This is Summer????

Since we are on the other side of the equator, we are entering into summer and this week it was really hot until today, when we had the picnic with all the church employees. As you can tell by my photo, I spent the day all wrapped up in a blanket, as I was freezing to death. It was rainy/cloudy and windy and we were out in the “country” where the wind came “whistling down the plains”. Despite the shivers, we all had a good time. We had a great barbeque lunch and lots of fun playing games, talking and generally playing around. As you can see by the two photos (men and women), we have a lot of church employees. They include, of course, the staff from our school. It was a long day, as we had to drive about 90 minutes to get there and back. The picnic was at the church’s camp. It is pretty much undeveloped there, but right beside it, some church members have a small apt. building with efficiencies, where they spend their vacations.  One of my favorite things is the fish pond. I know, I must be incredibly simple-minded to stand and feed fish and watch them eating. But I did enjoy it. I also enjoyed swinging. What can I say?  I never grew up.

It’s a busy time of year for everyone with so many activities for the end of the year and Christmas. I still don’t know why we try to cram all our parties into one month of the year. When I saw Mia lazing under the tree this morning, I thought to myself, that’s how I want to live this Christmas season: slow and easy. So take it slow and easy yourself.

Cats Are Cool

HAVING FUN

As you know Sadik and I live in Canada where we have five or six months of very cold weather. During most of that time, Sadik doesn't go outside very often since it's so cold. It even seems like it understands that because once the cold weather starts, he pretty well stops asking to go outside. But that attitude changes once the weather begins to warm up and the snow melts. I don't know if he feels the sunshine and the longer days, or if he knows by instinct, but once springtime arrives he starts sitting by the backdoor begging to go outside again. When I open the door, he practically knocks me over to get outside. He immediately runs to the end of the yard where he climbs halfway up the tree and then jumps back down again. Then he runs and sniffs all the flowers, and nibbles on the grass. He chases the squirrels and birds and generally plays until he is tired and lays down under one of the trees. Although he is not a young cat, he seems like a little kitten who is all play and fun.

Near where Sadik likes to run and play, in our backyard, is a grade school. I can see and hear the children playing everyday at recess and at lunchtime. They seem as happy as Sadik, as it is a huge grassy area where they can play. They throw balls, play games, jump and run and do lots of screaming. First thing in the morning, when Sadik hears the children playing he runs to the door, starts crying and looking longingly at the door as if to say: “Let me go outside and play with the children”. I go with him and the children love to look at him and watch him play through the fence.

As I told you, Sadik is no baby kitten, since he is six years old. That is like being 51 in people years. That means he's close to my age. So neither Sadik nor I are little kids anymore. That doesn't mean, though, that we can't have a good time like kids do. Sadik has reminded me how much fun it is to play. In fact, I have bought a bicycle and I am remembering the fun of riding my bike.

It's great to be a kid and it's really fun to play too. It's sad to me to see “grown-ups” who have forgotten how to have fun. It's even sadder to me to see kids who have forgotten to play with friends, run, jump, climb trees, ride their bikes and play games. I think it's just fantastic to remember that Jesus was child just like you and me. When Jesus grew up, he didn't forget the joy of being a child. He liked jokes, friends, and parties. He also liked being with children. I like to imagine that he is joyful when he sees children running and jumping and playing, having a good time.

Seeing Sadik having a good time playing outside, makes he give thanks to God for my good health that allows me to also play outside. It also makes me give thanks to him for fun, for joy, for enjoying life. I hope you don't just stay inside watching TV, playing on the computer or enjoying video games. I hope you get outside (even in the cold) and enjoy the wonderful world that God gave to us.

For that reason, I am going to stop writing and go outside and enjoy playing with Sadik. Why don't you find a few minutes to do the same thing?

I Habe a Cold

Bery wonduhvul day. Bad cold and dentist. I can’t breave and dentist fills my mouf wid coddon and odder stuff. Do you understand? Id is nod a good day, no… Now I habe a cold and a toofache. Nod a habby camper. I wend to bed for resd ov day and worked on my drawing ov a cad. That made me much habbier. I like mai siamese cad I did in colored bencil.

