This is a tiger swallowtail butterfly. I spent hours with my little Identification book and that’s what I decided. If you know better, let me know.It’s such a beautiful butterfly, it reminds me of the grace and beauty of my mother. Mom was what society called “a lady”. As I grew up I had no idea what that meant. Did it means dresses and panty hose at all functions? Does being a lady mean politeness? Well, I wasn’t sure then and I’m still unsure.

For me, some descriptive words like “lady” are so subjective. Being a lady might be a sexist term to some. It isn’t a behavior term. Being a lady is more about service. Not that baking pies for the potluck is being a lady, more that seeing the potluck as a gift to lonely people and inviting those who have nothing to bring.

Recently I tried to get some silver place settings from my Grandmothers appraised for insurance. The guy actually laughed at me. He said, “Lady, nobody uses that stuff. Melt it down and figure out how much it’s worth.” I was being a lady when I saw the bigger picture. Of course, behavior wise I didn’t hit him either!!! I went right home and polished the silver for my Grandmas and for any use they might get or just because I could care for something. Maybe that’s the real definition of “lady” –someone who cares enough to try.

Here’s a little fellow that always makes me smile. This is a humming bird. He is so little it is hard to get perspective in this picture. But doesn’t he just look like he is in heaven.

Grand parenting seems easier to me in the summer. If I do see the kids it is around fun and time together. The school year seems fraught with holiday dos and don’ts and teams and lessons. There is an intensity to all those activities from Aug. to May.

When I was with the kids this summer, it was great. They climbed into bed with me in the morning. We added number three to grandma’s bed. “Me, too” is about to turn three. Although with two older siblings and being a girl I forget she’s not already three. My oldest grand son turns 8 this month.

Perhaps the most important celebration is on the 29th of Aug. It is the anniversary of the death of little Kenna, my granddaughter. It’s a quiet day for me. I have already said “no” to 3 invitations for the day. I’ll call my daughter and I’ll sit in the sun and hope that Kenna and my Mom are going on magic walks. Mom can teach Kenna about fairy paintbrushes and sing songs.

There I am just humming along buying birthday surprises and then it hits me. One of my darlings is missing. I am so glad she is with God.

Blogging is like journaling into a black hole. I love to write. Not so sure about blogging, yet. Perhaps it is the absolutely no interaction between writer and reader. The topics that I blog about are visual so maybe that’s the problem.

So we are looking through a new lens. Once a month I will do a video that visually says what I need to say. Once a week I’ll write as usual. Several times a year we’ll try a book study together. Maybe the issue isn’t the blogging. Maybe the issue is the frame around the blogging.

As you enter into a new season in the life of the church and the life of nature, look at this picture and think that sometimes when we change the frame, we change the scenery. And when we change we can see farther into new horizons.

Blessings,
The Faith Gardener

This pictures is a close up of the summer section of The Seasons of Faith Labyrinth. I love the idea of the blooms of our faith crossing with everyday life. I shopped last weekend at a “big box store” and was surrounded by crabby people. I mean seriously frowny, crabby people who were unhappy.

But I was happy. With my daughter’s wedding in two weeks, my hubby and I were doing some stock up. This happens when the grandkids and other guests are coming for an extended time. When it is just the two of us, well if we’re down to one roll of toilet paper, we go buy a package. But that doesn’t work with 10 people in the house.

So back to the store. 2 feet into the store, decided I would smile the entire time I was shopping. Yes, even when the store is out of what I need. Wowsa! It was like smiling through a frown land mine. In my little experiment, it was the cashier as I left that gave me the first smile. And he was getting paid to smile!!!!

Faith crossing life. The inner peace that God brings going on a trek into the world. It’s hard, but when we do it the reward may be a long time coming but when it comes in the smile of another one of God’s people, it is worth the effort.

Have you smiled today?

These are hard to see but they are red and white bleeding hearts. Look at the way the little hearts line up. I love that the white and red plants next to each other show such beauty.

Think of these little hearts as the hearts of your grand kids. Doesn’t it seem sometimes like their little hearts are so open to us? They get a cut and fall down. Their drama of the day ( and their parent’s drama) seldom seems quite as bad to us. We know “this too shall pass.” Our hearts might bleed, but not too long for we know about life filled with God’s love.

