Happy 4th of July!

 

Time seems to fly by so quickly I often miss sending best wishes to you.

May you have a 4th of July full of Joy with dear ones close by. Enjoy the day, be safe, and eat well.

I will spend the day with barbecue and deviled eggs and dear ones sitting at my table.

Happy 4th of July!

May Freedom Reign!

Sending love,

Marilyn

The Year of the Wreath

 

 

In my home this seems to be the year of the wreath. What's not to love in a wreath at Christmas?

This first wreath was made on Monday for the gardenhouse from the rim of an old placemat and then I wired on some fresh greens and a bow. It just makes the gardenhouse festive for the season.

Last Friday I ventured to a friend's home in the country to make wreaths. I love that this is a new annual event and a new friend. We are never to old to add a new event and/or friend.

 There were four of us making wreaths in her plastic covered living room.

Here is my finished product hanging over my little village on the mantle.

And then there were three! On Saturday the realtor that sold us our home 20 years ago hosted an event at a local tree farm for all her past and present clients. She usually gives a tree, but since we didn't need a tree, we were given a wreath. Her event every year is so festive with something hot to drink, soup, popcorn, cookies and more treats. Plus this year she had a photographer there taking pictures. OK, I might include the picture taken.

This picture strip is on my refrigerator door now. It just makes me smile.

It is me, Jill (daughter), Jim (live-in gardener), and D (grandson).

And now that wreath hangs on the front of my home. Humm? Maybe it needs a bow?

Then the final wreath is fake, but I love it just the same. It is the centerpiece for my dining table. Thankfully it won't dry out and leave needles everywhere. I do love a wreath on the table.

Sending wreath joy to you this Christmas season.

Have a most terrific, fun filled weekend, dear friends!

 

Sending Love,

Marilyn

A Gift for You - A Flower and A Poem

 

A red peony for July 4th fireworks.

Freedom

By Langston Hughes

Freedom will not come

Today, this year

            Nor ever

Through compromise and fear.

 

I have as much right

As the other fellow has

            To stand

On my two feet

And own the land.

 

I tire so of hearing people say,

Let things take their course.

Tomorrow is another day.

I do not need my freedom when I’m dead.

I cannot live on tomorrow’s bread.

            Freedom

            Is a strong seed

            Planted

            In a great need.

            I live here, too.

            I want my freedom

            Just as you.  

 

 

And a field of sunflowers to send freedoms wishes to the Ukraine.

I dream of a world where we are all equal, all cherished.

May we all feel the freedom today.

Happy July 4th to those that live in the US.

atricia A Fleming

Published: July 2020

She waves for my attention,
So free upon the breeze.
The sun reflects her stars and stripes,
As proud as she can be.

She tells a tale of people lost,
Who came to find their way
And carried on through every loss,
To bring us here today.

She reminds me of the brave who fought
To keep our country strong
And shouts at me of victories
To right egregious wrongs.

She whispers to our children
Of all this country has to give
And begs that they stand up for her
And give thanks for how they live.

She cries to me of apathy,
Of prejudice and hate,
Of disrespect for what she stands,
And a Constitution we forsake.

She demands that I acknowledge her
And what she means to me
And dares me to imagine life
If she should cease to be.

And still in Glory she unfurls
And gives me hope again
For a people reunited,
And a country on the mend.

So each time I see her wave at me,
I'll stop and gaze above
And take a moment to respect
This country that I love.

Source: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/our-flag-2

Our Flag

© Patricia A Fleming more by Patricia A Fleming

Published: July 2020

She waves for my attention,
So free upon the breeze.
The sun reflects her stars and stripes,
As proud as she can be.

She tells a tale of people lost,
Who came to find their way
And carried on through every loss,
To bring us here today.

She reminds me of the brave who fought
To keep our country strong
And shouts at me of victories
To right egregious wrongs.

She whispers to our children
Of all this country has to give
And begs that they stand up for her
And give thanks for how they live.

She cries to me of apathy,
Of prejudice and hate,
Of disrespect for what she stands,
And a Constitution we forsake.

She demands that I acknowledge her
And what she means to me
And dares me to imagine life
If she should cease to be.

And still in Glory she unfurls
And gives me hope again
For a people reunited,
And a country on the mend.

So each time I see her wave at me,
I'll stop and gaze above
And take a moment to respect
This country that I love.