Seriously, I did come home from Vitória with a cold and everyone is laughing at the way I talk. I don’t feel that bad, but I sound pretty funny. And I did hit the dentist today. Gotta love having dental work done here. My original crown fell out in June and today I got the final crown glued in. It took, well, let’s see… a visit to put in cement and let that sit for a month to see if I needed a root canal (no, I didn’t). So then I go back to have the tooth drilled out and a temporary crown made. Then I return to have an impression made. I return to have the crown glued on and it shatters into a million pieces. I go back and have the tooth drilled out further and make another temporary. Then I go back to make another impression. Then I return for a fitting of the metal undercrown. Then I return to do a color match on the porcelain crown. Then I return to have the whole shooting match glued in. Only 9 visits, not counting the two times I had to run in and have the temporary re-glued. Along the way I had two other teeth filled and had minor gum surgery (all on separate occasions). Since I so LOVE going to the dentist (NOT!!!!!), ask me how much I enjoyed all this. Today the glue has sent my nerves into raging pain and I am hoping this doesn’t mean something bad for the tooth, since it hasn’t hurt at all through all this!

Our trip to Vitoria was just grand. We enjoyed the church where João preached. (The photo to the left is of the church - I have no photos because mysteriously my camera's battery was not charged, although I had fully charged it before travelling. But my niece did send me a photo of our family she took in front of the church.) His family came out each night and that was great as well. Many of the young people I worked with in Vitoria came to the church to see us and I was just ecstatic to get to see them and their children. I was in my early 30’s and they in their late teens/early twenties back in the 1980’s, so now we are all middle aged. It meant so much to see them. It is great to live long enough and stick around enough to get to see some of the results of your ministry. My time in Vitoria was so very short, around four years, and I’ve been gone for 20 years, so it’s amazing to me that anyone still remembers. It was a great reminder of the blessings of ministry and how important it is to be faithful to calling we have been given.

PS: To my non-native English speaking readers, I am sorry for the first paragraph. It is written in "cold" dialect. Just read it outloud and try to imagine how someone with a cold sounds! (Substituting "v" for "b", "th" for "d" or "f", "s" for "d", etc.

PSS: Next day - no more talking funny and no more toothache. And thanks so much for your "reactions" to my blog. That helps me a lot.

We’re off, but not to see the wizard

Just a note to let you know we are off to Espírito Santo, where João will be preaching over the weekend. I will also speak to the women of the church. I remember vividly searching to buy the land for this church back in the 1980’s, as the city of Vitória was growing out in this direction and there was no Baptist church in the neighbourhood. It was really hard to find a piece of property. But buy it we did (the State convention in partnership with the mission board) and now the church is celebrating it’s 20th anniversary. I am looking forward to seeing old friends as well as João's family and generally enjoying staying on the beach! (Oh the sacrifices of ministry!)

Just so there would be something to look at, in case you don’t like reading without illustrations, I am including two of my recent art efforts. To the right is a Macaw, done with colored pencil, a medium I am really struggling to dominate. It is a very precise medium, but in this study (it is very small, about 4x6), I feel like I made some breakthroughs in blending without making a hole in the paper.

To the left are two watercolors I did in class last week, with the specific assignment of doing something stylistic (not realistic) in only 15 minutes. The two paintings are of the same scene, one a general picture and the other an enlargement. I both like and dislike the watercolors. They were actually fun to do, but I felt they look very childlike or primitive. Believe it or not watercolor is a similar method to colored pencil, in that you do layers. What I just can’t seem to get the hang of, is leaving “white” around the edges and emphasizing the highlights. I am missing this week’s class, but I think that next week we will be working more on that. Oh, there is so much to learn and I am so slow to catch on!

Sleepy time

"Sadik! Quiet. Sh-h-h-h-h-h! We are trying to sleep.” It was 3AM and Sadik was meowing very loudly. And in my ear. Unfortunately Sadik liked to sleep by day and play at night. The problem was that I “played” by day and slept at night. It was a serious problem and no one was very happy in our household.

I started thinking to myself: “My, oh my, how Sadik and I are so very different.” As a general rule, most cats do like to sleep in the daytime and stay awake at night. I think that's because they have special eyes that let them see better in the dark than my eyes. Their whiskers also help them to navigate at night. That helps the cats to be wonderful nighttime hunters. God gave the cat the ability to find food that way.

That's not all that's different about us. Have you ever noticed how a cat sleeps? They sleep almost awake. That is to say, that even sleeping a cat is alert to what is going on around him. If you move a little or try to touch a sleeping cat, he will immediately open his eyes. He knows what's going on around him while alseep. That is one way a cat can protect himself from danger. He gets his rest, but at the same time he can run from an enemy.

