Stinky Morning

We used to shop at the Amish-run Rentown Country Store in Bremen from time to time, but it has been several years since our last visit. We knew they had a new building. The old building has been turned into a restaurant, The Dutchmaid Eatery. It is not very far south of Highway Indiana 6, but my husband chose to go north on 331 so we approached from the west. This meant narrow two-laned rural roads.

I could see a small black mound in the road. Since it wasn't moving, I assumed it was a dead animal. My husband drove right over it and as soon as we heard the thump against the car he said I hope that wasn't a skunk. About 10 seconds later we said in unison, "It was a skunk!" as the smell entered through the car ventilation system. Yikes! We joked maybe we should park in a far corner of the restaurant parking lot. We had a nice breakfast. My husband especially enjoyed the homemade sausage gravy over his eggs and hash browns. 

When we arrived home, we debated whether to park in the garage. We did pull in. As I entered the garage later to drive to the grocery store, there was a definite skunky smell, though not overpowering. This afternoon it finally dissipated. 

The store is known for its huge selection of cheeses, bulk dry goods (flours, grains, spices, nuts, etc.), and enormous candy section which went down a whole side of a 20-foot? aisle and around the corner. The gummies don't appeal to me, but I bought a baggie of small patties of butter pecan clusters to try. Also, kitchen gadgets, games, jams, and baked goods are worth the trip. 
By the time I was ready to check out, I had the small bag of a dozen clusters, a small jar of strawberry rhubarb jam, and a little chunk of Swiss cheese. 

On the way home we chose Highway 6 and stopped at Vintage Haus consignment store in Nappanee. Since it was a little before 10 a.m., we didn't think it would be open, but it was. My husband has several wooden boxes and his wooden jigsaw puzzles for sale there. The store had sold two of his puzzles (which also came in wooden boxes). The owner gave my husband a check. We could "smell money" all the way home which is decidedly better than skunk. 

P.S. At the grocery store the bagger pointed to a small group of holiday balloons and said help yourself. They are free. The stinky day was getting better all the time.

Balmy December 26th

With partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the low 60's, I headed out for a walk around the neighborhood this afternoon with my new Sony camera in my pocket. I am still getting familiar with the camera.

We have outdoor Christmas decorations throughout the Grace Village campus. Some are lights like at the entrance to Assisted Living. The open area between buildings B, C,  and upper entrance to Assisted Living had these ornaments on the trees.

Even though we are "old", some of us still like bright colors, though most of our cars are not this sporty.

I tried to observe what was happening in the natural world around me. You can see we had no snow for Christmas this year.

The pond had a skin of ice; the center was open water in places.

This mailbox caught my eye as I headed home. I will probably pack up my Christmas decorations Monday afternoon. I try to be back in "normal mode" by the 31st for my husband's birthday. Sometimes I don't get the undecorating all done until January 1st though.

Merry Christmas

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

My RMD Starts Later

Congress just passed the new SECURE act which makes changes in retirement requirements. I already received a reminder from Fidelity that next year I need to take RMD from my funds. But not so now. I expect I may receive another email explaining the change. Now retirees don't have to take a required distribution until they turn 72. Since my husband and I are living off of his pension and our Social Security monthly checks, unlike people needing that money for living expenses, I can delay taking money and paying taxes on it until 2022. That will simplify my tax calculations next year. 
You can read about the other changes in this article. I had pretty much given up on this RMD change taking place in time to benefit me, but it was tacked onto the new spending bill which passed. 

Discharged

Yesterday when I attended my pelvic floor rehab session, the therapist and I discussed whether to schedule another session. I told her I didn't relish the idea of driving in winter weather road conditions. She reassured me that I knew what to do and could just do it at home. I filled out a one-sheet evaluation; then I was discharged. 

I do not feel like I have to pee all the time anymore. Tonight we went to a movie that lasted a little over 2 hours, and I didn't feel any need to use the toilet during the movie. 

The last few therapy sessions we have been concentrating on reducing pelvic pain. I probably won't eliminate the pain totally, but I can help it subside through exercises and using a heating pad. I still need to work on postural awareness as that can feed into the pain. 

I feel with the bladder problem resolved, I have my life back. I can sit through the entire church service, attend concerts and movies, and even drive for a few hours without a bathroom stop. Things are much better.

