Tender Thursday

 I enjoy seeing the sentiments I sometimes feel expressed so beautifully by others on the internet.

The last few days have been tender for me - prompted by a question at work about my Mother last Friday.

I was transported back to my childhood, teenage and young adult years.  Even young and middle married years now that I think about it...

I love that this woman is walking by the seashore.  I am grateful to be near the sea for now.  I enjoy going down to the beach and watching and listening to the sea and feeling the breeze on my face.

I see the sunset every day if I want to, and most days, when I am home, I make the time to pause, breathe, thank God, and watch the (often) magnificent sunsets.

I am grateful too see the colours and the formations.  I appreciate that when there are clouds the sunset is magnificent.  The play of light and shadow is wonderful to watch.

When there are many clouds, as there sometimes are, I am glad to know the sun is there - I just can't see it.

Some days there are no clouds and it is not possible to "look" at the sun as it sets.  But, I can see the afterglows and enjoy them.

Sometimes in the early morning, I see the moon on the West as it seems to set.  Beautiful!

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This morning when I saw Glenn off I noticed the sun through the clouds on the East.  Gorgeous again!

I just thought "God's in His Heaven... All's right with (my) world."  I'm grateful to feel that in the depths of my soul.

I don't know why the life that was mine, is mine, was and is mine.

I know I have learnt a lot.
Most days I am grateful.

Most days I really do enjoy the messy, imperfect and beautiful adventure of my life.  

Some of my life is not what I would have chosen for myself.  And - by living my life according to the values that are important to me, the way I choose to live it every day - within the confines I chose, and choose, to accept, or chose not to change, I acknowledge I am probably a better person than I suspect I would have, could have, been if I had chosen to live my life in other ways I might have chosen along the way.  

There is no way for me to know since this is the road I have chosen.  Perhaps I would have been as refined, as I experience myself, by other circumstances if I had chosen other paths I might have chosen to walk.

I suppose...  and trust God... the purpose of my life is to choose and choose, a day at a time, according to the state of being within my body, mind and Spirit, and without me, my circumstances from day to day.  I do that.  Some choices are just not available to me.  Some choices I choose not to choose.  And I have an array of other choices available to me every day.

Darn my tender heart... bless my tender heart.  I am grateful to be who I am.  I look forward to more joy, peace and healing along my adventurous road that is my life.

Thank you all who share my journey.

"This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine... Let it shine, let it shine, all the time." (actually... when I can.)

Some Thoughts Today

I am valuable

I am a daughter of God

I am a daughter of my goodly parents

I am me - unique, special and irreplaceable

My dreams are real

I want to remember what my dreams are/were

I will write them or illustrate them and display them where I will see them

I will make at least five minutes a day on reaching towards them

I choose to read, watch, or listen towards fulfilling them

My dreams will evolve and adapt as I do, and as my life unfolds

My roles are important

I need to be clear on what they are today, this week, this year

I need to protect them so I do them as well as I want to

I will need to say “yes” to some people/things and “no” to others

My roles will change over the years, and change again, and again

My time on this earth is finite

My life and time are precious and I want them to be meaningful

I will use my time wisely every day, every week

This month and year will never come again…  When they are past they are past

I will make them count

My family is my treasure

I will cherish my husband daily – and show it

I will love and pray for my children, grandchildren and great grand-children daily

I will remember them all, and also my extended family, and bless them as I can

Everybody needs regular play-dates

I will make them with my husband

I will make them with my family members and friends

I will keep my play-dates

20^th July 2017 - Inspired by…

https://www.mormonchannel.org/watch/series/gospel-solutions-for-families/setting-realistic-expectations-with-self-spouse-and-kids?__prclt=rM9BSJXA

Magenta Love Potatoes

I bought some purple potatoes... they were on special.
I thought "Why not?"
Magenta Love cultivar.
Strange eating purple potatoes!
Texture is the same, taste a little sweet?

I might buy them again...
If opportunity presents itself...

Book: Half of Life is "IF"

I took this book out of the library because the title intrigued me.
I think it was not well edited (not that I really know much about these things - just my gut feel.)
I was disappointed, and I also appreciated reading it.
It is basically a collection of quotes from here and there - some not attributed that I could determine...