There are lots of other differences between Sadik and me as well. He sleeps all curled up with his nose touching his tail. I could never sleep forming the letter “O” with my body because my back bones wouldn't let me do that. I am not as flexible as a cat is.

Neither can I jump like a cat. Sadik can jump from the ground straight up to the kitchen sink, or even the refrigerator if he want to. It's really incredible to see how high a cat can jump. For that matter it's pretty neat to see how a cat can squeeze into tight spaces, as well. Sadik can wiggle underneath the couch, even as big as he is. I can barely fit under the bed! Nor can I fly. Well, Sadik can't really fly, but it looks like it when he comes running, jumping from the sofa to the table to the chair, as if he were flying. All of these characteristics are important so that he can climb trees, run quickly, hide away if necessary, hunt for food, etc.

Something everyone notices about Sadik is his beautiful long fur. It is so soft that it is like silk. It's hard to resist hugging him and petting him. Although I have never given him a bath, he stays clean and smells good. That's because he bathes himself with his tongue. He has so much fur that it takes him a long time. Have you ever been licked by a cat? Their tongue feels like sandpaper. God made it that way so the cat can clean his own fur.

Besides being beautiful , Sadik's fur is useful. It's really really cold where we live in Canada. Although he is not especially fond of cold weather, every once in a while he likes to go outside for a couple of minutes. His fur protects him while he is outside. It's his own personal fur coat. Sadik even has special fur between his claws, on his paws that help him walk on the snow and ice.

God made Sadik in a very special way. If he made a cat with such care, imagine how he made you and me! Isn't it just fantastic the think about how God made us in such a special way? Just thinking about all I can do makes me want to say thank you to God.

By the way, we finally came up with a solution for our little problem of not being able to sleep at night because Sadik made so much noise. We were able to make a space for him to sleep in the basement of the house where he would have food and water, his bathroom and plenty of space to run and play at night. We even put in a bed for him where he could rest when he got tired of playing. During the day, he and I play together a lot. He chases after his play mouse and the ping-pong balls, we run up and down the steps and he sleeps in my lap or right beside the computer. At night, when I am in bed asleep, he eats and plays and makes all the noise he wants, without keeping me awake. Isn't that great that God gave me a brain to work out that solution?

Tired and Happy

I am almost too tired to post, but have only 7 more minutes until Thanksgiving is over and I wanted to say how grateful I am! God has given me so many blessings this year. It has been a wonderful year and I am full to overflowing with gratitude. Today we celebrated Thanksgiving at my house with our family and one other family as well (our minister of music). I worked really hard preparing the food (all from scratch) and decorating the house as well. It was so worth the effort. We had lots of food and lots of visiting and a very nice worship time at the end. I enjoyed it all. It was nice to have children present, something I missed last year. Mia made her presence known passing under and around our feet and knees. She loved the children and adored all the cuddling and attention. So she too had a great Thanksgiving. I have so many blessings, that I would never finish this entry if I were to count them all. Tomorrow I will try to write about some of those blessings. For tonight it is a big thank-you, to the readers of my blog. Most of all it is thank you to God Eternal for my life and salvation. Happy Thanksgiving.

Feedback, please

The other day we had friends over for lunch. Sebastião was João's roomate in seminary, but they also grew up in the same town in Espírito
Santo. Sebastião and his wife, Rosali, were missionaries in South Africa, so now that they are back in Brazil, we try to get together when they are in Rio. We all have a lot in common and enjoy our visits. And in this photo you can see why I don't really consider myself all that short here in Brazil! I love being around people who make me feel a normal sized person.
I just discovered a new feature on blogger and since I love "new" things, I thought I'd try it out, in one more "desperate" attempt to get some feedback. Some of my readers (like you Donna - hey thanks) comment on the blog and some others send e-mails (thanks Carol and Marilois), but I know most people, for many reasons don't comment. I understand. I am a regular reader of several blogs and I myself never make a comment. Now, however, at the end of each entry is a place where you can check off your opinion of that particiular piece. It is anonymous and easy. Just click on the box that describes your reaction to what you have read. You'll notice I don't give you a chance to say anything unkind - I'm not that brave, but you do get to opine about whether you found it only ho-hum, somewhat interesting, or WOW! Try it out sometime. It won't hurt and it make help me as I decide what to include on my blog.

