It’s a bit odd that I don’t usually post about food, since I love to eat, but last night’s experimental creation turned out to be delicious, and I want to remember what I did, so I’m posting about it here. I had some ground turkey in the fridge and a couple of zucchinis I wanted to use (of course I have zucchinis in the fridge at the time of year!). Stephen wasn’t home, so I decided to throw in some tofu, which he never likes, but I love.
I coarsely chopped a medium sized zucchini in my vitamix, then stir-fried it briefly in sesame oil in my wok. I cooked outside on the side burner of our grill, because our stove is a glass topped one and I can’t use my wok on it. When the zucchini was soft and not quite starting to brown I scooped it into a bowl. If I hadn’t been so hungry I probably would have browned it a bit, since I love zucchini like that, but it was fine cooked lightly. I then stir-fried the ground turkey and a package of firm tofu diced into bite-sized chunks in avocado oil. I used avocado oil for the meat since it has a higher smoke point than sesame oil and I wanted to cook the meat over a high flame. I tossed in some ground sage, some garam masala, some curry powder, some Hungarian hot paprika, and a bit of salt, and cooked it all till the turkey was well-cooked and the tofu looked like it had absorbed flavors.
Line up of seasonings I used
I mixed the zucchini back in and stirred it all together, then served it over sauteed kale with a little fiery hot toasted sesame oil sprinkled over the whole mix. Yum! I will definitely make this again!
…the loud buzz of a cicada, bringing back memories of summer days of childhood. Days with no agenda, no pressure of homework, nowhere I needed to go. Days ofexploring the woods to explore on my own or running through the woods to meet a friend and build a fort. Dashing through the lawn sprinkler or lying on my back watching clouds float through blue sky.
Most of my summer days now aren’t as carefree as the days of summer vacation from elementary school, but I still cherish days like today that reflect an unhurried pace that nurtures my soul.
Virginia creeper growing a crown on a post in the yard
Wandering barefoot through dewy clover in the morning, sun-warmed grass in the afternoon…
Exploring our woods, eyes open to see what’s special today…
Our woods, a beautiful tangle of green
Water striders dancing in sun sparkles on the stream…
I love watching these little creatures dance on the surface of the stream
The graceful curve of a cattail…
Cattail curves
Deer tracks in the mud– beside the stream, flowing lazily in the heat of summer…
Ferns, light against dark…
I think this is sensitive fernMaybe hay-scented fern? I need to look these up.
A young sassafras on the forest floor…
Growing near the base of a HUGE sassafras that fell down last year
And back in our yard…
Flowers bright in sunshine…
Nasturtiums in my hanging basketsTrumpet vine hiding under leaves
Mint growing happily around the foundation…
Grapefruit mint– I have different varieties of mint in different spots around the foundation.
and mint in my iced tea as I savor this day…
Dragon well green tea with peppermint
lying in the hammock watching clouds float through blue sky.
Injustice and violence sparking anger and retaliation, leading to more anger and violence… The news has been dismaying, sad, and overwhelming. A lot of change is needed and often the issues seem so big and so deeply rooted that I feel helpless to do anything about them, but my thoughts these past few days have been returning again and again to the question of what can I do where I live to make a difference in some small way. In that vein, I want to meditate on the following verses this week, keeping in mind all sorts of people, situations and contexts.
17-18 Real wisdom, God’s wisdom, begins with a holy life and is characterized by getting along with others. It is gentle and reasonable, overflowing with mercy and blessings, not hot one day and cold the next, not two-faced. You can develop a healthy, robust community that lives right with God and enjoy its results only if you do the hard work of getting along with each other, treating each other with dignity and honor. James 3:17-18 (The Message)
He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8
Monday: Let’s read and meditate on these verses throughout today, allowing the words to sink deeply into our minds and hearts. Thank God for his wisdom that shows us how to live in peace and in a way that helps others live in peace.
Tuesday: Ask God to make you holy in such a way that your thoughts and attitudes would reflect his grace and mercy toward all who cross your path, helping you to get along with people, being gentle and reasonable.
Wednesday: Evaluate your actions, words, and thoughts, asking yourself if they are contributing to peace or to strife, to justice or to injustice.
Thursday: Are you willing to yield to others, putting their interests ahead of your own? Ask God to help you humble yourself before him and before others, honoring him with your actions as you treat others with honor and dignity.
Friday: How do you tend to react to those who have been broken in some way, whether by injustice done to them or through their own mistakes, or through some other difficulties of life? Thank God for his mercy toward you and pray that you would be full of mercy for others.
