Home Sweet Home

We are so blessed to live here on Daniel Island. Everything I need or want is at home or within walking distance. I lead a small life--going to church, taking care of my family, writing, singing, and reading--but feel so rich. I've written a story about contentment--it still needs a home--but when I wrote the final sentence, I felt a tremendous wholeness. I should send it out. I used to be so good about sending out my work. Now, after a couple of rejections, I return to writing. Must try to spend one writing session each week on business aspects. 

The crepe myrtles are in bloom, but I thought I'd post a picture of a painting that Dagny made in high school. And since my camera cannot capture the beautiful crescent moon, I painted it instead (on a piece of cardboard). 

We do so love making things from the bounty in the garden--dill pickles and salsa (my Mexcian stepmother, who is a great cook, gifted me Salsas that Cook by Rick Bayless and it is a GEM). I could live on chips and salsa :)

 

Summertime Fun

We're having a lovely summer--so many beautiful feast days to celebrate: Corpus Christi, the Nativity of John the Baptist, Sacred Heart of Jesus, Immaculate Heart of Mary, Saints Peter and Paul. Best of all, Max and his girlfriend came for a visit, so we've had a lovely time all together, going to the beach, a visit to Middleton Plantation (they have an oak that's a thousand years old!) and the Angel Oak (about 500 years old). So fun to be a tourist in our hometown--Max is a good tour guide too. We also ate a lot. Michael's brisket is soooo good. And we had a traditional Indian meal at home too, with mangoes and heavy cream.

How the Garden Grows--Father's Day Edition

My husband is the gardener and I'm the harvester. So grateful that we are mostly self-sufficient in this department. No pesticides, no chemicals, just fresh food produced with water, sunlight, soil, and if using hydroponics, adding mineral salts. The kids came over for a steak supper on Sunday to celebrate Father's Day and we were thrilled with the Christmas-Easter-Father's Day gift Ian made for Michael. He started it last fall at Clemson, but with getting married, starting a new job, he's been so busy... but beautiful things are worth waiting for. We love it. So perfect for Bodach Books and Brews. Michael did his first brew in the new system on Friday--he should have enough to supply the men's group and have a bit left over for home use. 

We've been eating a lot of salad. I add a lot of herbs and microgreens so it's very flavorful. Alas, some caterpillars find their way into the salad bowl as well. And wouldn't you know it, Dagny found one on her plate :) She does examine her food more closely than the rest of us. 

The watermelon and sweet potatoes are growing but I hope we get more fruit and not just leaves. The crabs had better leave my melon alone. I love smelling the sweet flowers when I'm on the porch.  

I love that Dagny has such a loving father. It set the standard for whom she would marry. And we love that they live in Charleston. We enjoy our time together so very much. And it reminds me that to love, you first have to know love. That's why I want everyone I know to read Life of the Beloved by Henri Nouwen. Know that YOU are the beloved of God.