Living Life

Between the upswing in virus infections, the demonstrations (including in our own small town) and the rioting, it has been an unsettling couple of weeks since I last posted.  In spite of all the upheaval we are trying to stay focused on the good things the Lord still has placed before us, time with family, time with friends, time in study and prayer and time appreciating the beautiful community we live in. 

Now that we are in Phase 2 of reopening I was able to go to a small birthday celebration for a friend who turned 70 this month.  My friend has a lovely home on the lake and since it was a nice sunny day we were able to social distance outside on the deck where we could enjoy the view.  You can't see it, but looking across the water, my house is located on that hill behind the large house with all the dormers in the middle of the first photo.

 

This birthday cake was made by my friend's daughter.  It was gluten free and made with coconut flour and sugar. It was delicious!  

 

On my way home from the party I noticed that the new farmer's market was having it's grand opening in our little village.  We didn't make it that first day, but we made sure that we checked it out the following week. The day was cloudy but warm.  The lake front park has just been reopened after an extensive renovation.  It has all turned out quite nice and includes the town war memorial which had been removed for a time and has now been reset. There is also a nice fishing dock and a new sandy beach where the kids can play.  It's already turning out to be a great community area.  We enjoyed walking through the various stalls looking for fresh produce.  The iron globe is actually a fire pit that is lit in the winter during the annual Christmas tree lighting.

We walked from the new park along the cove to a second small park around the corner. This is where we used to bring our kids when they were small.  It was the first time I had taken that walk in over three years! Amen!

Then it was back to the market to do a little shopping. We brought home flowers from the market to enjoy.

 Also strawberries picked fresh the same morning! Yummy!

 

And what is more delicious than a fresh strawberry pie shared with friends on a summer evening?

My crust was a little crumbly but oh, so good!  Thank you Lord for the gift of taste!

Now as a new week begins, I pray that each of you are keeping safe and well as we continue to navigate these challenging days.  

 For God has not given us a spirit of Fear

but of power, and of love

and of a sound mind

2 Timothy 1:7 .

Adieu!

Two country walks

As the weather warms up we are trying to get out of the house a little more and The Snohomish County Centennial Trail is the perfect place to go.  We are fortunate to have such a beautiful and easy walking trail so close to us.  The trail was created over the old railroad right of way that had been unused for many years.  I have shared parts of the trail on previous posts but there is always something new to see.  This day we parked at the Machias Trailhead which is one of my favorite spots.  It was another cloudy day, cool but not cold and perfect for walking.  So far I have only been taking short walks of about 20 minutes, but this day I pushed to do thirty.

The paved trail is perfect for someone like me who needs a level flat surface to walk any distance comfortably.  Even as we social distanced we passed many other folks walking, riding bikes and even rollerblading.

We walked alongside open fields and small farms. 

  If this were in my garden I would be calling these plants weeds!  Out here we say they are wildflowers, definitely in the eye of the beholder. :)

These vines were growing all along the way.  I don't remember seeing them before and I don't know what they are called.  I like the shape of the leaves though.

This little fellow was as curious about us as we were about him!

Normally when we come here we would see this play area filled with children.  In fact, we brought our granddaughter here to play last summer.  Now it is blocked off because of the virus, another sad commentary of the the times.  This was the end of our first walk.

A few days later we came back to the same trailhead for a second walk.  What a difference a few days can make!  The sun was shining and we could see the mountains in the background that had been obscured by the clouds just a few days before.

 This time I pushed for 40 minutes passing more farms, fields of buttercups, and  blackberry brambles in bloom. 

The cottonwood seeds were so thick on the ground they looked like snow!  

 

 When we got back to where we had parked we had walked for 39 minutes so I had to walk around for another minute to make my goal. 

  Success!  It was a hard walk for me, but Lord willing this leg will get stronger and I will be able to do more as time goes on.  

 

 There are definitely days when I feel weary and weak, but I know the Lord is with me wherever I go.  May he also be with you.  God bless and keep all who stop by here.

Adieu!