Nevertheless, even in the midst of busyness and healing, I continue to focus on what is important to me, what blessings God has provided to me each week. Because that really is the reason for Friday Fave Five. Thanks to Susanne for hosting FFF every week!
1. I had agreed two months ago to demonstrate spinning with the weavers/spinners guild at Reyes Adobe Days in Agoura Hills, CA (far northwest suburb of Los Angeles County). On Sunday morning, The Professor loaded up my spinning wheel and accesories into the car and drove me over there. I discovered that, yes, I can manipulate the spinning wheel with one foot. I enjoyed the day spinning a lovely blue and green wool and silk blend fiber. (Photos to follow when the two ply yarn is finished.)
2. The best part of the day was selling several items including two boy bunnies, all but one of the coffee cozies, that sweet turquoise, grey and white striped baby sweater, and several scarves and hats. All proceeds will be going to help THIS GROUP.
3. The Professor was looking for a particular library book that isn't in our city library system. He found it was available at the main library location in Ventura so, of course, we drove up there to pick it up. While he was searching the shelves for his book, I found a volume of all three of Elaine St. James' books which included Simplify Your Life, Inner Simplicity and Living the Simple Life. This week I'm rereading St. James' ideas. I had read the books in the 1990s shortly after they were published and appeared in our library in Oregon. It has been good to remind myself of how far I've come on my simplicity journey and remember some things I'd forgotten in the past few years. My favorite: remembering why I love very simple eating (and cooking) habits.
4. We had a lovely and refreshing rainstorm this week. Our very thirsty, dry, brown mountains happily soaked up the wetness. I think that just the one day of rain turned the hills a little bit green. Maybe it's just my imagination. But they look green to me.
5. These weeks while I've been sitting around, NOT walking much, besides the knitting I've been doing, I've also been tackling the mountains and boxes and files of old photos and slides. Finally, I overcame my resistance to learning to operate the scanner. I've been scanning photos and organizing them on my computer. In a pile of old slides I found this one:
Me on a trail in the Papuan jungle
That was Willow's Week. How was yours? Did you reread any favorite books, enjoy a hobby, rediscover an old memory?
22 comments:
LOVE seeing that photo of you on the trail in the jungle, Willow! You ARE busy these days... but in wonderful ways. Glad you are enjoying your writing classes. I admire teachers so much. There a few books I enjoy rereading fairly frequently. Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice, and L.M. Alcott's Little Women especially...maybe because these were books from my youth, and I'm still smitten with them. :o) Be keeping well... Happy Weekend ((HUGS))
Love the picture of you! Sounds like you had a wonderful week of special blessings...enjoy the weekend!
Healing from an injury seems to take so much longer than it used to! I'm praying that healing rate will speed up and you'll be able to be able to hike more trails soon, Willow.
Love that picture of you on the jungle trail!
A very cool picture!! We had friends who were missionaries there too - their last name is Honsburger.
I have never read those books and that's one of my favourite subjects - and yay! I was able to get a copy at the library. Thanks Willow! That's the second book today that I've found through FFF :)
Glad to see that you are starting to mend. Praying for complete recovery!
Happy weekend!
Glad you are healing well!
Great photo of you in the jungle! I love going through old photos and resurrecting memories!
Selling your crafts and being able to donate to such a heartwrenching cause must have been one of the favorite highlights this week!
As to your question....yes, I re read books. Although I love the discovery of new books and authors, there is something about going back to 'old friends' - I do it often.
Look at that young you in the jungle! Fabulous. I'm glad you are being able to be somewhat mobile. Rain really greens up those Santa Monica Mountains nicely. Sounds like you really sold a lot of goodies. I love the name of that group you are donating to!
Visiting a new library is one of my favorite things to do.
I spent some time this week on a hobby -- getting caught up on photo albums. I feel so amazingly productive!
St. James books sound interesting ... I'll have to look for them. I love that photo of you! You seem to lead such an interesting life.