In the Bleak Pre-Winter

Yesterday (Sunday) my neighbor's great-grandchildren rode the concrete walkway on bikes. I could hear their little voices, but only glanced out once to see an elementary-aged child on a blue bike. It was cold (20's) with a slight wind making it feel chillier, but they were bundled up and having a good time.

We had been predicted to have a dusting of snow overnight. When I got up this morning (Monday) there was at least an inch of snow covering everything, including this little tricycle left behind.

Since May, we have a lady that cleans our house every two weeks. Last time she was here her father was in the hospital in Fort Wayne with aspirated pneumonia. Today I asked her if her father had been able to come home. He died though he came home for 3 days. A very hard Christmas for her and her family. 

Wednesday I will attend Grace Village chapel to hear the chime choir Christmas concert. This will be the last concert for the director. The terms of her agreement with Grace Village for leading the group were changed, and she decided she could not continue under the new circumstances. Supposedly a new director is being sought. 

One of my Robin Hood neighbors who has been on hospice died either last night or early this morning. He was in his 90's, but his family will miss him. 

It is always hard to lose a loved one, but for it to happen around Christmas emphasizes the hole left in a family. My own father died in early December in 1997, but I still remember how bleak that time seemed that year. 

Christmas Details

I have been enjoying my Christmas decorations. This holly runner was given to me last year by sister-in-law B. It fits perfectly on my china cabinet. I took these photos without a tripod using my new camera. The close-ups did not blur the way my old camera would have done. Notice the little buttons and wooden holly leaf detail on each end of the runner. I love it.
The little house was a gift several years ago from my sister K. The trees and snowmen were created by my husband. I enjoy seeing the whole scene during these weeks leading up to Christmas.

This little nativity I bought at Frankenmuth, Michigan, decades ago. The coaster is one of 6, four different birds represented. It is sitting in the den on the mesquite table my husband built.

The camera has distorted the color of the poinsettia some. It is more pinkish. I bought the tablecloth on Etsy a few years ago. The seller measured the distance from the middle to the candles. It works perfectly on my glass "patio" table in the sunroom. Yes, that white on the grass is snow. We have had flurries throughout the day and at around 20 degrees they have stuck.

Except for a door wreath and more recently the red ribbon on the pedestal for the green ball, we haven't done outdoor decorating. This year my husband decided to wrap red ribbon around the pillars. Our dear neighbor on the other end of the quadplex did this every year we lived in the condo. He went to heaven in May.

Not only did I use my new camera, but I am using my Photopad image editor that I loaded on to this computer after our old computer died. First time I tried a collage. Still much to explore and learn on the camera and the software.

Classic Blue

I just saw on a blog that I regularly read that the Pantone color of the year for 2020 will be Classic Blue. Blue is my favorite color. I will have to do some store browsing to see if there is anything special I can add to my home or wardrobe.

I have a very busy week ahead. I so much want to "play" with my new Sony Cybershot camera; it takes a great effort to keep from spending much time with it. This has two point-and-shoot settings, but you can tweak some of the features even within those settings. However, it can also be used as a manual camera. I don't know enough about cameras to use that now, but maybe some day. I ordered the camera online, and it wasn't supposed to arrive until December 10th, but it arrived a week early. I should probably put it back in the box rather than have it sitting on the lamp table next to me.

I will have to share more about this camera after December 15th when my Christmas activities and concerts, etc. are over.

Shaped Puzzle

We worked on this shaped puzzle this holiday. We are really enjoying what for us is a new kind of jigsaw puzzle. My husband bought this at a puzzle store in Shipshewana. Because it is 1000 pieces, it was challenging yet enjoyable. I was constantly discovering critters in the picture: moths, damsel fly, butterflies, humming bird, ladybug. There are enough color "zones" to allow different people to concentrate on specific areas. The red cart was the hardest part.

Stepping Down

I have been overseeing the Grace Village Library for over 7 years; next February would have been my eighth year. I worked on the library committee for 6 months before taking over management of the library with my husband. (He discontinued his efforts after 2 years). During the 6 months on the committee I worked extensively on the LibraryThing input project, sometimes putting in 5 hours a day 3-4 days a week. I see that data base as my biggest accomplishment. Our 4,000 books are now searchable by author, title, series, subject headings, keywords. You can even browse the "shelves" by book cover. Sadly, few residents use LibraryThing.

I have been growing weary of some of the tasks. Now that I have pelvic and back problems, I can no longer haul off unwanted donations and weeded books to donation sites; too heavy. The past few months I have been putting them on the book truck and taking them to Give 'N Take table, but I know the housekeeper who is in charge of that table is not happy when I fill it with books because she has to get rid of any that the residents don't take.

