Monday Monday: Empty Nest(s) and So Much More!

Wow! what a whirlwind of activity this past weekend! I hardly know where to begin, so I think I will start at the end and work backwards! Does that make sense to you?  Well, even if it doesn't, hopefully it will all come together cohesively by the time I am finished with this post!    I know yesterday was Father's Day, and I didn't post anything at all about fathers, etc. It was a busy day and I just didn't get around to it, but I'll try to make up for it by the time this is done. Bear with me, please!

We had a couple of big events last evening going on.

As you know, we've been watching the progress of the Bluebird nest for several weeks. I've been anticipating the fledging of the new brood of babies for a couple of weeks, but it just seems like it has been taking forever! However, like I learned the hard way many years ago while awaiting the birth of our firstborn son...who waited an extra two and a half weeks beyond the due date to make his appearance in the heat of summer...sometimes you just have to be patient and wait for these things to happen!

So last night was the grand entrance of at least one baby bluebird from the nest. I say at least one because I don't know if there were others that "escaped" the nest while I wasn't looking or not, or if there are any others still in there waiting their turn, but we got to witness this one, and it was quite an exciting event!

Not at all unlike the thrill of a baby making his way into the birth canal and finally crowning and making his appearance into the world and welcoming arms of his adoring parents...this baby bird took his sweet time working his way out of the nest...

He seemed a bit uncertain as to what to do or where to go...but he kept listening to his parents' voices calling him from the treetops above him.

They were up there cheering him on and beckoning him to emerge and join them...

Come on, Junior! You can do it! That's right, poke your head out a little further...get your feet out of the opening...come on...that's right! You can do this!

"Oh, I don't know, Mama and Daddy.  It looks like it's a long way down and up...I'm not too sure about this yet..."

"It's okay, son!  Keep coming out!  We are up here ready to catch you if you fall!  That's right! Get both feet out and give yourself a little push. You can do it!"

"Are you sure?  You won't let me fall? Are you sure I am ready to fly? Oh, I think I can, I think I can, I think I can..."

This reminds me of Psalm 27:7-10

7 "Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice!

Have mercy also upon me, and answer me.

8 When You said, “Seek My face,”

My heart said to You, “Your face, Lord, I will seek.”

9 Do not hide Your face from me;

Do not turn Your servant away in anger;

You have been my help;

Do not leave me nor forsake me,

O God of my salvation.

10 When my father and my mother forsake me,

Then the Lord will take care of me."

And he did.  That's me trying to capture a picture of him flying, but he was much too fast once he made up his mind to go...and all I got was a swirling picture of something in the garden below the birdhouse. But he was already safely up in the big holly tree beside him, and his parents were up in the tops of the trees watching for predators who might try to get too close. As a matter of fact, they saw me standing on the back porch (I only came outside after the birdie left the nest, not while he was still trying), and they swooped down toward me to give me a good warning not to come any closer!  I stayed back a respectful distance after that, believe me!  I could hear the baby chirping at his parents, as he was still in the lower branches of the tree, and they were calling to him to come higher.  Now, mind you, this was all taking place around 8:00 p.m. last evening, and it was starting to get dark, so the lighting wasn't very good and I decided to go back inside and let them continue to encourage their baby to fly to safety without my interference.  

This morning I just stepped outside (it's still only about 6:30 a.m. here right now as I write this), and I can hear the bluebirds in the surrounding tree tops and see some activity, but so far no activity near the nest. I don't know if there are any more birds in the nest yet or not. We shall be watching to see. But in the meantime I need to move on to some other things...

In the title of this post I said "Empty Nest(s)" and so much more...

You may be wondering about the plurality of "nests". Well, for the first time in quite a few years we also have an empty nest.  I mentioned in my last post that our son has just gotten a new job in a different city further away, and that he also has a place to live in the home of a friend much closer to his new job. And so yesterday was the day to move out and get settled in his new location before starting the new job today. He spent the weekend cleaning his room and packing clothes and personal stuff to take with him. He's not taking everything as he is just renting a bedroom, and so will have limited space, but for the first time in a LONG time I can actually see the floor of his room. (not taking any pictures of that, however). LOL  But like the Mama and Papa Bluebird cheering their offspring onto freedom from the "nest", we were also cheering our son on as he loaded up his truck and took off for his new adventure.

As he got into the cab of the truck to fly, I mean drive, away, I took one last photo of him:

I didn't realize all the reflections that would show up in this photo. It was kind of cool. And then I started playing around with the picture to try and enhance it to get the full effect, and this is what I ended up with:

Look it over carefully. Do you see my hubby standing in the background on the steps, and me in the reflection of the glass taking the picture, and our son's eyes looking out at us from inside the cab of the truck?  I thought it was a very interesting photo of us as we watched our son "leaving the nest".

