Autumn 2008

A few details:
Leaves dipped in sunilght, dew glinting like polished jade upon the long green grass. Sheep grazing yonder, gentle and serene.

We walk, wait, gaze, continue. Weave a story in gold and green...

A story wrought among the brambles and ragged grass. A fairy tale maybe? For three princesses ?
A little one sleepy from the fresh air and the glow of the trees, the sparking embers of falling leaves...
Searching for the last speck of a gleaming horizon upon the hillside, a pencil line of glinting silver.

The perfect woodland dwelling for a fairy princess!

Boo finds..... Another leaf.

And I amaze. At the wonder she finds in each and every fallen "treasure" she collects. For her they are all "treasures" to her.

A hundred or more leaves that scatter to the ground around us, similar in form, colour and shape are all uniquly crafted in her sight. Her eyes see.

Her child's eyes see and set apart. To recognise the beauty and sacredness in every stem and vein and frayed edged Autumn leaf that finds her.

Together...
Deer grazing on the meadow beyond.

A church Spire silhoetted against a naked tree.

Beholding the last light of an Autumn evening.

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"The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

Psalm 23.

And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. [Genesis, 1:1-3]

Lighting Candles for the world as Family

okay i know i said i was on a break but as usual as soon as i say that i read something i just have to share with you all don't i ;0)

You are called to Evangelization.

Extract from Handbook for today's catholic family.

*A sense of Celebration*

" If we celebrate feast days and make our life festive in expectation of the eternal feast, then we know that life is good, that it is wonderful to live together, that life has an ultimate purpose beyond all the purposes of organized work. We have every reason for contemplation and celebration. We are constantly being invited to rejoice in all that is good, true and beautiful as we recall our roots which come from God who is love, goodness, truth, bliss."

For our Family: One day we will be together sharing God who is love , goodness, truth and bliss. What shall we do to deepen our sense of this eternal adventure and delight as we worship together on Sundays? What shall we do to make our weekends together times of greater joy to remind us of our eternal future?

Influencing Mass Media
"The simplest means of influence is by judicious choice of the products provided b the press, films, cassettes, radio and TV programs; in this way the client speaks forcefully through the market itself.

For our Family: What shall we do as a family to "send a message" to movie makers, TV stations and publishers whose products tear down human life? What shall we do to affirm the ones who are doing good work? What shall we do about trashy TV shows in our own home?

Protecting Human Life
" Our crusades against abortion, against war and mass starvation all must go hand in hand; otherwise we would not be consistent and credible. Those protesting loudly against the threat of nuclear weapons, which can destroy the whole of humankind, do well. But all, while protesting against these striking evils, should ask themselves if they are also willing to make their personal contributions to alieviate dangerous hunger and contagious diseases or to take political action to bring about more generous help to the poorest countries. As the Vatican has documented - the arms race " kills the poor by causing them to starve" And further, they should ask themselves whether they are caring properly for their own health or endangering the health of others."

For our Family: Are we as a family willing to be brave and stand up for what we believe in even though it may go completly against the mainstream? It can be as simple as writing letters, signing petitions, donating money or time to events, organisations and our church. It can mean being a friend to the one who is friendless. Reaching out to the immigrant, the housebound, the young mother or the homeless in our town. We can show that Christ dwells in the least of our brothers and sisters on earth.

Protecting Our Good earth
" Forty years ago nobody would have expected to find a chapter on ecological responsibility in a book about morality in everyday living; only a new world situation and a new knowledge have brought this dimension to the foreground....

" The earth is part of an interaction between the sun and all the planets.....

" This interaction has already been seriously disturbed by recent developments: for instance, the waste of irreplaceable minerals, especially fossil energy resources, and by pollution of water and air. Billions of fish, destined by the Creator to reproduce themselves for all generations, die because of water pollution and as a result of various poisons from industrial wastes. The margin of tolerance of ionizing radiation by industry and armaments has been exceeded in many parts of the world. Asbestos is produced and used in increasing quantities, although it is now known as a principal cause of cancer, second only to excessive smoking."

