Reasons for a GREAT weekend...

1. Enjoyed a seven mile bike ride Friday morning
2. Worship service went well on Saturday morning at The Commons. I had a gentelman who doesn't believe in God attend. Prayers for his journey are appreciated. Come Holy Spirit!
3. Ryan came to worship b/c he had the day off
4. Because Ryan was at worship we were able to go out to lunch
5. Yummy food at Sambol...Indian/Sri Lankan...nice buffet, cool atmosphere, exceptional company
6. Pool is open at the apartments! A lounge chair was calling my name! Went over with a book and soaked up the rays....oooh how I love summer, the sun, swimsuites, a good book, and water.
7. Went to Gertens, the greenhouse that is actually what we look out our windows to. They do all their own growing. So many flowers, veggies, and fun stuff. Picked up a few more herbs and insecticide for our house plant.
8. Ryan cooked up some great pork chops for din-din. Better yet, those pork chops were BOGO at Byerly's this week. So was the ground beef and tuna steaks that we purchased.
9. I finally got all the plants in the dirt! Have a bunch of containers on the deck. Four tomato plants, scallions, a habanero, a jalapeno, cilantro, chives, parsley, basil, thai basil, rosemary, sage, and oregano.
10. Pastor Per's sermon on Hebrews 10 and Character spoke to the heart.
11. Got the house cleaned today and grocery shopping done too.
12. Off to dinner with a friend
13. Tomorrow Ryan and I are going to go to the Historic Fort Snelling to commemorate Memorial Day. It's appropriate to be mindful of the meaning of the holiday. It's more than a day off.
14. In the afternoon we'll go to his family's for some work and bbq.

A good weekend!

Collective Memory

collective memory 
–noun
1. a memory or memories shared or recollected by a group, as a community or culture.
2. any collection of memories passed from one generation to the next.

I am continually amazed how collective memory works here at The Commons--and, probably, many other senior residences. It happens a lot with music. An entertainer will start playing an old song and people join in singing. Despite the great trials and tribulations of the Great Depression and WWII, I think these events united people. Today the entertainer started playing "Sentimental Journey," played on warships coming home, and the people started singing and smiles emerged on faces. This collective memory serves people well, it takes them back to a time and place, it reunites them to what was--very important in later years.

It makes me wonder....when I'm living, not working, at the senior residence, what songs will be sung? What is in our collective memory? I haven't thought of anything yet...can you?

Cousin Fun!

Here are a few of my favorite pics from a weekend spent with my cousins...first and second. So much fun!

Happy Valentine's Day

Valentine’s Day With Jesus
Jesus does not send perfume

To linger in the air

Instead He sends salvation, sweet

To show how much He cares.

He doesn’t bring me candy hearts

In boxes of delight

Instead He always lets me know

I’m precious in His sight.

He doesn’t send out pretty cards

Trimmed in shades of red

Instead He gave His life for me

His precious blood was shed.

He doesn’t hand out fancy gifts

Like we would send to mother

Instead He sends a message clear

To always love each other.

He doesn’t give me teddy bears

That whimper, “please be mine”

Instead He gave His heart to me

I wear it all the time.

He doesn’t give me roses, pink

For all the world to see

Instead He gave eternal life

That’s good enough for me!
Copyright © by Marilyn Ferguson 2003

It's about time!

I'm still alive...just lax on the posting. Since my blog is *supposed* to be about finding the radiance of each day...or of each couple of months in this case :)...I thought I'd share some of the things I've been enjoying lately.

First. Have you ever had the opportunity to see sundogs, or "snow-bows", as I think they should be called? I don't ever remember seeing them before until this winter. Beautiful! One of the only things that I have been enjoying about winter. (But don't tell my husband that I really do get a bit distracted when looking at them when I'm driving :) ). Here's a pic, not my own, but a pic nonetheless.

Second. Ross and Johanna (engaged, by the way, in Dec....should have been blog worthy. Sorry.) got me Sara Groves' "Tell Me What You Know" CD for Christmas. (nope, no ipod yet...still old fashioned). It's a great CD. My fave songs include When the Saints, Honesty, and It Might Be Hope. If you're not familiar with Sara or want to hear snipets of these songs, click here: http://www.saragroves.com/store/tellmewhatyouknow/. She's a good 'ol, homegrown Minnesota artist who shares a lot about life and faith in her music.

Third. The music we sang in worship touched the heart. Love it when God just grabs a hold of the heart and speaks His love into it. The set included Revival, Power of Your Love, and How Great Thou Art. Tears from nowhere flowed down during Power of Your Love. Here's a link to a YouTube video for the song. I hope it touches your heart and gives you a message of hope. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbLXnIc7O-k

Fourth. The residents at work are wonderful! I have some pictures I would love to post of our "Loving Service" group, but I'm not sure if that would be okay. Our Loving Service group does projects that support the larger community. It's a hit. Last month they double bagged grocery bags for the food shelf and made Valentine's for children in the hospital. We all enjoy it, and I think they gain a sense of purpose...which we all need!!! And for those of you who aren't aware...my position did go full-time Jan. 5. Busy, busy....God has totally increased the amount of work to be done and I pray I'm doing what He wants me to be doing.

Fifth. Ryan and I are taking Financial Peace University at church. Changing our family tree, as Dave Ramsey says. Correcting some bad behaviors and learning discipline. Want peace in your financial life? Check out: www.daveramsey.com. His book, Total Money Makeover, is a good place to start. We've made some progress from reading this book alone.

Okay. Finally. I did a post! Have a radiant day!