God is With Me...God is With Me...God is With Me...

God puts each fresh morning, each new chance of life, into our hands as a gift to see what we will do with it.



I walked the other evening solitaire...the moon was gorgeous...I could hear Janie talking with my dad (85) over the phone... I love you...as she hangs up her cell...We had been passing each other up on the long driveway, she talking to Daddy, me walking and contemplating, thanking God...and thinking...Praying...    God is with me, God is with me, God is with me...Just like a heart beat.

Ever since I read Ann Voskamp's blog entitled, something like...We Hear You.  I have remembered...  God is with me...God is with me... God is with me...

When my dad is not doing well...When my heart breaks because I see him, hear him sometimes ask the same question he just asked...I see his eyes not focusing...asking which grand-daughter is which because he can't see with those once beautiful blue crystal starry eyes, that Tony Curtis-look he had..my heart breaks.  I just don't know what to do.   So I pray and say in my heart... God is with me, God is with me, God is with me.   It all frightens me soooo much.   But.  God is with me. 

Daddy is a stubborn one.  He is still insisting on living 3 hours away.  There is only so much we can do but pray for angels to help him (edit 8.1...And that justice will be served.

It still unnerves me to hear the phone ring.  I'm unnerved extremely easy these days.  But I also know...God is with me, God is with me, God is with me...

I tell my husband, I just can't take this world sometimes, that world out there.   Bad things happen too much.  Animals being mistreated, unborn babies being murdered...the abused children, the girls in other lands.  Too horrible to think of.  I tell him this as we are eating at the cool Greek restaurant in midtown amongst the trees and the joggers and all the other "cool" people.  Heh.  He tells me I know...I know...I know...I feel the same way many times.

I tell Jem about a little bird in the grocery store...it was trapped in a high window and crying out loudly...frantically trying to get out, the shoppers were like the walking dead...They kept shopping as if they did not hear the little bird nor did they seem to notice.  I stood getting my cellophane bag and observed.  My youngest tells me the store management is trying to do something for the little bird...But the people ...No concern, no care, no ears to hear...like the walking dead.  I walked in the produce department just watching what seemed indifferent, insensitive people ignoring this poor little frantic bird, it made me sad.  

One of the most attractive things I think in a man is when they are tender towards living things...I love to see the nightly scene of our blind dog as I place him next to Jem on the couch and Jem takes care of him...It is so sweet.  I see Jem shake his head and make a clicking noise with his mouth as it hurts his heart...in his heart he is saying it's a shame.. this precious little creature, not seeing, knowing we are his little world...  I love to see Jem as we take our evening walk in the Forest here and we run across a small turtle, ants are all over the poor thing.  Jem thinks to pick it up and put it in the pond to try to save it and remove the ants.   That is so attractive to me.

I've been reading, 'To Kill a Mockingbird', but especially the biography of Harper Lee.  'I am Scout'.  Fascinating.   In the car on our dates, I tell Jem about Harper Lee and all of the stories of she and Truman Capote, and Gregory Peck and how neato Gregory dressed like a bum to see the flavor of the little town...incognito.  It's funny, around one small town in particular, (one we now know to stay away from) you don't have to dress like a bum.  You wear matching clothing, it can be walmart clothes, it's just a look so to speak that I didn't even realize until told ... and if you have a european face, perhaps pointed features, perhaps you dare to wear faux pearls.  We are labeled.  Outsiders they say.  Prejudice is an ugly thing.  Many church-goers don't see it do they?   It's so bad I think when we can't be safe in church.  I do thank God we are seeing some nice churches in some of the other nice small towns that seem to have sweet spirits.  What is really funny and interesting is that it may be liturgical type churches that others may judge.  Ha.  

I tell Jem about 'To Kill a Mockingbird' and I play the soundtrack in our bathroom... Jem tells me about the old 'Yes' group concert (I remember hearing about 'Yes' in my art class, I was a nice kid, the clean cut artist so I had no idea who Yes was) : P... he found and 'The Wrecking Crew' band and how they did themes for the old shows and groups...we both love music but he had more of a hippy background although he is a loafer wearing broker now...and I am more of a geek of sorts with artistic inclinations.  We are so silly but we compliment each other.  