Oh, btw, this isn't the first time he's left the nest, and I don't know if it will be the last time...but we wish him well and pray for him as he begins this new chapter of his life.  And, he's only an hour away so it's not like he's going very far. He promised to be back to bake the Christmas cookies like he always does for the family. LOL.  I expect he'll be back sooner than that in and out to get more stuff...but until then we rejoice in this next phase of his life.

Even if the house does seem awfully quiet...

Okay, moving right along...

I said I would work my way backwards through the weekend.

Yesterday was a special day at our little church as we celebrated not only Father's Day, but also there was a birthday party/luncheon following the service for a dear lady who just turned 90! Her sweet daughter in law prepared a feast for their family and friends and invited the whole church to participate. It was a surprise party for the birthday "girl", and a wonderful time of celebration. Here are a few pictures I captured along the way:

Someone gave her a crown and banner as we sang Happy Birthday to her in the church service:

And here she is enjoying her lunch:  She looks pretty marvelous for 90, don't you think?

And here she is with one of her granddaughters and great granddaughters. Yes, those two young ones are twins:

There was SO much food...the basics prepared by her daughter in law, but the church ladies all brought food to share as well, so it was quite a feast:

And this lady is the daughter in law of the year! She truly is a loving daughter in law, who loves her mother in law as if she were her own mother.  What a blessing!! I think you can see she does look a wee bit tired, however...and she managed to do all this and keep it a surprise!  I was quite impressed!

And I want to also acknowledge this other dear lady and friend in our church, Norma.

It was her birthday yesterday as well, but she's just 73! Looks pretty amazing too. 

Norma is the lady who just gives and gives and gives in our church and community. She heads up the drive to collect school supplies and Christmas gifts for our school children in the community. Thanks to her leadership, our tiny little church provides school supplies and Christmas gifts for every single child in our elementary school, and also for children who are homeless, etc.  Norma is an amazing lady!

Our little church is full of amazing people. We are blessed.

And last but not least, yes we did celebrate Father's Day this weekend.  We had our own family celebration here at home on Saturday evening because of the event going on at church on Sunday and also because of our kids' schedules, etc.

On Saturday evening the family gathered here for hamburgers and hot dogs cooked on the grill by our son Scott...(we will miss his cooking skills now that he's moved away)

We had quite a little feast as well...in addition to the hamburgers and hot dogs we had potato salad, deviled eggs, corn on the cob, watermelon, blueberry pie, oatmeal cake, and my sweet daughter in love made some delicious cupcakes with blueberries in them and topped with a lemon cream frosting. I should have taken a picture of them...they were beautiful and delicious!

One funny story was that I had purchased a less expensive cut of ground beef because it was such a good price, but the fat content was a bit higher, which is okay for good hamburgers because it makes them much juicier.  However, when Scott put them on the grill to cook and walked away for a minute he came back to a fiery inferno!  However, with his quick thinking he saved the day and the hamburgers.

He grabbed my container of salt and poured it all over the flames and it put out the fire. However, it also got a LOT of salt on the burgers, so he brought them in and washed them off and then put them back on the grill to bring them back up to temperature and finish cooking.  Everyone said they were very good burgers! I ate a hot dog instead, so I don't know. But the hot dog was good. Oh, I need to put salt on the grocery list too, as that was the end of my larger container of salt. LOL. But it worked and saved the day!

A cool piece of watermelon was the best way to wash down all that good food.

Happy Father's Day to my sweet hubby. He's not only a sweet hubby, but he has always been a great father to our three sons and a wonderful grandfather to our one grandson.

Oh, and he's a great grandfather to the grand puppies too!  Sugar and Spice had to come and help us celebrate!

Okay, with all of that good food this weekend I had to get back on my special diet today:

This was my breakfast this morning: Yogurt with cheerios, pumpkin seed and flax granola, strawberries, blueberries and chia seeds!  Very tasty!

Okay, to close out this post so we can get on with our day, I wanted to share these pictures I took yesterday afternoon of the beautiful Monarch Butterfly that has been flitting around our butterfly garden all week.  I do hope she has laid some eggs on those milkweed plants so that more butterflies will be coming in the future.

But, in case you didn't notice, this butterfly has a broken wing...

In spite of her infirmity, she continues to gaily fly about the flowers and trees, sipping nectar and enjoying the beauty surrounding her.