Saturday: Where and how can you contribute to building healthy community where justice and mercy prevail? Pray for guidance and discernment about this.
But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream! Amos 5:24
I spent days this past week at a wonderful workshop at the Omega Institute in Rhinebeck– Lian Zhen’s East Meets West Chinese Painting and Watercolor workshop. I learned a lot, had a great time, and came away very much encouraged about my art and motivated to move forward with it.
Monday we learned about Chinese spontaneous style painting and we painted sunflowers, using Chinese colors and ink on raw Shuan paper, which is very thin and about as absorbent as paper towels.
Sunflowers- Chinese painting colors and ink on rice paper
The second day we learned how to do Chinese detail style painting. We painted an angel fish with a complex background, using Chinese colors and ink. I still have more to do on the background of this painting. This is on mature Shuan paper– rice paper that’s been treated with alum to be less absorbent. It is very thin and a little sparkly on the side we used.
Angel fish- Chinese colors and ink on rice paper
On Wednesday we painted a rooster, using watercolors on cold pressed watercolor paper. That felt like coming home to me after painting on the rice paper, even though some of the painting technique was a little new to me. We only used three colors for this: Antwerp Blue, Pyrrol Red, and Hansa Yellow Light.
Rooster and chicks- watercolor
On Wednesday afternoon Lian demonstrated how to mount rice paper paintings on 90# watercolor paper so that they can be matted and framed. I’m looking forward to trying that soon.
Thursday and Friday we worked on a large, complex watercolor using a pouring and splattering approach– very new for me. The subject was also new to me– a sailboat complete with lots of rigging, as well as a complicated dock in the background. It took me quite a while just to figure out what was what in the photo. I still need to do finishing touches on my painting, but I am fairly happy with how it’s coming along. At any rate, it is a learning piece, and I am very happy with all that I have learned in the process of doing it.
After masking light areas and splattering paint on ThursdayBoat painting work in progress
On Thursday I finished the masking stage of the boat painting a little while before lunch, so I decided to try painting Rowan on watercolor paper but using Chinese paints. I used a photo I had on my cell phone and tried to paint quickly, as we had done for the rooster. I didn’t end up staying as loose as I was intending, but I am happy with how it turned out.
Rowan- Chinese paints on watercolor paper
On Thursday evening there was an exhibition by many of the many workshops happening at Omega. We all hung our paintings on the wall, and four of us did demos for the audience. Two painted a sunflower painting and two of us painted a rooster on rice paper using Chinese paints and ink. We painted it in under ten minutes, while Lian explained what we were doing and then conducted a fake auction, pretending to auction off the rooster. It went for $1,000!
I don’t always paint barefoot– we had to take our shoes off in that room!
It was altogether a challenging and inspiring workshop, and I’m looking forward to putting the skills I acquired into practice, both in paintings of the sort we did in workshop, as well as incorporating some of these techniques into other work I do.
This coming week I’ll be attending a workshop on Chinese painting and watercolor, and I’m looking forward to a great week of creativity, art, and learning. I know that God has given me a love for art, whether quick sketching, careful and detailed drawing, or watercolor painting, and I greatly appreciate any opportunity to increase my skills by learning from a master.
I often find that it is through art that I most naturally connect with God. A few years ago when I was experiencing a long, spiritually dry spell, God seemed far away, if there at all, and I had little inclination to pray, and there was no passion in it. I spoke with a wise friend, whose first, seemingly irrelevant, question was, “How’s your art these days?” When I replied that I had been too busy to do any, she said that God had made me to be an artist and that sketching or painting was an important part of worship for me. If I neglected that, my spiritual life would suffer. That afternoon I set aside all my “important” tasks for the day, pulled out my long-neglected sketchbook, and started sketching birds and trees, soon becoming fully absorbed in what I was observing. And then in a little while, I found myself praying– for others, for myself, and just in wordless connection with God.
This week, since I’ll be focusing on my art so intently, I want to ponder a variety of Bible verses that speak of God’s gift of creative ability, of connecting with him through the abilities he gives us, and of how I can use the abilities he’s given me to do good and honor him.
Monday: “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10
This is one of my favorite verses. I know how much I enjoy doing a careful drawing or painting and how special it is to me, so I am awed at the thought of God making me as his handiwork. Let’s let our imaginations run with the picture of God carefully crafting each of us, like a master artist or craftsman making a special creation.
Tuesday: God created each of us, as his handiwork, to do good works. What kind of work has he made you to do? What kind of work delights you and feels meaningful? Ask God to show you what he has made you to do, what special works he has prepared you for and for you to do.
