June in all its glory

Robin fledged, roses bloom

June reminds me of roses and the early sweet days of summer. It all happened last week. June came in like March, windy and cold. The first set of barn swallows either found it too cold to raise babies or didn’t find enough mosquitoes to feed them and so the three featherless birds died. But last week the weather changed for a few days and a new couple excitedly came to take up residence on the community nest. Fledgling juncos, and robins are everywhere, and tree swallows are feeding young in the nest boxes. There are finally peas on the vine, potatoes ripening underground and fresh sweet ripe strawberries for picking.

I have heard about the trees clapping for joy, praising God. This windy week when the sun came out, it was the roses that were dancing. Red petals from Paul’s scarlet rose filled the air. The sun on the bright red single petals glowed and made me praise God for the beauty of His creation. The coldness of the month, makes this last week of sunshine even more glorious.
See: June rose display on first summer’s day.

Isaiah 55:12 "You will live in joy and peace. The mountains and hills will burst into song, and the trees of the field will clap their hands!

Instead of writing

I took a watercolor class on figure drawing this week. Here is what happened.

It was a fun and productive week between playing piano and painting.

Child on beach

Beach artist

Dylan

Jon and Cindi

Serendipities

Dylan's party at the park

It was a week of serendipity (making fortunate discoveries by accident). Last Saturday, June 7, we held Dylan's belated two year old birthday party at our condo in town. Just the day before, I saw a sign for a grand opening of the park across the street which has been under renovation since early last winter. It was planned for the same day as our party. What crazy fun! A surprise park party with Dylan thinking it was just for him and maybe it was.
God's extra blessings come when you least expect it. A few weeks ago in my daily quiet time with God, I made a note to tune our spinet piano for the next jam session at our house. Just then an image of a baby grand went through my head. "What was that about?" I asked. Later that morning as I searched the piano bench to find the tuner's number, Meghan, who is staying with us, asked if we were tied to the piano. "Not really,” I said. “Only that our kids all learned to play piano on it.” “Why?" I asked. She mentioned that a mutual friend was selling a piano. "It is a baby grand," she said. “He needs to get it out of the house to make room for his children."

I never even considered letting go of the Baldwin spinet and getting a black baby grand piano before the image of it in my mind and Meghan’s question that day. But these “accidental” discoveries started me thinking and before the end of the week we got rid of a bookcase and contents to make room and our mutual friend gathered three more men to break down and pack up their piano, belt it on the back of a truck, the only day it did not rain, move it to our house, put it back together in the living room and load our spinet into the same truck and to their home to the delight of their children, who will be freer to learn to play piano now.

So here it wonderfully sits, made for the space, beautifully blending with the rest of the living room. I’m drawn to it every day to play it, instead of writing and grateful to God for His surprise encouragement and the “accidental” discovery once again of his love for me (and Dylan) that is no accident.

Perspective

Island view from air

It is great to get away and view a different perspective of where you live in relation to surrounding areas. It was that way with the fun helicopter ride this week and the boat trip to Victoria last week, a view of the Islands by water and air and a refreshed spirit.

This week I viewed myself differently as well. Sunday, our pastor mentioned that perhaps we could give the Holy Spirit permission to access our heart to change us. So I started praying this. The result was more "problems", more "confrontations" by people I love and more stress, but a different perspective. I realize I don't listen, but defend myself instead. I realize that I often think more about myself than others when I judge others for not thinking about me. Being quiet and self conscious is as bad as the opposite. I misinterpret what people are saying. This is a prompting to change within. I do want to be filled with the Holy Spirit and not bound by ways that are so natural it seems to be a part of me. There are times when I experience this freedom that comes with Holy Spirit change and I want more of it.

I cannot change myself, but I trust you will Lord. When I become self conscious, help me to think of others. When I become critical of others help me to pray for the "others" and myself; the same when I am criticized. When I become frustrated and angry, help me let go of the situation and trust your sovereignty that you allowed this into my life for a purpose. Help me have the courage to examine myself rather than defend. I pray this not be a moment's change and then turn back to where I was before. Most of all help me to remember that I was the one that granted you permission to access and change my heart and you heard me. Thank you for taking me up as in a helicopter so I could see myself from your perspective, Lord. The scenery was not as pretty as the helicopter ride, but it will be someday!