She gracefully shares her beauty with us even if it has been at some cost to her.

I don't know how long she can continue on like this, but I am thankful for her sharing her life with us during these days of some anxiety and uncertainty about the future on different fronts.

She reminds me of the verses in the Bible that I know I've quoted often, but they bear repeating in the current state of affairs in our nation and world:

Matthew 6:25-34

25 “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?

28 “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; 29 and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."

It's easy to get anxious and worried about our future when we listen to the news today. But Jesus reminds us that He's already got our needs taken care of...we just need to trust Him...seek His kingdom and righteousness first, and He will take care of the rest. That is very comforting to know.  I can commit my future, my children's futures and even my grandchild's future into His loving hands and know that we will be taken care of. It takes a lot of faith to leap out of that birdhouse/nest/comfortable home/job/whatever the situation may be when we can't see what the future holds.  But God is already there waiting, cheering us upward and onward. We need not fear what we cannot see when we place our trust in the One Who has already planned our lives to the last detail. So if you are teetering on the edge of a proverbial cliff today, not sure what to do next...put your hand in the hand of the One Who stilled the waters and calmed the sea...How many of you remember this old song?

"Put Your Hand In The Hand" by Ocean Lyrics: Put your hand in the hand of the man who stilled the water Put your hand in the hand of the man who calmed the sea Take a look at yourself and-a you can look at others differently By puttin' your hand in the hand of the man from-a Galilee. Ev'ry time I look into the Holy Book I want to tremble (tremble) When I read about the part where the carpenter cleared the temple (temple) For the buyers and the sellers were no different fellas Than what I profess to be And it causes me shame to know we're not the people we should be. So put your hand in the hand of the man who stilled the water Put your hand in the hand of the man who calmed the sea Take a look at yourself and-a you can look at others differently By putting your hand in the hand of the man from-a Galilee. My mama taught me how to pray before I reached the age of seven She said, "There'll come a time when there'll probably be room in heaven" But I'm feeling kinda of guilty 'bout the number of times To do what we must do Oh we forget what he said when we figured that he'd still make room (So, you gotta) Put your hand in the hand of the man who stilled the water Put your hand in the hand of the man who calmed the sea Take a look at yourself and-a you can look at others differently By puttin' your hand in the hand of the man from Galilee (everybody come along) Put your hand in the hand of the man who stilled the water (stilled the water) Put your hand in the hand of the man who calmed the sea (calmed the sea) Take a look at yourself and you can look at others differently By putting your hand in the hand of the man from Galilee.

So let's put our hand in the hand of the "man from Galilee"...Jesus Christ...and He will take care of the rest.  Have a blessed and wonderful week my friends.  And thank you for all of your kind comments on my last post. You are all so encouraging and kind. I thank God for each one of you.

 

Is It Time To Dance? Updated

This post was originally written on June 28, 2014, just a little over one month after the passing of our dear son Matthew from this life to heaven, following a four year battle with cancer.  When I wrote this I was still  reeling from the pain of saying farewell to our son, and trying to cope with the reality of never seeing him again on this earth.  Now, as of today, 5/25/2022, it has been eight years since that day. A lot has happened in this span of time...we've added new members to our family, and we've said farewell to some other dear ones.  By the time we reach heaven's gates ourselves, I have a feeling there will be more of us waiting there than there are here. It's just the way life is.  Today I haven't really felt like writing...our nation is grieving over the horrific tragic loss of so many precious children and teachers in Uvalde, Texas. My heart is breaking and grieving with those families who have lost their precious children to a crazed madman.  They didn't have the opportunity to say good bye to their child...they had no time to prepare for their unexpected passing from this earth to heaven. Their hearts are broken...for them there is no sense of peace or comfort at this time.  Some may never get to the place where they will feel like it is time to dance ever again. But I pray for them...I pray that God will wrap His loving arms around them and cradle them close to His heart and just hold them, reassuring them of His great love and compassion...and helping them to know that their precious child is safe with Him now...they need not fear for their children anymore...they are where there will be no more crying, no more pain, no more sorrow or fear.  Safe in the arms of Jesus...there can be no better place to be. May God comfort them with those thoughts...and may they be at peace with God, knowing that they will one day be reunited because of their faith in Christ.  That is my prayer for them.  That is what comforts me eight years later. I pray they will also know this great comfort. Amen.

Here is the original post I wrote eight years ago:

"Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning,

For in You do I trust;

Cause me to know the way in which I should walk,

For I lift up my soul to You."