Scaredy Cat

Sadik was all comfy in my lap when my husband turned on the vacuum sweeper. Wow! What a reaction I got. Sadik was panic-stricken. He scrambled off my lap so quickly that he scratched me, something he never does. He was so startled and afraid that he totally disappeared for over an hour.

To tell the truth, most cats I know are afraid of noise. All you have to do is turn on a hair dyer, or the blender and Sadik, or most other cats, is hiding under the living room couch.

When I lived in Brazil, Baby and Dolly were terrified on December 31^st. Do you know why? On that night, at least in Rio de Janeiro, all kinds of fireworks go off. They are loud and long. Usually I didn't see the cats again until the afternoon of January 1^st and even then they were wary and their whiskers full of cobwebs. The two cats hid somewhere in the house that no one could find them at all.

Do you know why Sadik, and Baby and Dolly are so afraid of noise? I think it's because their mother taught them to be afraid. A loud noise could mean DANGER. It could mean an enemy was approaching or that they could be hurt by something. We know that a vacuum sweeper or a blender aren't going to hurt a cat and certainly are not the enemy, but Sadik doesn't know that. Early in his life he learned that a loud noise represented danger and so he runs from it. Poor little Sadik. I could explain things to him, but he wouldn't understand my words. He can't control his fear, so he lives being startled.

I surely am glad I am not a cat. Can you imagine how it would be to live being terrified everytime you heard a blender? Still, I must confess that there are things I am afraid of. I am afraid when I hear strange noises in the night. When that happens, do you know what I do? I pull the sheets up over my head I figure if I can't see anything it can't harm me. I act a lot like Sadik, don't I? I don't fit under the couch in the living room, but I do fit under the covers in my bed. I could act differently than Sadik, trying to stop and think a little bit about the noise. Even better than that, I could talk to God: “God, I don't know what that noise is, but it makes me afraid. You told me that whenever I am afraid, to trust in you, so I am asking you to help me to trust in you. Help me to remember that you will take care of me. Help me to give away my fear to you!” When I actually pray that way, do you know what happens? I go to sleep. Really. My panic goes away. I don't have to hide or feel such terrible panic. It is such a wonderful feeling knowing I can relax and trust God.

I enjoy Sadik, as my pet, but I am glad I am me and not him. I don't have to live my life running away from noises. I don't have to hide when I am started. I can run to God and He give me the peace and calm I need. With God's presence I am no “scaredy-cat”.

And Fun Was Had By All

Today is a holiday in our state of Rio, so our church had an outing at a farm about an hour out of town, at the foot of the mountains. Although yesterday was rainy and chilly, today there was actually sunshine, although the clouds did move in early afternoon. The temps were quite nice today. So João and I drove out to the "sítio"(farm) where are folks were and enjoyed ourselves immensely. It was a lovely spot, the company was good and nature cooperated. After leaving there, we drove a short distance to visit a church member who was at their weekend cottage. It was a surprise visit and we all had a lot of fun drinking coffee, eating (what else?) and just visiting. Since we are daylight savings time now, it doesn't get dark until about 7:30, so we got home a little before eight, not having to travel in rainy dark weather.
I took a lot of photos of flowers and even had time to do a sketch of one flower. I hope to draw it in graphite, colored pencils, pastels and water colors to show the difference of the various mediums. I put together some of my photos from the day, together with a hymn and thought you might enjoy watching/listening to it. I wish you a day as beautiful and as relaxing and as much fun as ours.

No Grandma Moses

As you can see, I am no budding Grandma Moses. I am rapidly coming to the conclusion that watercolor will not be my specialty. But I am nothing if not stubborn. Believe it or not, it is very similar to the use of colored pencils, of which I am also not a great fan. Exactly for that reason, I just keep plugging away. I don’t think I like “exact” things. I love charcoal and pastels and graphite because they are very forgiving. You can smudge and smear and blur and still have a great effect. If you work too hard on colored pencils you bore a hole in your paper. (I am famous for having a heavy hand!) With water colors you just get a mess. Things tend to run. Also I am having a hard time mixing colors. I just can’t get the tones I want. So much to learn and such a little bitty brain!

Here are some of my latest efforts. The daisies were surprisingly easy. The boat was hard, but then I didn’t enjoy drawing a boat! Since I love flowers, I tried the tulip. It may look easy, but it was days of work, layer after layer of colors. I know I got the shadow too big on the flower, but that was because of a bleed – too much water on my brush.

