Faerie Filosofy

Our friends, Rick & JoLyn, favored us with a visit this week. JoLyn brought her magic wand and transformed Shane's room into an enchanted faerieland forest. She flitted from place to place gathering Flower Flurries, Thumbelina fairies, Stardust window panels, and other treasures for the room. Um, I'm not very good at flitting, but I did follow her lead faithfully. She'd found almost everything before she even arrived anyway. Rick used his magical skills to capture the power of electricity. We thank them for their friendship and their work, and extend an invitation to faraway fairies to come play and stay awhile in our forest. We'll make fairy berry pies for you. It's not pictured yet, but the fairies have a little hideout in a corner of the room made of lovely comfy acorn baskets just their size.

Rime of the Crow Eater

Rime of the Crow Eater
by Eugene Field

Into the market place there came
(One autumn morning murky)
An old and battered veteran
To choose a proper turkey.
His coat tails and his shrunken shanks
Had cockle burrs stuck to 'em,
And his whiskers looked as if the wind
Of winter had blown through 'em.
And still as through those whiskers white
The breezes rudely fluttered,
The old man from a cracker-box
This strange recital uttered:
'Twice two long years," says he, "I've sot
Around the Grand Pacific,
And all that twice two years the feed
Has simply been terrific."
"For twice two years I've eaten crow
In widely various weathers;
Not only meat and skin and bones,
But also claws and feathers"
"The crow it is a dismal bird,
And deeply I abhor it;
For twice two years I've lived on crow,
Though never clamoring for it.
'What have we on the bill to-day?'
I'd question of the waiter;
'Turk fer the rest, *but you
Gets crow an' cold pertater'
"They gave me crow in every style
And every foreign name, sir
Alas ! no matter how disguised,
Crow always is the same, sir!
"Though it be christened a la mode,
Still is its flavor queer, sir;
No rhetoric can mitigate
Its consequences here, sir !
"In vain I fled from John B. Drake
To other restauraters;
In vain I sought for victuals else
Than crow and cold pertaters !"
"They fed me crow and only crow
Until I thought I'd die, sir;
I got so full of crow at last
I half opined I'd fly, sir !
"For, as I said a spell ago,
In fair and stormy weathers,
I ate not only the skin and bones
I ate also the feathers !
"The crow it is a noxious bird
To stomachs such as mine is;
But, heaven be praised! there is no ill
But some time has finis!
"Once, as I chewed the bitter cud
Of gloomy introspections,
A cheery voice broke in upon
The thread of my reflections.
"I looked up and saw the face
Of Captain John R. Tanner!
I heard salvation in his voice
I saw it in his manner
"At once dispelled were gnawing griefs
And apprehensions gloomy;
Of all the spectacles on earth,
This was the most precious to me !"
'John ! John !' I wailed, 'give piteous ear
Unto my tale of woe, sir;
For twice two years I've eaten crow,
And eaten only crow, sir !
'What wonder is it that I cry,
"O temp or a! O mores!"
Since gnawing crow has worn away
My DENTES INCISORES
'The bird of which you speak,' says John,
'It, too, has been my living;
But, Bailey, you and I shall gorge
On turkey, come Thanksgiving
' 'See here; I have a subtle soup
Corked up in this decanter,
With which I'll prove "similia
Similibus curanturT
* 'I shall inject this subtle soup
Into our common foe, sir;
Then shall we get the turkey-bird,
And they shall get the crow, sir !
* 'But never mind particulars
Just wait and watch the sequel !
Oh, we shall lead them such a dance
As never had an equal' "
'Twas even as John Tanner said,
And you will not deny it
If you observe, Thanksgiving Day,
My changed and sumptuous diet !
"Times are more prosperous than they were-
Once more we've peace and plenty;
Turkey shall be my dainty feast
Next week, Deo volente!
"For twice two years I've lived on crow
Through ever changeful weathers
Those twice two cycles fed on skins,
Bones, inwards, claws and feathers."
"But fickle fate has brought me joy,
And, feeling blithe and perky,
I've come into the market place
To fetch a bouncing turkey.
"No senile, starveling bird will do
But one that's young and tender;
One that is whiskerless and plump,
And of the female gender"
"I'll carve it next Thanksgiving Day,
And pour the oyster sauce on
'Twill be a goodly change from crow"
Quoth grand old Bailey Dawson-

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Thanksgiving!