Wednesday: ‘Then the Lord said to Moses,“See, I have chosen Bezalel…and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills—to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze,to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts.‘ Exodus 31:1-5
Is there any kind of creative work that you do or would love to do? Writing? Computer programming? Gardening? Cooking? Working with animals? Solving problems? Too often we minimize the value of our skills or passions. Ponder the thought that God may have given you your interests in order to accomplish his work on earth.
Thursday: Ask God to give you wisdom, understanding, and knowledge, as well as creative skill, so that all your work can be done in a way that honors him and does good.
Friday: Ask God to help you connect with him more and get to know him better through doing whatever work he has given you a passion for. See if you can use some of that time to talk with him about your needs and desires, and your concerns for yourself and others.
Saturday: How can you approach your work, whether a hobby or a responsibility, as a way of partnering with God to accomplish his work on earth? Let’s meditate on this today, especially as we engage in the work we do or think about what we long to do.
Stephen by Lake MaratanzaSketching in the wind on Sam’s Point- it almost blew my journal away!
I didn’t expect to be wearing a jacket on the 4th of July weekend (and wishing I had taken a warmer jacket), but that’s what hiking the Ice Caves Trail at Sam’s Point will do. We had a stunningly beautiful day for hiking– clear skies; bright sunshine; vivid colors in all shades of green, plus pinks, blues, and yellows; a brisk breeze (actually a strong wind); and incredible vistas. Sam’s Point, which is now a part of Minnewaska State Park Preserve, has a rare, dwarf pitch pine barrens ecosystem, one of the few such places remaining in the world. As we hiked, the fragrance of the pines in the sun rose around us, making the air delicious to breathe. Other sections of the trail are lined with sweet fern, also filling the air with fragrance, while mountain laurel blossoms filled the areas of deciduous woods with a pink and white blanket of blossoms.
View from Sam’s Point- high rock bluffs and distant Catskill MountainsMountain laurels and ferns blanketing the woods
The ice caves are a real treat on a hot day, as refrigerated air wells up from ice deep in crevasses. These ice caves are formed by an open fault– the Ellenville Fault Line, which is the largest open fault in the United States– and rock debris from the Shawangunk Ridge, which formed deep caves that stay cool enough for ice to remain well into summer, providing air conditioning for the hiker and unique growing conditions for plants not normally native to our area.
Entrance to an ice cave at Sam’s Point
Lake Maratanza, a “sky lake” is the highest lake in the Shawangunk Ridge at 2,245 feet above sea level. With today’s wind, the lake’s surface was whipped into waves that made a wonderful lapping sound as we walked along the road beside the shore. On the west side of the lake we sat in a sheltered cove, where the water was still and a Common Yellowthroat serenaded us as I sketched.
I took the red-eye home from California last Wednesday, and I didn’t sleep at all on the flight (because I was fascinated watching out the window, seeing the brilliantly lit cities, solitary lights shining in the dark, and the deep dark of uninhabited regions). Consequently I was as tired as I can remember all day Wednesday and am only now caught up on sleep, so sleep has been very much on my mind.
I love the way Milo curls into a ball when he sleeps
Because of my sleep-deprived state, the following verses about God giving sleep to those he loves came to mind when I thought of what to ponder this week. Then I decided to look up my old records and see what verses I had written on around this date in previous years, and I found that on June 26, 2011 I had written on these same verses! I don’t know why I had, since this was my first red-eye flight and probably my first completely sleepless night since college days, but it seems very timely, so I’m using it again on June 26th, just slightly revised.
“Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain. 2 In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat— for he grants sleep to those he loves.” Psalm 127: 1-2
Monday: What different kinds of work do you do, whether as a job, or in your home, or in some capacity as a volunteer? Bring it all before God and ask him to work with and through you, making your work effective and good and of eternal value.
Tuesday: Ask God for wisdom about your work. Are there any changes you could be making in what you’re doing? How about in how much you’re doing? I know that I tend to say yes to too many requests for my time, so this is a question I need to ask myself often, remembering that it is ultimately God’s work and not all my responsibility. Let’s listen carefully for his guidance today.
Wednesday: What or who do you try to protect or safeguard? Yourself? Someone or something else? Ponder the statement that unless the LORD watches, our watching is in vain, and commit yourself and that which is precious to you into his care.
Thursday: Does anxiety drive you to work too much? If so, think about God’s promise to supply your needs and protect you, then entrust yourself and your needs to him.
