Tiny Tennants
This is the second day of caring for the newborn orphan cottontails.
Their 3 older siblings were killed when the nest was destroyed by either our terrier or the neighbor’s cat. Mother bunny didn’t pick a very good spot for them.
They still have sign of umbilical stub and were quite emaciated when I rescued them. Each of them weighed just over 1 oz. Although the odds are greatly against survival of babies this small, I think that my animal husbandry skills improve the odds.
Gardening: A part of the Miracle
I really do enjoy gardening.
I would rather spend all day out there than do laundry, wash dishes, vacuum or grocery shop. There is just something about digging into the dirt, breaking up the tough crust of the earth and pulling out the weeds that is therapeutic. The feel of the worked soil and the actual smell of the earth and fresh plants adds to the sense of feeling like I’m a part of creation.
Since my shoulder injury at the beginning of July, I am really missing the time that I used to spend gardening. Even mowing the grass was “gardening” to me. Plus, I would be getting fresh air and exercise. Alas, my bum right shoulder is severely painful and limits what I can do.
This past Friday, I received the bad news that I would need to cut physical therapy short and go back to my family doctor for more diagnostic tests (probably an MRI). I simply am NOT getting better even with what PT I can do. In fact I’m getting worse. The therapist thought I should be further in recovery if nothing worse was wrong… so… back to the doctor I will go. UUUGH>- -<
This is bad news for my gardening urges. I have managed to stay on top of critical issues like watering, feeding; dead-heading and harvesting. However… here in Indy we have had quite a bit of rain and the weather is fabulous so vegetation is getting the density of a jungle. And this shoulder makes it extremely difficult to pull weeds. Hoeing/// Forget about it! Running the mower or weed-eater… No Way!
So I must watch in dismay as my garden looks so much more scraggly than it should. I must ask for help from my husband to do things that I would normally do. Humble pie just does not taste as good as the cherry kind.
“Whatever things are true, honest, righteous, pure, lovely, of good repute, excellent or worthy of praise let your mind dwell on these things. . .” Phillipians 4:8,9
Click here to view To snap out of these bummed shoulder blues… I decided to finally post the many photos I have taken of my garden and flowers so far this year. I hope you all enjoy them.
Storm Leaves Some Disconnected
One of my great passions is communications. Graphic Arts, photography, video, music and song, face to face and (increasingly) net-based, new media. Yes FaceBook, Twitter, G-mail, IMs have greatly enriched my everyday life and ministry opportunities.
Like most conveniences of our modernized lives, the importance of the technology isn’t really appreciated until it’s lost. And that’s where I am at the moment… DISCONNECTED.
Last night at 9:20 p.m. a nasty thunderstorm descended upon our neighborhood and unleashed its fury! Lightning strobed. Thunder shook walls. One particularly close strike sent our terrier straight up into the air in fright. Our electricity flashed, just enough to have to reset the VCR/DVR and cause me to go into possible power failure mode. Lighting up the hurricane oil lamp, shutting down computer and peripherals and double checking power surge protector connections; the inevitable happens… the cable connection is lost immediately following a gigantic howling of wind.
With computer off, TV out of commission, and me not wanting to start more reading… I pulled out my guitar and actually practiced technique! I can’t tell you how long it’s been since I have played focusing on musical technique as opposed to automatic “plug and play” or “Zone out and sing out”… that kind of thing.
After the worst of the storm seems to have passed, I noticed that there were tree leave clumps scattered all over the yard. I was grateful to learn that our 50 foot ash tree managed to keep a grasp of it’s limbs. Though, I took a flashlight outside to inspect the cable connections, I didn’t see the problem. But clearly we were without cable service. No internet, no TV, not even phone. I am DISCONNECTED!
Fortunately, we still had electrical power, so I did some non-internet computer work and office organization well into the night… into the next morning hours actually.
So much for my original thought of “stormy weather, stuff shut down, I’ll make up for recent sleep loss”.
My chronic pain always flairs with severe weather and this proved to be no exception.