For our Family: Do we care for the beautiful earth God has created for us like we should? Do we live in harmony with the animals, fish and plant life? It can be as simple as using non toxic products in our homes, walking, riding bikes or using public transport instead of our cars so much. We can make little steps. Recycle, compost, save water and electricity. Eat a little less even. Hand wash and dry clothes and dishes as much as we can. Small steps make a difference.

Transforming the economy

" For today's Christians - more so than for the first generation Christians - active participation in economic life is imperative....

"Once we have exercised our option to view economics under the banner of the Beatitudes we will gradually rid ourselves of our blindness, and begin to realize how frequently and how easily economic success and power are leagued with " unjust mammon" with sinful economic structures, and degrading exploitation and relationships....

"Where people believe in the kingdom of God and concentrate on God's saving justice above all, there the weak and poor are no longer degraded and exploited.

" Where disciples of Christ hunger and thirst for God's justice, there the greed for more money and more power over other's fades away.

" Where believers practice Christ's gentleness, there will be found a solution to conflicts.

" Where people faithfully and gratefully praise the God of mercy, there will be no class hatred, no group selfishness, and no neglect of the handicapped.

" Where believers' hearts are purified by embracing God's love, there will grow a sympathetic understanding of people's genuine needs.

"Where men and women consider themselves highly blessed and honored to be called children of God, there will be total commitment to peace, justice and reconciliation.

" Where people truly believe the message of the Gospel, there will be brave souls like Bishop Romero of El Salvador and thousands of others who are ready to suffer persecution and death for the sake of authentic peace and saving justice. And despite temporary lack of success, they will not lose hope for they have entrusted themselves to God."

For our Family: Does our family make responsible choices when buying products. Do we choose fairtrade wherever possible. Do we recycle, buy secondhand? How much does accumulating, saving and aquiring mean to us as a family? We can make small steps toward, letting go of our need to consume or spend. We can make choices that affect the quality of life of people on the otherside of the world. Do we make choices that affect other's positivly? We can try to be more mindful of how we as a family imprint the world.

Sharing the Good News of Peace.
" What every lover of peace needs is a profound knowledge of Chris, the Prince of Peace, and through appreciation of the peace which he grants....

"Mere passive pacifism, which stands clear of political controversy and other realities, will not do.

As blessed peacemakers ( Matthew 5:9) we must face the realities of life - right on the front line - in order to work for peace in a nonviolent way....

" Mahatma Gandi and Martin Luther King risked their lives and finally sacrificed them for Satyagraha, a system of nonviolence which emphasized the power of truth, love, justice and solidarity in the service of the down trodden. Gandi, though not formally a christian, was a fervent disciple of Christ; he was convinced that this method embodied the central message of the Sermon on the Mount and the life and death of Christ.

" In their ashrams (houses of prayer) the followers of Gandi are trained in the use of Satagraha. They learn that it means nothing less that total dedication to the liberating truth that God is Love and that He is a God of Peace.....

" This Gandian method of achieving social and political reform on the art of detecting our Inner forces of Truth and Love for ourselves and others ( including our enemies) of regarding them as precious gifts of God, and activating them by unwavering love.

" This will require of us the courage to eliminate our primitive patterns of hatred, our trust in menacing armaments, our classification of certain people as " cunning enemies" who fully deserve to be debased.....

" IT is my firm conviction that the only way we Christians can break out of the vicious circle of the armaments race is for all of us to take on the attitude of and apply the skill of Satyagrha. This will be a concrete sign of our faith in the Gospel of Peace, and it should become the most effective " defense contract" we ever made.

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For our Family : We pray for peace within our own homes and in the world beyond. We can seek forgiveness within our own family and our wider world family. We can encourage instead of critisize, and hold out a hand of compassion instead of judgement. We can seek the way of peace together.

These are candle which our family may light to bring the light of Christ into the world. The light of Peace, Goodness and LOVE...
"You are the light of the world" Says Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount. " Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven."




( all "quoted " content apart from biblical quotes are from Father Bernard Haring a leading theologian and spiritual adviser at the second vatican council)

Little Pearls

"The details make life holy. If you want a little happiness in life don’t forget to look at the little things. It is a poet’s work to see the incidental, pluck it, place an appropriate silence around both sides and see the profound in what passes for a passing moment. It is an artist’s job to as much discover art as create it. Prayer is a way of making the common profound by pausing, tying knots around a moment, turning our life into a string of pearls."