Taking a Break

The week got away with me. I decided to head out of the country, Victoria BC Canada, for a few days with a friend and reconnect with Canadian roots. We also have overnight guests and programs to coordinate so I'm taking a break this week. Thanks for checking in.

Detour

Detour from Robin's nest in rose trellis

I made a sign today and placed it in a pot beside the rose trellis over the pathway, “Detour…nest”. Lately, every time we walked from the cottage to the parking area and main house through the rose bud covered archway, a robin flew out scolding and chipping after us. “The detour won’t be for that long,” I said. But according to The Birder’s Handbook, by Ehrilich, Dobkin and Wheye, looks like the a month long sign, 12-14 days before the young hatch and another 12-16 before they fledge. The pink Paul’s Himalayan Musk Rose surrounding the trellis will be in full bloom by then.

I sometimes feel like that bird, always interruptions and indignant because of them, disturbed, distressed, and flying off my task in a huff. Perhaps I need a “Do not disturb” “Detour, danger ahead!” sign on myself so I can get something completed, like this blog.

Upon reflection, I realize that instead I need a “Detour” sign for myself to look at, to change the way I think, go in a different thought direction. I say that I want to be interruptible, to be used by God for His purposes, but when it comes down to it, I forget and get angry. You are my real refuge and quiet place Lord. I want your peace. I know you are sovereign and have my best interests at heart so I give you my anger and frustration and I know you will take it away. I want my life to be a sign post pointing away from me to you. Perhaps I have a month to look at the sign I put up in front of the robin’s nest and remember that whenever I am disturbed to ask for your help to think differently so that others might see a blooming rose, your glory instead of me.


 

Lost and separated

Fledgling alone and abandoned

I’ve always had a heart for birds, to rescue the injured, distressed, or separated, motherless. So when Neil pointed out what he called a “sick bird” outside our door on the stone patio last week, just before Mother’s Day I paid attention, stopped what I was doing and asked God what to do. It was all fluffed up feathers, trapping warm air for better insulation, wobbly legs and head resting under its wing, tired and cold. Many say that you should just leave it alone unless it is injured in that case get it to a Wildlife rehab center. This fledgling was not injured but was distressed and alone. I thought about placing it up higher in a tree or bush, but wasn’t sure where its nest was, nor what kind of bird it was as most baby birds look somewhat alike when young, and its legs did not look stable enough to do this, so I left it alone to fend for itself. I decided that I would put it in a box overnight for safekeeping if throughout the day I didn’t see its mother and it still looked abandoned. Just before nightfall, I looked out to find it under a large saucer, cold and abandoned and dead.
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How could I let it die? What should I have done? I was distressed and distraught now; extremely sad, I sobbed for its loss. Wondering why I had such a heartbreaking reaction, God then showed me that I had been praying daily for over a month a quote from “Seeker Small Groups,” by Gary Poole. “Lord help me see the lost as you do, to have a broken heart for them and great compassion. Help me think about their spiritual condition. Help them really matter to me. Lord, give me a renewed passion for lost people. Give me new eyes to see them as they really are - lost, separated, distressed.” We learned about these groups in February at a confernce and had been praying about starting one, when and how. To help us even more understand the important timing to sart a group soon, God brought a family with 10 month old adopted Ethiopian orphan twins to join us for Mother’s Day. What a delight to watch these happy African babies that had joined their family of four, knowing they were rescued from death and no longer motherless.

The message seemed clear, the timing was here to reach out to adults around us who are separated from God, distressed or alone. We stared our first group last week. With fear and trembling and God’s direction, we openly discuss spiritual issues in a safe place where they can self discover where they might be hindered spiritually, participate in out of the box discussions and learn how to be no longer alone. Pray with us, even more important than birds these human lives, that they might be found, rescued and no longer alone and many more would flock to our door.

see http://www.youtube.com/ angelambryant Lost fledgling

( If you are interested find out more about sponsoring an orphan from Africa as we have, not adopting, check out Rafiki Foundation, http://www.rafiki-foundation.org/ )