Some quotes I collected:

"Rebellion against your handicaps gets you nowhere.  Self pity gets you no where.  One must be adventurous and daring and accept oneself as a bundle of possibilities and undertake the most interesting game in the world - making the most of one's best."  Henry Emerson Fosdick p ?

"If you know your enemy and you know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles." Sun Tzu 500BC p 80

"So why let yourself get angry?  The minute you get angry, you lose.  The action you take is not going to be as smart or appropriate as it would have been if you kept your cool." p118

"... don't get mad, get curious."

"Real joy comes not from ease or riches or from the praise of others, but from doing something worthwhile."  Sir Richard Grenfell p 125

"Be happy with your lot - not only in terms of quality, not only with what you have, but for as long as you have it.  Be happy with your future here and now - whatever it may be."  Ben Zomo p 160

"A wise man is one who can learn from every experience.  The rich man is one who knows how to be happy with whatever he has.  The power of the truly strong (person) is that he can exercize self-control."  p160

Forest Walk

Enjoy our two hour Saturday afternoon Forest Walk with us...

She is holding a grasshopper.

As we came out of the gate of the forest, this is the bank of creeper on the boundary of the house across the road.  Gorgeous.  About 4:30 afternoon light - darkening already...

It was good for my soul to be in this ancient, dry, coastal forest.

Book: Morrie: in His Own Words

Deeply worthwhile book about learning to die and learning to live.

At present I read in little snatches of time - but read I must for my mental health.

Some quotes I wrote down from this little gem:

"I let the tears flow until they dry up.  And then I   start to think about what I am crying about."  p30

"Dealing bravely with physical pain or accidents takes one kind of courage.  Facing life as it is, and accepting it takes another."  p107

Once you learn how to die, you learn how to live."

Book - Finding Your Way in a Wild New World

Pocket of time today - I am waiting for a contractor to come and attend to our centre-island kitchen countertop which is not attached and can tilt dangerously

So I thought I'd record one of the books I recently read.

I have enjoyed everything I have read written by Martha Beck.
I don't always agree with her views.
I find great value in the way she writes and what she proposes.

I enjoyed this book.


Some quotes I took from it:

"For wayfinders, skilful being must precede all doing." p xxv

"Playing to the point of enchantment is necessary medicine."  p29

"... learn to play like you mean it."  p29

"When did you stop feeling spontaneous joy? stop singing, stop dreaming?" p29

"Play can help our bodies and minds.... when I'm in pain, the way back to health is either deep rest or deep play."  p30

"When you want to dance, lying down is stress and dancing is stress release."  p30

"Determine your own play profiles, and then get busy playing, a lot."

"Death is the stripping away of all which is not you."  Eckhart Tolle

"Death is not the real terror, but (living) life - magically - is" Ben Okri p48

"Things once in contact remain in contact through all space and time."  Lynne McTaggart p59

"Maybe there's a simple, elegant, low-tech way to do something I've been doing in complicated ways."  p184

"All menders need mending."  p194

"By the end of the adventure (life) heroes can live in any combination of worlds, old or new, tamed or wild, combining the best aspects of both into one bountiful life." p203

"The road of trials leads to a life where all trials become blessings."  p203

A Visit to the Durban Temple Site

On Saturday John, Brenda, Vi, Glenn and I took a Winter drive to 

the Durban Temple Construction site.

In the protected wetland area adjoining the Temple Izinga Estate 

has landscaped a path with a few benches along it.  

We walked to the one closest to the road and paused for a photo.

You can see the Temple in the background.

The final concrete wall sections of the first floor will be poured this week.

All the rebar framework is in place.

In the Missionary Housing which you can just see to the right

of the fork in the tree next to Glenn (the dark brown horizontal piece)

the first floor slab was poured this week.

There is lots of deep plumbing on the site -

stormwater and other services systems.

I am amazed at the intricate planning, preparation and implementation

that goes on every week.

Electricians come and go as their work needs to be done.

Tender packages are prepared and sent out to various craftsmen.

The art-glass for this Temple is one of the ones going out now.

All activity is 'orchestrated' by the Ernesto, the Construction Manager.

I marvel at his usually quiet, behind-the-scenes expertise.

At significant moments he will briskly stride to one facility or another,

pause, watch, maybe have a few or a lot of words,

and then go off again to his office, or the plans office,

or Steve, the Contract Manager's office, or Sean, the Safety Officers office.  