My big fat 19-pound turkey sits in golden splendor, fresh from the oven. He's the ultimate early bird. We made pumpkin biscuits this morning. Pumpkin whoopie pies are on tap for tomorrow. Dan's been bringing home gallons and gallons of apple cider. And turkey (with homemade noodles) soup and turkey sandwiches galore will be consumed over the next few days. But, on Thanksgiving, we're dining out. That's the reason for jumping the turkey-shooting gun and roasting up our fine feathered friend today. The holidays are within us - (we just sampled the turkey, and he is delicioso!)

Not only that, but we got our first email from Shane-of-the-MTC this afternoon too! He claims he's gained 8 pounds since last week, but I know there's no way that could be true. That scale just weighs heavier than ours. Remind me never, ever to weigh at the MTC! Everyone's scurrying around wildly here, gearing up for some full out fun! ... interspersed with a few naps. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

The Empty Sea

Kimball was the first of Shane's brothers to enter the MTC, when Shane was only four years old. He was with us during all six trips to the MTC with each boy in turn. I think it was three years ago, when we took Colin down to begin his mission, that Shane told us that he always thought we were going to the empty sea on the earlier trips when he heard us mention the MTC. That's where he is tonight, safe and sound, ready to go forth and serve, he's in the MTC. He's the last of our missionary sons, but the first one to depart from his own hometown. As of last June, families no longer go inside the MTC with the new arrivals. Since the church will pay for airfare to SLC, we said our goodbyes at the Boise airport rather than making the ten- to twelve-hour round trip drive to Provo. His good friend, Stewart Wayment, greeted him there, and then drove down to Provo where they picked up another friend, Evan Darrington,, to have lunch together at the BYU Creamery.

Privileged is the best word to describe how I've felt during these last few weeks with Shane. I was with him yesterday when he received a beautiful patriarchal blessing from our new stake patriarch, Brother Buhler. Shane told me that for the first time, he felt that God knew him as an individual, not just as one of the group of His many many children. When that realization sinks into your heart, that you really are known and loved by the Lord, the love of God can really burst into full bloom, bringing about amazing growth and enlightenment! I remember when it happened to me. I suddenly felt God's love for me, an obscure and ordinary person. And I knew since He loved me no matter who I was, or wasn't, I wasn't really just obscure and ordinary at all, and that He loved ALL of His children. I also knew that if He loved everyone else, so should I! I began to sense that each individual is precious. I believe that I witnessed Shane coming to this understanding in recent weeks as well.
Remarkably, gratefully, the channel of revelation from the Lord we'd felt earlier in the day, remained opened as President Porter set Shane apart as a missionary in the New York New York South Mission later that evening. After so many evidences of friendship and concernfrom our ward and others, Shane told me that he never realized that so many people cared about him. I wish everyone could feel that way, but it may be that many have not yet felt it, maybe because it has not yet been adequately shown to them. I hope I can begin to help them know it by the way I speak to and treat them though.

A hearty thank you to Ethan and Missy for coming to Shane's farewell. We thoroughly enjoyed your visit. His talk alone was worth the drive, wasn't it? Thanks to his friends for coming, too. Thanks to each of you, Cindy, Karen, Phil, and Kirt, for the temple trips. Shane was able to go there about 8 times over the last three and a half weeks to bless and serve in sealings, baptisms, endowments, and initiatories. He even went one time on his own. As I said, thanks to the influence of the Spirit, and of many good and caring people, and to Shane's own righteous choices and desires, he is prepared to serve the Lord, nowe and forever. May it ever be thus, is my humble and ongoing prayer for him, and for all of our sons and their families.