How do our children, now adults learn about Christ?  We taught them, we teach them by our lives, what they see, what they have learned from short family devotions...May they see me feeding a poor person instead of making a sarcastic remark.   Hopefully they see Christ, though not perfect but hopefully perfect repentant hearts?  They know the American church is not the answer but the real Church is in our hearts.  Sometimes community is found in a church, sometimes not.  Lately not and that's just the state of things.  God is God and doesn't change though.  : )  He lives in our hearts and lives.  ...Let's not forget about kindness right?  The other week our oldest told us she was so thankful that she had kind parents, she is running into young adults at church who didn't have kind parents.  

The other week we were in a bay town at a lovely old family Italian restaurant with seaside view...a youth group was there from a smalltown up north.   Jem had tears in his eyes because he could tell these youth had had it rough.  After our lunch we were sitting quietly on their outdoor patio under the Francis of Assisi fountain, love those gentle Francis of Assisi statues don't you?  Especially the ones with the birds...    Two of the girls from the youth group came out, one passed us up sizing us up.  One sits on the edge of the fountain looking at us but not.  The chill or perhaps rejection was apparent.  My husband asks where they are from, if they are a youth group, the girl answers 'yes' shortly looking away not making eye contact.  Jem gets it.  He quietly asks if I want to go...he walks, as I get up and throw my purse over my shoulder, I tell the girl as I motion to Jem,   

He used to play with a group called Dark Terror. 

She looks me in the eye shocked and murmurs Really?    

Yeah...He did...  I left her with a smile, with much to think about.  I hope Christ was glorified in it all.  

It's funny isn't it?  All those prejudices, but it shouldn't matter if a person played with Dark Terror and if that gives a testimony "clout".  ..Although we know Christ uses those things.  Many things are dark, many things we are saved from when we turn our hearts to Christ entirely we see were very dark.

It's almost supper time, it's just Jem and I this eve, our girls are having a girl-sister time, wedding plans are revving up by George!   Our prayer is that this upcoming fall wedding will glorify the Father.  I pray the people who are kind enough to attend will be blessed and this will be a way of saying quietly....nicely.... Please stop the insanity of keeping up with the Jones's.  Zuzu and Tommy are keeping things traditional and I think it will be a breath of fresh air...  May God be glorified.

I've really been enjoying evenings here in the Forest...I say to myself... Thank you Father.  I must never, take this for granted.  A Gift.

I don't have a camera yet...Bandwidth here has been troublesome.

I do hope to post pics one day again.  Please oblige.

Goodnight Loves,  amelia    God is with me, God is with me, God is with me.......................
  

Up on the Roof at the Forest Cathedral...Yeah...

I love this song by James Taylor, James Taylor is my INFP "brother". ; )

When Jem and I ride down the country roads, sometimes city streets...we listen to this song.  We are up on the roof so to speak.


When this old world starts to getting me down....and people are just too much... for me to face... ....On the roof it's Peaceful as can be...and there the world down below don't bother me....

Not only do I go up on the roof with Jem at times, but I go up on the roof with God and trade anxiety for His Peace and Company...

When people turn into this:    

(To God's Creatures:  I hate to insult you in this manner, perhaps you could teach some humans some manners so they will not be called such slang)

To make a long story short...we can go up on the Roof with God when people get to us.

Love this song, it makes me smile: Up on the Roof by James Taylor


We can go up on the Roof!  : )

......

Projects



My creative projects have been a lot of sewing lately....I sew for fun, designing as I go.  Sewing is so important I think, we can create what we may not see in the stores.  Also we can add to length, necklines etc. We can use a dressy material on a simple pattern if needed.  We can re-fashion a top from a skirt etc.  We can use un-used clothing, table cloths or sheets for that matter!  I really enjoy beating the system myself.  So, sew fun!
 

Creating is something we should do every day, even if only 10 minutes.  (I wish I could remember where I read that!)  ...God Creates and He likes us to Create too!  : )  

Four Favorites:

*  See & Sew B4957:  I only need 2 yards for this!  I use either bias tape or facings, I don't line.  I also have enough to add length!  It's a wowee pattern and flattering.   I do take in some of the ease under the armhole grading out to waist seam ever so gradually.  I also add 1/2 to 1 inch to the v-neck so no cami is needed.


Here are others you may want to check into:

* A great little top; you may sew a shorter (one yard!) 40s version (fitted at waist) or even longer tunic length:  Simplicity 8523  To make a fitted waist I take a seam down the back and go in at waist. 

