This is from one of my favorite movies set in autumn, You've Got Mail.
I don't know who owns this image, but I would like to give them credit because it is so cute!
Here is the quote from the movie. Joe Fox (Tom Hanks) sends an email to Kathleen Kelly (Meg Ryan).
Don't you love New York in the fall? It makes me wanna buy school supplies. I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address.
Happy Friday, Friends. How was your first week of September? Mine was busy with my mom. I've gone twice to help move her things to her new room (out of the therapy wing into the nursing wing) and both times they weren't quite ready. These situations were my biggest "flat tires" of the week. I was able to make both my Bible class and art class this week, so I feel truly blessed.
I enjoyed the lesson because we are often hit with the unexpected, aren't we! I certainly was this week, but I also enjoyed a few unexpected blessings, too. A friend shared a couple of beautiful and thoughtful bookmarks with me; our daughter worked very hard to help me paint a bedroom upstairs; and a vendor I order art supplies from surprised me with a very nice bundle of ephemera.
I was also pleasantly surprised by bloggers this week with words of empathy and encouragement about my mom's situation.
And y'all are the VERY BEST. I don't know what I would do without you.
Getting back to the lesson....Being a Southerner, of course I loved the quote by William Faulkner: "Try to be better than yourself." Of course we can also infer that we should try to rise above our circumstances and vulnerabilities, especially those "flat tires" that are unexpected. I always discuss with our daughters that life is all about expectations, and when they aren't met our circumstances can certainly throw us for a loop.
I'd like to share an excerpt from a Steve Garnass-Holmes reflection:
In troubled times it takes great concentrationto align ourselves with grace instead of force,with love instead of fear.We begin by allowing ourselves to be loved,along with all the rest of Creation,and then we fall into that love,and let that flow through us into the world.
I would love to hear your thoughts about this week's lesson, and if you made the pesto. I have not been able to cook at all this week (with the exception of last night) because we still had to deal with mother's furnishings on Wednesday, and I had a couple of other obligations this week that kept me out late. It looks like a great recipe, and I might try it soon.
Here is this week's Bible verse:
Prayer Requests
- Please pray for our blog friend Emily (McGriff) and her husband Jim because they both have COVID. Emily's blog is The French Hutch.
- Please pray for our blog friend Jenna Meon. She is currently in rehabilitation for her walking. She is still struggling with her standing.
- Please keep Rita's neighbor Chris in prayer as she battles her cancer. She is recovering from a 2nd surgery to remove what is believed to be another cancer on her lung.
- Kitty's son Mike and his friend are working on a game for a company and need to have it done in three months and have a verbal agreement for another game. Prayers that they can get this done. Also, pray that they will get good news on a proposal (a separate project).
- Keep Rita's daughter Megan in your prayers as she delves into her 3rd and final year of Nurse Practitioner program. Her anxiety is pretty high with the new schedule of work, school and home life balance.
- Pray for my best friend Barbara who is battling cancer. She is struggling, y'all.
- Kris has a praise and a request: Her little grandson and daughter and SIL are loving their new home in Michigan. Her daughter landed a great job running a huge 9 practitioner clinic in Michigan. Hoping the learning center that her grandson went to will open the new one very soon near their new home in Michigan so he can go to the same daycare and structure.
- Pray for Carla and her husband as they are listing their home and moving closer to their sons. Pray that God will guide them every step of the way!
- Carla is requesting prayers for her friend Conner who went to MEPS this week, he passed, he is now in the delayed entry program for the Marines. He will go to bootcamp June 2026 after high school graduation.
- Carla's prayer request is for all the young people entering the military, the love they feel for the USA to become warriors to fight to keep us free. She is so thankful, as we all are!
- Pray for Rita's daughter Megan who just had an MRI last week from a work injury 6 weeks ago, confirming a rotator cuff tear.
- Pray for the victims and families of the Minneapolis Annunciation Catholic Church who were attacked in an act of despicable hate by the young man this week. Please pray for the safety of our Christian children in this country.
