Looking at Pumpkins

Pumpkins come in all of these really fun varieties.  They are white, green, orange, striped, mottled, big, small, oblong, perfectly round, squat, skinny, fat, bumpy and smooth.  They can have stems that are large, small, short and long. In all of these shapes, you can see in pumpkins how creation has this wonderful echo throughout, design elements are used in clever ways over and over.    

A pumpkin sitting on the bale of straw in the front of the house caught my eye. I noticed that it wasn’t truly just orange.  It was like a faux finish of orange, on top of a cheery yellow.  It looked rather sunny.  In face it looked rather like photos of the sun.  Seemingly random bits of orange in thicker and thinner patterns cover the surface, like it could have a pumpkin flavored solar flare from any moment. 

I have met people that are like this.  They just seem to burst with life and joy.  They are encouraging, vivacious, and warming – just like the sun.  I have also noticed that these tend to be multi-faceted individuals who have experienced flares in life and learned from them; using them later to bring warmth, comfort and courage to others. These are people I, and others, want to be around as they are drawn to the genuine caring.

This is a wonderfully green and orange pumpkin with deep grooves that lead to a valley where the stem is.  That stem, with a round of green at its base rises up like a mountain out of a plain.  Variances of color and a twist of the stem leave the tip of the stem uneven; undoubtedly a peak weathered with many mountainous weather fronts.

There are a few women who I have met that are many years young, and in years of age rather elderly.  And they have done that gracefully. They are like these mountains rising out of the plains, standing as beautiful monuments. Wrinkles, lines and scars indicate the weathering they have witnessed. But they still stand, and gather life in beautiful ecosystems around them. Water flows from snow capped peaks to nourish the cycle of life. They share their wisdom, gracefully and lovingly; they relinquish controls that I think would be very difficult to relinquish. Not placing their value in the ability to do, but in being. 

Is it a pumpkin, or is it art in pottery?  Something in a light tree trunk brown with a crackled white glaze.  The small lines of tannin peek through the white and remind me of the shape of waves moving through the ocean.  Lines indicate movement, just as those cresting waves show the movements of the wind and water. 

The artists, entrepreneurs, movers of large and small movements; those who see an idea in their mind and heart and then go about trying it – these are people who enrich the world around them. Encouraging by example to do, experiment, hypothesize, research – to try; these are the people who I think teach me bravery to move.  To move with the wind and the water, and know that perhaps I will find myself on new shores.

I’m going to keep looking, who knows what other worlds will be seen; microcosm within a macrocosm.

Summer Blooms – Worlds in a Clay Pot

Blooms have been numerous in the yard this year; little swirls and dabs and swaths of color that highlight their pots.  They are a living painting, moving and swirling over the yard.  Rather than writing about them, I thought I would share a few pictures.  Try to imagine the birds singing, an occasional cricket to hop about, the buzz of the bees, sounds and feels of the breeze, and the warmth of the sun.  

Seasons and Roadmaps II

   The fall wind has been blustery these past few days. The leaves are being blown off the most stalwart of fall leaved trees and creating a staccato dance across the driveway. The windows have creaked and the door shifted in its frame as the air has moved so powerfully. As the temperatures fall below freezing, it is quite evident that fall is in full swing and winter will be arriving soon. There are many here who do not care for the snow and the cold winds of winter, many who would prefer warmer and balmier temperatures.

