Mark A. Noll

Hosted by Cara at Ooh...Books!
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Seasons of Grace by Mark A. Noll, which I mentioned in an earlier entry, contains some lovely poetry. I felt this short verse would be appropriate for Holy Week.

Christ's Crown

The leaves emerge - a growing
garland lying lightly on his head.
The dance of spring, of resurrection,
quicks his feet; from all directions
caper those he'll call his own.
The sun shines warming down upon
the dancers 'round their pivot. Only those
up close can smell or see the thick
black-red the flowers nurse upon.

BookSwim

Jenners shared a website on her book blog yesterday that some of you might find interesting.

BookSwim works in much the same way as sites like Netflix. A simple monthly fee allows you to rent books through the mail and keep them for an indefinite amount of time without late fees. There are also options for purchase if you want to keep a book.

If I didn't already have SO many unread books sitting on my shelf, I would seriously be interested in this!!!

Palm Sunday - 2010

Last year on Palm Sunday I posted the legend of the donkey's cross along with a photo illustration from one of our donkeys. If you missed that, you can click HERE to see it.

In keeping with that, here are the words to a Lenten hymn written by Almer T. Pennewell.

So Lowly Doth the Savior Ride

So lowly doth the Savior ride
A paltry borrowed beast,
Nor pomp, nor show, nor lofty pride,
Nor boast above the least.

His scepter is his kindliness,
His grandeur is his grace,
His royalty is holiness,
And love is in his face.

'Tis thus the great Messiah came
To break the tyrants' will,
To heal the people of their shame,
And nobleness instill.

Ride on, O King, ride on your way,
While men of low degree
Exalt and usher in the day
Of peace we long to see.

Bunny auditions

One of my favorite TV commercials!

Typically British Reading Challenge 2010

Click the image for details!

I participated in my first reading challenge last December. The rules were simple, I had a few books on my shelf that qualified, so I went for it. Thanks to a post over at Petty Witter's, I'm trying my hand at another challenge. Click on the image above to find out the specifics.

Looking at my reading lists from past years, I shouldn't have any trouble with this challenge. This year's list only includes one book that fits the bill so far, but I feel confident I will at least reach the "Gordon Bennett" level.

Since I already reviewed Revelation by C.J. Sansom, I'll make a point of doing the same for any other books I read that meet the challenge.

FreeVerse ~ Natasha Trethewey

Hosted by Cara at Ooh...Books!
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Natasha Trethewey is another poet Ted Kooser recommended in the workshop I attended. This poem is taken from her collection entitled Native Guard.

Graveyard Blues

It rained the whole time we were laying her down;
Rained from church to grave when we put her down,
The suck of mud at our feet was a hollow sound.

When the preacher called out I held up my hand;
When he called for a witness I raised my hand -
Death stops the body's work, the soul's a journeyman.

The sun came out when I turned to walk away,
Glared down on me as I turned and walked away -
My back to my mother, leaving her where she lay.

The road going home was pocked with holes,
That home-going road's always full of holes;
Though we slow down, time's wheel still rolls.

I wander now among names of the dead:
My mother's name, stone pillow for my head.

Favorite Five - Vegetables

Having spent eight years as a vegetarian, you can rest assured that I like my veggies. There are a few I don't care for, mushrooms being the most notable. They say your tastes change every few years, so I periodically try them again in one form or another. I still don't like them. I think it's as much the texture as the taste. Some vegetables, such as purple hulls and butter beans, I didn't like as a child but grew to love as an adult. Others, like Brussels sprouts, I wouldn't even try for years, but liked once I gave them a chance.

Here are my favorites:

1. Spinach - No doubt about it... my favorite! I like it in any form or fashion.

2. Tomato - Okay, it's technically a fruit, but I'm counting it as a vegetable here. I started yellow tomato seeds a few weeks ago and hope to have a big harvest of them this summer!

3. Onion - I like most kinds, but especially enjoy the red/purple variety when served raw in a salad or on a sandwich.

4. Summer Squash - I prefer yellow squash, not zucchini. Steam it, fry it, pickle it, bake it in a casserole, or just eat it raw!

5. Green Beans - This was my favorite vegetable as a child. I like canned better than fresh or frozen and whole beans better than cut.

I love potatoes but didn't include them on my list since not everyone places them in the vegetable category. So tell me.... what are your favorites?

Bovine Wisdom

PB & J Cookies

Our younger daughter just left for the long drive back to school. True to form for her visits home, she got the urge to bake last night and found a recipe at allrecipes.com for peanut butter cookies. You can click on the link for the exact recipe, but basically they were just peanut butter, sugar, vanilla, egg, and jelly.

Hers might not look quite as pretty or perfect as those illustrated in the recipe, but they sure did taste good! In our photo, the lighter jelly is mayhaw and the darker jelly is huckleberry. Both were equally delicious!

A Happy St. Patrick's Day

I love St. Patrick's Day! Since I do have some Irish blood somewhere down the line, I don't feel too silly celebrating. This year I was especially looking forward to the day. If you'll remember, last May I fell off the vegetarian wagon. Well, really it was more of a leap than a fall, but anyway... having not prepared the dish since March of 2000, I was really looking forward to some corned beef & cabbage this St. Patrick's Day.

I invited the kids to come and eat with us. Our older daughter lives here in town, but ended up canceling at the last minute. A rough day at work combined with softball practice and lots of homework for her daughter left her too pooped to join us. Our younger daughter is on Spring Break from college. She and some friends spent the first few days in Lubbock, TX and Roswell, NM, but she managed to get home yesterday afternoon in time for supper. Our son is in college about 45 minutes away. He's not on break this week, but it didn't take much arm-twisting to convince him to come eat.

My original plans included homemade green pinwheel cookies, but they took too much time that I didn't have to spare. So, I went with a white cake mix with green food coloring and "rainbow chip" frosting. I did try a new garlic mashed potato recipe that turned out quite yummy: Boil 3 pounds of Yukon Gold potatoes with a whole bulb of garlic; mash with a stick of butter and 1/2 cup of half & half.

I was sorry a couple of folks were missing, but otherwise it was everything I anticipated! Maybe I won't wait until next March to make corned beef & cabbage again.