Tea and Crumpets

Believe it or not, I am actually sitting here at the computer (alas, not in the drawing room), with a cup of tea (licorice spice tea) and a plate of crumpets. Will wonders ever cease? I hope not! I've been delving into the bygone days when fairies roamed the land freely, and somehow, it awakened a desire to try tea and crumpets for myself. The crumpets are a bit of a disappointment, not nearly as tasty as I imagined, but then, perhaps my technique left something to be desired. The recipe made a yeasty, pancakey type batter, and the finished product is a chubby little pancake sort of thing, not terribly impressive but greatly improved by a generous application of butter and strawberry jam. Hmm, I just took another sip and another bite, and I think they're growing on me (or maybe I'm the one doing all the growing)! Scandalous though it may be, I may just try a whole wheat version of crumpets. After all, I'm planning to serve them to Greg and the children when they come visiting next month, and I'm aiming for healthy as well as delicious fare. Drat it all! I just put the teabag on my plate, and accidentally picked it up and popped it into my mouth, thinking it was a crumpet. Yucko, blindness can be hard on the tastebuds!

Ahem, as I was saying, when Greg arrives, I'll have a little fairylland awaiting them. Shane's room is going to become a forest/fairy themed space where fairy houses are constructed, fairy tales are told, and the wee folk are made to feel at home. Shane's not exactly delighted, but that's ok, the fairies are kind. When he's back home, they'll gladly relocate. In the meantime, magic is in the works.

Licorice Spice Tea

How a former non-tea drinker, me, became a fan! All those lovely herbal tea names always sounded so enticing - peppermint, chamomile, lemon ginger, etc., - but they tasted weak, watery, flavorless to me. So I swore off them and never looked back. Until, that is, I attended a book club last week where the hostess offered an array of items, including vegetables, cookies, pumpkin crisp and ice cream, apple cider, hot cocoa, and three kinds of tea. When she added that licorice spice tea was her favorite, I decided the courteous thing to do would be to choose it. What a surprise! It is uniquely delicious, and according to a post on the CLLC Friends forum, posted by Penny, it just may figure into a strategy of protection against the H1N1 virus, as well. I can't vouch for it, but I think it sounds fairly sensible. I checked Snopes though, and they convincingly dispute its authenticity, but quote a doc who says something to the effect of go for it if it makes you feel better, but be advised that some of the recommendations are not evidenced-based. So, see what you think:
The only portals of entry are the nostrils and mouth/throat. In a global epidemic
of this nature, it's almost impossible to avoid coming into contact with H1N1 in
spite of all precautions. Contact with H1N1 is not so much of a problem as proliferation
is.
While you are still healthy and not showing any symptoms of H1N1 infection, in order
to prevent proliferation, aggravation of symptoms and development of secondary infections,
some very simple steps, not fully highlighted in most official communications, can
be practiced (instead of focusing on how to stock N95 or Tamiflu):
1. Frequent hand-washing (well highlighted in all official communications).
2. "Hands-off-the-face" approach. Resist all temptations to touch any part of face
(unless you want to eat, bathe or slap).
3. *Gargle twice a day with warm salt water (use Listerine if you don't trust salt).
*H1N1 takes 2-3 days after initial infection in the throat/ nasal cavity to proliferate
and show characteristic symptoms. Simple gargling prevents proliferation. In a way,
gargling with salt water has the same effect on a healthy individual that Tamiflu
has on an infected one.. Don't underestimate this simple, inexpensive and powerful
preventative method.
4. Similar to 3 above, *clean the nostrils at least once every day with warm salt
water. *Not everybody may be good at Jala Neti or Sutra Neti (very good Yoga asanas
to clean nasal cavities), but *blowing the nose hard once a day and swabbing both
nostrils with cotton buds dipped in warm salt water is very effective in bringing
down viral population..*
5. *Boost your natural immunity with foods that are rich in Vitamin C (Amla and other
citrus fruits). *If you have to supplement with Vitamin C tablets, make sure that
it also has Zinc to boost absorption.
6. *Drink as much of warm liquids such as teas, etc. as you can. *Drinking warm liquids
has the same effect as gargling, but in the reverse direction. They wash off proliferating
viruses from the throat into the stomach where they cannot survive, proliferate or
do any harm.