Current light in my house is in the shades of orange and yellow, and I am a project-driven maniac. Fall is my time. It is when I was born. It is when I get things accomplished. Mission list? DONE. Christmas presents? Almost DONE. Neighbor gifts? BOOM! November and December, I am ready. Bring all you have to ask of me. Bring it all: a missionary, home MTC, Primary programs, speaking and training assignments, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Thanks to a healthy and productive October I am more prepared face all the things, and have a cushion of time for the goodbye. I fall apart sometimes, and it isn’t all perfect, but I know God has been in the details of this season.
We had three artists leave their work in the art gallery this week. The mama of these two boys had us smile for the camera and sent me these photos. This moment hearing the boys talk about their art was one of the highlights of my week.
In the early 2000’s, I remember writing down a wishlist for a system to keep track of important family events. It would need to be a place for writing and pictures which would also allow for incidental and everyday things to be saved. I think I’m my mind it was an organization system in a three-ring binder. I didn’t know then that I was describing a blog. Today I was going through photos on my phone and realized I have a collection of screenshots that I would probably like to remember. So, here is a post of incidental things that mattered to me during the past month or so.
Thank goodness!Comic relief when the Department of State rejected something on Tim’s passport application.No credit was given to the artist on this post.Forgive me. I took a screenshot of a Zoom women’s meeting with Elder and Sister Renlund. In this picture, Sister Renlund is teaching that when we focus on our own problems, we can’t see the big picture beyond them. (Her fist represents the problems in our lives.) When we make a fist in front of our face and focus on it, that is all we see clearly. She invited us to focus beyond our fist of troubles. As we focus on the bigger setting beyond ourselves, especially on Jesus Christ, our troubles seem less pressing. Try it, make a fist, focus on the wall beyond the fist, and the fist almost disappears.
Many years ago, I bought two hot water bottles, but until recently, I have been almost the only user. This year, our pup is my new hot water bottle buddy. It got really cold all of a sudden around here. Sorry about a post about the weather. Life isn’t always very noteworthy.
I have opened a miniature art museum on my front porch. It delights me to find the children in the neighborhood are displaying their art here. I got the idea online and sent invitations to create pieces no bigger than a library card. Slowly, the art began to appear. Paige kindly contributed a piece early on just in case no one showed up. 🙂 I have never “caught” anyone leaving art, and that is part of the fun. What will I discover in the museum today?
This year for our church conference, our family paused the t.v. after each talk to write a summary statement together on a white board. It didn’t take long, but it was a good way to review quickly and work together. I love autumn light, and it comes in many forms: sunrises, sunsets, golden afternoons, and general conference talks.
Richard took me on a drive through several canyons on Friday morning. This was Guardsman Pass in Big Cottonwood Canyon.
I have been thinking about the way things were before I had a smartphone. Things were simpler because I wasn’t connected to news and images all the time. I used to get a magazine each month of beautiful decorating and home ideas, but now I can see the equivalent of a magazine in images online in about 10 minutes. It is a great tool, and I used the phone to take this photo, but I don’t think I benefit from the incessant information. It has been a goal since August to be phone-free for the morning hours, and I decided on this goal after praying to know what I needed to do help improve socially. The idea came easily, but I have been surprised how big a difference this has made. Obviously, this extra morning time opens my day to more possibilities. I have mostly used the time to study, read, and spend time with Tim working on mission prep. Another benefit is that I have felt more sure in myself. Being my authentic self in my interactions with others is taking away some of my intensity and fussiness. It has been a good thing to go back to the old times before I had a smartphone, even just part of the day. I find that spending the morning “off” tends to spill into lighter phone use in the afternoon and evening, too. My next installment should be to read the news like we used to when we had a daily newspaper, just once a day.
Slowly, I am thinking more about my grandmother. I think it hurt too much to look at photos or read her writing after she passed away. A few days ago, I read her last message and looked at a few pictures and it didn’t kill me. I listened to her voice, recorded on my phone, and I didn’t cry.
I packed up a bunch of pictures right after she passed away and they spilled in my car on the way home. Every few weeks I discover another picture I didn’t find when I cleaned things up. If I make a sudden stop, this tends to bring them out of their hiding places. It’s like I have been showered in pictures since she left us. She was a little mischievous and LOVED being surrounded by photos. I like to think she smiles as I find these happy old memories.
This is my new view from my kitchen window. The dead cherry tree is gone from the neighbor’s yard, so I have a clear view of the mountain. The colors from the autumn leaves on this little patch of mountain just delight me.
The house behind us is being renovated, the mean dogs are gone, and my tree has grown tall this year, blocking the 70’s era windows in the neighbor’s house. Everything is very pleasant lately.