If I ever get completely over my sinus infection, I’ll go back to doing pastels – with a dust mask, but I just don’t want to risk it right now. I bought a couple of great books the other day at the mall, so I am doing research on the subject right now. I also plan to do some more study on color theory. In the meantime, I have to work on some writing projects, so my paints will dry for a few days. Right now it’s time to go do my Leslie Sansone walking DVD. Three miles today!!!!

A Tropical Snowman?

Don’t you just love our creativity?

Today, our day off, we went to the mall and had lunch at Applebee. The mall is already decorated for Christmas and there was a line of mothers with their babies to take photos with Santa! But I got the biggest kick out of seeing the snowmen scattered around the mall. Wait? What country am I in? Oh yeah, I’m in Brazil. I am sweating (even in the air-conditioned mall) and there stands Frosty. By all rights he should be a little puddle of water. And I ask, what does this image have to do with Rio de Janeiro? (I should really be asking what it has to do with Christmas as well.) I know I have a collection of snowmen I decorate with, but after all I am an American with all my traditions. How do you think Brazilians relate to peppermint sticks (which don’t exist for consumption), evergreen wreaths (where no evergreen trees grow), and snowmen (in a city where 65 degrees is our COLD winter weather). Oh the joys of globalization. So I had to take a photo on my cell to let you know Frosty has come south.

Floating Away in the Music

Last night… well last night was SO special. The month of November is the month of music in Brazilian churches. Our music minister has promoted several concerts in our sanctuary. Last night was the inauguration of our grand piano (full) that had been in restoration for a long time. We have been using our baby grand (1/2 grand) in the sanctuary. They brought in the full and baby grand and put them head to head. A former member, who is an internal concert pianist, Patricia Bretas, gave a concert. She also played a couple of duets with a young man from our church, who is also an international pianist.

There is a popular song that says “My Soul Sang” and let me tell you, my soul really sang last night. I don’t even know how to explain how much I soared. The grand piano had so much sound and she really did make it ring. She gave technical intros to each piece that helped us to understand the structure, etc. At times I thought she must have had 20 fingers. She danced on keyboard and my heart and soul danced with her. I heard the pain and grieved with Lizst. I ran and jumped with fun with Rachmaninoff, I worshipped with Bach and appreciated Beethoven.

They ended the evening with a contemporary arrangement of “Ode to Joy” and it was so beautiful that I was sure I was going to levitate off the pew. I wasn’t sure I was still present, thinking perhaps I had floated off to heaven. Now I know why the piano has 88 keys. They are all to be played. And now I understand why someone would practice 8 hours a day. Surely made me want to run out and buy a piano and start studying again. Maybe I will one of these days.

A Book Worth Reading

I am reading, in fact close to finishing, a book that I find so compelling that I want to share it with you. I don’t do book reviews at all, but this is a book some of my friends may enjoy reading. It is called "Love to Eat, Hate to Eat", by Elyse Fitzpatrick. I can’t even remember where I read about and chose to buy it. In fact when I saw it in my pile of books that I had ordered while in the US, I was surprised. The last thing I want to read is a book on dieting. I know about diets. I know they don’t work. I know I haven’t been able to get a grip on what doctors usually call a creeping weight problem that goes along with middle-age/menopause. I don’t need anyone to tell me I need to lose weight. I am intelligent and I have mirror in my house. Nor do I need anyone to tell me to eat less exercise more or to eat more healthily. I know all that and even know how to do it. Despite my resistance, I opened the book and started reading. What do you know? No pep talks! (I went to one weight watchers meeting and all the cheery pep talk made me want to throw up.) No recipes. No weight goals.

I guess I would describe the book as a Bible study. A Bible study for all of us who struggle with food. It is not particularly a book for people who are overweight, but for those who feel that food is just too big of an issue in their life. From living with my husband I know that there really are people who just eat, and don’t give much thought to how much they eat, what they will eat or even when they will eat. It’s hard to imagine, since so much energy has gone into the whole subject of “food” in my own life. I think about it. I make plans about food. Whether it be about eating junk food or healthy food, I do tend to obsess! I am either joyful about the prospect of eating or down in the dumps because I have eaten. Guess that explains the title, huh?