Psalm 143:8

Today I read in "Jesus Calling" by Sarah Young the following passage:

"Rest with Me a while. You have journeyed up a steep, rugged path in recent days.

The way ahead is shrouded in uncertainty.  Look neither behind you nor before you.

Instead, focus your attention on Me, your constant Companion.  Trust that I will equip you fully

for whatever awaits you on your journey."

Actually this particular devotional was written for yesterday's date, but I didn't look at it until today. No matter, it is still appropriate and right on.  Yes, I have journeyed up a "steep, rugged path in recent days." Saying farewell to our precious son until we reunite in heaven still seems unreal. Since his earthly home was over 1500 miles away from us anyway, it is easy to allow myself to think that he's still there waiting for us to come up and visit again.  But then the reality hits, and I remember that he's not there...and it will most likely be a long time before we see him again.

My husband the preacher says that time in heaven is not something they are focused upon like we are here on earth.  That is hard for us to understand because we are so governed by time. We must make every minute count, we can never be late, time is of the essence, hurry up and wait...

King Solomon thought about time quite a bit.  In Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 he wrote:

"To everything there is a season,

A time for every purpose under heaven;

A time to be born,

And a time to die;

A time to plant,

And a time to pluck what is planted;

A time to kill,

And a time to heal;

A time to break down,

And a time to build up;

A time to weep,

And a time to laugh;

A time to mourn,

And a time to dance;

A time to cast away stones,

And a time to gather stones;

A time to embrace,

And a time to refrain from embracing;

A time to gain,

And a time to lose;

A time to keep,

And a time to throw away;

A time to tear,

And a time to sew;

A time to keep silence,

And a time to speak;

A time to love,

And a time to hate;

A time of war,

And a time of peace."

I am still adjusting to this "new time" in my life.  I am not sure what time it is...I believe I am somewhere in the "time to weep and a time to laugh...A time to mourn, and a time to dance".  There are still moments when I feel like weeping and mourning...but there are also times that I want and need to laugh...and I find myself wanting to dance. Not a frenzied kind of dance...not even a waltz...just a holy dance between me and my Lord...where I allow Him to take the lead and twirl me around in His strong and capable arms...lifting me up above my grief and sorrow and showing me the new path that we will travel together. Such a lovely thought.

I am blessed beyond measure...I am not totally bereft of family...I still have my wonderful husband, two healthy and strong sons, a wonderful daughter in law and marvelous grandson...plus many other loved ones near and far.  I do not want to appear to be wallowing in self-pity or lacking in gratitude for all that God has done for me.  But there is this empty place in this mother's heart...a space that will always be missing that one precious son who has gone on to glory much too soon. 

Our precious son, Matthew.

2/25/1973 ~ 5/25/2014

So, what time is it in your  life?  I guess what I am learning is that no matter what season of life we may be in, there is much to learn...and we don't need to feel that we are all alone. God has promised to be with us in our life's journey...from beginning to end.  Perhaps you may discover that it is time for you to let Him take the lead...and just dance. I think I am beginning to understand that better now too.

Friday Foto Friends-Worth Waiting For! -Updated!!

Happy Friday Friends!!  If you visited with me HERE yesterday, you will know that our Bluebirds are back, checking out the birdhouses and trying to determine which one they will set up housekeeping in for this 2nd round of raising a new little family.  I said yesterday that I didn't know if I would have any new pictures for today or not, but that we would just have to wait and see what develops. 

Well, here's what developed later that afternoon...

I noticed that there was a flurry of activity out there around the birdhouses and trees late in the afternoon. It appeared to be several more bluebirds flying around, and I thought there was going to be a bidding war over the two different birdhouses again to see who gets which one.  But then I looked and saw this one bird just sitting on top of the birdhouse watching all the excitement:

On closer look, I discovered that this little bird is actually one of the fledgling bluebirds from their previous clutch of babies that flew the nest!  Well, maybe this one hasn't really and truly "left the nest" for good just yet...maybe he's still a little a unsure of himself and wants to hang around with Mom and Dad a little longer...

Isn't h e beautiful?  But my question is...when Mom and Dad Bluebird set up housekeeping and nesting for a new brood of babies, where does this little fella go?  Maybe he's a little awkward and shy and not quite ready to be out on his own...I don't know, but there really isn't room in the birdhouse for an extra big baby bird. I hope they have a "Plan B" for Junior here...It will be interesting to see if he continues to hang around once the serious nesting begins.  Stay tuned...

