"Life is not, for most of us, a pageant of splendor, but is made up of many small things, rather like an old fashioned piecework quilt. No two people have the same, but we all have our own, whether it be listening to Beethoven's fifth with a beloved friend, or seeing a neighbor at the back door with a basket of white dahlias. Or after a long, hard day, having the family say, "That was a good supper."
In no particular order, here are six small things that inspired me this week.
1. Rocky Hedge Farm
I've been following Sarah's blog for a number of years, but more recently I keep up with her mostly on Instagram. What initially drew me in was following her renovation of their home, but what has kept me coming back are her delicious recipes. I came across a few this week that I've added to my rotation over the next few weeks, such as Pan Fried Buttermilk Chicken Tenders, Easy Homemade Caesar Salad with Caesar Dressing, But the one that really caught my eye and that I can't wait to try is the Blackened Chicken. I can just imagine it sliced up on a toasted bun with some sweet corn on the cob and maybe even a small Caesar Salad. If you don't know Sarah, I encourage you to spend some time perusing her blog or her Instagram account. Her recipe index alone with have you planning out your menus months in advance!
2. Cultivating Oaks Press
While summer unofficially spans from Memorial Day through Labor Day in our house, in reality, its arrival is later this month, Friday, June 20 at 10:41 p.m., to be precise. That means that in spite of what the rising humidity has dictated the past few days, we're lingering in the final days of spring. Cultivating Oaks Press has been producing seasonal e-zines (I suppose you'd call them) for seven years now and I've never missed one. Their 35th issue for Spring 2025 is still up and the theme is generosity. I love to take a morning here and there throughout the season and select a few articles to read over a cup of tea, and I think you might enjoy it too. And if you want more after reading the current issue, there are sevn years of archives to choose from.
3. Pioneer Woman's Sun Tea
Tis the season for sweet tea! While I enjoy hot tea year round, there is just something about summer that has me craving after a tall, cold glass of sweet tea. Drinking it always reminds me of my daddy, who loved it over just about every other beverage. Recently I recalled my mom often making sun tea, and realized I hadn't made it in years, so long in fact, I wasn't even sure I remembered exactly how it was done. But as with anything these days, a quick search on Google provided the answer, and since you can rarely go wrong with The Pioneer Woman, I'm going to try her method.
4. Summer Sabbatical and The Sabbath Way
I mentioned on
my Instagram account that I am on Summer Sabbatical. I kind of unexpectedly took one for the first time last year, intending for it to last a weekend that spanned into six weeks, and yet I came out of the time so changed that I decided then and there to make it a part of my annual rhythm. And while this year it looks a little different as our weeks are dotted with
doctor's appointments and physical therapy, the rest I'm seeking is more internal than external, learning to find peace as
Jesus did during the storm. That's why I was so excited when I came across this book,
The Sabbath Way (Affliate Link), by Travis West, which guides the reader in discovering that radical rest is more than a weekly practice of taking a day off―it’s also a posture, a way of living every day, and since learning to live "at rest" has been something I've been seeking for a while now, it sounded like the perfect fit. I've only read the introduction and I'm already intrigued. I'll share more about it in the coming weeks.
One of my favorite accounts on Instagram is Wonderled Life. Johanna's offerings invite me into the rest I am seeking, with her sweet images lifted from the pages of children's literature combined with the sweetest sentiments, and I especially loved this one that she shared earlier this week, because who doesn't love Brambly Hedge and plans for a picnic this summer? If you are on Instragram, be sure to follow her!
Praying at appointed times throughout the day has long been a practice of many followers of the way for centuries. I first discovered it over a decade ago and decided to make it a part of my daily rhythm. While I've failed miserably at times, and even now have fallen out of habit, I recently discovered
Northhumbria Community, who provide links to
daily prayers.
While I don't pray seven times a day as is common for some, I do try to make it a point to pause at least three times a day, Morning, Noon and Evening (quiet alarms on your phone help immensely!), all of which are provided at this site. I particularly loved the prayer for this morning;
One thing I have asked of the Lord,
this is what I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life;
to behold the beauty of the Lord
and to seek Him in His temple.
Call: Who is it that you seek?
Response: We seek the Lord our God.
Call: Do you seek Him with all your heart?
Response: Amen. Lord, have mercy.
Call: Do you seek Him with all your soul?
Response: Amen. Lord, have mercy.
Call: Do you seek Him with all your mind?
Response: Amen. Lord, have mercy.
Call: Do you seek Him with all your strength?
Response: Amen. Christ, have mercy.
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