   But, just consider for a moment a different view, that of a macro-economist. That view would say that the snow and cold temperatures are valuable because it kills of germs in the soil. We have more productive growing seasons than those around the equator because of that cold.
   So, with that in mind, we have seasons in life as well. There are days when things are balmy and warm. The sun just feels perfect and a light breeze is keeping the temperature nice. These are the days when everything is going well, life is a smile. We have summer.
   There are times when the world changes color, we feel a little dryer, a bit shriveled inside and watch as the color we normally don’t present to the world becomes first and foremost. We find ourselves losing our leaves, bare before the world. We have fall.
   There are times when the snow falls, and though it is beautiful, it is also bitter cold and austere. The silence is loud, and our ears hear everything move. We long for the warmth of a friendly comfort, a soft blanket, a roaring fire, or a comfortable sweater. We have winter.
   There are times when everything seems to be growing and moving. We may be experiencing growing pains, but we are seeing results. It takes work and time, effort and sweat equity, but the reward is visible and wonderful to see. We have spring.
   We have all of these seasons in our lives, many times over. But, the beauty is that there is more than one, and we will move through them to provide growth. Remember the economist, the soil is better for the freeze of the winter, the heat of the summer, the cool rains of fall, and the warming sunshine of spring. We are also often better for the hardships, the trials, and the rests of warmth.

Stoves and Christmas Trees

   With a favorite season of autumn, it makes sense that I love wood fires, the smell of the smoke and the crackle of the wood. But, even as I sit here and listen to that sound and soak in the heat, my thought is turning already to Christmas decorations. Fall is my favorite season, but I love to decorate for Christmas.

   In the living room, there sits a person size wood burning stove. It’s from around the early 1900s and has maintained its material integrity over the years. The wood is burning in it right now, converted over from a coal stove. Two birds grace the sides, decoratively made of iron and attached as part of the filigree and artistry of the entire piece. Perhaps it was original to the house, but if so it would have been an older item even then. I wonder how many autumns the stove has been through, how many Christmas decorations it could tell us about.
   With a heat that can seep inside each muscle, I am quickly ready for the autumn nights to grow chilly, the skies to show Orion. I will be snug inside, contemplating Christmas decorations.

The Second Command

Command, it sounds like a military word doesn’t it? I think of uniforms and orders, carried out with military precision.


When I looked into the thesaurus and dictionary, I found the words command:


thorough knowledge, order, direct, demand, instruct, seize control, a view over something, to have authority over something, to control....


The first commandment was 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' (Matthew 22:37).


Then there was another added… “And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ Love my neighbor like myself. How do I do that? Well, let me think through a typical day, as typical as a day can possibly be. I get up in the morning where I am warm and comfy in bed. I get up to go to work, thus provide for needs. I get sleep and provide for other needs. Breakfast generally consists of fruit. Work, lunch, work, home...During the day, I may take a moment to close my eyes and just let something sink in, to laugh with a co-worker and friend at the daily Dilbert calendar, or just relax in the sunshine. If I don‘t feel well, I will take care of that with medicine, rest, hot tea, or a trip to the doctor. Exercise happens, riding on the bike during the cold winter months and looking forward to spring walks. If I love someone else like me, I’m going to be sensitive to them when they need more sleep. I’m going to be open to hearing their ideas, just like I want mine to be heard. I will laugh with them and not at them, will be gentle with them when they hurt.


If we all tried to do this, even for one hour of one day – it would make an enormous impact in our world. After all, “all the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments,” (Matthew 22:40).  Yet, it is a command, thus something we should take seriously. 

Red Blanket

There are some friends that become family, sisters and brothers, parents and children, by choice. One of these, my sister as surely as if we shared the same blood and DNA building blocks, gave me a red blanket for Christmas several years ago. Selected for it’s softness and gentle feel, the color was the perfect shade of an autumn red, warm and vibrant not garish. I remember unwrapping this blanket and feeling the texture, feeling my fingers sink into the threads and the warmth starting to build.

Somewhere along the years, this blanket has become much more than a blanket. My sister, who gave this gift to me, lives eight long hours away. There are times when I need her hug, her warmth and I wrap myself up in the blanket and feel her hug. When I have been sick, the threads catch my body heat and hold it close. My heat reflected back in helped my fevers break, chills to stop, and healing to begin. The blanket has been something I wrap around my shoulders, hold in my arms, and pull over my head when my head hurts, my heart hurts, or life stresses get to be too much and I want to hide.

It’s really just a blanket, but it’s the love and prayers that have happened there that have made it more like the hug of my sister.