And I even have rather a martyr syndrome, often complaining to God that I just don’t understand why I have to so short, with such greedy little genes that turn most things I eat into plump little fat cells. Trust me, God has gotten an earful in that area. Probably the most meaningful thing I have read is the chapter about slow steady growth in sanctification – learning to name your sin (and miraculously she does not think being overweight is a sin. The sin is letting anything, except God, to control your thoughts, actions, etc. It’s about idolatry. It’s about damaging your witness. It’s about preserving your life. It’s about being the Holy Spirit’s Temple. Well, you get the picture) and hating that sin just like God does. Me I want a quick fix and not a marathon in sanctification. I mean after so many years with this as an issue in my life you’d think it would be resolved by now, huh? God could fix this really fast, couldn’t He? Anyway, Elyse writes: “This struggle is used by God to increase your hatred of your sin and your love for Him’ it causes you to be humble and continue to rely on Him; it trains your hands for war. God has many uses for abiding sin, and we must resist the discouragement that would tempt us to seek after a different method (something quicker, easier!) than His own.” (Fitzpatrick, Elyse. “ Love to Eat, Hate to Eat” . Harvest House Publishers, 1999, pp 151-152.)

That alone would have made the book worth reading for me, but there is so much more. She has a very helpful acrostic based on the letters in D—I—S—C—I—P—L—I---N—E—D Eating, that has Bible verses to read. I especially love her emphasis on giving thanks. Frankly, a lot of what I eat doesn’t lead me to thank God, and if that is the case, I shouldn’t be eating it (like Pizza), or I need to ask Him to help me to be grateful (for boiled okra!). That really works, too.

I am making changes. I may even be slightly less obsessed with food (ever so slightly) and learning just to be grateful, enjoy the good food God has given me, have fun exercising and not worry so much about what I look like (love this quote from the book: “God didn’t create me to find joy in my reflection in the mirror. Because I’d be living contrary to God’s truth, Id never find satisfaction in that pursuit.” – p. 41.)

Teaming this Bible study up with some of what I have learned from Dr. Oz’s book on health, is changing how I eat, how I think (or don’t think so much) about food, and even my exercise patterns. Have any of you ever heard of Leslie Sansone’s DVD’s for walking in your home? What fun they are! Not hard at all, but a quick way to building fitness.

The good news in all of this is new joy, more time in Bible study and prayer, more energy, better health and this week I was surprised to find when I stepped in the scales at the pool I have lost 12 lbs. Maybe an old dog can learn new tricks after all.

“Be holy because I am holy,” says the Lord.

CATS ARE COOL

NEW FRIENDS

I was SOOOOOOOO sad when I left Brazil and my cats, Dolly and Baby, went to live with Renata. They adjusted well to living in their new house, but I still missed them. As I moved the furniture and arranged things in my new house, I would check to make sure no cat was in the way. Whenever I saw a movement on the floor, I would think there was a cat running in the room. It was just hard to get used to the idea that I was “catless”.

After a few weeks of my sadness, my husband suggested they we adopt another cat. I wasn't sure at first, but finally decided to give it a chance. I was able to make contact with the Humane Society and find an older cat that very badly needed a home where he would be loved. He had been abandoned and was just recovering from pneumonia. He was about five years old and very very furry. When they brought him out for us to meet, we both thought he was the most beautiful, majestic cat we had ever seen. He was so sad because he had no home, just like I was sad to have no cat. I just knew that God had given me this new friend.

When we got home the cat just followed us around everywhere. His name was “Basil-Bottlebrush”, but we were not too fond of that name. My husband decided his name should be “Sadik” because that means friend in Arabic. Sadik hated being alone and want to be near me all the time. In the first couple of days he didn't want to eat anything and I was quite worried about him. Finally he accepted his new home and friends and starting acting much more perky. He would run around and then play with me. He would sit right beside when I was on the computer or watching television. He had become such a wonderful friend. He gave me hope that I would make many new friends in my new home in Canada.

This whole experience of moving to Canada and having to make new friends has served to remind me of the importance of praying for missionaries who are far from their family and friends. I have seen how hard it can be to live so far from the people and love and also how much I miss old friends. Being able to adopt Sadik also showed the importance of letting God help me make new friends. I hope you are remembering to prayer for missionaries as they adjust to living in a new place. Especially ask for God to send them friends to help them to adjust to their new home.

