Don’t you love it? You’re in need of something–you don’t how exactly what, but someone comes alone who’s experienced what you’re going through and gives you a suggestion. That happened this week when Ada, an author/visitor on my blog, suggested a liniment she’s used for years for an ailing hip.
Sure enough, my hip is ailing. I obtained some of the liniment and am noticing improvement. Networking helps us find information. And the old-fashioned word-of-mouth still works.
Last year, my good friend moved away from our town, leaving me her cute little red chair and flower box. Right now it’s full of kale and spinach, and as cute as ever near the path on the south side of our house.
In the process of planting seeds in this box, I discovered some synchronicity. On one side underneath peeling red paint, an imprint labels the wooden box as a WWII grenade box!
I had that “Wow! moment when I could barely believe my eyes. This happens to all of us, right? And these moments are the frosting on the cake of life.
Here’s to each of us having many synchronicities, especially during this time of distancing.
The positive thinker sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the impossible. Winston Churchill
Many said it was impossible. The Allies had suffered devastating defeats during the past three years. It had been a slow slog to victory in North Africa against the Desert Fox.
But the Allies had kept defending and attacking until they drove the Nazis out of Tunisia. Now, this new challenge loomed: the same menacing enemy waited on the French coast.
Dug in. Invisible. Impossible to defeat.
A white smoke screen provides cover as troops approach French shore.
And yet, an army of young men saw the invisible, felt the intangible, and achieved the impossible. Some of them enlisted even before they graduated from high school, and the cost was great.
You wake to birds delighted to sing their songs, cool air beckoning you to check on those new wildflowers you saw in the ditch the other day. It’s the kind of day you can forgive all the harshness of winter and relish the beauty all around you.
I baked Lance some scones this morning–found a new recipe last time, and they turned out well again. It’s a keeper.
The sunshine, now with us through the evening, the thunderstorm the night before last, barreling through in all its power, leaving branches to pick up but also fresh blossoms in our back yard. We embrace this June morning and venture out to peek at a mama robin o her nest just outside our back door.
The rhythm of the seasons, day and night, seedtime and harvest, sunshine and shadow…these all remind us we are part of something far greater.
The life in this egg will burst forth one day. It’s good to remember this, and that the seeds we’ve planted will sprout and grow. It’s fitting to take time to sense this great gift, a closeness to nature with its irrepressible order.
Especially when evil threatens, we need to pause and reflect on the foundations of our lives, the simple beauty and truth so evident around us. I wouldn’t wonder that World War II women sought and found solace and serenity in their gardens, despite the daily news reports from battlefields far away.
The word scofflaw means “a contemptuous law violator,” although the word once carried a more precise meaning. In 1924 this would-be word won a contest organized by a man named Delcevare King, who sought to describe a lawless drinker, or one who ignored Prohibition.
After Prohibition ended in 1933, this word described various types of lawbreakers, although it often applies to those who fail to pay parking tickets. Don’t you love the English language? We borrow and alter even made-up words!
Twenty years later an contemptuous law violator threatened society. Defeating him cost hundreds of thousands of lives and required immense resources. To this end, Operation Overlord, began on June 6 of that year and continued for months across Normandy.
Only inspired determination can defeat an egomaniacal enemy intent on one’s destruction. As many Allies joined with Great Britain on this day, it’s impossible to measure how much FAITH was involved.
Millions of prayers ascended as families awaited word from their sons engaged in this monumental battle to free France and Belgium. Their ultimate purpose? To reach Hitler’s Motherland and bring an end to his ruthless hatred.
On the seventy-sixth anniversary of D-Day, the first day of Operation Overload, we honor those who gave their lives in this effort. Theirs was indeed a purpose true. We also recall those who stayed at home as well. They waited, watched, and prayed for victory.
Behind the lines in occupied France, Resistance fighters bent their ears to clandestine radios, longing for word from London that the operation had begun. When it did, they went into action, destroying bridges, cutting telephone wires, and causing as much misery as possible for the Waffen SS tank battalions heading north to the fight.
