Amazing God,
You offered us living water, 
flowing and splashing,
Sao Pelligrino(1) in our glass;
we chose instead 55 gallon drum cisterns
warm and stale on the back porch
until they rusted through 
and would no longer hold water.
You offered us finest wheat and sweet honey from the rock
(whatever that is),
buckwheat cakes and sweet syrup from the tree;
we chose instead the devices and desires of our own hearts,
Wonderbread and margarine.
As we go about the rituals and routines of our lives,
even the righteous and religious rituals and routines,
may we not miss your wild and wonderful promise
of an even wilder and more wonderful new life,
a son or a daughter
even in our later years.

(1) spelling?

 Night falls, stars appear -
candles shine, twinkle in the
        windows of heaven.

Slowly sun rises,
Slowly air warms and mist clears -
      Slowly life appears.

 Light breeze and sunshine
sparkling over blue water -
        "Don't get no better!"

 Green leaves, slender stems,

tangled in and reaching out -

     the green bean season 

 Varification
code sent; enter six digits -
      Deposit? Withdraw?

 Match strikes, flares, paper
catches, flames grow into fire -
         dry kindling difference.

A "first thing in the morning fire" in the cookstove - dry cedar kindling gets it going.
       

 God of every time and place,
each day belongs to you,
but this day is one that you and I
have agreed should be holy unto you.
As I wander through my day
may I not trample on your day.
I ask your help in the name of Jesus,
who did acts of kindness and healing on each and every day.

 Market(1) plethora -

one gallon maple syrup -

    That's it for today.

 (1) farmers, that is!

I don't know - what I am trying to say is that there was a whole bunch of stuff and from that whole bunch I bought a gallon of maple syrup. Alt last line -

      Breakfast tomorrow! 

 

 Small brown monk kneeling

in back yard - trembling, twitching -

          praying? No, nibbling. 

 Neighborhood Night Out -

Stuffed way(1) past uncomfortable,

     awake half the night.

 

(1) using the vernacular 4-syllable "uncomfterble"!  Otherwise, leave out the "way"!

 Hot dogs, hamburgers,

buffet, desserts, friends talking -

       Neighborhood Night Out! 

 Finished the last book,
haven't started the next book -
        it's in-between time.

 "Gray skies, chance of rain" -
Hard to get started, even
      warm, dry, snug, inside.


I don't know - is there sometimes just a "gray skies, chance of rain" quality to life no matter what the weather outside?

 Lord of the vineyard,
  Lord of all the earth and beyond,
  Lord of the critters and creatures -
The great cloud of witnesses
watches and grieves at what is happening in your vineyard -
+soldiers and civilians killing and dying as nations make war,
+children going hungry as mothers and fathers search for food,
+some chasing riches and rest while others are hungry and homeless,
+plants and animals pushed to the edge of extinction by habitat destruction and changing climate.
May the witnesses inspire us to run by faith the race before us.
Come and sing once again your song of love for your vineyard,
that it may be a pleasant planting
and a place of peace for all.
For all - yes.

 Darting left and right,
a hummingbird convention(1) -
     We sit still and watch.

(1) 3, 4, 5?  Hard to tell.

And I was going to end with something like 
  "Amazed, we sit, watch."
but just seemed to fussy.

 Red breasted nuthatch
at the bird feeder today -
      big name, little bird.

 Rowing the boat you
see clearly where you have been -
      In life much the same.

 Sunshine in clear sky,
Start of a lovely new day.
       Clouds on horizon.

 Two turtles on log,
Charlie in lawn chair on deck -
      rest hour at the lake.

Rest hour is from 12:30 to 1:30, or 2:00, or 2:30, or........

 Sweet, salty, crunchy -
how many servings was that?
       Toffee roast peanuts!

Ok - I ate the whole 4.5 oz (1 oz per serving) bag. Once you start it's hard to stop!

 Bonus haiku from yesterday -

After a dull day

with gray clouds and steady rain -

      An All-Star sunset! 

 

Eternal God,
you look down from heaven
on the wisdom and the foolishness
of humankind -
Abram lay on his back out in the field
looking up at the stars in the heavens,
and you said, "So will your descendents be"
and Abram believed it.
Jesus said "You could store up your treasures in heaven," 
and "Keep your lamps trimmed and burning 
  and when the Master comes he will seat you at the table 
  and serve you himself"
and I believe it. 
Or at least I am trying to today.
I am trying to today.

 Tomatoes, onions,
cilantro sauteed - pasta.
      Needed something else.

 It's all blue up there -
no clouds, no haze, no smoke - blue!
        We call it "the sky".

Ok - that was from first thing this morning. Clouded up by noon, but it was nice for a while.

 Bak Choi stir-fry with

tomato, onion, pepper (1) -

      Malinda's Green Sauce!

 

 The spiciness indicator on the label is 1 out of 5. I don't think I would want to try anything higher!

 (1) and yeah, a few other things - corn, squash....

 

And here's a bonus - trying for something a little more profound, although Melinda's Green Sauce is pretty profound!

 

A bench by the shore (1),

waves splash (2), gulls cry (3), I sit while

    life goes on around. 

(1) Lake Superior

(2) gently

(3) softly 

 Deer drinks in darkness -

sudden flash - captured and framed.

          Shiras Room, the Pete.

 

George Shiras was a pioneer in nightime flash photography of wildlife. His work is in the Shiras Room at the library.

 

Wildfire smoke orange sun 

burns a hole through clouds, bounces (1) 

off glass table top.

(1) reflects 

 Tiffany light fades,

bowls chime, sing; gongs "bong", hum, moan -

        peace settles over.....

 

At Craig Kitchen's Singing Bowls Meditation.  Tiffany window; gongs make different sounds differently depending on how they are struck or rubbed.

 

Ok – sorry this is kind of late. We were at camp where it is awkward tyo get on line and I didn’t even have a copy of the lectionary. So an evening prayer -

Dear God,

this day is now coming to it’s end.

For some it has been full of pain and vexation

and even tonight their minds are not at rest.

For me, the day has had a few moments of vexation,

but mostly it has been filled with joy and beauty 

(for which I give you thanks) 

and as I get ready for bed my mind is mostly at rest,

  except for the troubles of the world,

  the places where there is suffering and fighting,

  the ways that the climate is changing and bring harm,

  the ways that governments are abusing their people.

Teach me/us to be satisfied with what I/we have,

  sharing my/our surplus with those in need,

  rather than building bigger barns or renting bigger storage units.

Set my/our mind(s) on the things that are above,

  and clothe me/us with the new self, renewed in your own image,

  no longer Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised,

  barbarian, Scythian, enslaved or free.

Let Christ be all and in all tonight.

Let it be.

 

 Grand Island - hiking,

biking, riding the bus tour -

        Guess which one occured? 

 The sun coming up/going down,

through haze and wildfire smoke -

       a red rubber ball.

 

For those of us old enough to remember The Cyrkle - 

I think it's going to be alright,

Yeah the worst is over now,

The morning sun is shining

like a red rubber ball.

 

(Actually I have always thought it was Bobby Vee, but that was a song called just Rubber Ball.  Red Rubber Ball was written by Paul Simon and  Bruce Woodley of The Seekers.)