Keep your heart filled with faith as you spend time with the kids. Remember all that you have learned about faith as a life long gift. Remember the bleeding hearts and

When I was raising kids the general feeling was that we should always tell them they were special. Not just your ordinary daffodils, but really special. When I began teaching I realized quickly that if everyone thinks they are the most special person in the world, a battle can ensue.

With my grand kids I have sought to help them find their own unique place in the world. The whole unconditional love theme goes well when they are here for a limited amount of time. But what I really want to do is tell them they are really special. Hmmmm… I can never decide if I actually learned anything as a parent or not. Probably not.

Once when I was reading to a 5 year old, he told me I was a ‘really special grandma”. It felt good. The dilemma remains. Special, really special or unique is the question?

Okay I give up! All of the above. After all they are MY grand children.

This is a picture of the details of Spring on my Seasons of Faith Labyrinth. Look at it closely.

Okay, Grandparents, what’s the most important thing about seeing the kids? Is it what you do? Is it how you dress? Is it how much money you spend. Nope… the answer is dah, dah_
Spend Time

How you get to know them doesn’t matter. When you get to know them doesn’t matter. Just get to know them. Skype, letters, visits, meals, emails, videos, just get to know them. Because if you look back at the first picture, you’ll see little buds. Each time you get to the kids better a bud blooms. The buds become flowers and the beauty is wonderful.

Spend time with the kids.

I had the opportunity to play peekaboo with my youngest grandson recently. He’s a smiler like all the kids. Both of their parents are smiling all the time so alas those kids get the drift that smiling is a good thing.

Little Logan was not happy about something but as all 11 month year old infants, he is easily distracted. So even though I hadn’t seen him in 3 months, I pulled the peekaboo card out of the deck. I hid behind my hands just once, and Logan changed directions and was engaged in THE GAME. He’s such a cutie and pretty soon we were both laughing.

Faith is like playing peekaboo. It can change your direction. Look at these new strawberry leaves peeking out of the ground. It was
snowing like mad the day I found these. I was out of sorts-okay, just plain crabby about bad weather- and there they were peeking out of the snow, new strawberry leaves. They made me smile. This little message from God changed the direction of my faith.

So play peekaboo with God and look for messages from God that help our faith change into a positive direction. And while you are at it, play peekaboo with a grand child!

You may not recognize this picture. This is snow mold on the lawn after a tough winter. This white gauzy stuff can make me sneeze like one of the 7 dwarfs (Sneezy obviously)

I’m allergic to mold in all it’s forms. The stuff makes my eyes water. But I cannot avoid it when I do my spring walk in the yard. Soon the hot sun will kill the snow mold and the lawn will turn green and I’ll return to normal whatever that is!

Grand kids are kinda like snow mold. They change my reactions in a different way. Instead of sneezing, I smile more with grand kids. Rather than watering eyes, when grand kids are around I cannot feel any aches and pains. Of course, grandma back returns when the kids are gone.

Even moldy faith and grubby grand kids result in a change in my physical self. And the change is not bad. A change is faith isn’t bad either. It’s just change.

So when your faith feels moldy, think of those grubby kids you love and know that beauty can be found beneath the snow mold and beneath the runny noses.

It’s melting, it’s melting. (See picture above) “I’m melting, I’m melting. (See Wizard of Oz) My grandchild is having a meltdown! (Run for the hills)

Yes, grandchildren have meltdowns. My daughter tells me this happens after too much attention at Grandma’s house. Actually it also happens AT Grandma’s house. When a grandchild has a meltdown, what are the tricks that work? You may want to answer “nothing,” or you may want to run for the hills, but I think grandparents have a unique opportunity when a child melts downs.

We don’t have two other children to watch or laundry to do (who needs clean socks when grand kids are here). We have just one child who has gone beyond their limit. So here’s what we do.
Stop.
Drop to a chair.
Offer a lap.
Let them cry.

Eventually they wind down. Sometimes they fall asleep. Sometimes they cry for hours. Sometimes they are so mad they won’t have anything to do with you. It’s here that I bring out the favorite book. The Spark Story Bible or The Usborne Childrens Bible are great books to use. They have beautiful pictures and lots of cool stories. Let the melted one chose a story.

I’m praying for you!