Beautiful Sunset

We were driving home a few days ago...














I couldn't help but take pictures of the darkening day...

... and the lovely sunset!














The downside of this story?














It was only 5:30 in the afternoon!

Delighting in... Myself?!

A few weeks ago, I mentioned how hard it is for me to think about loving myself... It's not something I was taught to do. It seems selfish and self-indulgent!

But I have come across this same idea from a different angle in a book on rediscovering the spiritual art of attentiveness:

"God took delight in his creation, and surely I should do the same - seeing myself as God sees me, with the same delight. Do I yet believe in the delight-full-ness of my own self? And yet also draw back and realize that in the end I am mystery." (Lost in Wonder, p. 31)

Do Squirrels Live There?!!

Terry and I often watch with amazement as rabbits and squirrels frolic in our snow-covered yard. The temperature can be freezing, but they don't seem to mind! How do they do it?!

That same thought came to me as I looked out one of our upstairs windows - through the icicles.


















Those two snow-topped bundles of leaves high up in our neighbor's tree look like two squirrel nests. Rocking in the branches on a windy winter day, can a family of squirrels stay safe and warm in one of those?!


















Amazing!

Delicious Low-Carb Cookies

I can't believe I haven't posted this recipe for low-carb cookies. I used to make them a lot in the days when I packed a lunch for work. The recipe comes from Anne Lindsay's Lighthearted Cookbook. Soft and yummy!

Oatmeal-Apricot Cookies

1. Mix together:

• 1/3 cup (75 mL) margarine (I use olive oil.)
• 1 cup (250 mL) brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup (125 mL) milk
• 1 teaspoon (5 mL) vanilla

2. Add:

• 1 cup (250 mL) whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon (5 mL) baking powder
• 1/2  teaspoon (2 mL) baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) cinnamon
• 1 1/4 cup (300 mL) rolled oats
• 1/4 cup (50 ml) wheat germ
• 1 cup (250 mL) chopped dried apricots (or raisins or chopped dates)

 3. Drop in small spoonfuls onto cookie sheet. Bake for 12-14 minutes.

Oops! I had forgotten how they spread! I should have baked them farther apart. I had to cut some apart after they were baked.














I tried baking a few in a muffin tin...














Next time, I'll add a little more oats if I use (liquid) olive oil again, and see how they look and taste then.  

The Art of Silence

Our family is a talkative family. So when one of our children, as a youngster, didn't speak in the morning unless spoken to first, Terry took notice...

(I was totally unaware, no doubt happy to have one less person competing to be heard.)

Nowadays with fewer people in the house, it is often quiet. And I have been reading about the "art of silence" (which is more than simply the absence of noise):

"Traditional societies... have always known the importance of silence... The Christian aboriginal [Australian] artist, Miriam-Rose Ungummer, calls it tapping into a deep spring that is within us all..."

She writes:

"My people are not threatened by silence.
They are completely at home with it...

I can find peace in this silent awareness.
There is no need of words.
There is no need to reflect too much
and do a lot of thinking.
It is just being aware.
Our aboriginal culture has taught us to be still and to wait."

(Lost in Wonder, pp. 43-44)

Failure: A Stepping Stone

What do we do with failure? I like Johnny Cash's approach when he says:

"You build on failure. You use it as a stepping stone. Close the door on the past. You don't try to forget the mistakes, but you don't dwell on it. You don't let it have any of your energy, any of your time, or any of your space."

(I like his advice! At a time in my life when I don't have a lot of energy to spare, I don't want to waste it!)

(Quoted in 100 Ways to Simplify Your Life, p. 11)

Finishing What I Start

I find it easier to START projects than FINISH them!

So Joyce Meyer's admonition to "refuse to start what you cannot finish" was a challenge to finish a few!

The first unfinished project I tackled was this Entrelac scarf I started knitting last March!

It only needed a few more hours to complete! Now I have a new circle scarf.














My next project will either be the blue quilt I began a while back... Or my study, the room that is an ongoing concern! Other potential challenges include a basket of darning, a pile of mending, some unfinished paintings, and stacks of magazines... More than enough to keep me busy all winter long!

But the real question is: Can I FINISH all these projects without STARTING a few more?!