weakness is beautiful.

“blessed is the person who knows his own weaknesses, because awareness of this becomes for him the foundation and beginning of all that is good and beautiful.  for whenever someone realizes and perceives that he is truly weak… he becomes all the more watchful of his soul.”

“”but no one can perceive his own weakness unless he has been remiss a little, has neglected some small thing, has been surrounded by trials, either on the matter of things which cause the body suffering, or in that way in which the soul is subject to selfish bondage (the passions).  only then, by comparing his own weakness, will he realize how great is the assistance which comes from God.”

“when someone is aware that he is in need of divine help, he makes many prayers, and once he has made supplication, his heart is humbled, for there is no one who is in need and asks who is not humbled.  a broken and humbled heart God will not despise.”

“as long as the heart is not humbled it cannot cease from wandering; for humility concentrates the heart.”

~St. Isaac the Syrian

“for whenever someone realizes and perceives that he is truly weak… he becomes all the more watchful of his soul.”  i love that line.  how watchful of our souls are we?  i’ve learned that with truth comes transparency.  in upcoming posts i plan to share more of what has shaped me and changed me- things that are raw and real.  so thank you for your continued reading and care.

to better things,

steph

ps- the above photos were all taken in saskatchewan when i used to go on a regular 9km gravel road walk.  some days i wouldn’t see any people, vehicles, dogs, cows, in the 2 hours it took me to walk it.  that takes solitude to a whole new level.

the plausibility-factor

please bear with me as i slowly add new content to the side bars and links, etc.  i am probably only 1/4 geek (okay, okay, maybe 1/3 geek when i wear my glasses) and so it’s mostly trial and error to make these technical things happen.  i wish i were uber-geek and then i’d just throw these sites together.  my dream would be to create my own sites from scratch, but hmmm… that would mean learning “flash and code”, and requiring lots of time and skills- yes, maybe?  see, the true geeks are out there laughing at me because i’m probably not even using the correct terminology.

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introducing a new segment i may feature now and again called:  the plausibility-factor.  aka- is this likely?

i found this will leafing through the flyers this afternoon.  it was in a large toy company’s flyer; let’s call them “toys r they.” 

check out this photo:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

two toddlers, in a pen, with large toys.  they have, give or take about 6 square feet to play there.  maybe.  and they look relatively happy and calm in the picture.  what’s the plausibility-factor here?

you know how long this photo shoot lasted. 

all of 40 seconds. 

notice how the photographer had to take it from far away to avoid the cheerios (or toys) being flung back over the fence?  yes, the photographer needed to be able to photograph the WHOLE gate, but they’ve still kept their distance.  and the mom’s are waiting off camera to the side.  probably the right hand side, because the kid’s have their backs turned to the mom’s in a defiant chance to show their independence (while being gated).

plausibility factor?  not likely.  would my two year old stand for being gated in an area that small for any length of time?  never.

i’m sure it might work for some kids, maybe younger ones, but overall this gate is not happening.  but, it did make me laugh on a cold, snowy, almost april afternoon.

have a good weekend.

to better things,

steph

 

wilting bouquet.

 

i was in the wedding party for my dear friend emily last weekend and my bouquet has lasted for an amazingly long time.  lately some floral stylists have deemed slightly dying flowers as “romantic and moody” and it’s quite a trend in some areas of home design.  i took a couple shots to capture the last little bit of life in them.  picasso, van gogh, and renoir were some of the great painters that incorporated wilting flowers into their masterpieces.  it just doesn’t look quite authentic to paint only pristine, healthy flowers.  it was said to be symbolic of the life cycle (among other things). 

enjoy the bright colors of spring.

 steph

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happy easter

 

 i thank You God for most this amazing

day:  for the leaping greenly spirits of trees

and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything

which is natural which is infinite which is yes

 

(i who have died am alive again today,

and this is the sun’s birthday; this is the birth

day of life and of love and wings:  and of the gay

great happening illimitably earth)

 

how should tasting touching hearing seeing

breathing any- lifted from the no

of all nothing- human merely being

doubt unimaginable You?

 

(now the ears of my ears awake and

now the eyes of my eyes are opened)

 

~ee cummings

 

 

a fresh start

welcome to turning over a new leaf. 

it’s spring.  it’s the beginning of  easter weekend.  the buds on the trees are turning that perfect yellowy-green color.  that color that makes you know something great is about to happen.  i feel like the world has stopped for a couple days in which to take a deep breathe and start anew. 

sigh.

i realized during the doldrums of january winter that it was high time i had a blog that was no longer just about my baby, incidentally who is no longer a baby (aka toddlergirl).  indeed, it was time to have a fresh space that allowed time to think, write and interact about many things whirling about in that brain of mine. 

what kind of things, you ask?  oh well- let me rattle off a few….

parenthood and how come our generation seems to be somewhat thrown for a loop in all of it.  in this age of information, shouldn’t we be more prepared for the changes beyond knowing what brand name shoes or strollers are suitable for our offspring?  why isn’t there more talk of the emotional and psychological changes parenting can have on a person?

let’s talk about postpartum depression and the fact that it’s still treated like something you can “snap out of,” or the lack of support and looking forward -what we can do about it.

maybe we’ll discuss organized church and north american “big box” church (as i like to call it).  is the current model the best way to live out a faith?  are we more interested in marketing and branding faith instead of creating an authentic community?

and maybe we’ll talk about marriage and how to not only maintain it with the daily grind, but make sure it is tended to and grows year by year.

don’t worry - i like to talk about not so serious things as well. 

like how to make the perfect chocolate chip cookie, my recent addiction to coke zero, the fact that i don’t care i wear yoga pants but don’t do yoga, color forecasting – (which is SO ridiculously fascinating to me), how brand name crayons so rock the socks off cheap no name ones, nosy neighbours, admitting i watch america’s next top model, my feeble attempts at painting (haha), and much more randomness.

please feel free to interact.  i heart comments.  it’s sometimes lonely wondering if you’re being heard.  besides… i want to hear what you think about some of these topics.  maybe you can enlighten me and others and we can grow.

to better things,

steph

 ps-and yes, there will be the usual photo-goodness as well.