Through this shelter-in-place time, my husband and I have been watching a drama about a French town during these years. What a complicated and dangerous task for those who joined the Resistance! But because of the evils perpetrated on the French people, especially those of Jewish descent, many felt they must act.
At the same time. cities and small towns along the route paid a terrible price for these acts against a ruthless oppressor. A PURPOSE TRUE celebrates the vital behind-the-scenes contribution of the Resistance before, during, and after the Normany Invasion on June 6, 1944.
On Thursday, my sis and I made a batch of rhubarb strawberry freezer jam. I’ve never been very successful at this, but decided to try again, since our rhubarb crop gives me no excuse not to. And my husband loves this stuff.
Having a mentor helped–thanks, Wendi–because the process seems to have worked. Four jars of this bright red confection now rest in our freezer.
So today I’m making another batch. You cut 5 cups of fruit, cover it with 4 cups of sugar and let it sit until the sugar dissolves.
I suppose there’s a great chemical explanation for how this works, but it’s fun to watch. When you check about ten minutes later, the sugar has turned to juice.
After about ten more minutes, the substance gets even juicier, and that’s when you bring the gooey mixture to a boil while WATCHING CONSTANTLY…that’s the tough part for me…
Then you remove the pan from the heat, stir in a small package of dry strawberry jello, and pour into clean jars.
That’s it! Almost too easy to take credit for–but somebody had to do the cutting, stirring, and pouring, right? My husband will enjoy this on his toast or muffins for months to come–a sign of true love, when you’re willing to make something you’d never eat for someone who delights in it. (If you think that because I’m gluten and sugar free, my husband must suffer.) LOL–not so much! (:
So here’s a picture finished product, on this Saturday of Memorial Day Weekend.
Gives a sense of satisfaction not so different from what I experience when completing a writing project. There’s a lot of picking, cutting and writing and going back to check, stirring, waiting again, adding and deleting, sharing with other readers who leave comments, and then going back through to check again…and again.
But it’s wonderful to have the finished product in your ( or your husband’s) hands.
In a few weeks, WordCrafts Press will release the result of my collaboration with author Cleo Lampos. The title: The Food That Held The World Together, tells the tale. This non-fiction book was fun to research–we learned a lot about World War II, and working together doubled the delight.
It’s amazing how important FOOD was during those years. Rationed, planted in victory gardens, pined for by hungry troops, and denied Allied prisoners of war… Food became the star in many soldier’s dreams.
Food’s vital role in the war years will stand front and center in this book.. And by the way, back then, if you wanted to make jam, you’d have to seal and process it, because the majority of homes boasted no freezer yet.
May your Memorial Day this year integrate gratitude, memories and present joys.
For four years, my dad wore this Army Air Corps patch on his uniform, along with thousands of other young men drafted into military service. The only son of an Iowa farmer, he left behind a lot of work for my grandfather.
Times had been tough. They’d lost a farm during the Depression and earned it back through diligence and perseverance. Dad went from driving a team of draft horses through the fields to training in Washington, D.C. And then to North Africa and beyond.
But during World War II, you went when you were called. And you served as long as you were needed. It’s difficult to imagine how much the victory won in Europe meant to these soldiers, sailors, and airmen.
It’s hard to avoid feeling our yard has very little to offer in the way of beauty right now, but here in Northern Iowa, beauty comes in small doses, it seems.
My husband found an early butterfly, for one thing. These usually don’t show up for a few more weeks,and with the forecast predicting frost and temps in the lower thirties next week, I don’t know how long this beautiful winged creature will last. But right now, we get to marvel at the intricate artwork of these wings.
And I never can get enough of daffodils. Late last fall, I ran out and planted some miniature daffodil bulbs minutes before the first winter storm blew in. Now, we’re feasting our eyes on their cheery blossoms as some purple tulips join in.