 Right now the pc is unable to connect properly with the wifi so there is no internet. It has been almost 2 weeks since I talked with the administrator in charge of computer service. People can use the Telekin computer, which is actually easier to use but novel to most so they avoid it. Yesterday the monitor of the pc was inoperable; users can still use Microsoft Office 2010 and play games on the pc, but not without a working monitor. I spent time checking on cables, etc. and finally got it to display. I also cleaned the grime (including food stains) off of the Telekin keyboard and mouse. These are the types of things I don't like doing. As of December 1st, they will be somebody else's problems.

I liked seeing the books we added to the library. When I received monetary donations I even actively bought used books to fill fiction series gaps and an occasional new book. I think it is a diverse collection that seems to meet the users' preferences, especially the fiction section.

My replacement is the man who was librarian before my husband and I took over. He will be assisted by the lady who did shelving and bulletin boards for me; she will now take over "cataloging" (adding to LibraryThing) and end processing (labels, stamping) while a new volunteer who has already started will take over shelving.

 I spent some time with the new librarian 2 weeks ago. From his comments, I can see making decisions about which donated books to keep and which books to discard to make shelf room is going to be his biggest challenge. He asked me, "How do you know which to keep and which to get rid of?" My new shelver is an avid fiction reader so maybe he will get input from her. Other than obvious condition problems, a librarian has to use his/her best judgment. That is not something I can teach him; he will have to learn through experience, just doing it. 

I am looking forward to some more free time and not having to go over to the main campus in winter cold and snow. I can stay in my cozy condo working on jigsaw puzzles or reading.

Ancestry DNA Updates Results Again

I received another email from AncestryDNA with refined results. They claim that the techniques for determining ethnic/region percentages have changed to give better more defined breakdowns.

Now my results show 56% Great Britain (specifically England) and 44% Germanic Region which includes Holland. I don't know what happened to the Norwegian element from previous analysis, but it has been dropped. Since I know from family history that most of my relatives came from England, Holland, and Germany there are no surprises in these results.

Those TV commercials with people being excited about new things they have learned about their families don't really apply to me now. The Norwegian was a surprise, but now I apparently don't have any of that ethnicity. I am glad I did the test because it made me focus more on my maternal grandmother's branch and realize that it was mostly British. I had been focused on Germany and Holland. So I am your run-of-the-mill Anglo-Saxon. 

Impossible Whopper

We ate lunch at Burger King today. Our whole purpose of going there was to try the meatless burger. At Burger King, the Impossible Burger is available as a whopper. 

I thought it tasted like beef and was textured like meat; the only difference to me was that the meat seemed a little dry. I added some ketchup to the bun.

The liner on our tray gave nutritional information on the backside for Burger King products. The Impossible Whopper has not yet been added to that list. I have read elsewhere that most of these meatless burgers are heavy in sodium. But since I got the "meal" and was eating French fries, I guess sodium wasn't an issue for me today. 

The meatless burger cost $1 more than the regular burger. It would be nice to see some coupons to use on this product. We don't eat fast-food burgers much except when traveling; then we often stop at McDonald's. I have seen some frozen patties at Kroger; I think there may be some frozen "crumbles" as well for tacos and things like that. Right now the price rather than taste or quality would keep me from using these products often.

Violins of Hope

My husband and I watched a documentary on PBS last week about The Violins of Hope. The show shared about the violins, the restorer, and the 2015 debut performance in the United States in Cleveland in a synagogue remodeled to be a concert hall.

Amnon Weinstein's father Moshe escaped to Palestine, leaving behind all his family (about 400 relatives) who later perished in the Holocaust. Once he was established in Tel Aviv, he opened a violin shop where he built and restored string instruments, primarily violins. Amnon worked with his father and eventually took over the store. He had a few people bring in violins that had survived the Holocaust either in the camps or left behind in the ghettos. Most of them did not want the instruments back, they just wanted them not to be destroyed. 

Pretty soon word of mouth spread his mission of preserving these violins. Most needed extensive repair and restoration. They had once been treasures in their communities, played at weddings and other events, and passed down through the generations. Some were basic, some were fine violins with intricate insets of the Star of David. They piled up in storage in his shop.

