Month: November 2020

Alone

As Thanksgiving Day approaches, I’m thinking of all the people who will be alone during the upcoming holidays. After I was orphaned as a teenager, I was alone for many years, even when I was surrounded by people. I know how it feels to be alone. Holidays were the worst.

Whoever you are, and wherever you are, I will be praying for you. If hope eludes you, please know that I will be hoping on your behalf.

If you believe in God, I encourage you to pray for yourself and others. If you don’t believe in God, I encourage you to pray as if you did.

St. Teresa of Avila’s Bookmark:

Let nothing disturb you;
Let nothing frighten you.
All things pass;
God never changes.
Patience obtains all things.
The one who has God
Lacks nothing:
God alone suffices.

November Surprises

Scabiosa

Just when I thought my perennials were going dormant for the winter, the warm afternoons breathed new life into them. The Scabiosa is putting out blossoms, and the Cherry Sage is covered with new color.

Cherry Sage

The Violets and Vinca are raring to go too, although they won’t bloom until spring.

Variety

A neighbor recently commented on the unusual patterns of color we are seeing this year on the autumn leaves in our neighborhood. She attributed them to our unseasonal snowstorm and freeze a few weeks ago. I hadn’t noticed the unusual patterns, but I was glad she brought them to my attention. I was reminded of the poem “Pied Beauty” by Gerard Manley Hopkins in which he gives glory to God for dappled things and…

...All things counter, original, spare, strange;
Whatever is fickle, freckled (who knows how?)

At the same time, there is beauty in monochrome. In our backyard, the ash trees simply ignored the snowstorm. The leaves were green before the storm, and they remained so after the snow and ice melted. Now, they have turned to their reliable shade of gold.

Indoor Gardens

The memory of our October snow has faded. Now in November, a few shrubs and plants are blooming outside — nothing to write home about — so I have turned my attention to my indoor gardens. At the grocery store, I bought yellow, pink, and orange Kalanchoe to grace the side table in our atrium. A five-dollar bouquet of lilies from Walmart cheers the living room, and a floral jigsaw puzzle dominates the dining room table.

Apparently, I am easily entertained — as long as there are flowers.

Wild Horses

The Lincoln National Forest in the mountains around Ruidoso, New Mexico, is home to herds of wild horses. The neighboring village, Ruidoso Downs, hosts a beautiful race track, so there are local horse owners and visiting horse owners in town during the racing season. Over time, some have released horses into the National Forest when the horses have passed their prime, and the horses, not being stupid, have gathered into herds.

Local advocates seek to help the wild horses. Today, some of the horses helped themselves to the greens on the Links Golf Course. I counted 14, including two healthy colts.