Thursday, January 30, 2014

Beaches and Rain and Bibles

Friday Fave Fives.  It's a must in my week.  Even if a week slips by and I don't post anything else here at Willow's Cottage, I have to write about the five blessings of my week.  This exercise led by Susanne keeps me accountable and keeps me thankful.

1. Rain.  Southern California is having a drought.  But. It. Rained. A. Little.


O Happy Rain

2.  An afternoon visit to this quilt-yarn-sewing-needlework-craft shop, Roxanne's, A Wish and A Dream, in Carpinteria with my sister-in-law.  She is an excellent, professional quilter, so it was fun to see a favorite shop of mine from her perspective.

3.  Light. There is something about the light where I live that I love.  The slant of the sun.  The dryness of the atmosphere creating a clearness that glows. The light quality that is so beautiful it breaks my heart.  



Add to that my love of the beach.






4.  How many times can I count skyping with my son as a fave?  Never enough.  As he prepares to fly to Australia for a conference where he'll be presenting a paper, he took time to chat with us a couple of times.  I love the accessibility skype gives to staying in touch with my out-of-the-country son.

5.  I am a devoted member of a Precepts Bible class. If you aren't familiar with Precepts, I can tell you it's a Bible Study program which focuses on scholarship and delving deeply into history, context and personal application of what you are studying. Right now I'm studying Old Testament historical books-- Kings and Chronicles.  You'd think this would be very boring.  You'd be very wrong.  Every week I'm challenged.  It's an important part of my life and I'm thankful to have the opportunity to be part of the class.

So that was my week (which also included the usual knitting).  How was yours?

22 comments:

Tracy said...

So many good things... light, rain, beach, family, the Good Book... I'd count those as weekly blessings too ;o) Happy Weekend, Willow ((HUGS))

Hazel said...

Your description of light reminds me of a line from a song: "brutally handsome..." don't know why but nice feeling. I love skyping too. Beaches and books - what a great week!

Faith said...

Kudos to you for the Bible study.....those are difficult from what I know of them!! Love the beach photos....looks so vastly different from my mountain lake beaches....but just as gorgeous. God made us a beautiful world, did He not?

Paula said...

Wonderful faves, full of God's creation and links you enjoy. Chatting on Skype is definitely one of the blessings of modern technology. Hope you gets one sunshine this weekend.

Anonymous said...

So glad you are getting some rain. Love your love for God's word. I love it too. Your photos are lovely. Mary

Sara at Come Away With Me said...

Hello Willow, I second your joy of the rain . . . We've seen a bit of moisture down here in San Diego too. I couldn't really call it rain though. But ever molecule is welcomed!

You might enjoy Ray Vanderlaan's video series (12 CDs) called "Faith Lessons". Sounds like they would be an excellent complement to your Precepts Bible class. They really open up the life of the days of the Old and New Testaments and are all filmed on-site in the Middle East. They were very enriching for me personally.

Monica said...

I will have to check out Precepts. I love the rich history in the Bible.
hate to hear you are in a drought! so devastating in so many ways! And so thankful that our adult kiddos still keep in good communication with us!
I have always wanted to learn to quilt (really really quilt). maybe I will get to it some day.

ellen b. said...

Happy to see your splash of rain. I'm sure the brown hills enjoyed each drop. Digging into the Word is always so rewarding...
Have a wonderful weekend!

Barbara H. said...

Glad you're getting some much-needed rain!

I like Bible studies where you can really dig in.

Susanne said...

I love all those pictures but the one of the yellow hills is amazing. I've never taken a Precepts class but it sounds interesting. Sometimes the difficult classes are the ones that produce the most fruit in our lives if we apply them. Love the picture of the rain.

Bethany said...

I was just reading this morning about the drought and wondering how you were doing. I'm glad to hear that there's rain there. That golden light is incredible! I've been participating in Bible Studies every week too-- it always makes a huge difference in my focus. Have you heard of Eric Metaxas? (He did the interview with Gladwell and does Socrates in the City). He also is involved with "I am Second" which my brother-in-law highly suggested. I need to look at that site but I thought of you when he told me about it!

Laura@OutnumberedMom said...

Hope you get more rain! Lovely pictures. I used to take a Precepts class and loved it. Hope you have a great week ahead!

Gracie Saylor said...

Again your favorites make me more appreciative of my own, Linda :) Thanks for sharing! I remember when I moved from the East Coast back to the Bay area, I was so startled by the difference in the quality of light around me. I was sooooo energized by it! The Precept study I did was enriching and I can understand why you are loving it. Love you photos of the beach!!!

Caroline said...

I had a friend post a picture of several raindrops on the sidewalk with the caption: "downpour." It tickled me-- the comment and the little bit of rain. I always love your beautiful pics!

snoopydogknits said...

Sounds like a great week. I love your beach shots, as always! Ros

Susan said...

Love, love love your photos of the ocean. That is my most favourite place of all. Surprisingly both my kiddos prefer the mountains. i jsy don't know how they can be "my" children.

what a thoughtful person you are, Willow, 28 hats. Those babies will be warm and cuter.

I wrote about the study I am in too. I always look forward to the friendships, learning and discussions. All 3 enrich my week and my heart.

Have a great week, Willow.

nikkipolani said...

I saw some of that lovely light, Willow. Just driving past your neck o' the woods on my way to SB this weekend. Glad you're enjoying Precepts.

And to answer your question last week, my mom's at Biola.

Gattina said...

What beautiful pictures ! I can't be happy about rain, it rains all the time I would be happy permanently !
Skype indeed is a great inventions, allows me to keep contact with my little grandson who lives in Amsterdam.

Kathie said...

We're kindred spirits - of course beaches, books and skyping with children - and light - a slant of light can break my heart too. I can never capture it completely on my camera but I never give up trying. So glad you got some rain!

Freedom said...

I started reading the bible a few weeks ago. I'm working my way through the old testament right now. After I finish reading the bible I'm planning to tackle the Quran, and The Book of Mormon. I thought it would be interesting to read the holy books of different faiths to see the similarities and differences.

roxie said...

I just love your photos! YOu could do a have five with pictures alone!

Mia said...

I've heard that the light is similar in Italy... perhaps the Mediterranean climate? Stay cozy in all the rain! :o)