A vision of what these violins could become arose in Amnon. After years of painstaking restoration work by him and his son, he launched his dream. The now playable violins would give voice to their owners who had perished. Some he had extensive background on, others because of their age he knew had been part of European Jewish communities during the Hitler years. The violins also were a way to remember and honor his own perished relatives.

The documentary told of how orchestras were formed. The Jews who could play were saved from death in the concentration camps, but at a great price. They survived physically, but at great torment to their souls. They played twice a day as the train cars arrived, serenading the people who were marched off to the gas chambers.
Often they arose and went along side the victims. One violin in Amnon's group belonged to a musician who finally laid down his instrument and joined the line of condemned people. He could no longer bear the part he played in their demise. Suicide of violinists was not uncommon. The Nazis were masters at destroying bodies and souls. However, the music allowed the Jews to cling to their humanity and to their community bonds.

For those who survived the camp, when they moved to permanent residences, they often put the violin in the attic. To play it brought back all of the horrific images of the camps. The music haunted them. One of the families who brought such a violin to Amnon, gathered in Israel to hear his daughter-in-law play it. Its owner was deceased, but his violin gave his voice back to his family.

Amnon's dream came to fruition. The violins have been played by youth orchestras, symphonic orchestras, professional musicians. Many communities have used them to educate people, especially the post-war generations, of the Holocaust. The violin voices continue to offer the hope of healing and understanding.

Fort Wayne, Indiana, is now one of the host communities. They have displays, lectures, concerts in many venues. You can see the schedule at the website. Be sure to click on the tab about violin stories to see some of the instruments and learn about the musicians. Some of the displays run thru December 1st.

A Bit Hard Right Now

Sometimes life can throw you some curve balls. Friday afternoon we received notice from Grace Village that the well water to which the condos are hooked up tested positive for too much coliform (bacteria). The level is unacceptable for human consumption. We are under a boil water order. Any water we use for cooking, drinking, washing fruits and vegetables, brushing our teeth must be boiled or alternatively we can use bottled water. Because my dishwasher has a sanitizer rinse option, I have been told I can clean my dishes that way. Otherwise, I have to put dishes washed with tap water in a tub of rinse water to which bleach has been added, then air dry. Likewise fresh fruits and vegetables can be soaked in a weak bleach and water solution. Daily life has suddenly become much harder.

We had to do this for 4 days previously when a part in the well water system broke. This time we have to do it for 7-8 days. The governmental authorities who must certify the water is once again potable don't work on the weekend nor on a holiday (Veteran's Day). They won't even look at the results of Grace Village's efforts until Tuesday at the earliest; there is a 3-day period of retesting until we will be given the OK. 

Thursday I went to the Physical Therapy Department at the Parkview medical complex off of Dupont Road in Fort Wayne. The last time I went to Women's Health Advantage pelvic rehab I was feeling so bad I told her I didn't want to continue with what we had been doing. It seemed to be making things worse, not better. I asked if she had any other options or suggestions. She did not. She referred me to Parkview. 

I told the pelvic therapist at Parkview about what had been tried. She asked about symptoms. I wasn't too surprised when she suggested we needed to focus on relaxing my pelvic floor. She did a very thorough exam which backed up her first impression. No more Kegals for me; no more electrical stimulation. Those two modalities were nice in that they didn't take much time, but they are not right for me. The sets of pelvic exercises at home will be time consuming. Some of these exercises are like the ones on the sheet I received from the previous rehab therapist, except she would say I could try them but didn't really need to do them. I will also do some massaging. I am supposed to do a tension check of my body several times a day; if I feel tense anywhere I am to lie down and do some diaphragmatic breathing. 

Certainly having to follow a boil water order is not conducive to calmness. I may be lying down a lot in the next week to combat stress.

Short Fall

With a few exceptions, the trees have not been very colorful this fall. A lot of the leaves turned slowly and are dull and quickly turning brown. Now lots of leaves are on the ground already. My fothergilla bush has lessened the disappointment a bit. This is its second autumn, and it really looks nice this year.

The two small mums I put on my porch looked tasty to a deer I guess. I went out one morning, and most of the blooms had been eaten off the plant.

So it has not been as colorful an autumn as some years.

Next week the highs are predicted to be in the mid-20's and low 30's, way below the normal for this time of year. I sure appreciate my electric blanket that keeps me warm through the cold nights.