Source: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/our-flag-2

Our Flag

© Patricia A Fleming more by Patricia A Fleming

Published: July 2020

She waves for my attention,
So free upon the breeze.
The sun reflects her stars and stripes,
As proud as she can be.

She tells a tale of people lost,
Who came to find their way
And carried on through every loss,
To bring us here today.

She reminds me of the brave who fought
To keep our country strong
And shouts at me of victories
To right egregious wrongs.

She whispers to our children
Of all this country has to give
And begs that they stand up for her
And give thanks for how they live.

She cries to me of apathy,
Of prejudice and hate,
Of disrespect for what she stands,
And a Constitution we forsake.

She demands that I acknowledge her
And what she means to me
And dares me to imagine life
If she should cease to be.

And still in Glory she unfurls
And gives me hope again
For a people reunited,
And a country on the mend.

So each time I see her wave at me,
I'll stop and gaze above
And take a moment to respect
This country that I love.

Source: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/our-flag-2

Our Flag

© Patricia A Fleming more by Patricia A Fleming

Published: July 2020

She waves for my attention,
So free upon the breeze.
The sun reflects her stars and stripes,
As proud as she can be.

She tells a tale of people lost,
Who came to find their way
And carried on through every loss,
To bring us here today.

She reminds me of the brave who fought
To keep our country strong
And shouts at me of victories
To right egregious wrongs.

She whispers to our children
Of all this country has to give
And begs that they stand up for her
And give thanks for how they live.

She cries to me of apathy,
Of prejudice and hate,
Of disrespect for what she stands,
And a Constitution we forsake.

She demands that I acknowledge her
And what she means to me
And dares me to imagine life
If she should cease to be.

And still in Glory she unfurls
And gives me hope again
For a people reunited,
And a country on the mend.

So each time I see her wave at me,
I'll stop and gaze above
And take a moment to respect
This country that I love.

Source: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/our-flag-2v

Our Flag

© Patricia A Fleming more by Patricia A Fleming

Published: July 2020

She waves for my attention,
So free upon the breeze.
The sun reflects her stars and stripes,
As proud as she can be.

She tells a tale of people lost,
Who came to find their way
And carried on through every loss,
To bring us here today.

She reminds me of the brave who fought
To keep our country strong
And shouts at me of victories
To right egregious wrongs.

She whispers to our children
Of all this country has to give
And begs that they stand up for her
And give thanks for how they live.

She cries to me of apathy,
Of prejudice and hate,
Of disrespect for what she stands,
And a Constitution we forsake.

She demands that I acknowledge her
And what she means to me
And dares me to imagine life
If she should cease to be.

And still in Glory she unfurls
And gives me hope again
For a people reunited,
And a country on the mend.

So each time I see her wave at me,
I'll stop and gaze above
And take a moment to respect
This country that I love.

Source: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/our-flag-2vv

Our Flag

© Patricia A Fleming more by Patricia A Fleming

Published: July 2020

She waves for my attention,
So free upon the breeze.
The sun reflects her stars and stripes,
As proud as she can be.

She tells a tale of people lost,
Who came to find their way
And carried on through every loss,
To bring us here today.

She reminds me of the brave who fought
To keep our country strong
And shouts at me of victories
To right egregious wrongs.

She whispers to our children
Of all this country has to give
And begs that they stand up for her
And give thanks for how they live.

She cries to me of apathy,
Of prejudice and hate,
Of disrespect for what she stands,
And a Constitution we forsake.

She demands that I acknowledge her
And what she means to me
And dares me to imagine life
If she should cease to be.

And still in Glory she unfurls
And gives me hope again
For a people reunited,
And a country on the mend.

So each time I see her wave at me,
I'll stop and gaze above
And take a moment to respect
This country that I love.

Source: https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/our-flag-2

A Visit to my Home

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBK7IBILw5I&feature=youtube

Well we need a bit of music when viewing Christmas.

Our creche has been with us since my children were small. Handmade by someone in my church. What I love are the brown faces and simple story of the Christ child.

It sits in the alcove as you enter my home.

If you have followed me for awhile you know I love flowers and nature. My husband and I recently visited a Christmas tree farm, not to get a tree, but just to gather some greens and a wreath for the house. Then from Trader Joe's I added red roses. If you look closely there is one rose that is not red. That is the last rose from our garden at center stage. I love this in my bedroom.

 

Here is the bedroom. I love the morning light. On the trunk behind the bed is another rose and greens.

They just make my heart happy.

