• Faith - Family

    Our Country, the Bible and Families

    As I listened to the band play the song for each branch of the army, I thought of my Dad. He had been a co-pilot during WWII, carrying out missions over Europe. He didn’t talk about it much until late in life. My son-in-law was playing the trumpet in a…

  • Gardening - Herbs - Nature

    Garlic and Rosemary

    April showers and sunshine turn my thoughts to the garden. I have started some tomato plants from seed, and next I will start some basil.  It is a pleasure to walk outside and see the trees and bushes bud, and then flower. The perennial plants are beginning to sprout. The…

  • Faith - Flowers - Gardening - Nature

    The Promise of Spring

    The snowdrops by the door lift upward, sweet and pure, their delicate bells; and soon in the calm blaze of noon, by lowly window-sills will laugh the daffodils! Celia Thaxter (1836 – 1894) The snowdrops and crocuses are blooming in my yard.  The cherry tree is still barren but soon it…

  • Faith - Family - Flowers - Grandparents

    Finding Joy in Daily Life

    The snow outside is bright white and glistening. The thermometer reads 0 degrees Fahrenheit, and yet I am able to take a hot shower in a warm house. It is a blessing! Everyday there are little and significant blessings in our lives when we pause to take notice. I am…

  • Faith - Family

    It’s Not By Chance

    This past week we read and discussed Psalm 139 in our women’s Bible Study. We marveled at God’s knowledge of us, our thoughts and actions. Whatever our circumstance, God is there! God knows our beginning. Our life is not by chance. For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me…

  • Children - Faith

    The Obedience of Faith

    Trust and Obey. The words to this hymn come to me easily. Throughout my childhood we sang it at church. There is a blessing in memorizing Bible verses and singing hymns as a child. The words reside in memory. The first verse about trust that I think of is Proverbs…

  • Faith - Family - Flowers - Marriage

    Aware and Giving Thanks

    God is so good. He created a wonderful world with flowers, fruit and vegetables. The first home for humans was a garden. And the Lord planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. Genesis 2:8 God designed the family. Therefore a…

  • Faith - Flowers - Michigan - Nature

    Seeking and Finding

    When we pause to notice creation all around, us we become aware of provisions that demonstrate God’s love. Along the coast of Lake Superior, a bluebell flower emerges among the rocks. Along a path a trillium with petals sways in the breeze. The flowers appear on the earth, the time…

  • Faith - Nature

    The Joy of Springtime

    The rhythm that God has set in place give me a sense of stability and peace. He created days, nights, weeks and months.  And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and…