2019 Operation Christmas Child

I didn't have success in finding some of the kinds of things I usually put in my Operation Christmas Child box for a 10-14 years old girl.
For example, Walmart had inexpensive bandanas in pretty prints and bright colors in the past. This year all I could find were camo prints, black traditional print, and Mickey Mouse designs. I think Hobby Lobby in Fort Wayne has a variety of bandanas, but I didn't get to that store, and there is no Hobby Lobby in Warsaw.

I ended up kind of heavy on purses/bags. The burgundy velvet one I bought at KMart which was going out of business in our area. I didn't see much that impressed me at the craft shows last weekend and today, but I did buy a little blue and yellow purse. I like to include something the recipient can share with others. In previous years that would be individually-wrapped candy. Candy is no longer allowed. This year I included a package of combs. The little bright "wedges" are clips with magnets on the back. I have never sent that sort of thing before. Maybe they can be shared with a friend or sibling.

It would be nice to know in what kind of climate the box will end up. Mittens and scarves work better for cold places.

 The lady in our church who heads up Operation Christmas Child has shared some stories, like the boy in an orphanage who loved his bar of Irish Spring soap in his Christmas box. The whole orphanage went to public baths once a month and shared one bar of soap. The older boys were last to take baths, and the sliver of soap wasn't much help. But rather than use his bar, he had a bigger boy store it for him and protect it. He would come and smell it when he wanted a bit of joy. Finally, the orphanage added showers to its facility. The boy and his friend who stored the soap asked the janitor to let them into the locked showers. At last, the gift was used as intended. But he only did it a few times before he was adopted and went to reside in the United States where he could have lots of soap. The soap was his symbol of hope. As long as he had the bar of soap, he could envision a brighter future. God answered his prayer. 

I will take my finished box to church tomorrow. God will get it to the right child. Have you finished your box?

Twelfth Night

We braved the cold air and newly falling snow last night to go to Grace College where the Actors From the London Stage were performing Twelfth Night by Shakespeare.

Five actors portrayed 15 different characters, assuming the role of various characters by wearing a hat, taking off a coat, putting on a apron, changing a collar, etc. Sometimes the actor's character talked to his/her other character, quickly switching roles with a flip of a wardrobe prop and turning the other direction. It was quite humorous at times.

We attended Measure for Measure last year. I do think the quality of acting was better in Measure for Measure. Twelfth Night had more puns and bawdy jokes which I didn't always understand, though mainly because some voices projected and enunciated better than others, not because of naivete. Measure for Measure had a more serious story. Twelfth Night mostly centered around romantic infatuations. It was just silly in some places.

I found it more difficult to understand the words this year than last. The lines seemed rushed and not easily discerned, especially those of Olivia/Maria and the fool.

You can read the synopsis if you want to know the plot. There were characters who pretended to be someone different or masked their identities in the play; that made it harder to follow the story since the actors were already flipping from character to character. 

The small theater was almost full. We saw several people we know, though most of the attenders were college students. It was a pleasant night away from home.

Bon Voyage Jill

Starting at 7:30 EDT tonight I have a vintage Vogue Jill doll going up for sale on ebay. I have owned this doll for about 60 years, but better to have her go to someone who would enjoy her rather than sitting in a drawer. Someday I will downsize unless I get upsized to heaven first; if something were to happen to me, my husband would have no idea how to describe the doll for selling purposes. 

I will be at church at 7 p.m. for our church's Christmas choir practice. Usually, not much action until late in an auction anyway. That does mean next Sunday when it ends I will miss viewing any activity.
I plan to sell my two Vogue Ginny dolls as well, but they will take more work to photograph since they have lots of clothes and accessories. 

Yesterday I went to a craft sale; I bought some jewelry for my Operation Christmas Child box. I am almost done buying items. There is another craft show next Saturday so I will look for small items I might add to what I already have, plus I want to buy a small towel. 

Yesterday afternoon I pulled up all of my moss roses plants, cut the speedwell (Veronica) down to about 4 inches high, cut what was left of the Asian lilies down to nubbins, pulled up the lambsquarters weeds and other miscellaneous weeds. It was in the 60's. We will cool down mid-week, and then it will be unpleasantly cool to work outside. My flower plot is ready for winter now.

I have had the electric blanket on low for several weeks. Tonight I might not turn it on as the night will stay warm until rain and a cold front go thru tomorrow. We did have a string of cold nights (30's), and the fall foliage is finally appearing. Seems like it is a few weeks later this year than last year. I love autumn in the Midwest. 

