Thursday Thoughts

Reflect

Well it's been awhile....my excuse...ah life.

On Family -

It's been a great week. Last weekend we spent some time as a family down at the coast. It was cold and raining...but absolutely beautiful - it's great not having to worry about sunburn and just enjoy the ocean for as long as we want - well, as long as the littlest bundle will stand for it, that is. But we got some great rainbow views over waves and rocks and beach and we were even able to take advantage of the winter timing to be up to watch the sunrise over the water - now that's something I have never seen and it was worth it :-)

It's the last week of schooling before a couple of weeks off, so the kids have been finishing off the work I set for them as fast as they can so they can start the holidays early. I am going to spend the holidays correcting a mountain of workbooks and setting new, less monotonous schedules for Term 3.

Master DJ had a nasty earache a couple of weeks back and I even had to submit to taking him to the doctor for antibiotics (which of course I have big issues with, considering research suggests antibiotics (including amoxycillin which is what he was prescribed) are linked to the onset of ulcerative colitis. It certainly would make sense in my case - Before I knew better, I was on about every antibiotic there is for a recurring throat infection when I was 17 and then on an acne antibiotic for months when I was 19). Anyway, he is thankfully through the 5 day course now and we are dosing up on probiotics.

Little Miss Ginny is still a night owl, but we are getting there, she is so close to 1 year old now - it's carazy.

On Writing -

No progress to post as regards the novel, but I have been soooooo excited working on another short story for a local competition titled "The Doctor, the Dancer and the Doors of the Cathedral". It was quite a challenge as it was only allowed 3500 words....my chapters are usually more words than that. But I have to admit the editing and culling process was liberating in a way and now I feel inspired to keep my novel sharp and succinct. Depending on how I go in the competition, I may post the story here for you in a couple of months.
The coastal trip was research for one of the settings in my novel and oh my - guess what.....they have fenced off an area to the public that plays a critical role in my story...Mr. T says not to worry about it and just write for what and how it used to be, but it does concern me some.
And as to be expected with such scenery and history on show, I have some new ideas for another story that has been playing out in my mind for a good ten years...so that's got me excited also.

Rave

Coconut Yoghurt -

I don't have all the commercial details for my rave this week. However, on a recent trip to another close by city we discovered a wholefoods store selling organics as well as wheat and dairy alternatives....it was like a candy store to me, I tell you. I tried not to get too excited for my own good, but I did try a little luxury item - Coconut yoghurt.  Oh my....it was delicious....of course the kids weren't near so impressed and I've decided it should be mandatory for everyone to go on my restrictive diet every so often just so they don't forget the simple pleasures...the wonderful flavours that become blazay and even distateful in our over-sugared over-artifically-flavoured world.

Review

This is a children's story, but I believe it would do good for absolutely everybody to read it.
I bought it as a gift for my 6-year-old god-daughter a few weeks ago, but my own kids also loved it.
Using the story of little wooden people (Wemmicks) and their creator (Eli) Max Lucado writes a poignant story about self-love and how our feelings about ourselves should be based only on how our creator feels about us, rather than anything that other Wemmicks (humans) think/say about us.

What was most interesting/impressive about this story about star and grey dot stickers was that it wasn't just the grey dot stickers that we should not allow to stick, but the star stickers also. There is a prevailing attitude in our society that those who receive earthly praise will and should be happy, but the problem is that those who receive star stickers end up believing that their value lies only in the accumulation of these star stickers and the achievements for which they were given them....this view is just as dangerous as the poor self-esteem of those who received the grey dots due to their lack of "achievement".

A beautiful story with equally beautiful illustrations.

Religion

I was saddened to read this week of the death of young Italian mother Chiara Corbella after she lost her battle with cancer. I had been praying for her and am comforted to know that her husband has taken such a heroic attitude toward the death of his wife. The young family is inspirational and their cross is bitter -sweet.

http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/im-going-to-heaven-you-stay-here-with-dad-italian-mom-sacrifices-life-for-u

And another interesting quote I read this week -

 The United States was a nation founded to secure liberty, not comfort.

Interesting point.