Friday: As you go to bed tonight, thank God for the gift of sleep, and ask him to help you receive it peacefully.
Saturday: God wants us to be fruitful in our work and to have peace and rest. Praise him for his love and goodness that bless our lives every day.
I am in San Francisco this week meeting my new granddaughter, Elizabeth, and helping my son and daughter-in-law adjust to life with a toddler and a baby–a time of much joy, and I am filled with gratitude. I am also being reminded of how exhausting it is to care for an energetic toddler, and I know my son and daughter-in-law will often be tired in the coming weeks and months. So weariness and rest are on my mind, and this week I want to meditate on Jesus’ invitation to those who are weary to come to him and rest.
Sometimes when I read and meditate on Jesus’ words, they present a different picture of what he’s like than I’ve thought, whether because of my own experiences, or society’s view of him, or even from how’s he’s been represented by the church. That’s one reason I read and reread and ponder his words as recorded in the gospels and why I also always appreciate hearing the thoughts of others who are reading them with fresh eyes. I’m including the passage in two very different translations, since that also sometimes helps me get a fresh perspective on what I’m reading.
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV)
28-30 “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matthew 11:28-30 (The Message)
Monday: Of all the voices around you, how many invite you to rest? How often do you actually rest in a way that leaves you refreshed in both body and soul?
Tuesday: What burdens are you dealing with? Are you weary from carrying them? If so, Jesus’ invitation is for you, to come and rest. Take some time today to really rest, receiving whatever opportunity you have to rest as a gift.
Wednesday: At times, when I’m really wound up or on the go, I find it hard to slow down and rest, even when I have the opportunity. Jesus invites us to learn how to rest from him. So many of the voices around us are telling us to work harder, produce more, make ourselves better, but Jesus invites us to come as we are and receive from him. Ponder this thought today and think about how Jesus’ words differ from the world’s demands.
Thursday: Jesus is gentle and humble. Let’s meditate on that today, thinking about what that means for our relationship with him and also for how we live in relationship with others.
Friday: What might the “unforced rhythms of grace” look like in our daily life. Let’s ponder this throughout the day today.
Saturday: Do your life or responsibilities sometimes feel too heavy? Jesus tells us that his yoke is easy and his burden light– that he doesn’t lay loads on us too heavy for us to bear. Ask God to help you know what is from him and what are actually demands from others that aren’t something God is calling you to deal with. Jesus calls us to walk and work with him, so that we don’t have to do it alone and so we can get the rest we need.
A bundle of sweetnessPaul stopping to smell the flowers
It’s hard to believe that Rowan is thirteen years old. It feels like he’s always been with me, so it seems as though he should be much older than thirteen. Some days he seems older than thirteen, when he isn’t really on the ball, but then other days he is more his old self (and thankfully there have been many more of the latter recently). This spring we’ve been spending hours outside just enjoying the fresh air, sunshine, and scents on the breezes. Rowan loves to lie in the grass watching whatever I’m doing.
Recently when I was gardening he decided to help…Flowerpots have always been some of his favorite toys.
And occasionally he’ll still play tag with me…
Waiting to play tag around the hay rake- our favorite gameReady, Set… Go! (I only caught his feet and chin in the photo since he leaped just as I took the picture)Ready or not, here I come!I can still catch you, Mom!
And then we sit on the deck watching the world, Rowan with an ear always cocked in my direction.
Watching the world; listening for Mom
I know all the time I have with my Rowan is a gift, and I cherish each day with him. Happy Birthday, my sweet boy, and I hope you have many more years to share with me.
‘The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.’ John 1:5
‘Blessed be the God and Father of our LORD Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.’ 2 Corinthians 1:3-4
We’ve been made very aware of darkness in the world this past week, and many lives have been shattered. Let’s seek God’s comfort and then share that comfort with those who are hurting, so that we can help reflect the light of Christ into the darkness.
Monday: Thank God for the assurance that his light is not overcome by darkness. Ask him to help you focus on the light every day in the face of dark news.
Tuesday: Pray for others who feel overwhelmed by evil and darkness, that they would keep their eyes on God’s light and receive his comfort.
Wednesday: Think of times God has comforted you in the past, and ask him how you can share that with those who have suffered losses.
Thursday: Thank God for first responders and others who give sacrificially to help in terrible situations. Pray that many people would experience God’s love and seek his light as they see the evil wrought by darkness.
Friday: Pray that God would show you how you can reach out with his light to touch broken and hurting people in our communities, so that they would experience the support of true community.
Saturday: Praise God that he is a God of light and love and comfort. Ask him to help you become more like him.