* Another tunic top or dress, this is a nice one too, flattering, I sew this up in sleeveless with a modern black background 'city scene'.  Very cute top. :  Simplicity 4220

* Great pair of palazzo capris:    Simplicity It's so Easy 1186:

My favorite pair of palazoos so far are out of a Walmart twin SHEET in white!  BEAUTIFUL DRAPE.  For around $4!  You need a good drape for these palazzos to work properly I have discovered.  (I do take the middles of the legs in, every so slightly and add an inch to the top of the rear, the height being at the middle seam and grading back down to meet the side seam of the front).

 ...........

God's Quickening

The other night I was getting ready for a night's rest when God spoke to my heart...He spoke to me while I was thinking of my old ob/gyn...The quiet, polite disagreements we would have on nutrition and estrogen and all the things we herbalists do and what we study...  But I was also thinking of this man's most kind heart, his godly pro-life conviction, he was like a brother at times.  He delivered Michelle, he would tell me to be careful driving home that one rainy day, he told me not to be so hard on myself when he saw me make a yuck-face because he caught me with no makeup on in the hospital one morning.  He had a settling effect on his patients.  He was just a kind person. Charity was number one.

...One of the last times I saw him in his family practice, it was that rainy day.  His son who helped in the office was in the drivers seat of their generic looking gold-colored suburban...Doc crawled in the backseat and laid down with his chisel faced handsome son at the wheel...The silhouette image of the large German man who once lettered in baseball, tiredly crawling in the backseat had stayed with me.

The other night God spoke to my heart and quickened me, strongly quickened me, specifically quickened me to look my doc friend up online and see what was up.  I did just that within minutes.

I saw his obituary...63 years old, he passed over to the other side; he has been gone for a couple of years now... I had thought of he and his wife many times, their four young men...Many grandchildren he spent time with....   I often wondered how they were doing..  His educational accolades were great but never a name dropped by this humble man.

God's quickenings are urgent, we pray immediately which I normally do, but this time it struck me in such clarity... it was just so living color to me to go see... to go check.

I don't know why the urgency was two years later...  Perhaps it was in part-answer to some things of late...I don't know...  Perhaps God was trying to show me things...

In most cases use words if necessary to get in touch with the person.

I thought of this old fashioned doctor, his old fashioned bedside manner and his sweet voice ...I had always known I could call him if I needed him.

 

.......

Life is strange like that.  It amazes me the people that can hop along, and not think much of any of it...  They treat someone passing on like they dropped their bag of chips or many times even less importantly.   Oh.  ...It's very strange to me.

My doc-friend would tell me when I was three weeks overdue...

Amelia, you may want to talk with the Man Upstairs about this...

This man has gone to be with God, I think that's a pretty big thing.   ...Don't you?

........

One way I can create Peace in our World, Christ's simple way is ministering to my family, not with a museum-house but with a loving home, a warm meal on the dinner table my family can count on!  Stability.  Peace.  The Love of Christ.  The real deal.   The real deal.  Let my family see me serving Christ in small ways from within.   May my home be that sweet place where the Holy Spirit will not be quenched.

Creating in the Kitchen:  Cooking
  Here is a recipe for a crockpot recipe of beans...this is so easy to throw together, and it makes quite a bit of leftovers!

Really.   You can make an enchilada casserole with veggie cheese and beans, green salsa etc.  You can make a bowl of beans over rice with avocado toppings etc.   Why I even made some delicious bean, quinoa, gluten free breadcrumb Italian veggie-balls yesterday!  Garlic powder and basil serve as a wonderful Italian seasoning.

Crockpot Beans.  Makes 16 cups

2 pounds raw pinto beans. (I used half red and half black-eye pea this week)

1 large onion chopped.  (I do big pieces, cut it ugly and throw it in!)

4 T. jarred minced garlic

1 T. salt

1 tsp. black pepper

2 tsp. cumin

10 c. hot water

1-2 T. olive oil

Cook til done.

You can add chili powder, paprika or whatever if you like. But the original recipe stands on it's own.

Enjoy!

..............................


My dad is doing better thank God, he is home with a walker.  We are visiting churches in uso town, the people have a very sweet spirit there, so common sense tells us to go there for checking out churches.  Please pray for us concerning.  At our age, empty nesting in our faces, we need the Body out there.  We need sweet friends ...But not until God gives the okay.


On the Roof is the only Place I know.   Signing off from The Forest Cathedral...Let's be fearlessly authentic.     : )  amelia