Back to my Art Lessons

While in the US, I invested in a few more art supplies. Few because the stuff is VERY expensive and even more so here. It's a nice hobby if you can afford it. I have learned, however, that I just don't seem to do well with the student quality (read: cheap) stuff. I got some fairly decent colored pencils (not dollar store quality) and I can work a little better, but for sure colored pencils will NOT be my specialty. They seem to require too much time and too many details and they are not forgiving in the least. The cat is a study on the eyes. I didn't finish it because I just got tired of working on it. I spent a lot of hours and wore down a lot of pencils. I used at least 7 different colors to try to achieve the calico effect. If and when I ever finish it, I'll put it up on a post.
Yesterday was our first lesson with watercolors and all of us were like a bunch of kids. It is a totally new thing to work with a brush and not a pencil. I, especially, had a hard time. Nevertheless I did produce something. Nothing to shout about, but a learning experience, nevertheless. I had a hard time with the strokes UNTIL I switched over to using the one sable brush ($44!) I have. It was like night and day. I used it on the cherries and I think you can see the difference. I could control what I was doing. Today I tried a monochromatic study of a goblet, just to try to learn a little about mixing the water and applying the layers. I feel like there is so much to learn - working with the brush, controlling the water, mixing the colors, layering, leaving some white on the paper for contrast, getting the tone/shadowing right. Wow. And as our teacher tells us, a little bit of color won't make the actual "drawing" look better, so you can't neglect the drawing part either. Certainly is challenging for me, but one thing can be said - I am not afraid of trying out and failing at the art stuff. I have nothing to lose. There are now some teenagers in our class and they are terrified of failing. Of course, they are really good, but lack the confidence. Me I just plunge in and take a stab at it. It's fun to me, not life and death. I am so glad not to be 14 again!!!!

My Cat Devotionals Are Back!

For those of who haven't followed this part of my blog, I have been sharing chapters from a book, I am writing, of devotionals for children. They are all about my cats and are written in chronological order. I started the stories back in 1988 with my cat Princess. Today I finish up telling about my two cats in Brazil, Dolly and Baby. (1992-2001). I had taken a break during the month of October and even though there has been no "popular demand", the devotionals are back! Enjoy.

Why Do Things Always Have to Change?

I was crying. I had Baby in my lap and was stroking his far ever so slowly. I talked to Dolly who was at my side. Then I placed Dolly in one cage and Baby in another one. I took them both out to the car. We drove over to the house of our good friends Maria and Renata. I took Baby and Dolly into their house, and Renata gave a great big smile. She was so happy to have her very first pet. Now Baby and Dolly would be her cats, not mine. After many years of living with me Baby and Dolly had a new home. Renata had spent much time in my home and she already loved them both. She was so happy, but I was so sad. This change was wonderful for her, but so sad for me. What was going on?
I was moving very far away. I was leaving Brazil and moving to Canada and although I wanted very much to take Baby and Dolly with me, it was extremely complicated and expensive. Besides that, I knew it would be a traumatic and even dangerous trip for my cats. This way they would be in the same neighborhood, with friends they already knew and with very little change in their lives. It was best for them, but so hard for me. So I gave them a big hug, said good-bye and went home crying the whole time.
It was so hard for me, that I just had to ask why things have to change. I wasn't sure I really wanted to move anyway, and this made it even harder. I just didn't know what to do with my deep deep sadness.
I could only find one solution. I needed to talk to God about his. I needed to tell him how very hard this was for me and how sad I was. I loved my cats and my friends and my home and didn't want to leave them. I didn't want change. God reminded me of something really important. He had said these words in the Bible and it seemed like they were written just for me: "I am the LORD, and I do not change.”(Malachi 3: 6) People and places can change. I might change where I live, but God would always be with me, no matter where I go. Being with him is possible anywhere. I can always count on Him. Those words from God helped me get through such a hard time for me.
My tears have dried and I am learning to enjoy God's presence. God even gave me a very special new friend. I'll tell you more about him the next time. Just wait!

