All around us, there are new beginnings. With schools and colleges starting once again, learning is kicking in for another year.
At my office, we counted books yesterday, in anticipation of our first parent meeting tonight. Our classes won’t begin for a few weeks, but with so many students, it takes us awhile to get everything together.
I was blessed to be able to do our book counting a coworker who is retiring today after over 30 years of service to our church. She will be greatly missed.
Over the weekend, I received a newsletter from a well-known Catholic author. This man, in addition to his writing on many faith issues, is also a professor at a college in Ohio.
On the front page of the newsletter, he wrote about his excitement for the start of another academic year, and how much he has enjoyed preparing his lectures and getting ready for classes to begin.
What came through his writing was his level of true excitement. It got me thinking about all the things that I have in my life that are getting ready to start, and I realized that I wasn’t as positive as this man was.
Quite some time ago, I posted another recipe for Tomato and Bread Soup, but with all the wonderful tomatoes ripe for the eating, I thought I’d give you an even easier recipe, this one dating back centuries. Pure Tuscany. 🙂
Right now, we’re awaiting Hurricane Irene. The clouds are low and heavy outside my window, and its pretty breezy. The main part of the storm will come later tonight. So, my rationale for making this soup, which is more like a porridge, is that you don’t have to heat it. You can serve it room temperature. If I loose power, I’m not going to go hungry. With this stick to your ribs recipe, I’ll be set. I hope you’ll give it a try, even if it’s a beautiful day in your neighborhood.
When I was leading a youth ministry group several years ago, I often talked to the teenagers about masks. Not literal masks, but rather more like identities.
If they would be going out with their friends, they’d put on one mask, but around their parents, they put on a different mask. Some had so many masks/identities, they would get overwhelmed trying to keep it all together.
My challenge to them was to be real. Be authentic. Not just some of the time, but all the time. Wearing masks and presenting ourselves differently all the time only leads to problems. But it’s not just teens who are guilty of this kind of behavior.
By now, just about everyone knows we had an earthquake here in my area yesterday. Growing up in California, I knew what was happening, but it was hard to believe it.
The 5.8 quake’s epicenter was about 150 miles from where I live, and it was felt all the way up into Canada.
At first, I thought it had to be something that happened in my community, since there were no reports on the radio or television for several minutes. Once they began reporting, everyone knew. Wow. Luckily, no one we killed, and it looks like the damage is minimal.
I had a busy weekend, how about you? Over the last few weeks, I realized I had let a lot of general maintenance go, and things were looking pretty shabby.
I also realized that I had put some personal stuff go, and it was time to get things back in order. It was actually a fun process, and I am happy to report good results. 🙂
Whenever we let things go and stop maintaining them, we end up spending a whole lot more time and effort (and maybe money) than we needed to had we stayed on top of things. I’m sure you can relate…
With the super-abundance of fresh tomatoes and other veggies right now, there’s no better way to blend them all together than by making a delicious gazpacho.
Although the recipe has a lot of ingredients and may seem complicated, it really isn’t. Be sure to chill the soup well before serving. 🙂
I know, its August. There’s two seasons yet to go before we get to spring, 2012. The bulb catalogues on my coffee table, however, are reminding me to get going or get left out.
You have to be a bit farsighted if you’re a gardener. In the midst of burned-up plants, hot, and humid weather, you have to force yourself to dream. Of tulips, daffodils, crocus, trout lilies, and all the other delights that come after a long winter.
Ah, the dog days of summer. Vacations are winding down. School will be starting soon. Some college students are already back on campus.
Even though the days are still hot, have you noticed that the evenings are starting to get cooler? And so it goes…
I’m still riding high from my retreat that ended last Monday. What a joy it was to have some extended silent time.
I had a lot of positive feedback about the posts I wrote about my experiences, and I hope that somehow I was able to convey my desire that you too might be able to experience some silent time in the not too distant future.