Noah Ben Shea

Here are a few little pearls from today... "Tilly" our new pet dog! (According to Bujana ;0)

Candle light at sunrise. A big sister helping a little one play twinkle star on the piano.

Homemade lavender oil with the lavender from our very own garden. Perfect for after bathtime, relaxing little bodies ready for sleep.

Playing "Peek - a - boo" behind the curtain:0) I just can't get enough of that cheeky grin :0)

Our Weekend!

A few pieces to share from our weekend.

Emmy found this beautiful, transparent leaf in the garden and brought it in to take a picture of it.

Time for Piano practise girls!
Hey you missed your timing sis!

Move over here comes the professional! One of my great joys is listening to Emmy play the piano.

Here are my beautiful three "big" girls! There were just to many other exciting things to do in the garden for Seraphina other than have her picture taken ( like dig out my red onion plants for instance ;0)

The dresses they are wearing come from charity shops and in total their outfits in total probably came to around £8. We have stopped buying new clothes completly now. Apart from underwear, swim suits and school uniforms, we either sew our own, buy from a fair trade store or from a charity shop. Besides saving lot's of money it feels good to know that charities are being helped out. REcycling of course helps the environment too! And of course aids the fair trade cause.

One of the things I love most is watching Matilda and Bujana using their imaginations in the garden. This weekend they made a bird nest, became nature detectives ( looking for signs of Autumn! Dug out and planted their own pretend garden, made a pretend camp fire, became bears in a bear cave (under the kitchen table covered with a blanket) and were pirates in their very own pirate ship with wooden swords and a gangplank and everything!Here is their pirate ship! THe umbella is a sail. Or as Bujana rather pragmatically remarked it may also come in useful if it should rain out at sea!


THey love creepy crawlies of all kinds! Here is Bujana catching ahem... (rescuing) a spider in a spoon!

We had a wonderful weekend!

On Satuarday morning we welcomed the arrival of 5 little baby bunnies! The proud parents are Peter and Poppy our black and white dwarf lops. The babies have been named, so I am informed, Pixie, Digger, Beau, Wiggles and Flopsy. They are totally blind, almost naked and adorably cute. The funniest thing is the little grunting sound they make as they snuffle about in their nest.This is the nest that Poppy built for her babies. Isn't it snug! She used plently of fur so she is now quite patchy and lots and lots of warm, sweet smelling hay.

Even though it is September the Dahlia's and Sunflowers are at their peak. I just love the way the crisp Autumn sunlight brings out the details and colours in the flowers.
Sunflowers just make you smile don't they.
All the little ones love to play in the sandpit. It is a goldmine for inventive play. They pretend to plant, they dig for treasure, they build castles, they sieve, they make sand pies and sand cakes, they bury their little hands and toes, they make tracks for their toy cars and trains to run on...

We used up the last of the plums from my parents garden and made lots of plum and pear jam!

I never use a recipe to make jam ( or anything else) but somehow it always turns out really nice. I like jam that has a rich fruity taste, sweet but not over sweet and full of pulpy pieces of soft fruit! Plum and Pear jam is probably my favourite of all.No my draining board is never clear lol ;0)Emmy doing her favourite thing in the world. Read one of her beloved books!

By Sunday afternoon... Well this is how you'll find me lol ;0)
Emmy preparing for evening bible reading and prayer time. Peace in His Friendship as the day find's it's rest.

I Dance

Many days I feel inspired and ready. Awake and prepared. I seek adventure, activity. I bring out the paints, the glue, the baking tins and the food colouring!!!
We walk, we sing. The house *feels* ordered. My list is checked. By the end of the day my human desire to achieve, control, be strong and have all the loose ends tied up is fulfilled. I feel adequate, I feel good enough. This is my measuring post.
But then are some days when… well, I just don’t measure up to this measuring post *I designed and made for myself* The housework is muddled and feels as though less has been cleaned, tidied, polished or vacuumed than before the day begun. Children are sick, or grumpy, or clingy. I am not focused, inspired, organised or even completely present! Vagueness blurs the definitions of what I try to *be* and what I have tried to *create* and *maintain* This idealised or *idolised* vision of a *perfect* wife, mother, homemaker, servant of God etc…etc…….
A day like this can feel like I am trying to painstakingly unknot a tangled ball of wool only to end up in the tangled ball of wool!