Done

Today I put the final touches on the pastel I've been working on for about a week and applied the fixative. Sometimes you just need to stop, although you know there is a lot you could still do. Enough is enough. Especially since I think I AM allergic to the pastels, because I am coughing a lot. I plan on getting a dust mask if I do anymore work on pastels. I really love working with them. This week we are moving on to watercolors and I hope I enjoy them as much, as I am sure they won't give me the bad reaction I've had with pastels. It's been a learning process, that's for sure. I am glad I will never need to make my living at this. It's very time consuming.
Today is the date most Americans vote. I see on my tiny little poll that my readers do NOT agree with the official pollsters. I think it will be a long night of tabulating votes and probably only tomorrow will we really know. But I've been fooled before. I remember back in 1980 Mom and I went out to shop around 7PM and by the time we got back Dad told us that Reagan had already been declared the winner. No one saw that happening, I don't think. Seems like yesterday and yet so much has changed in the world since then. So let's just sit back and see what happens today.
Oh and hey, I am a needy (emotional) artist. Do you like my lilacs, daisies, roses and eucalyptis leaves vase?

Just for fun look at this video

Look to my left column and you'll see a poll. There is no significance to the poll, other than my curiosity as to who you think will win the elections on Tuesday, regardless of how you plan to vote (or even if you vote!). Let's see how good our prediction power is. Remember: No wishful thinking!
Secondly, I watched the following video this morning and got such a kick out of, that I had to pass it along. It shows how to fold a t-shirt in just 2 seconds. It's is Japanese, so there is no explanation! Watch it and SMILE!

Now if you want to try this out at home (remember no t-shirts were destroyed making the video), try watching an English version that explains what is happening.

Happy Birthday to the Reformation

I like this date of October 31st, although perhaps not for the reason you might think. Today is reformation day and it makes me feel strangely happy remembering the courage and integrity of Luther on this day 491 years ago. It's definitely an event WORTH remembering.
I won't comment on Halloween, since I really think it's a worthless commemoration. Just can't get into skulls and candy!
I am happy to report I am back from the US, where I had a great two weeks. I have had a hard time getting back into my routine since I returned and have been exceptionally tired. My joints ache and my nose itches. I think, however, I am just about back to normal. At least yesterday and today I managed to function normally anyway. I tried to hit the ground running, forgetting that I just don't have the stamina for that anymore. Thankfully, however, I am back to exercise and aqua fitness and drinking my vegetable juice and sleeping at night, so feeling energetic shouldn't be far behind.
One of my investments while home is a new computer. It's nice to have a computer that is FAST and doesn't shut down on me. My old one was adequate, but 7 years old, so it was needing some serious reform. I have been working hard to load everything on the new computer. I have set up a new home network and got everything up and running nicely, so now I can think about doing other things, like writing on my blog.
Another investment was buying some art materials and books. Today is my first class since I am back. I actually started my very first pastel drawing with my new materials and am excited as I really like pastels. My first class with pastels was rather disastrous (I had an allergic reaction, which as since not been repeated), so I am pleased to say I have now spent several hours drawing and no hives! I am still in the middle of the drawing, but I wanted to put it up on the blog so you could see that I am using my pastels. When I finish, I'll let you take a look-see. I am a very slow artist (I could never make a living at this), and I have discovered that pastels are not a "quick" medium, as there are a lot of layers. The only part of this drawing that is finished is the vase! I have started blocking in the leaves and daisies, but there is much to be done and today I know my teacher will give me some clues as to how to proceed. Speaking of which, I best get my things organized and head off to class.

Back Home Again in Indiana

I haven't dropped off the face of the earth, but I have left Brazil. Not forever. For 12 days! I have taken a short fall break to visit my family in the states. I love fall. It HAS to be the most beautiful time of the year. Nothing is like a crisp fall day, with the beautiful blue sky, colored leaves and that little "nip" in the air.
I have been fortunate in the week I have been home it hasn't been hot or cold, and no real rain. Just nice blue skies. I arrived home, that is to say my mother's house, on Monday the 13th. I needed a couple days to get unwound from the trip. For the first time in a long while, I actually slept on the plane. My flights all took off and landed on time, so I had a really good trip. I have tried to make this trip different than most, in that I have made it as laid back as possible. I have tried to avoid lots of running around and shopping and just "be".
Thursday my sister Carolyn lent me her car (brave soul, isn't she?) and I drove up to Indy to visit my other sister and niece. We enjoyed going out to eat, driving out to the country to see the leaves and just hanging out some. The photos of the wagon are at a pumpkin farm. The corn patch is in my sister's back yard (her garden) and Megan and I were picking the last couple of tomatoes and playing with the dried up green beans.
I even enjoyed playing with her kitties. Today I came back to Mom's house, where I'll be the rest of the week. I'm not sure what all we have planned for the rest of the week, but I know it will be fun!!!