"whoever touches us, teaches us....."

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Simple Picture




A simple photo is often the best. This is one of my favorites from a recent trip to the N.C. mountains. One of my favorite places is this mountain top church. It sits high above Valle Crucis and is by far one of the most beautiful spots I have ever seen. Simple and honest. The window is on the back of the church, facing the woods. Very unassuming. God's house. I'm sure of it.










This is the church itself. Sadly, as is all too often these days, the doors were locked. I could see through the window and see that the ceiling was arched and beamed of dark wood. It looked very much like an ancient inverted ship hull.












And this is the cemetery that sits beside the church. Who should be so lucky to have this as a place for earthly remains? I am sure those who look down on this are in a far better place. But for those of us who still find their heaven on earth for the time being...this is it.

Monday, October 27, 2008

Fall Travels

I was lucky enough to spend the last week in North Carolina...Probably one of my favorite states, at least of the ones I have been to. Unfortunately, I have not seen enough of these great states we live in. Some day I would love to live in N.C. and I would like to see more of this country. I am a back roads kind of traveler. On some trips that doesn't work well, like this one where we were a little pressed for time. Next time I would like to take a slower road (although the interstate was full of leaf color and really beautiful north of Knoxville), stop more frequently and turn down more of those roads that you "wonder whats up there". When we got back home the air was crisp and had that fall chill, cool even for Alabama. I love the fall...short though it is in the South, it still remains my favorite time of year. I am posting a few pictures of the beautiful foliage from the mountains...wishing I was still there, but thanking God for the beautiful place in which we live.

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Soup's On


Yeah yeah, I know...everyone is taking pictures of their food and posting it on the internet. I know it is no longer even remotely original or interesting to most people. Regardless, I obssess over food and what people ate for dinner and how they cooked it, etc. Can't get enough of it. It's like spying. Maybe it's because food is the most basic item we all have in common with each other. We all have to eat. What and how we eat reveals a lot about who we are. Some of us cook our own food and others let a chef cook for them. Some eat with the family and some eat alone. Some sit at the table and some lean over the kitchen sink. Some eat only what is neccessary to stave off hunger and others eat for the sheer pleasure of it. Truthfully, I do all of the above.... I eat with other people sometimes, alone most. I have been known to eat right out of a package (in a hurry), at my desk (most days), straight out of the fridge (distracted). Usually though, I cook my own food, put it on a pretty plate and make it look nice. And as I sit and eat alone, I feel like someone put a little heart and soul into my meal...to make me feel worth it. It makes even the simplest dinner of soup and bread bring comfort as well as nourishment. We share food in common no matter where we live or who we are. So, I decided to share a picture of last nights supper. I would give you the recipe for this "best chicken soup in the world", but unfortunately I don't cook like that. I rarely use a recipe and I never write it down. Basically it is homemade chicken stock with celery and onions, cut up chicken breast meat, brown rice, fresh cilantro and ro-tel tomatoes. Cook slow until rice thickens it up. I forgot to add the corn , but it was still good. And next time I make it, it will probably be different...since I didn't write it down. But whoever gets to eat it, gets a little love in their soup.

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Sounds of Silence

I live on a fairly quiet side street that gets very little traffic. A row or two of houses and a buffer of trees away, lies a main thoroughfare that gets heavy traffic during the day. Its not too bad at night, but once you have turned off it and on to my street, you aren't so aware of the nearby congestion. Except at night. At night with the world bedded down, one hears sounds not audible during the daylight hours. Haunting train whistles, lone cars that pass in the night, distant sirens...background noise normally not noticed. Nights that protest against my attempts to sleep, find me listening to those sounds. They are not individual sounds that can be separated from each other; but rather a constant drone of silent noise that keeps me awake. Tonight, I again listened to those silent voices.