More cleaning out of beds. I went to the garden store and saw folks loading up on color and thought, "they aren't going to PLANT those now, are they?"
This time of year always brings people out to plant. The best time to plant is in fall, not spring, as a lot of people thing. Also, now is the time to clean out beds and really nourish the soil.
It's also a great time for thinking about what you can do when the season is in full swing (After April 1 at least..maybe April 15, depending on the weather.)
For example, as I'm sweeping and raking today, I'm thinking, "that shrub should be moved...I want more color here, this needs to be re-done.." so in essence, clean up time is planning time, an essential with gardening and as it turns out, life.
My cat came out to "help" me...she enjoys chewing on the plants but today got a hold of a rose brush with lots of thorns...I'm not sure she enjoyed it much.
Off to soccer game (last one for today -- there has been 4) and tomorrow we have soccer game and bball game.
Saturday, March 12, 2005
Friday, March 11, 2005
Doorway People
Friday afternoon, weekend shaping up...I seem to always get reflective on Fridays.
I'm listening to Dan take message after message from well wishers -- people who have known him for the 18 years he has worked in the telecommunication industry. Evidently, this layout is much deeper than we first realized as many, many great minds are being cut. Interesting to think what all those amazing minds could accomplish if they were to put their heads together someway...what kind of company, what kind of solutions could be found if they could work with their full potential?
Dan has a compadre of people that love him and have loved working with him. Dan is just that kind of person...kind to a fault, thoughtful and steady. The quintessential "Great Guy".
We have the usual kids activities this weekend -- bball tourney, soccer tourney and we're finally starting to paint N's bathroom, which is going to totally ROCK with its dramtic tones and electic feel. The highlight of my week as a mom -- was able to pick out shoes that Nathan will actually wear with a suit when he starts taking on all those Senior Activities....I deserve some honorary medal or some kind of design token for making that happen, I do believe.
I've been thinking about the different passages of life and how the people that we come to know are at times entrances into a new way of thinking. These are the people that provide the emeregence of values, of ideas, and somewhat forcefully cause us to take on the great journey of life.
Some people we come to know are exits that cause us to take the quickest ramp towards something else. Their presence seems to caution us, "go down this way and certain doom will impart."
And then some people are doorways that allow you to explore before unseen and unheard of ideas. They don't stay around too long and they may not show up at dinner. Indeed they may be the author of a book or a teacher that one holds in high regard. They probably can't identify you by name, but you know them and their spirit during the darkest of nights, the roughests of times, the stormiest of seas.
I think these kind of "doorway" people are the true angels of our world. They don't hover. They don't press. They probably do what they do without a lot of fanfare and may not even know how they touch our lives. Its not so much that they introduce things to us as to help us continue down a path that we are already on...they don't alter the course of ones life as much as they define it
...perhaps that we don't realize we are treading. They help us find the signposts that we may be searching, in spite of our ardent claim that we are NOT searching.
They are an extension of a greater power, an extension of a spiritual force that shapes us over time.
The lead us to greater things within ourselves and within our world.
('m not sure the metaphor stands up...so I'll keep thinking about it.)
I'm listening to Dan take message after message from well wishers -- people who have known him for the 18 years he has worked in the telecommunication industry. Evidently, this layout is much deeper than we first realized as many, many great minds are being cut. Interesting to think what all those amazing minds could accomplish if they were to put their heads together someway...what kind of company, what kind of solutions could be found if they could work with their full potential?
Dan has a compadre of people that love him and have loved working with him. Dan is just that kind of person...kind to a fault, thoughtful and steady. The quintessential "Great Guy".
We have the usual kids activities this weekend -- bball tourney, soccer tourney and we're finally starting to paint N's bathroom, which is going to totally ROCK with its dramtic tones and electic feel. The highlight of my week as a mom -- was able to pick out shoes that Nathan will actually wear with a suit when he starts taking on all those Senior Activities....I deserve some honorary medal or some kind of design token for making that happen, I do believe.
I've been thinking about the different passages of life and how the people that we come to know are at times entrances into a new way of thinking. These are the people that provide the emeregence of values, of ideas, and somewhat forcefully cause us to take on the great journey of life.