- Please pray that the violence from trans activists will end, and that they will get the mental health help that they so desperately need.
Please email me if I have forgotten any prayer requests, or if you have any updates you'd like to share.
We are having some work done around our house, and I'm off this morning to meet with a decorator and cabinet designer. On my way, I'm stopping by Starbucks for a PSL.
I'm looking forward to improving our home and staying here. We had thought about moving, and I'm still praying that we are making the right decision.
Have a lovely weekend, Friends!
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Good morning, Friends. It is early, even for me. It's dark, and very quiet. It might even be raining, but I haven't looked closely enough to tell.
I enjoyed the lesson, but I am depending on you to carry most of the discussion because I found out yesterday that my mother cannot return to assisted living, and we need to move her things out of her apartment this weekend.
One thing I want to say is that I have been on the receiving end of kindness lately, especially from y'all. You are such kind women, and you practice kindness and are shining lights in this dark world. I am privileged to "know" you!
I'm hoping you will share your thoughts in comments to help me out because my plate is full today! Before I share the Bible verse, I wanted to share a quote from St. Thérèse of Lisieux.
A word or a smile is often enough to put fresh life in a despondent soul.
Here is the Bible verse from the lesson:
Prayer Requests
- Please pray for our blog friend Jenna Meon. She is currently in rehabilitation for her walking. She is still struggling with her standing.
- Please keep Rita's neighbor Chris in prayer as she battles her cancer. She has a 2nd surgery to remove what is believed to be another cancer on her lung scheduled for today (Friday, August 29th).
- Kitty's son Mike and his friend are working on a game for a company and need to have it done in three months and have a verbal agreement for another game. Prayers that they can get this done. Also, pray that they will get good news on a proposal (a separate project).
- Keep Rita's daughter Megan in your prayers as she delves into her 3rd and final year of Nurse Practitioner program. Her anxiety is pretty high with the new schedule of work, school and home life balance.
- Pray for my best friend Barbara who is battling cancer.
- Kris has a praise and a request: Her little grandson and daughter and SIL are loving their new home in Michigan. Her daughter landed a great job running a huge 9 practitioner clinic in Michigan. Hoping the learning center that her grandson went to will open the new one very soon near their new home in Michigan so he can go to the same daycare and structure.
- Pray for Carla and her husband as they are listing their home and moving closer to their sons. Pray that God will guide them every step of the way!
- Carla is requesting prayers for her friend Conner who went to MEPS this week, he passed, he is now in the delayed entry program for the Marines. He will go to bootcamp June 2026 after high school graduation.
- Carla's prayer request is for all the young people entering the military, the love they feel for the USA to become warriors to fight to keep us free. She is so thankful, as we all are!
Have a blessed and safe Labor Day Weekend!
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy Friday, Friends! How was your week? I hope you had many opportunities this week to be mindful and slow down. Based on the email I sent to y'all, you know that I didn't, but I do hope that I will have a very slow Saturday!
I mentioned the mindfulness because that is what our lesson is about this week. Entitled "Don't Be a Tourist in Your Own Life," Farrell uses an example from her own life (a family trip to Yellowstone National Park) to illustrate what not to do. Not that whirlwind trips are bad, per se, but it is much more meaningful and beneficial to our health not to mention the quality of our lives to slow down and be present in the moment.
Over the weekend we had a whirlwind trip to Chicago. We spent almost all day on Saturday in Wrigleyville, and we went to a Cubbies game. We spent most of the day Sunday at the Art Institute (my other Chicago mothership). I noticed on the back of the Visitor Guide a list of "What to See in an Hour." This included a variety of twelve different works of art created across the centuries. Keep in mind this was before I'd read our lesson, and I remember thinking: "How sad!" My SIL and I made plans to go early since we're members before the general public can access the museum. That's when we began our journey through the Gustave Caillebotte Exhibit. Then we had a short list of must sees (for me, definitely the Impressionists and "Pardon in Brittany" by Gaston la Touche.) We also took a break for tea and coffee in the Member's Lounge. Although it was a whirlwind trip, we did not rush our activities and events.
