Friday, October 29, 2010

Thankful for the Beauty of the Season

There's a nip in the air today,
it's crisp and the trees are showing
off their best colors.
The mums have completely opened their
buds as if on cue for Halloween.
Our final farmer's market day of the season
was over flowing with gourds.
The leaves are falling as fast as my husband can blow
them into piles.
(this is not my husband but a google image)
The noise of all the blowers in our suburban
neighborhood creates quite a racket this time
of the year. I know it's not nearly as fast

but I like to do it the old fashioned way.
Where you can actually hear and feel the crunch of
the leaves beneath your feet.
Where you can smell the scents of autumn
wafting from the earth
instead of gas fumes.

My oldest son Josh has always been the expert
carver in our family.
From the time he was 14 or so until he moved
out on his own our front stoop was graced with the most
amazing pumpkins.
Now they sit on his own front stoop.
It requires a great deal of patience and the
right tools.
It's amazing the detail he gets with these tiny saws.
...and last but not least I want to
introduce you to the newest member
of our family,
isn't he the most darling ball of fur
you've ever seen?
I went to the vet's to get medication
for our dog and there was this
cutie pie in a crate asking
for someone to give him a forever home.
I just had to bring him home and now he is my
best little buddy, following me everywhere.
When he's super tired he sits at my feet
waiting to be picked up so he can nap.
My youngest son, Alex, named him
'Eli'
for one of his favorite movies
'The Book of Eli'.
Great movie if you haven't seen it yet.
Hope you are all enjoying this glorious
fall color where you are...
God really does like to show off
this time of year!

Monday, October 25, 2010

Finding My Way Back

after a very long hiatus from blogging
is proving to be much harder than I thought.

I have been struggling to find some balance in my life
and as the primary caregiver for my sister it has been
somewhat of a struggle.
Some of you may remember that she was diagnosed
with lung cancer last August, it's been a tough year.

I am by no means complaining, I am fortunate to be
able to help her through all of this. I simply found myself
overwhelmed by the demands on my time and so
 stepped away from posting on my blog.

                                                    While I am in charge of her care I am also
                                             the person who has to keep all the other family members
                                             caught up on her condition etc. To say I craved solitude
                                             would be a huge understatement. By the end of my days
                                             I have little to share and simply tire in the retelling of it all.
                                                   I want to assure you that even though
                                          I very much wanted to be alone most evenings, I
                                          never felt lonely. I very much enjoyed reading all of
                                          your blog entries and felt like you were all close by.
                                         A few of you emailed or checked in, you know who you are, 
                                        and made me feel like I was missed. For that I thank you.
                                      A few followers dropped me from their rolls, but that's okay.
                                                         I have been gone a long time.
                                         Some days were especially difficult, and I'm sure there
                                         are more tough times to come. At times it feels like sitting
                                         at the edge of the world with nothing to keep you from
                                        falling into a great abyss. Thankfully God has been walking
                                       beside me and though I often feel like the ground beneath
                                       my feet is slipping away I know that He is holding me tight.
                                                 So if you'll bear with what may be sporadic
                                                 posting I think I just may be ready to come
                                                                      out of hiding.

p.s.  You may or may not have noticed the change in the title of my blog (everything else is the same).
        It seemed appropriate since I seem to be spending so much of my time there.