Some people we come to know are exits that cause us to take the quickest ramp towards something else. Their presence seems to caution us, "go down this way and certain doom will impart."
And then some people are doorways that allow you to explore before unseen and unheard of ideas. They don't stay around too long and they may not show up at dinner. Indeed they may be the author of a book or a teacher that one holds in high regard. They probably can't identify you by name, but you know them and their spirit during the darkest of nights, the roughests of times, the stormiest of seas.
I think these kind of "doorway" people are the true angels of our world. They don't hover. They don't press. They probably do what they do without a lot of fanfare and may not even know how they touch our lives. Its not so much that they introduce things to us as to help us continue down a path that we are already on...they don't alter the course of ones life as much as they define it
...perhaps that we don't realize we are treading. They help us find the signposts that we may be searching, in spite of our ardent claim that we are NOT searching.
They are an extension of a greater power, an extension of a spiritual force that shapes us over time.
The lead us to greater things within ourselves and within our world.
('m not sure the metaphor stands up...so I'll keep thinking about it.)
Thursday, March 10, 2005
Practical Jokes, lil brother style
If you've never had 4 brothers --- all of them younger -- you may not appreciate this entry. Because only if you have had brothers, would you understand the real meaning of "practical joke".
My brothers always make me laugh and they always surprise me. Today was no exception.
Got an email from my brother Jon, who asked for my fax #. Since my fax is not working, I gave him the number of a UPS store nearby.
A few hours later, I get a call from the UPS store. The usual friendly clerk sounded a bit different on the phone, but I thought little of it.
When I picked up the fax, she smiled and wouldn't catch my eye. She then said, "looks like an interesting fax". I looked at her curiously.
Then I read the cover letter. See, I was not thinking and told my brother, BE SURE TO PUT A COVER LETTER ON IT...thinking, that would be an easy enough thing to do.
I forgot with whom I was dealing...I forgot to think that I gave him a GREAT entry into a great joke, with the laugh on me.
So, I look down at the fax and the cover letter reads, "Maurie and Dan -- GLAD to have you as part of our swingers club....we know you'll make great addition to our club and our events".
I tried to explain to my UPS friend that this was from my little brother, but that didn't seem to help.
My brothers always make me laugh and they always surprise me. Today was no exception.
Got an email from my brother Jon, who asked for my fax #. Since my fax is not working, I gave him the number of a UPS store nearby.
A few hours later, I get a call from the UPS store. The usual friendly clerk sounded a bit different on the phone, but I thought little of it.
When I picked up the fax, she smiled and wouldn't catch my eye. She then said, "looks like an interesting fax". I looked at her curiously.
Then I read the cover letter. See, I was not thinking and told my brother, BE SURE TO PUT A COVER LETTER ON IT...thinking, that would be an easy enough thing to do.
I forgot with whom I was dealing...I forgot to think that I gave him a GREAT entry into a great joke, with the laugh on me.
So, I look down at the fax and the cover letter reads, "Maurie and Dan -- GLAD to have you as part of our swingers club....we know you'll make great addition to our club and our events".
I tried to explain to my UPS friend that this was from my little brother, but that didn't seem to help.
Blabber Blog
Crazy day, lots of business...prospecting at a local community event which was amazing...Once I get there I always enjoy just talking and connecting with people...I have a lot of fun, making dumb jokes with the participants, having fun.
Tomorrow is another busy day. Too many sales professional don't work on Fridays but in my opinion Friday and Monday's are KEY days and one way to get a jump on things is to work a full week (hard to do when you are 'self-employed'...especially on these beautiful spring days.
Spent my few spare minutes thinking about garden design plans...
Tomorrow is another busy day. Too many sales professional don't work on Fridays but in my opinion Friday and Monday's are KEY days and one way to get a jump on things is to work a full week (hard to do when you are 'self-employed'...especially on these beautiful spring days.
Spent my few spare minutes thinking about garden design plans...
Wednesday, March 09, 2005
Sanctuary Garden
When the word sanctuary is ued I generally refer to a spiritual type of place...perhaps even a church.
The real meaning of sanctuary to me is now more and more in my garden. In fact there is a entire way of gardening that is referred to as "sanctuary gardening". (www.cortesia.org).