Then, we look over at the bluebells we transplanted from our friends’ creekside pasture a few years ago. What a shade of blue to regale us!
The trees may be just leafing out, but there’s nothing quite like that early spring green against the sky.
And from a high branch, we hear a cardinal’s call. Takes me back to reading The Secret Garden with our daughter when she was young. Such a lovely story, where simple springtime delights mean so much.
Maybe this season would be a good time to re-read that one. It’s never too late to enjoy a good book all over again.
Sometimes we can start feeling as though we don’t have much to offer, like our garden. But when we take a closer look, we find our gifts can meet needs in ways we might not have realized.
I would love to hear how this concept has proven true for you during this shelter-in-place time.
This generation had been born during and after the Spanish Flu Epidemic.
Now, the world had come through the Great War and the Great Depression. Hitler had taken control of the Sudetenland and Austria. When he invaded Poland, France and England declared war on Germany.
In May 1940, King George VI declared Winston Churchill England’s new Prime Minister. On May 10, Mr. Churchill addressed his new government.
“I would say to the House, as I said to those who have joined this government: “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat. “We have before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind. We have before us many, many long months of struggle and of suffering. You ask, what is our policy? I can say: It is to wage war, by sea, land and air, with all our might and with all the strength that God can give us; to wage war against a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of human crime. That is our policy. You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word: It is victory, victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory, however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival… But I take up my task with buoyancy and hope. I feel sure that our cause will not be suffered to fail among men. At this time I feel entitled to claim the aid of all, and I say, “come then, let us go forward together with our united strength.”
August 5–transatlantic flights from London are suspended for September.
August 15- Government Quote and Cypher School personnel move to Bletchley Park
August 23 – most National Gallery paintings are evacuated to Wales
August 24 – Parliament recalled, Army Reservists called up, Civil Defense workers alerted
August 30 – the Royal Navy proceeds to war stations
In retrospect, the markers are clear, but many thought, surely the world will not engage in another horror like the Great War–surely humankind has learned its lesson!
Too late to turn back, the British people went forward. Soon afterward, the Blitzkrieg began, with tens of thousands of bombs dropped on their homeland. As with the Great War and the Influenza Epidemic of 1918, there was but one way to go–through.
We associate flowers with spring, including the traditional Easter lily for this Sunday when our thoughts turn to resurrection. But in this blustery wintry storm in Northern Iowa, we need some cheery pansies.
The word pansy comes from mid 15th century French from the word penser, and pensee is the feminine form, meaning to think or ponder over something. The French word pensee derives from the Latin word pensare which means to consider or pendare which means to take measure of a situation, to take everything into consideration.
I can’t help but think of those who went before us, who spent their holidays…often several years’ worth of Easters far from loved ones, on battle fields, in field hospitals or other dangerous situations. They must have thought again and again, “this will one day be over.”
So taking into consideration all this day stands for–Hope instead of despair, light to replace darkness, life triumphing over death–a joyful Easter to you in spite of a nasty virus and in the midst of a snowstorm.
This quality underlies all of our best efforts. Embracing hope means turning our backs on the doubt that so easily arises and doing what we can, right now.
The white hair in the background on this photo shows that I didn’t realize my reflection would show up. But maybe that’s not a bad thing, as our hope reflects how we face whatever comes our way.
Albert Einstein, a Greatest Generation member, said: “In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.”
Hope means finding OPPORTUNITIES in the midst of life’s quandaries and challenges. May this be our determination in April 2020, even as it was for our parents and grandparents seventy-five years ago. Here’s a photo of HOPE snapped back then.
See the black arrow on the right? It points to Dorothy Woebbeking, R.N., a surgical nurse during one of WWII’s gruesome battles. Doing what you can with what you’ve got…this gave Dorothy great satisfaction. For more about her incredible HOPEFUL attitude: https://www.amazon.com/Until-Then-Women-Heartland-Book-ebook/dp/B07SZ4BD5D
