I love this song. I cling to the words of this song. I hope this will apply a balm to your heart as it does to mine.

Blessings on you, my friends,

Just because five year-old Mildred looks like a calm, sweet, snoozing Miniature German Schnauzer doesn’t mean she is one.

Don’t let the light from the window behind her that shines a rosy glow through her silky little ear mislead you.

Don’t be bamboozled by the way her left eyebrow forms a delicate, sweeping little fan above her sleepy brown eye.

Don’t be caught off guard by how clean she smells and how sleek her hair (Schnauzers don’t have fur) feels as you gently stroke it.

Don’t be fooled, I tell you!

Look closely. There’s a subtle clue here that speaks to Dreadful ‘Dred’s true nature.

Sshhhh. It’s the right hind leg. Lean in closer. See it? Jutting up there in the air, unsupported by anything else, while the rest of her body is completely at rest?

That leg is the dread dead giveaway. That rogue leg that asserts itself and won’t do what it’s supposed to do, is a sure sign to people everywhere to beware, beewwaaaarre of the person or the dog or the parrot or the bumblebee who seems to be sleeping, but whose leg is sticking up in the air.

What does a jutting leg portend? I’ll tell you.

It means that underneath all that adorable sweetness is a miscreant nature. Right below that soft and rosy ear? Greed. Not far behind that silvery fan of an eyebrow? Deep-seated insecurity that leads to pathetic behavior. Below the surface of that silky pelt is a heart that harbors a lurking, instigating, selfish temperament. Some of you may have heard or read of the four basic personality temperaments – Choleric, Sanguine, Melancholic and Phlegmatic.

Well, Mildred’s temperament is Schnauzeric (this is important: pronounced shnow-ZAIR-ick). And the main tipoff of a Schnauzeric temperament? A rogue leg. Yes.

So, remember that you read this Public Service Announcement here first. Be on the lookout. Be watchful and observant. If you should happen upon a dozing cat or hamster or child and she seems to be sound asleep except for one jutting, unsupported leg that is held up in the air…seek help immediately.

….Tauni!

Congratulations!

Tauni will be receiving a copy of Penelope Wilcock’s The Road of Blessing for this month’s bloggy giveaway.

Pen Wilcock has graciously offered to send a sticker that can be affixed inside the book, so Tauni’s copy can be personalized and autographed.

Thank you so much to those of you who commented about how you are (or will be) simplifying your life this coming year. There were some really wonderful ideas shared that I’m taking to heart.

Happy reading,

It has been a while since I’ve had a bloggy giveaway, and I think it’s time. I love to share good books, and this month I’ll be giving away Penelope Wilcock’s The Road of Blessing.

I became familiar with Penelope’s books years ago when a friend told me about The Hawk and the Dove. I was completely bowled over by that book (it used to be a three-book trilogy and has now been reprinted in its entirety as a three-part book in one volume) and continue to buy copies of it to give as gifts. Then I read a few other books by Pen, and one in particular reached deep into my heart and grabbed it in a way I hope to never forget. If you haven’t read In Celebration of Simplicity, I highly recommend it to you.

I gathered up the courage to write to Pen after reading her book on gospel simplicity, and she graciously wrote back to me. Which I would expect any author who appreciates readers to do. 🙂  Then I wrote to her again and she wrote to me again. We exchanged photographs of our families, learned a little about each others’ histories, and sent each other a couple of things in the mail. She sent me flowers. I sent her socks. Hmmm. Those last two statements reveal a lot don’t they? I’m not sure what, but I’m sure they’re fraught with profound meaning of some sort.

Anyway, one day I emailed Pen (she lives in England with her family) and gave her permission to stop writing back to me — I didn’t want her to think she was obligated to keep in touch with one of her many swooning fans just to be polite. She did not stop writing, much to my happiness, and I consider her one of the dearest friends I’ve never met.  🙂

I was privileged to read her most recent publication The Road of Blessing, a few months ago in manuscript form, and was marvelously blessed and instructed by her words and insights. Pen was kind enough to send me a signed copy recently, and I’m reading it and savoring it a second time now, letting its soothing truths and invitations to God’s peace wash over me.

Yesterday another copy I ordered arrived in the mail from amazon and I would like to share it with one of you!

Also, Pen has offered to send a sticky label with a handwritten message and her signature to the person who wins the book! That way you can put the label in the book and have your own signed and personalized copy. Yay!

To enter this little giveaway, please leave a comment and answer this question:

“What is one thing you would like to do to soothe and simplify your life?”

The winner will be chosen from all people who leave comments, and will be announced on Monday, January 17th.

Here are a few comments by people who have reviewed and recommended The Road of Blessing:

“Pen’s love for God shines through every word. She writes as a fellow traveller. Her words are deeply rooted in truth, watered with compassion and fed with hope. This is a must-have book.” — Malcolm Duncan

“Penelope Wilcock speaks serenity and wisdom into our turbulent lives and troubled times. We need people like her.” — Ruth Valerio

I couldn’t agree more. Pen has spoken serenity and wisdom into my own intermittently turbulent life, sometimes with humor, always with kindness, humility and care. (She has more than once told me that while I’m swinging overhead on vines going from tree to tree, she’s settled comfortably down on the ground below, watching and waving at me. Her depiction has been too close to the truth at times.)

It seems like everyone is looking for a little respite these days. I have slowly pared down my own life to include only what I’m certain is most important and there is yet more to do, as God helps and guides us. If you’re at a place in your life where you can’t get away to a quiet vacation spot but could use some serious refreshment right where you are, you will love this book.

I’m so happy to share about Pen, and I can’t wait to give her newest book away to a very blessed person.