Farrell also writes about how mundane chores can be meditative practices or "chapel experiences" that force her to slow down and focus on the chore at hand, bringing her "increased peace and joy." She specifically mentions the ritual of making granola for her family, and she included her recipe. I have not been home enough lately to make anything, but I was able to pick-up some granola while I was out because it sounded yummy at the time.
This is called peanut butter cookie granola, but don't let the name fool you. It was the healthiest option based on ingredients at my grocery store.
Were you able to make Farrell's recipe?
I want to try it when I get the chance.
In my weekly Bible study at church we are reading Barbara Brown Taylor's An Altar in the World. She says that when people ask about her prayer life, she describes hanging laundry on the clothesline. She relishes concrete accomplishments compared to the abstract. But what struck me most is her mindfulness as she goes about her chore. She is thinking about how grateful she is to have a body that can move and work, and she even mentions how she is thankful for the trees in Maine that provided the wooden clothespins. As she observes the breeze drying clothes throughout the day, she "imagines prayers spinning away over the tops of the trees."
This is good work, this prayer.This is good prayer, this work.~Page 46 from Barbara Brown Taylor's An Altar in the World
Here is our Bible verse from the lesson:
Prayer Requests:
- Please pray for our blog friend Jenna Meon. She is currently in rehabilitation for her walking. She is still struggling with her standing.
- Rita is praising the progress of her brother's rehab, and also the fact that her sister they moved from SC went to see a therapist last week!
- Also, please keep Rita's neighbor Chris in prayer as she battles her cancer. She has a 2nd surgery to remove what is believed to be another cancer on her lung scheduled for the 29th.
- Kitty's grandson Connor is doing well as a corrections officer. Prayers that he can find a good relationship.
- Kitty's SIL Eric, Molly’s husband, filed for disability and hired a lawyer. Prayers that this all works out for him.
- Kitty's son Mike and his friend are working on a game for a company and need to have it done in three months and have a verbal agreement for another game. Prayers that they can get this done. Also, pray that they will get good news on a proposal (a separate project).
- Keep Rita's daughter Megan in your prayers as she delves into her 3rd and final year of Nurse Practitioner program. Her anxiety is pretty high with the new schedule of work, school and home life balance.
- Pray for my best friend Barbara who is battling cancer. She started her chemotherapy treatments last week, and she is struggling.
- Kris has a praise and a request: Her little grandson and daughter and SIL are loving their new home in Michigan. Her daughter landed a great job running a huge 9 practitioner clinic in Michigan. Hoping the learning center that her grandson went to will open the new one very soon near their new home in Michigan so he can go to the same daycare and structure.
- Praise: Kris had a wonderful time on her trip to Tennessee!
- Pray that my mother's house closes this afternoon without a hitch.
- Speaking of real estate prayers, pray for Carla and her husband as they are listing their home and moving closer to their sons. Pray that God will guide them every step of the way!
- Carla is requesting prayers for her friend Conner who went to MEPS this week, he passed, he is now in the delayed entry program for the Marines. He will go to bootcamp June 2026 after high school graduation.
- Carla's prayer request is for all the young people entering the military, the love they feel for the USA to become warriors to fight to keep us free. She is so thankful, as we all are!
Once my mother's house closes this afternoon, I hope I don't need to go to my hometown ever again!
On Saturday, I want to watch it rain, and if it doesn't, I want to watch the hummingbirds and bees as they get nectar from our million bells.
Have a relaxing and blessed weekend, Friends!
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
Happy Friday, Friends! How was your week? Mine has been very full and a little stressful. My mother fell at her assisted living facility, and she claimed to be badly hurt. She insisted on going to the hospital because she said she was dying. Her scans came back normal. Her medical team transferred her to the Geriatric Care Unit, which is a huge blessing. I think she will be there for a week or so, and visitation is very limited while she's there. Trip surprised me with a trip this weekend, and I'm stressing about traveling right now. Everyone, friends and family, are telling me to go. The social worker for that unit has promised to call me everyday with updates on Mom's progress.