One of the ongoing tools my chronic pain group uses is “Don’t Isolate”. And here I was forced into isolation. EEEK!
So, again, I was up ’til near 4 a.m… only 2.5 hours of sleep this time. God help me. I did get task lists organized and established for Getting Things Done, so though the hours were later than I’d have liked, they were very productive. Just not on the major project that I really WANT/NEED to work on… I need the internet for that….aaah.
Here it is 24 HOURS LATER and it seems like a WEEK!
Thank God, I could just hobble on back to my alma mater Crossroads Bible College, the nest of my New Media outreach, and walk right in to settle in at the very same computer station I used while here last December. Check it out…. this computer still houses bookmarks of my favorites. I’m feeling more CONNECTED already.
So as I am nestled in front of the warm glow of the computer screen actually getting some online work done, God continues to minister: I meet an elderly poet who likes to talk religion and reads and comments on my blogs and picture posts. He does most of the talking, I politely stay engaged, but it is God’s words that come from my lips to him over and again. : ) A bit frustrated by not getting more “things done”, but realize that this divine appointment may have been an investment in a fellow’s day; a possible paradigm shift, hopefully an encouragement in his faith walk.
Later, I talk to staff members… testimony sharing time. God is praised and we are blessed.
Then, Jamel a co-student, younger brother in Christ and FaceBook friend happens into the computer lab. What a great surprise. He graduated but is giving a sermon tomorrow so we share the lab as well as exchange useful Bible quotes and illustrations. You know, the very last time I saw Jamal was over 6 months ago. He was preparing for a sermon to give the next day then as well. Coincidence? I don’t think so!! I’m really feeling connected and loved now.
Once again, the thing that strikes me most is that I am NOT getting as much of my Project presentation done as I had hoped. However, by putting the people over the things; God is clearly working!! I wish you could SEE this. It’s exciting.
So, as I had forgotten yet another password… to my FriendFeed account… I went to ask them to reset it. I of course had to verify the request with a Captcha (random words to weed out unauthentic requests and tampering). Mind you these are RANDOM.
Are you ready to see this???
This “random” set of words given me by Captcha didn’t seem so random given the trial I was passing through at the time.
“Render” I had been rendered, torn, forced to do things in a manner I would not willingly have chosen. I rendered to Him that which is due. God is in control!
“Believe” Have Faith, Trust in the One who ALWAYS gives me ALL that I need, and gives so in such abundance that it is beyond my comprehension.
The Lame Lamb
I would like to tell you of a shepherding practice that is used when a lamb continues to wander away from the flock. In order for the lamb that keeps wandering away to learn to stay with the flock, the shepherd uses his staff and actually breaks one of legs of the lamb. Then he splints the leg and carries the little one over his shoulders for a good bit of the healing time required.
The lamb is carried this way as they go about the daily life of whatever sheep and their shepherd do. All the while a special bond is being made.
When the day comes that the shepherd removes the splint from the leg of the lamb, the purpose of what may seem to be an abusive act comes into focus.
That little lamb will NEVER wander away from his shepherd again! In fact he now gleefully leaps about in the area near the shepherd. The very hand that had caused his pain, comforted him through it, lovingly cared for him, and gave him a real appreciation for all that the shepherd provides.
So now, when you read in the book of Isaiah ” All we like sheep go astray, each to his own way”, and the LORD is the keeper of them all, I hope that you will remember this illustration.
There is a reason for our pain. If we won’t stop wandering away, the shepherd will pursue our closeness in some other way. That’s just how much He longs to be close to us. Isn’t that neat?
Life’s Journey – Ellen’s Blog
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.
Psalm 119:105 (New International Version)
Okay, today I am going to embark on a new journey into the world of blogging. It’s not that I am any more of a deep thinker than most people, but I do have some thoughts that are worthwhile. Besides, I believe it will help cement what I am learning. At the same time, it may actually be of some benefit to someone else who might be reading.
So If you would like… please join me on the journey!