Glad you sold so much of your knitting. That has to be gratifying!
How interesting that you know how to demonstrate spinning. What a gift! And with one foot.
Those books sound really good. I'm always looking for ways to simplify my life.
Love the picture! :-)
Sorry your ankle is still bothering you. =( That's NOT fun. But yeah for being able to organize something while your sitting. That always feels nice.
We were down in your "neck of the woods" last week. A little Oregon in your midst.
Hope you have a restful weekend and that your ankle is on the mend!
Like your jungle photo. Glad your ankle is healing too and that you got some much needed rain.
Was that Papua New Guinea? We have friends who are missionaries there.
I so need to do that with some old photos.
Sounds like you are making great use of your time.
I just reread a favorite missionary biography, By Searching: My Journey Through Doubt Into Faith by Isobel Kuhn.
What a great picture of you!! And I, too, love that book - I need to haul it out again, as I think my life has recently grown a bit too complicated for my liking...
I wish you had posted a picture of what you sold. I would have LOVED to see more of your handiwork. What a great group to benefit, too.
I'm feeling the same way about time. The last time I posted was last Friday -- just too much on my plate. Oh, the life of a teacher.
Have a great week!
A picture is worth a thousand words and that says so much about you, your life and your enthusiasm! I'm so glad you're scanning them in. Maybe when you are 90, you can write your autobiography and everyone can enjoy all the stories of your life. I understand the busyness... sometimes I wonder if I should stop blogging but I think it's my outlet for sanity and I'd miss my friends way too much! I read those Simplicity books back in the 90's too. I'm thinking I may have at least one of them (if I didn't donate them to the library). That means I didn't follow her with all my books. But I think in other ways I do try to keep things as simple as they can be. Especially when I have a brain that likes to go a mile a minute!
Well look at you in that photo looking like your having a great time in the jungle. Fun.
I'm sure the Generate Hope charity is very appreciative of your efforts to raise money for them.
Ohhh, I wish I had known about the fiber event in Agoura Hills!!!! That sounds fun and I would have loved to see you in action :) I have never been tempted to knit a coffee cozy.... until this year. Boy, isn't a cool Fall, no? Glad I have my wooly hats!
Great picture of you in the jungle :)
Great photo of you on the jungle trail. Glad the ankle is on the mend. I find my weekdays are taken up with teaching and preparing for teaching, with a teeny bit of relaxing knitting thrown in for good measure, evn if it does mean a late night. Have a good week. Ros
It is amazing how much energy is required to heal from a serious injury, Willow. I discovered that from when I broke my arm in April. These past 2 weeks have been especially physically busy and today I HAD to nap as my whole body was exhausted! I hope you do continue to give yourself the rest you need.
Bravo on tackling the scanner. I imagine that you are quite pleased now that you overcame your resistance to it. Love the picture of you in the jungle. Is there a story that goes with the picture?
So glad you can spin with one foot. I have a dear friend in CO who has bunnies, harvest their fur to spin and dyes her own wool too. Both of you amaze me as I am not creative and not good about sticking to something long enough to really learn it well.
I have not heard of Elaine St. James. But I will look to see if our library has these books as I am interested in simplicity too. Another nice feeling is discovering you have "grown" in life.
@Bethany - I (Willow's daughter) have been telling her FOR YEARS that she needs to write her autobiography. Let's all join in and encourage her to do it, and maybe she finally will.
@Willow - For some reason, you look very European (Dutch or German) in that photo. Do you remember what trail you were on when it was taken?
So glad you are able to do so much while still recuperating from the injury.
I'm afraid if I start scanning old pictures I'll get lost on memory trails. Love seeing your picture in the jungle! (PNG or what used to be Irian Jaya now known as Papua? I have a similar pic of my daughter in IJ with that same healthy, can-do look.)
I'm another reader of the St James books when they came out. Just might have to reread them too. (I keep circling back to L'Engle's Biographical trilogy.)
I bet you're a wonderful writing teacher!
Post a Comment