I feel blessed and blessed to be able to be here and see and do

and learn and learn day by day, week by week.

I love writing the history.

Eight months before the end of the project a history committee 

will be formed to compile the overall history.

I hope that my contribution will be useful to them.

Glenn compiles detailed and complex technical reports every two weeks.

His reports will also be a resource.

I think that eight months will be another learning curve!

Enjoy your week.

This week Alan, the Africa Temples Project Manager, will be in Ghana I think,

Our LDS Durban Temple site overseer, Anton, will be in Nairobi to 

do some work delegated by Alan there.

Glenn and I will be on the Lord's errand here.

Together, each doing our little bit to lift where we are,

  we accomplish miracles in building the Lord's Kingdom!

Do what needs doing, by you, where you are!

May Sunsets - Three of Them!

Very pretty - every day.

I love the reminder that God is the ultimate Master Artist.

I love sunrises too - just don't see them from where we are right now.

I'm glad to see the sunsets.

They soothe my heart and make a lovely end to my busy days.

Farewell

I think getting older is the stage of saying "Farewell" and "Farewell."

I have read the Saturday Star almost every week since I can remember - probably my teen years.
Now it is not relevant to me living here in KZN.
I have tried the local Saturday paper.
It does not hit the spot.
I tried the Friday paper "Mail and Guardian."
Also doesn't quite meet the need - interesting though it surely is.
So... "Farewell Saturday Star - for now..."
Hopefully it will still be there when we return from our Mission.

I have read the Reader's Digest ever since I can remember.
Last year in January I went looking for the January one.
I gave up subscribing a long time ago -
I didn't want the blurb of advertising that goes with subscriptions.
I looked in vain.
I asked and asked.
Eventually someone told me Reader's Digest South Africa had closed down.
All of Reader's Digest too?  I don't know.
We were called on mission soon after finding out...
The portability and size of Reader's Digest - and the marvellous information.
So - "Farewell Reader's Digest - I really miss you!"

I came back from visiting England and went to buy my face cleansing milk.
Gone!
"Farewell Like Silk deep cleansing milk."
I so miss that!
I am still trying others until I find one that suits me.

There's something else that also was not there when I came back from
that trip to England - I can't remember now what it was.

Time of transition.

Thank you for the years and years of association.  Thank you for all I have learnt.
Thank you for all I have enjoyed.  Thanks for the memories...

Morning Moon

This morning at just after 6am.

"The moon that shines over me shines over my children."

And my other loved-ones...

I had some beautiful morning moments, 

did some Tai Chi and enjoyed thinking about you all.

God bless you - and me, and us too.

Laundering 100% Cotton Sheets

Along with the accommodation came 100% cotton sheets.

I have had them before... I find them hard to launder.

I solved my problem at home.

I had the colour of the bedspread in the picture at home.

They took light wear there.

The ones I have here are white.

We work on a site with red soil.

The sun is fierce, we use a ten hour sunscreen.

It has a warning on the bottle: "May stain clothing."

Our clothes are stained...  

If every bit of sunscreen and dust is not washed off skin/hair when we shower or bath,

the sheets and pillowcases show it.

I have solved my problem here.

I put them in the cotton setting of my machine and click it to cold wash.

I let the machine run for about five minutes to thoroughly mix laundry and washing solution.

Then I turn off the machine and go to the site.

When I get home I set the machine to run the full cycle - cold again.

Out it comes and goes into the clothes basket wet.

The following morning into the tumble drier - 

pillowcases first for about three to five minutes, until they are partly dry.

I take them out, flatten them on the bed and let them dry.

The poly/cotton ones get shaken out and hung on the clothes horse to dry.

I use the poly/cotton ones for under pillowcases to help spare the pillows from stains.

Then into the drier goes the fitted sheet.

When partly dry - about half probably - about three to five minutes maybe, 

I take it out and fold in half, and put on lower part of the spare bed, flatten, 

and leave to finish drying.

Finally into the drier goes the top sheet until about half dry.

I fold it in half, flatten it with my hands and let it dry.

And off to the site I go again.

When I come home, the sheets are dry and ready to fold and store away.

The 100% cotton pillowcases get a light iron, are folded and stored.

That's how I have been inspired to do it - for now.

