the comfort that can become my god.

- Joni Eareckson Tada
from Holiness in Hidden Places

Mid-June Garden Tour

Yes, I am behind! These photos were taken while we were showing Maren and Jason around the gardens on Father's Day.

Come with us to the cement slab where our barn used to stand. 

It is now a living, growing space - supported by the raised beds Dad planned all winter, began building this spring, and got much help to finish building after his heart attack.

Lettuce and radishes have been making many amazing meals for us since early June.

The snap and snow peas are a delicious treat as of June 29th.

Heavy rains mean less watering - even while they spatter the plants with mud.

When I was little, we planted an old-fashioned Mock Orange next to the sheep-barn. This was its last spring to bloom as we will be taking down the bush that is unsightly all the other 50 weeks of the year.

Beyond the silo stretches another row of low, raised gardens.

Our horticulturalist helped find the culprit for holes in our cabbage leaves.

Farther down the line grows sweet-corn with a stabilizing net waiting a couple feet above. 

Nearby (but rather far from the house!) are the strawberry beds.

Last year's plants are producing!

The new plants are doing their best to catch up.

In yet another patch grow elderberries.

This is the first year we are saving our few honeyberries from the birds. Quite a yummy, different flavor!

Nearer home is our old garden, which is now shrinking mostly to the corner of perennial flowers.

Beyond the old garden is the ever-growing orchard. Apples, pears, and a new apricot tree given for Father's Day.

Dad gets quite a bit of produce out of our eight acres in his retirement!

June Flowers 2017

Lilies in several vibrant colors

Purple Bachelor Buttons and pungent Cilantro self-seeded from last year

 A row of pink Simplicity Roses in the background

The last yellow Rose on our earliest blooming bush

Double Impatiens that remind us of roses

Flower-shaped Succulents

Still Good?

The following quote is attributed to Alexis de Tocqueville, a statesman, historian, and social philosopher from the 1800's. Since an online search turns up slight variations in the quote, I have included two versions. It is worth reading twice anyway!

“I sought for the greatness and genius of America in her commodious harbors and her ample rivers – and it was not there . . . in her fertile fields and boundless forests and it was not there . . . in her rich mines and her vast world commerce – and it was not there . . . in her democratic Congress and her matchless Constitution – and it was not there.

Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits aflame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. 
America is great because she is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, she will cease to be great.”

"I sought for the key to the greatness and genius of America in her harbors...; in her fertile fields and boundless forests; in her rich mines and vast world commerce; in her public school system and institutions of learning. I sought for it in her democratic Congress and in her matchless Constitution.

Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power.

America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great."

Even while we celebrate our country's freedom today, we mourn over the ways America has ceased to be good by turning away from God.

Some Birthdays

We have celebrated several birthdays already this year. And while I don't have pictures from them all, here are some.

Grandpa turned 101! It's not easy living in that old of a body, but he still has some very clear days where he can visit and enjoy music and learning new things.

On the same day, Dorothy turned 58! She slept through most of the day but enjoyed her ice-cream and balloon.

I turned 34. Thirty-three was such a nice sounding number that I was a bit sad to leave it behind. But when Mom reminded me how for a whole year I proudly signed my name "Hannah 4," that makes this number fun as well! 

We had two parties; one on my birthday with just those of us at home.

I had the joy of making a cake with egg again, since I have been able to reintroduce that to my diet in small amounts!

The second party was when Maren and Jason could join us. May is not a good month for them to leave the greenhouses alone, nor do they have energy to spare. It was special to have them here!

This cake I made for Elsa. Without the eggs, chocolate, or GF grains of mine.

As a party activity we enjoyed pouring over maps sent us by a friend who had traveled to the Maritime provinces of Canada. It's hard to remember just where we explored on our own camping trip there in 1996.

Recently Dad turned 66! All the more special to celebrate because it so nearly was-not.

Elsa and I ate cake left over from my birthday. Dad requested a lemon filled cake.

What could Maren and Jason have wrapped in those long and flat packages??!

Kites! Dad tried one out a couple days later.