Here are a few guiding principles of such an endeavor...
1 - embrace your sacredness
2 - embrace the sacredness of the world
3 - acknowledge the value of sanctuary for yourself, nature and all other beings and places
4 - create sacred time and space for yourself every day
5 - practice nonjudgment and compassion
6 - give of yourself to bring more joy, beauty, hope and peace into the world
7 - practice reverence for life.
I'm not one much for dogmas or creeds, but these ideas just seem to make sense to me. Sure some of the wording is a bit different than what I would use, but the essence is there...a life of reflection, generosity and reverence.
After all, didn't life begin in a Garden?
The real meaning of sanctuary to me is now more and more in my garden. In fact there is a entire way of gardening that is referred to as "sanctuary gardening". (www.cortesia.org).
Here are a few guiding principles of such an endeavor...
1 - embrace your sacredness
2 - embrace the sacredness of the world
3 - acknowledge the value of sanctuary for yourself, nature and all other beings and places
4 - create sacred time and space for yourself every day
5 - practice nonjudgment and compassion
6 - give of yourself to bring more joy, beauty, hope and peace into the world
7 - practice reverence for life.
I'm not one much for dogmas or creeds, but these ideas just seem to make sense to me. Sure some of the wording is a bit different than what I would use, but the essence is there...a life of reflection, generosity and reverence.
After all, didn't life begin in a Garden?
Tuesday, March 08, 2005
Jon Stewart, you are DA MAN
My day ends each night with checking in with the master of irony Jon Stewart. And I wish each time I see it that I could just sit down and talk to the guy...and have him make jokes about anything..anything at all...
right now he and his crew are really ragging on Martha Stewart and its just hilarious. He is not giving her any slack, what with the media watching her every move (who cares?)...and who better to take shots at the media and Martha than Jon Stewart...he just has no equal. LOVE YOU JON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
right now he and his crew are really ragging on Martha Stewart and its just hilarious. He is not giving her any slack, what with the media watching her every move (who cares?)...and who better to take shots at the media and Martha than Jon Stewart...he just has no equal. LOVE YOU JON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes..
Today, we learned that my husband has been "terminated" from his 18 years of employment.
We had been somewhat expecting it, as the industry has been spiraling downward for some time. Yet, there is a finality that is somewhat surprising and also freeing.
I just want to surround him with good things right now and so I've kept my head down today and worked and will work more tomorrow. We have to acknowledge the blessings of having had a great job for this long -- many people don't have that. We have and Dan is to be thanked for that. He is a solid, consistent worker.
So here we are -- middle aged, kids out of braces, into cars and soon college. A certain turning point in all our lives...what will we do?
I have no answers, but I know the One who does. And He is good all the time.
We had been somewhat expecting it, as the industry has been spiraling downward for some time. Yet, there is a finality that is somewhat surprising and also freeing.
I just want to surround him with good things right now and so I've kept my head down today and worked and will work more tomorrow. We have to acknowledge the blessings of having had a great job for this long -- many people don't have that. We have and Dan is to be thanked for that. He is a solid, consistent worker.
So here we are -- middle aged, kids out of braces, into cars and soon college. A certain turning point in all our lives...what will we do?
I have no answers, but I know the One who does. And He is good all the time.
Monday, March 07, 2005
Grace
I arrive home late, already dreading what will meet me at the door. Early practice means early dinner and I'm, well, I'm late.
I sped home through the construction ("Follow the orange barrels to progress!") and didn't give my usual nod of approval to the foreman that changes the right hand land every dang day. No wonder people run off the road into the fresh cement! What do they expect!
The mobile phone beeps non-stop, I turn it off, ignoring the last few calls. I failed to get by the store, so dinner will be "interesting" or as my grandmother use to say "Fiesta Night". I'm grumbling, I'm tired, it's only Monday and it feels like Thurday.
Then, I see her. Unobtrusive but elegantly before me. Her white petals turned towards me, reassuringly, comforting. I unclench my teeth, I let go of the wheel, I take my foot off the pedal.
The White Star Magnolia stands magnificently beside my office door and with its sway of the wind, I catch my breath. In spite of my less than patient demeanor I am forced to stop, to wonder, to be amazed again at the small graces that God provides me.