My sheets and pillowcases stay white, and I only lightly iron the two 100% cotton pillowcases.

Birthday and Anniversary 2017

We did some housekeeping in the morning after exchanging gifts.
Then we went to the Spur at Umhlanga Sands on the beachfront for early lunch.
I couldn't have wished for a more perfectly memorable setting!
We had not been there yet.  We will go again...

The sight and sound of the sea just over the bush was lovely!

Cape Town Called

Jane was in Cape Town from England for two weeks.

Les invited me to come and join them 

so that we siblings could be all together in the same town.

We hoped to get a sibling photo of the five of us.

Les organised a cousins Friday afternoon at Kirstenbosch.

My cousins Gillian and her husband Alan, Elisabeth and Patrick were there.

Others were: Sally, Cindy, Dom and Scarlett, Les, 

Ron (Pamela in England) and I.  Lovely afternoon!

Ron, Jane and I  took a Saturday drive to Hout Bay.

We took a boat trip to Seal Island.

We sat wave-watching at Seapoint - very good.

Sunday lunch with Nikky, Jonathan and Tim,

a motor-bike jaunt with Tim,

and Sunday afternoon tea with Les, Sally and family.

Precious.

Monday morning with Les and Sally.

Les and I visited Mom's grave and whited some of the lettering on her headstone.

A lovely labour of love.

And the Sunday afternoon photograph that I am so glad about and grateful for.

Perhaps the last time we can all be together?

Thank you Les for inviting me to come along.

Thanks me, and Tim, for being able to be all together.

Time Out

   

Saturday we took some time-out.  We drove to Salt Rock Hotel and had lunch together.

In the quiet of the surroundings with the peaceful sound of the sea this lovely old Baptist hymn came to my mind.  I'm grateful for lovely hymns in my mind and comforting times remembering them...

e    Take time to be holy, speak oft with thy Lord;
Abide in Him always, and feed on His Word.
Make friends of God’s children, help those who are weak,
Forgetting in nothing His blessing to seek.

2.    Take time to be holy, the world rushes on;
Spend much time in secret, with Jesus alone.
By looking to Jesus, like Him thou shalt be;
Thy friends in thy conduct His likeness shall see.

3.    Take time to be holy, let Him be thy Guide;
And run not before Him, whatever betide.
In joy or in sorrow, still follow the Lord,
And, looking to Jesus, still trust in His Word.

4.    Take time to be holy, be calm in thy soul,
Each thought and each motive beneath His control.
Thus led by His Spirit to fountains of love,
Thou soon shalt be fitted for service above.

     Words by William D Longstaff

Brenda, John and Vi

We had them for lunch last Saturday...  I remembered to take a photo!

Belated Valentine's Day Gift

 

The lift at Sea Spray (where we live)...  When Glenn saw the lady servicing the lift she asked her to turn the sound down!  "Going Up... Going Down... Third Floor... Ground Floor."  In a loud and uninteresting voice.  She said she needed a thinner screwdriver.  Glenn went and fetched his toolbox.  Out came just the right one.  She made the adjustment.

"That's a belated Valentine's Day present."  He said.  I'm a happy lady!  I'm delighted with my gift, my second gift actually.  Now I can go into the lift without blocking my sensitive ear.  Thanks Glenn!

Wordlessness and Words

I'm reading a book at the moment.  The author talks about the state of wordlessness which is a state beyond silence.  One can be silent and yet have thoughts framed in words in our minds.

So, yesterday at around 8am Glenn went for a swim in the sea.  His first since we have been here.  We went to Umhlanga beach.  He made his way into the sea.  I found a quiet and shady place under the life-guards station.  As I dropped into silence and then wordlessness I relished the sparkling sunlight on the waves rolling in and flopping onto the beach.  So glistening, so beautiful.  I sat and breathed in the blustery air, enjoyed the sun on my feet, the cool of the rest of me in the shade of the overhead platform, enjoyed the muted sounds of the people all around me and the rippling sound of the waves..  They were small ones.  A lovely Time Out Of Time.

 Today we had a young man from our Ward for lunch.  Paul Kriel.  We enjoyed good food and good company.  How fortunate I feel to mingle with older and younger of all classes, cultures, viewpoints and experiences. Life is good.  I'm glad to be alive, here, now.