I feel my inadequacy and my flakiness and I get impatient. The dust I rarely notice on the skirting boards suddenly glares at me. Becoming more important than the rest my body requires or the child that clings to my thigh.
Yet, oddly I have begun to see that the *muddled* blurry days are trying to show me something. They are in fact a gift.
My failing is not, in *not* living up to my own expectations but by prioritising them over what really matters most.
What is God trying to show me on days like these?
Maybe he is simply asking me to relinquish control and be still. To rest in His love, to take His yoke, to accept His peace, to allow His beautiful grace to restore my soul, beside still waters, upon greener pastures.
On days like these I have found that I find peace when I take the time to simply read more of His word, pray more, concentrate more on the cleaning of “the inside of the cup” than the outside.

Yet also accepting when there are still a few stains at the bottom from my stubborn resistance :0) It’s okay, I’m learning.
So on days when a cloud hovers over my resting instead of clearing a path for me to walk forward. I'll find myself hearing the words “Be still and know that I am God” In the whisper over and over in my heart there is a well of water that is living.
Even though I want to rescue myself from the mire, God simply want’s me to wait and be still. To feel the soft earth under my bare feet for a time.
To think on the heart stuff.
Humans are creatures of both action and contemplation.
On days like these the Lord simply wants me to sit at his feet as Mary did.
Slowly I find myself reaching out, finding peace, quietening, cuddling little ones under blankets, eating something simple instead of an elaborate dinner, forgetting about bath time, singing songs. Not pushing it.
Like hand writing a letter to a friend. Not an email. Nothing functional or efficient just a little piece of poetry. A scribble with a pencil on a new sheet of paper. It doesn’t even have to make sense.
And so I think it’s okay.
Times in life like this, or when I’ve been pregnant, nursing, looking after lot’s of small children, sick, or overwhelmed, or simply just unable to see my way through, all give me a chance to reflect.
I think my children need to know that I’m not perfect, that I also need to retreat, at times, I need time, need help and also need forgiveness too. A cardboard cut out, forever smiling Mummy is not real, not humble and not healthy. I cry sometimes, they cry sometimes. We’re all human. I think children need to know it’s okay to feel a whole spectrum of emotions. Emotion is good.
The beauty is in embracing it all. The dirt and dust we have been made of by God’s hand as the seasons bring life through their changes.

“A time to scatter stones, and a time to gather them; a time to embrace, and a time to be far from embraces.
A time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away.
A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to be silent, and a time to speak.”
(“ A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance”)

So I’m dancing. To the tune of dolls house pieces on the floor, books upon the unmade bed, the smell of banana bread baking in the oven to have warm and spread with butter for lunch, As I write this the soft snoring of my two little ones resting. A friend with a gift of a picnic basket in the back of her car. My four year old making her bed this morning so proudly and me smiling at the bumps in the duvet and the dog-eared sheets.
To the music of a life, messy as it is, being lived!

I dance.

Best Medicine

I have started to feel a little feverish and headachy this afternoon. I'm afraid I maybe coming down with some kind of "back to school" cough or cold or something.

Luckily I have my very own nursemaid Bujana who I have just left, nearly asleep now in her own little bed.

We cuddled up as usual and opened the curtains to a lovely peach coloured sky as she told me I must have her " tickles blanket" to keep my feet warm. "Tickles" is an old pillow case that Bujana likes to wrap her feet up in at bedtime.

Then she gave my feet a little massage while singing " Go to sleep and dream about Jesus" which is her very own composed song and "Twinkle star" finishing off with "Hush little baby" our favourite finishing off for bed song.

I thanked my little nurse as she put a concerned little palm on my forehead to check my temperature.

"You've taken really good care of me and I'm feeling better already I told her"

" I only learnt how to from you Mummy" Boo replied.

And there's no better medicine than that is there!

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That's a picture of her taken a while back which I love. Just look at that twinkle in her eye, what is she up to!

I love that girl :0)