What is cold? Mid winter in Dec. is cold where I live. But there is a raw feeling this time of year even if it 50 degrees when wind and clouds are added. If I look out I see buds and blooms but my heart says, “Find something to do inside!”
That’s how faith sometimes tip toes into our lives. We look out and see the buds of faith in the eyes of others but our hearts seem cold. Not quite ready to join into all that faith stuff?
Well here’s the good news. For plants to grow they need a lowering of temperature. Flower and garden centers use cold frames to get plants ready to go outside. Plants that grow in the perfect condition of green houses and aren’t not readied for a change in soil and temperature don’t do so well. The growing plants need that transitional time.
Maybe instead of going outside you should stay inside and get ready. Put together something beautiful or breathe deeply and think warm thoughts.
Remember daily faith is not always a mountaintop. Sometimes it is just a cold frame getting ready for transition into intense growth.
Blessings

The hardest kind of earth to walk on is sand. You will have tough calf muscles if you walk lots in sand. I have sandy soil in my yard and I love that stuff. It’s easy to plant in…however, it also does not hold water well. Easy sand and hard sand. And then there is the best of all, blowing sand. I hear you can only understand that truly if you are living in a place filled with sand and wind like so many of our loyal troops overseas.
What is so neat about sand is that it is made from smaller pieces. A sand beach may be many small pieces of shells. And small creatures we hardly ever see, come out into the wet sand to feed.
My life is full of small moments. They come together in a life that is hard, easy and blowing in the wind. God is present in all the small pieces of my life. And I feel continually blessed. What are the small pieces in your life?
The Faith Gardener

We just have to share travel photos. You already know I love birds in the Faith Garden. Look at these cuties in Costa Rice. Can you find the bird related to our North American blue jay? How about the parakeet in the pet store. We were fortunate to be on a balcony across from some trees and the birds came through twice a day. Pictures, pictures, pictures. Anyone have more from Costa Rica?

The Faith Gardener on the road

Recently we added “Apricot” to our family. The family dog, Caddy seems unworried about his 11 year place as King of the House. Pets are our best friends who give us unconditional love (purrrrrrrr), knock us down the steps (the 105 pound “King”) and remind us to keep going ahead even if we are afraid.
I have just one friend. That might seem odd in the age of social media. We all have thousands of friends, doesn’t our wall say that. But a real face to face friend can call when we need to hear their voice and we know we are loved unconditionally. One good friend can change the place and pace of your life forever. One good friend can read your mind. And occasionally, one good friend knocks you down to remind you of your humanness.
This weekend my one good friend is on a journey of exploration, discovery and it’s surrounded by pure panic. Doesn’t matter, she is still my one good friend and I love her.

Blessings,
The Faith Gardener

Logan the youngest grandson

oldest grandson

After knee surgery comes renewal. Not in the form of immediate dancing in the street but more as a day to day appreciate of those you love. While I was recovering after surgery my oldest daughter came to help. She brought the oldest and the youngest grandsons. In a haze of pain meds and naps I spent more time watching them than playing with them.
The feeling of watching these young boys in their antics brought a renewed sense of family and why I needed to get my knee replaced. The oldest, Aidan, is a ham as you can see but he’s a gentle loving brother and a grandson who constantly asks, “are you okay, Grandma”
Then there is the little one – he’s soon to feel some competition for Mom’s attention as a new baby sibling will arrive the end of summer. Logan’s eyes tell the story. They are wide opened, uncertain, full on smiling and dead asleep. He’s into everything that is not nailed down and will definitely be an explorer of something.
Why are grandkids an important part of the definition of family? I think because they connect us in new ways to our adult children. No matter how much I love these little ones, the joy of the birth of my first child, their Mommy, can never be matched. Renewal of the intensity of love and what we will do for our family comes in the gathering and loving of multiple generations. I am renewed by love once again.

Generations meet around learning new faith practices. The word “bede” is Latin for prayer. Prayer beads have a rich tradition. Here all generations are working to make individual prayer beads. The few favorite beads chosen give each person a reminder of their daily prayers. Beads are as unique as prayers. A shell prayer might remind the person to pray daily for those who have no water and for the health of our oceans.

Try it!

The Faith Gardener

I prefer to look backwards at the holiday season. This hairy woodpecker is the symbol of all that happens under the title “Holidays”. We travel more, eat more, laugh more, cry more, want more, give more and all this affects the rhythm of our families and our lives.
The reason I like to look backwards is because it give me a better perspective on the hairy holidays. I can remember the good and forget the bad. The task list which is so big late in the year in now finished, forgotten or not applicable any more. I can take a deep breath and believe again.
What bothers me is the energy that is pushing the holidays. I want to believe that it is a spiritual energy, but I think it is consumerism. I want to turn off consumerism and not feel guilty. It is hard.
This gorgeous Hairy Woodpecker helps me remember even something beautiful can peck away at our lives and be destructive. This family friend from my yard gets suet balls to keep him off my wooden swing. He’s back every day with beauty and a little bit of pecking to remind me that everything is not good or bad, just real and inspired by a loving presence.

Happy Post Holidays! I hope your time was full of love and life, crying and laughing and reminds you that family is a gift even as it pecks away.

When I moved out into Christmas Tree Land 10 years ago, I saw a sign that said “Spruce Tops – $14.95″ This was new to me. I knew what spruces were but what do you do with the tops? Well, as usual, I was behind the times.

These little bundles of spruce tops are used for all sorts of decorating. The Christmas Tree farms cut off the extra tops to prune the tree and then they sell the tops to others. With 2,000 pines on my property I went to see what was in my spruce tops.

Plodding through snow and looking up, I discovered this new use for spruce tops. This red tailed hawk was using the spruce top to look for dinner. Well that’s a good use.

When we are with our families, no matter human or bird, we are constantly looking for good uses for things that are gifts from our Creator. This sense of survival by using everything to it’s best is part of our instincts. AT times of high consumerism, sometimes we forget to reuse and find new ways to use items. We get so good at getting more and throwing away.

As a family take a spruce top walk. Walk through your home and surrounding area and look up and look down to see new ways to reuse things that might have been thrown away. Gee, I wonder how this relates to the holidays and to being good stewards?

I heard the weather yesterday. A chirpy man said, “fall is gone the leaves are gone and winter is here.”

I looked around in my yard and saw tons of color. The grasses amaze me at the hues and colors especially in the wind. The berries are abundant on trees as they wait to be food for the winter birds. The pine trees are shedding needles in the wind and they are brown piles on the ground. Milkweed has lingering white seeds. Anyway you get the idea.

Sometimes chirpy people like to tell us that our faith is gone, too. We can keep looking for faith even when others cannot see it. Faith is always present. The beliefs around the faith may change but the faith can be found in the smallest berry. Keep looking! No matter what others say, faith is still there.