I am so awful at taking time and slowing down. I am so awful at the fine art of life that I am, at times, ashamed of how I may have wasted the first 40 years here on this earth.
But the sight of that tree reminds me that God is patient. He blooms where we fail, He nourishes while we neglect. He needs no reminder of the constancy of the seasons, yet we need every moment the consistency of His Grace.
I have heard countless definitions of "grace". Growing up in a wacky fundamentalist regime, grace was often defined, but rarely experienced. I've come to understand that you cannot define it until you experience it.
Grace stops us in our tracks, forces us to see the world differently, asks the tough questions. I don't know how the white star is able to bloom in spite of plunging temperatures. I don't know how it stays put in the reckless wind that brings tornadoes. I can't imagine what force courses through its being to produce the amazing star light qualities that it has.
But I experience it and like grace, once you experience it, the questions may not go away but they don't seem to matter as much. Grace just IS. In spite off, in addition to, instead of....GRACE. Thank God, quite literally, for it.
Grace is God's reminder to me that He is above my actions, thoughts.
Grace is God's promise to me that He is judging me, no one else.
I sped home through the construction ("Follow the orange barrels to progress!") and didn't give my usual nod of approval to the foreman that changes the right hand land every dang day. No wonder people run off the road into the fresh cement! What do they expect!
The mobile phone beeps non-stop, I turn it off, ignoring the last few calls. I failed to get by the store, so dinner will be "interesting" or as my grandmother use to say "Fiesta Night". I'm grumbling, I'm tired, it's only Monday and it feels like Thurday.
Then, I see her. Unobtrusive but elegantly before me. Her white petals turned towards me, reassuringly, comforting. I unclench my teeth, I let go of the wheel, I take my foot off the pedal.
The White Star Magnolia stands magnificently beside my office door and with its sway of the wind, I catch my breath. In spite of my less than patient demeanor I am forced to stop, to wonder, to be amazed again at the small graces that God provides me.
I am so awful at taking time and slowing down. I am so awful at the fine art of life that I am, at times, ashamed of how I may have wasted the first 40 years here on this earth.
But the sight of that tree reminds me that God is patient. He blooms where we fail, He nourishes while we neglect. He needs no reminder of the constancy of the seasons, yet we need every moment the consistency of His Grace.
I have heard countless definitions of "grace". Growing up in a wacky fundamentalist regime, grace was often defined, but rarely experienced. I've come to understand that you cannot define it until you experience it.
Grace stops us in our tracks, forces us to see the world differently, asks the tough questions. I don't know how the white star is able to bloom in spite of plunging temperatures. I don't know how it stays put in the reckless wind that brings tornadoes. I can't imagine what force courses through its being to produce the amazing star light qualities that it has.
But I experience it and like grace, once you experience it, the questions may not go away but they don't seem to matter as much. Grace just IS. In spite off, in addition to, instead of....GRACE. Thank God, quite literally, for it.
Grace is God's reminder to me that He is above my actions, thoughts.
Grace is God's promise to me that He is judging me, no one else.
Grace is God's reckless endowment to allow others to experience this transforming power.
"To embrace the value of idleness...
"To embrace the value of idleness...
To see the ordinary gifts of grace" --- Terry Hershey
Gardener's Journal
I take a tour of the garden, noting what has started its new season, what needs to be removed. There is a side of gardening that many don't discuss, but it is as necessary to the process of growth as anything.
There is a certain amount of natural violence in a garden. Today I noticed the hyacinths pushing back clods of dirt, defying the Oklahoma clay for its showing of brilliant magenta. The clay looks crumpled, defeated in light of this victory. The strength of that hyacinth is wonderous to me.
What started as an ugly bulb now parades in my border as some lady of the evening, bright and lustrous, tempting me with her scent and her color. The clay has been defeated for this beauty.
The brush that I cleared away was once a part of this parade, its time now spent, it now gives itself to the soil as food and organic material. Death, life and then death.