Looking forward to your comments,

“In the name of Jesus Christ, who was never in a hurry, we pray, Oh God, that You will slow us down, for we know that we live too fast.  With all of eternity before us, make us take time to live – time to get acquainted with You, time to enjoy Your blessings, and time to know each other.”

Peter Marshall

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To use an expression my dear friend Pat says, these photos give me the “ohhhhs.”

Audrey Elizabeth

Fall of 2010

And wasn’t she just born last month? *Sigh*  I guess not.  Our youngest little granddaughter is three.

“We’ve had bad luck with our kids – they’ve all grown up.”
~ Christopher Morley

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If I had my druthers….

…this would be our cottage-on-a-loch…

…and we would have furniture, comforters, pillows and perhaps even wallpaper that looked like this…

…and this…

…and this, which is the tartan of my ancestors…

…or this, which is the plaid of my warm flannel nightgown…

…and you could come visit us and stay in our guestroom that looked like this…

…and when the hustle and bustle of our hectic loch life became too noisy and too much for us, we would steal away to our little vacation cottage here…

…and I guess I would have to learn to cook with one of these…

…and even though Michael would probably love it, I don’t think I’d ever be able to make this…

…but I think I could be talked into baking a lot of these…

…and I’m not sure what Edith and Mildred would think when we brought home one of these…

…but maybe they’d forgive us if we took them for daily walks in places like this…

…but that’s only if I had my druthers…

(The collage will enlarge if you click on it)

…My cup overflows…Surely your goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever…

Psalm 23:5b-6

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Thank you Lord. Thank you. Thank you…

“Forget the former things;
do not dwell on the past.
See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
and streams in the wasteland.”

Isaiah 43:18-19

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When I moved to northeastern Minnesota in 1981, I was rather excited about finally living in a place with four distinct seasons. My early winter memories are of sunny days in Southern California with temperatures mostly in the sixties, riding my bike or skateboard, swimming as often as possible, and never knowing the feel of a snowflake on my eyelashes. If it snowed in the mountains two hours away, sometimes we were fortunate enough to drive there and play in the snow for a few hours. Before I married Michael I had never experienced subzero weather or a blizzard or icicles hanging from the roof. Now these are a part of our life for a good portion of the year.

The first winter I spent in Minnesota was a record breaker. I have kept the local newspaper’s front page all these years to commemorate my initiation to American Siberia. There was snowstorm after snowstorm and record breaking wind-chills. I remember calling my mom (who lived in Morro Bay, CA) and reporting that the wind-chill temps were 60 to 70 below zero, and the drifts were piling up so high outside I inwardly questioned my decision to move here. She was deeply concerned, wondering how the house could possibly stay warm, whether or not we had to walk around wrapped in blankets, how life in general was carried out in those conditions.

After six months of snow and cold, little signs of spring began to appear, and never had they been more welcome. Six-foot high drifts in our yard melted away to scattered snowy patches with grass showing through. The days grew longer. The house wasn’t so drafty and the car didn’t groan when we started it. I remember going outside with my heavy coat, mittens and hat on, and realizing with a rush of relief that it was too warm to be dressed that way anymore. I was overdressed! Spring had arrived, and we could pack away our winter outerwear as real Minnesotans do, and get outside and start frisking like spring lambs.

Since this was the first spring after my first harsh winter, I had not yet become weather obsessed, as I now am and as all Minnesotans are. Back then I didn’t compulsively check the weather report or put a thermometer up outside the kitchen window so we could plan our day according to what the temperature was and how we should dress.

One fine May morning after I saw Michael off to work, I went outside in the sunshine and it was so warm and inviting I decided to take the girls downtown to walk around and maybe to the park to play. I hadn’t yet lived here a year and I wanted to explore my new town. Sharon was five, Carolyn was three, and Sara was about six weeks old. I put the girls in summery clothes – tee shirts, lightweight pants, and tennies. Since Sara was still a baby she was bundled up in a sleeper and a blanket. I donned a favorite old sleeveless denim shift and a pair of sandals. I don’t have the dress anymore, but it was very similar to this, only a darker color of denim. 

We piled into our station wagon, drove downtown, and happily sauntered around, looking in shop windows, and enjoying the fresh and warm air of spring after such a long, harsh Minnesota winter. The girls were chipper and skipped along the sidewalk, looking forward to the ice cream cones I had promised later on in the day. Baby Sara was quiet and content in the stroller, and I was thinking how invigorating being outside felt, and how marvelous it was to live in a place where the seasons dramatically change.

After a while I started noticing that people who passed us on the busy sidewalks downtown seemed to be looking at us for longer periods of time than was polite. I wondered if they had never seen a young woman walking with her children before!

As the girls and I paused on a corner and waited for the light to turn green so we could cross the main street, I happened to glance up at the bank building in front of us and noticed that it had an outside lit up thermometer with the current temperature displayed. I stared, and possibly dropped my jaw when I saw that we were strolling around like beach bums when it was 26 degrees (or minus 3 Celsius) outside. Yet we weren’t shivering and we honestly didn’t feel chilled or uncomfortable in the least.

I did an about-face and quickly herded my little girls down the street and back into the car. We did not stop for ice cream cones on the way home. Once back inside our little house we all changed into more appropriate attire, and when Michael came home from work that night I couldn’t wait to tell him what had happened. I had heard him use the phrase, “It’s tee-shirt weather!” and now I understood. He was quite amused, and to this day we still mention it when spring arrives, and grin at each other.

To this day, after a long, bitter winter, it’s not at all unusual to go outside in the spring and feel that a tee-shirt is sufficiently warm attire, even on days when it’s barely in the thirties.

I think it’s called acclimation. And I guess I would call that little downtown stroll we took in the spring of 1982, winter acclimation to the extreme.