Now we move to the dining room. Here is the wreath at the center of the table. Last Sunday we had teatime just for the three of us in the family. It was peppermint tea with trout sandwich, sausage roll, egg salad sandwich, sweets of Dundee cake, macarons, dried fruit and candied pecans. I think the guys in my house liked it, afterall it was food.

Another gathering of Christmas characters. I love them because they all hold something from nature.

Another glimpse of the table centerpiece.

 

Love. love bottle brush trees and this one came home from the antique mall.

I sat it in a favorite teacup and there is seems to be happy.

Can you spot the Christmas gnome? Every year he pops up in a different place in the house. This year he is sitting in a bowl of antique tea silver pieces on my tea cart.

So far my family hasn't noticed him sitting there. Ha! My "live-in gardener" thinks he is a bit silly, but I like him visiting every year.

My office needed a touch of the red and green, so another rose and greens sits here in front of my chalk board. The chalk board is gathering words to think on for each and every day and soon I will pick a new word for 2021.

Now we have moved to the living room mantle. This year above the village I placed greens and at night there are small twinkling lights shining in the greens. I do enjoy the little village most of all.

Some years ago my son did this illustration for me and of course it must come out every Christmas.

More flowers and greens, plus candles on the table.

Santas and snowmen sit on top of the book shelves.

Even out our window the hummingbird enjoys a little Christmas cheer.

And finally our little faux tree sits packed full of Christmas joy.

Hope you enjoyed a visit to my Christmas house.

The packages are wrapped and now under the tree.

Baking is yet to happen here, plus just a little Christmas adventures and cheer to come.

Have a delightful weekend, dear friends!

May it be full of Christmas cheer, even if it is just a moment of quiet meditation over a cup of tea.

Word for the Day - 2020

 Pause

from the Webster dictionary:

to stop temporarily, to linger for a time

 

I am thinking about "pause" a lot these days

as we are experiencing higher numbers of COVID cases

around the country.

Many of these pictures I have probably shared before,

but for me a walk in nature or sitting in my own backyard is a "pause" in my day.

Sipping a cup of tea is a "pause".

Sometimes just sitting by the river with a friend in the early morning hour

is a gift of a "pause" in my day or week, though for now this will wait.

A walk on the beach allows me to breathe again, a time to dream,

or a time to let my mind clear.

I have struggled about "pausing" Thanksgiving this year because of the COVID.

It saddens me to do, as I am sure you must be struggling with that sadness too.

What do you plan to do with your day? How do you plan to celebrate safely?

 

In my household there are three of us, but usually our daughter, grandson, and our

daughter's ex-husband would be here.

This year the three of us will enjoy the moments of preparing our regular

Thanksgiving meal, but then package it up and deliver it to two homes.

We will set it at the door, step back, give a smile to the recipients and a hello, then 

come home to eat our meal. It won't be the same, but this is what we feel will work 

for us in a safe manner for all. This just feels like the right thing for us to do,

so I am at peace with that.

 

Sometimes it just takes a "pause" to come to a clear decision about what feels right.
 

It's Beginning to Look like Christmas

A peek through the window into my Christmas living room.

Santa is away from his chair at the moment,

but the lights do shine.

This is the first year for a fake tree and my "live-in gardener" and I

are trying to adjust.

Somehow I got most of our ornaments on this little tree.

One thing for sure is that we don't have to feed it water

and the needles won't fall to the floor.

It is fun to see the clusters through out the tree

of whimsy and delights and memories too.

The clothespin ballerina's were made as a fund raiser when

our daughter was a wee little ballerina.

Love the vintage teapot hanging by the cupcake.

And another silver vintage teapot by the glass bear.

Is that a pickle that bear is holding?

The mantle has a very old family quilt. It is too delicate to use, but fun to hang for awhile.

Then there is the village and bottle brush trees.

And Santas to delight any child at heart.

This dark Santa doesn't get noticed much, but he is very old, carved out of wood.

He is a form for making papermache Santas.

This year I placed him by the lamp, so maybe we would notice him.

And even the bedroom has a bit of the festivity of Christmas

with a teacup for the occasion and poinsettias too.

Anyone for Christmas morning tea in bed?

Sounds good to me. There are goodies in the freezer, just tuck one or two on the tray.

Enjoy December with however you celebrate.

Just remember to toss in a bit of whimsy and delight.

Then sprinkle with glitter and stardust.

Twirl and sing with the music.

Isn't that what Christmas celebrating is all about?

Happy first week of Advent!