Gifts of the Soul

"To live ordinary life artfully is to...

live more intuitively

and to be willing to surrender

a measure of our rationality and control

in ruturn for gifts of the soul."

Thomas Moore

Beautiful Music

Our ward choir might not quite be the tab choir, but we're a close second. Yesterday for Easter, we sang two of the most beautiful songs. One touched me very deeply. I would like to share the words with you .

" Did you see him in the garden, when he bled from every pore?

Did you feel his lonely anguish

when he asked to drink no more?

Did you see his three disciples as they

slept through his great pain?

Did you hear his footsteps coming

taking upon the cross for men?

Did you watch him through the courtyards,

did you hear their angry lies?

Did you feel the lash upon you, did you follow by his side?

Were you there when they condemned him and they nailed him to a cross?

Did you hear him then forgive them as his loved ones mourned their loss?

Did you see him in his glory when the stone was rolled away?

Did you feel the hope of all men when his ransomed life was paid?

will you know him when you see him once again on heavenly thrones?

will he say to you in pure love, come to me,

thou art mine own?"

....words by Shawn M. Stringham

The music is as lovely as the words...it made for a very special Easter.

And the fun continues..

After the hunt...

Jake sat down and played us a little jazz.

He sure can belt it out, takes after his Grampa Jiggs!

Then a story with grama Polly..

He told us all that

he had one FUN day!!!!

Jakes Easter Egg Hunt

It took a minute for Jake to get the hang of it,

(maybe because they were easter soccer balls, not eggs)!

but with Whitney's help he soon started

finding the hiding places ...

and as he found each egg,

of course there was lots of cheering!

Happy Birthday Jolyn

When Jo was little mom would take us to the fabric stores and while mom looked through the pattern books, Jolyn would wander around and just have fun looking at all the fabric, while I would run frantically after, making sure she wouldn't get lost. She always was a free spirit..and quite adventurous... Well, she's all grown up and she is still a wanderer...travelling all over the world... I guess she won't get lost. She always seems to find her way back home. This month she's in India and Thailand..Happy Birthday Jo! (Photo's courtesy of Jolyn's blog)

Coco says...

A girl should be two things, classy and fabulous.

coco chanel

Spring Cleaning

What a mess!

After working all day, I wonder if this, will ever become

this????

And... after working outside for most of the day,

my reward is....

this....

pure heaven!

Wear your Hat!

"Throughout the years, I have mentally put together a profile of women who can wear hats. Generally, they are women of great confidence. When they visit someone in the hospital, they park in the tow away zone it is always there when they return for it. Their hair is always long enough on the sides to pull back and secure without little pieces standing out over their ears like Howdy Doody. They love blueberries, and they never stain their teeth.
They have two children: a boy and a girl, who are not allowed to watch television. Their husbands recite them poetry that doesn't rhyme. They're the first to wear white shoes in the spring. The family dog wears braces for an overbite. I know I am generalizing, but I'm bitter. In my heart, I know there is much to admire about a woman wearing a hat who knows that she attracts attention of every eye around her and can still walk like a person. I used to give speeches and I'd be so self conscious that I'd walk to the podium as though I were marching to Poland. I have a hat. It is graceful and feminine and has a wide brim with a red ribbon around the band. It gives me a certain dignity, as if I were attending a state funeral or something. People are generous in their compliments. Someday I may get up enough courage to wear it, instead of carrying it."
-Erma Bombeck

I think we all have gifts and talents that we might not be brave enough to show to the world. I think I might just start by wearing a visor!

A Great Lady Said....

A Great Lady Said....

We can make a difference!

"Most of the time, each of us feels incredibly ordinary, but that shouldn't hold us back. One ordinary woman can make a difference. Our job is to get in step with the purpose for which we were created. The world is longing for women who will make a difference. Women make great leaders! Faith Whittlesey said it best: "Remember, Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, but she did it backwards and in high heels." I found this in a little book by Pam Farrel, I was browsing through today and liked it...thought I'd pass it along.