Fort Wayne's Promenade Park

In July, the city of Fort Wayne opened a new park along the banks of the Saint Mary's River. The grand opening was bustling with special events and activities, but on an ordinary day it is a pleasant place but not anything special.

Since I don't know what was there before, I can't comment on the degree of improvement. I think for locals and folks working in downtown businesses this is a convenient place to spend time out in the fresh air; the playground seemed to be enjoyed by the children.

On the weekends and occasional special events, one can ride for a fee the Sweet Breeze boat. Except for a few biking/walking trails, there aren't many places to access the river.

We walked thru the park, crossing over a bridge to the elevated Tree Canopy Trail that led to the playground.

In another area of the park, there were Adirondack chairs, but most people chose the large swings or benches with a little shade rather than the sunny garden area.

A concrete amphitheater is used for concerts. There is a small fast-food eating establishment, Trubble Brewing, with alcoholic beverages but just a small selection of food items. In that building were public restrooms.

Closer to the Superior Street side are corn hole games and ping pong "tables".

Nearby is the commissioned sculpture titled Water Fountain.

Though signs were posted that there was no swimming allowed in the river, there were some rocks to hop around on in the park. There was a little water (from rain?) but I wonder if during  the weekends there might be water all around the rocks.

I had fun jumping from rock to rock. No little kids in this area while I was there, however.

A business rented kayaks and bikes. There was a trail that went towards Headwaters Park (over by the fort), but we didn't walk all  the way over there, just partway. We saw some bike riders and lots of people walking their dogs.

This is Science Place. We saw it from the trail. It is a children's museum.

 The park is adjacent to downtown.

 Unfortunately, there is roadwork next to the park, making it a noisy, dusty place today.

A somewhat large dirt parking lot is where most of the visitors parked. Maybe it will be paved in the future? There was some street parking, but really I felt directional signs to parking was suboptimal. We had to turn around twice until we finally found the dirt lot. Today was so nice that it was good to be outside, and since we were in Fort Wayne for a medical appointment anyway, it was not a big effort to visit. Probably wouldn't make a special trip though.

Downton Abbey (The Movie)

I had an enjoyable visit with the Crawley Family and their staff this afternoon. It was like getting caught up on the lives of friends/acquaintances that you hadn't seen for awhile. If you never viewed the TV series, this movie would probably be incredibly dull and slow-moving. I was surprised the creator of the movie was able to get the gang together again. The soap-opera drama and cliff hangers were missing. For me, the costumes were a key focus.

The plot is shallow (the King and Queen are coming to Downton for one night) though there were some interesting side stories from time to time: a new sparring partner for Violet, a possible love-interest for Branson, another look at the unacceptance of homosexuals.  The balance between personal needs and desires and family/community responsibility served as a theme of sorts. Lots of making things work in relationships (Edith and her husband, Princess Mary, Daisy and Andy).

Mostly there were happy endings. I wished them all well until we meet again (if ever).

Heaven's Gain

We learned today that another brother-in-law in Wisconsin died. He was diagnosed with ALS about 18 months ago. We are at the stage in life when our siblings and their spouses are mostly in their 70s and 80's. One by one, we see God calling them home to be with Him. It is a comfort to know they belonged to God thru faith in Jesus Christ. We are not certain of this for some of their children and grandchildren. The funeral plans are not made yet. 

I attended a ladies' retreat this weekend of women across the span of 20 to 75 years. One of our Friday evening activities was to decorate booklets/journals one of the ladies made for us. She had generously brought all kinds of stickers, paper, colored pens, ribbons, etc. A main emphasis of our talks was to be saturated in the Truth, the Word of God so we can defend against the lies Satan tells us. I decided to turn my booklet into a Scripture repository. I decorated the left-hand side of the open pages with items (stickers, cut-outs) representing topics (beauty, the Names of God, prayer, casting out fear, birds, flowers, light/flame, etc.). On the bottom of that page and on the facing page I plan to write verses down. I only did half the book Friday night, but Saturday afternoon when I was home again I rummaged thru my scrapbooking supplies (which aren't many) and did some more.

I have decided to go thru concordances and other tools and peruse my Bible to find verses I want to have handy to meditate on before finishing out the topics and the decorating. One of my topics is heaven; what joy it will be to remember God's promises about our future abode as I think about our losses. I am excited about this project though I won't really get into it until after this very busy week. 

The above were from the retreat supplies