I haven't been home much this week, but I was able to take books with me and keep caught up with Bible study, both here online and at church (or class started back yesterday). This lesson spoke to me so much. Entitled "What I Know to Be True" had me thinking a lot this week. I had a bad allergic reaction Tuesday evening (I'm sure it was probably stress-induced) and I cried out to God for help. I was not only asking for help for myself, but for my mother. I have tried two times (before this week) to have my mother admitted to the psych unit, and I asked God that if he thought it would help her to make it happen. They had told me Tuesday that there were no beds available, and it would take a while. A bed became available the very next day on Wednesday. What I know to be true is that God is so good, and he answers our prayers!
Farrell gives us a list of her Spiritual Anchors that remind her of who she is, who God is, and what her true purpose is. I found these very helpful, and she encourages us to make a list for ourselves. I have not done this yet, but I plan to do it when I come up for air during the next week or two.
Of course I loved this lesson because of the mention of Vincent van Gogh. His letters truly are lovely, and most of the ones I've seen are illustrated. I love illustrated letters!
A letter from Vincent to his brother Theo. In it he is describing an orchard painting he was planning to give to Theo on May 1st (Theo's birthday).
This letter is in the book: Vincent van Gogh: a self-portrait in art and letters
We visited the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam in March. Here are a couple of the paintings we saw that were mentioned in the lesson.
Bedroom in Arles
1888
Oil on canvas
28.3 in × 35.4 in
Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam
Fifteen Sunflowers
1889
Oil on canvas
37.4 in x 28.7 in
Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam
The quote says: "When will you come and have coffee or tea with me? Soon I hope."
This was a letter Vincent had written to his brother Theo from The Hague on either Sunday, January 8th, or Monday January 9th, 1882
Van Gogh was a believer who struggled, especially with mental illness. Yet I do think he tried to "find the light" most days, even those when he was in the asylum in Saint-Rémy.
Another aspect of the lesson is the practice of Lectio Divina. It is a structured way to read scripture and then meditate on it, keeping still in order to listen to God's still, small voice. Have you ever tried this? I was introduced to Lectio Divina last year during one of our Bible studies, and one of our priests who practices this led us and taught us all about it. It truly takes discipline to remain still for several minutes without distractions. Farrell suggested the Beatitudes for this lesson.
What are your thoughts about this week's lesson?
Here is our Bible verse for the week.
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Prayer Requests
- Please pray for our blog friend Jenna Meon. She is currently in rehabilitation for her walking. She is still struggling with her standing.
- Pray for Rita's brother Tommy as he continues his therapies in Texas.
- Also, please keep Rita's neighbor Chris in prayer as she battles her cancer.
- Kitty's grandson Connor is doing well as a corrections officer. Prayers that he can find a good relationship.
- Kitty's SIL Eric, Molly’s husband, filed for disability and hired a lawyer. Prayers that this all works out for him.
- Kitty's son Mike and his friend are working on a game for a company and need to have it done in three months and have a verbal agreement for another game. Prayers that they can get this done.
- Pray for my best friend Barbara who is battling cancer. She started her chemotherapy treatments this week.
- Kris has a praise and a request: Her little grandson and daughter and SIL are loving their new home in Michigan. Her daughter landed a great job running a huge 9 practitioner clinic in Michigan. Hoping the learning center that her grandson went to will open the new one very soon near their new home in Michigan so he can go to the same daycare and structure.
- Pray that all real estate transactions for my mother will go through next week. UPDATE: One down, one to go!
- Praise: Kitty's 14 year old granddaughter, Ella, was baptized recently, and to her DIL, Ella’s mom, who is Jewish, for supporting her decision. Julie also supported Avery’s decision to be baptized two years ago. What a beautiful blessing!
- Pray for my mother's care while she is in the Geriatric Care Unit.
- Travel mercy prayers for us as we travel to see Shanley Belle and Christopher this weekend. We leave late this afternoon!
Until next time...
Blessings!
Ricki Jill
Ricki Jill
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