Meanwhile, if you've paid attention, you will remember that I mentioned HERE the other day that Lily Grace and I were going to establish a butterfly garden. I've been putting it off for one reason or another every day, but she just kept pleading with me to please let her help me plant this garden. I know, we haven't written any special "Adventures of Lily Grace" lately. I've been rather lax in that department, trying to keep up with my own posts, but Lily is a rather persistent little gal.  However, I told her that this was going to be a joint venture and that she would have to be willing to let me share it with my readers at this time.  She's fine with that, just so we get it done once and for all!! 

Ha Ha! Sometimes it helps to have a little extra prodding to get things done...

So today we went to the local flea market, and lately this lady has been bringing lots of lovely potted plants for butterfly gardens, and so I decided to spend a little of my private stash of "fun money"...(trust me, there isn't much of it, but it's my own little hidey hole of cash squirreled away for things that I want to do. Like buy flowers and fun stuff like that)

Somehow I managed to get hubby involved in this project...

Lily Grace supervised from the sidelines while we did the digging and raking...

(another update: I just noticed that Lily has a little friend over there by her right leg/boot.  (left side as we are looking at it) Do you see him? Lily didn't even notice I guess! That's pretty funny!)

And then once we got the flowers in place, she came and helped make sure they were straight and that they were in the right places...

Then she reminded me that we had to put the little stones in the garden:

You remember, the ones that say, Peace, Hope, Believe...and also the big one that says

"Sunshine, Friends, and Laughter...are always welcome"

I know the flowers look a little wilted right now. They need to adjust after being transplanted from the pots.  And yes, we need to clean the birdbath and Bobby the Squirrel could use a good scrubbing.

One thing at a time! At least the flowers are planted and now they can start to grow and attract butterflies!

I think Mr. Bluebird approves...

Oh, meanwhile, back in the Secret Memorial Garden, the Easter Lilies are finally starting to bloom!

And so are the Rose of Sharon flowers!

Don't worry, we won't be ignoring this garden for the other garden...it will always be a very very special place, where we can sit and pray and meditate on God's Word, and just enjoy the beauty of God's lovely creation all around us. A place of peace and comfort.

And so, that's the photos that were worth waiting for today!

I hope you enjoyed this visit to our gardens and life here at Still Waters Pond.

Here are some thoughts on waiting for today from 

Psalm 25:1-5, 20-21

1 "To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul.

2 O my God, I trust in You;

Let me not be ashamed;

Let not my enemies triumph over me.

3 Indeed, let no one who waits on You be ashamed;

Let those be ashamed who deal treacherously without cause.

4 Show me Your ways, O Lord;

Teach me Your paths.

5 Lead me in Your truth and teach me,

For You are the God of my salvation;

On You I wait all the day."

20 "Keep my soul, and deliver me;

Let me not be ashamed, for I put my trust in You.

21 Let integrity and uprightness preserve me,

For I wait for You."

I know I have a difficult time waiting for things to happen.  I'm sure I'm not alone in this. We tend to want things done now, in our time, our way, without delay!  But the older I get the more I realize that God's timing is always always perfect.   If there is a delay, there is always a good reason for it. If things don't happen exactly the way I planned or thought they should go, there's usually a very good reason for that as well.   God reminds us in Isaiah 55:8-9 the following:

“8 For My thoughts are not your thoughts,

Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.

9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

So are My ways higher than your ways,

And My thoughts than your thoughts".

I know I am a lot happier when I put my trust in God and allow Him to take control of my plans. They always turn out much better than I could ever have dreamed when I leave the details up to Him.  That doesn't mean that we shouldn't ever plan anything or try to stay on a schedule...it just means that when our will is yielded to God's will, life usually runs much smoother and things turn out even better than our own plans could have imagined. It's all about learning to TRUST in the ONE who loves us more than anyone ever could on this earth. It's not always easy to do this...but the more we "let go and let God", the easier it becomes to trust Him in all things.  Not sure who I'm speaking to here, but this is what I felt led to say today.  

Yes, some things are definitely worth waiting for!

Have a blessed weekend my friends!

HOLD THE PRESS!

UPDATE!!

No sooner did I hit publish on this post and I looked outside and saw THIS in my newly planted butterfly garden!!!!!  Those are the biggest butterflies I've ever seen!!! They were pecking away at the loose wildflower seeds that we added to the garden just to see if they would grow...hmmm...they can't grow if the cranes eat them all!!!

I think they heard me yell, "Oh NO!!" and off they went...

We shall see what develops...

What was I saying about my plans and God's plans and trust, and all that?

Yeah, well, that's all still true...and I am sure this garden will still be just fine.

Maybe not exactly what I planned,, but it will be just fine.

LOL.