"A great many people will live out their days without ever seeing such sights, or if they do, never grasping." Barbara Kingsolver
There is a certainty to this garden that I cannot deny. It's beauty is there but its effort is also there. It's ability to transform itself each season from a lifeless track of twigs and brittle seeds is nothing short of miraculous. But a beautiful violence allows it to be so.
What of this effort that allows new things to begin? What does this say to life? What does it say about God, indeed does it say anything?
Or am I just another spring romantic in love with the wonders of Spring?
There is a certain amount of natural violence in a garden. Today I noticed the hyacinths pushing back clods of dirt, defying the Oklahoma clay for its showing of brilliant magenta. The clay looks crumpled, defeated in light of this victory. The strength of that hyacinth is wonderous to me.
What started as an ugly bulb now parades in my border as some lady of the evening, bright and lustrous, tempting me with her scent and her color. The clay has been defeated for this beauty.
The brush that I cleared away was once a part of this parade, its time now spent, it now gives itself to the soil as food and organic material. Death, life and then death.
"A great many people will live out their days without ever seeing such sights, or if they do, never grasping." Barbara Kingsolver
There is a certainty to this garden that I cannot deny. It's beauty is there but its effort is also there. It's ability to transform itself each season from a lifeless track of twigs and brittle seeds is nothing short of miraculous. But a beautiful violence allows it to be so.
What of this effort that allows new things to begin? What does this say to life? What does it say about God, indeed does it say anything?
Or am I just another spring romantic in love with the wonders of Spring?
Sunday, March 06, 2005
Gardener's Journal
Day two of clearing out the winter brush. My hands are full of spliters, rough from the dry leaves and gnarly roots.
I have filled up two garbage pails of twigs, brush, leaves and "sludge" from ponds and overbrush. Under the brown crunch, there is the emergence of the stella o dora's, the red twig dogwood upright and sure amidst the brown haze of last year's winter.
Clean soil. Clean ponds. Clean, new spring. Like grace, full of promise and hope.
I have filled up two garbage pails of twigs, brush, leaves and "sludge" from ponds and overbrush. Under the brown crunch, there is the emergence of the stella o dora's, the red twig dogwood upright and sure amidst the brown haze of last year's winter.
Clean soil. Clean ponds. Clean, new spring. Like grace, full of promise and hope.
Soul Gardening
www.terryhershey.com
This book is one of my favorites...I read it every year and it yields new insights. Here's a quote:
I love to stretch out on a garden bench on a warm summer day.
I love a hot shower and drying with an expensive oversized cotton towel.
I treasure the certainty that grace gives us all many second chances.
And I love to lose track of time in my garden.
This book is one of my favorites...I read it every year and it yields new insights. Here's a quote:
I love to stretch out on a garden bench on a warm summer day.
I love a hot shower and drying with an expensive oversized cotton towel.
I treasure the certainty that grace gives us all many second chances.
And I love to lose track of time in my garden.
Village Idiot Times Reports
T-Town, USA.
City officials noted today that they are in the midst of hiring a new executive to, well, they aren't quite sure.
"There are some pot holes in the city that need to be filled..maybe he can do that." a spokesman for the city said today.
The plan to hire someone new comes as a shock to the plebians that live in the city and support it with their tax dollars. "We thought we might have a say in this process, but we forget..this isn't a democracy." said one Plebian who asked to not be identified.
Indeed, the city has been in the hands of HRH for over two years now and since he has the lineage that meets with city approval, his decisions are generally uncontested. "We're basically window dressing in the leadership store." said one official today.
The new executive will be paid out of what is already a shrinking budget. When asked how the funds might be collected, HRH declined comment.
City officials noted today that they are in the midst of hiring a new executive to, well, they aren't quite sure.
"There are some pot holes in the city that need to be filled..maybe he can do that." a spokesman for the city said today.
The plan to hire someone new comes as a shock to the plebians that live in the city and support it with their tax dollars. "We thought we might have a say in this process, but we forget..this isn't a democracy." said one Plebian who asked to not be identified.
Indeed, the city has been in the hands of HRH for over two years now and since he has the lineage that meets with city approval, his decisions are generally uncontested. "We're basically window dressing in the leadership store." said one official today.
The new executive will be paid out of what is already a shrinking budget. When asked how the funds might be collected, HRH declined comment.
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