Magic Wands

When you live in the world of young children these days you realize how

important it is to have a magic wand! Harry Potter has one. The Star Wars characters

have one. Fairy godmothers have one. When I took my youngest grandsons to the

bus stop this week they were so excited to tell me that their friends down the block

came home from Disney World with wands that “really worked!” I have to admit, I

never saw or heard what they actually did. The

suspense is killing me! Surely we adults could use a

magic wand to make our lives better.

I began to wonder how I could get myself one of

these special devices. I don’t really think I would want

to change pumpkins into coaches or mice into horses.

I don’t long to create potions to make people

disappear, but if I could make my day seem happier or

easier, I’m in. Looking around the house I came up

with a number of items that bring change to my day.

Could they be magic wands? Maybe it would work for

others, too.

Working in my kitchen I took out my mixer and

blended the ingredients for chocolate chip cookies.

Although it’s not a potion, these cookies can make an

unhappy child grin from ear to ear! After coming home

from Hawaii in February I found myself discouraged

with the clouds and snow that were so persistent for several days, it seemed like

several weeks. I went to Target to get some items for Preschool and found small

anthurium plants for sale at a very reasonable cost. Boom! I bought one and the

warmth of the Hawaiian sun filled my family room and lifted my spirits! Some days the

number of items on my “to do” list seems overwhelming and I become over focused on

too many details and my multi-tasking skills fail me. A giggle and a hug from my

grandchildren, or one of your children at school, can put my day back into perspective.

Love is the magic wand that make life worth living, not lists of accomplishments.

March can be a dismal month as we transition from the beauty of winter snow to

the gorgeous colors of spring but we have magic wands all around us. The tricky part

is finding them and recognizing their power. God, please open our eyes so we can see

the magic of your world!

COFFEE, TEA AND ME

I enter the Salem narthex on a Sunday morning and I smell the coffee being brewed in  the large kitchen and hear the clanking of trays put out for goodies to accompany the coffee.  I smile and enter the sanctuary knowing that after the worship service I can join others in a time of socializing as we hold our warm cups and sweet treats.  Across the narthex is the fellowship hall where adults are seated with their warm drinks listening to the current Sunday School leader sharing information on a topic of interest to all of us.  I see smiles on faces and I hear  calm voices and sometimes giggles.

On week days employees come to work with thermo cups in hand full of coffee or tea.  A pot of coffee is brewing in the small kitchen for refills.  The cups follow us to our desks and our meetings.  Often, sweets are available near the Mr. Coffee in the kitchen.  Somehow listening happens more often and conversation is more civil and relaxed when these are offered.  

Friends and family call after work and want to reconnect and catch up with each other after a time apart.  Let’s go for coffee somewhere, someone suggests.  Morning, noon or night works for that favorite warm drink, whatever the season.  In winter, hot chocolate adds to the fun and the kids join in, appreciating the caring atmosphere of the moment.

What is it about coffee, tea and other warm drinks that seems to “settle us down”   and “open us up” to others?  Is it just a Scandinavian thing?  Or a Minnesota thing?  To help me understand, my son and daughter-in-law gave me a book for Christmas called, “The Little Book of Hygge (pronounced Hoo-ga), Danish Secrets to Happy Living” by Meik Wiking.  Apparently hygge is a commonly mentioned thing among people younger than myself.  It’s about time I caught up with the times.  That being said, I found it to be a wonderful little book in which Wiking, the CEO of the Happiness Research Institute, in Copenhagen, explains what makes societies and their individual members happy.  I was not surprised to find food and drink are right up there on the top of the list.  Goodies and warm drinks, often coffee or tea, bring people together for quiet conversation, making us feel connected.  When we are connected we feel safer and more confident in who we are.  Thus, we feel happier.  For some, a cup of joe (or perhaps another type of warm drink) and a few moments of alone time in a cozy corner with a book or a collection of old pictures that bring back sweet memories can bring happiness.  This is not just a Minnesota for Danish “thing.”  People of all nationalities find this helpful.  Of course there are other components to the feeling of hygge but comfort foods and drink are a great start, which explains our love of coffee and the treats that often go with it.  

Tomorrow I will take the path to the coffee pot in the small kitchen at work and pour a steaming cup, with two cream.  Someone may ask, “What are you doing?”  I will smile and reply, “Finding happiness.  Would you like to join me?”  We will find a place to sit and enjoy each other’s company.  We’ll start our day feeling more calm, connected and happy than we would have otherwise been.  Who would have thought coffee  could create so much hygge! 

Happy Hygge Day! 

COFFEE, TEA AND ME

I enter the Salem narthex on a Sunday morning and I smell the coffee being brewed in  the large kitchen and hear the clanking of trays put out for goodies to accompany the coffee.  I smile and enter the sanctuary knowing that after the worship service I can join others in a time of socializing as we hold our warm cups and sweet treats.  Across the narthex is the fellowship hall where adults are seated with their warm drinks listening to the current Sunday School leader sharing information on a topic of interest to all of us.  I see smiles on faces and I hear  calm voices and sometimes giggles.

On week days employees come to work with thermo cups in hand full of coffee or tea.  A pot of coffee is brewing in the small kitchen for refills.  The cups follow us to our desks and our meetings.  Often, sweets are available near the Mr. Coffee in the kitchen.  Somehow listening happens more often and conversation is more civil and relaxed when these are offered.  

Friends and family call after work and want to reconnect and catch up with each other after a time apart.  Let’s go for coffee somewhere, someone suggests.  Morning, noon or night works for that favorite warm drink, whatever the season.  In winter, hot chocolate adds to the fun and the kids join in, appreciating the caring atmosphere of the moment.

What is it about coffee, tea and other warm drinks that seems to “settle us down”   and “open us up” to others?  Is it just a Scandinavian thing?  Or a Minnesota thing?  To help me understand, my son and daughter-in-law gave me a book for Christmas called, “The Little Book of Hygge (pronounced Hoo-ga), Danish Secrets to Happy Living” by Meik Wiking.  Apparently hygge is a commonly mentioned thing among people younger than myself.  It’s about time I caught up with the times.  That being said, I found it to be a wonderful little book in which Wiking, the CEO of the Happiness Research Institute, in Copenhagen, explains what makes societies and their individual members happy.  I was not surprised to find food and drink are right up there on the top of the list.  Goodies and warm drinks, often coffee or tea, bring people together for quiet conversation, making us feel connected.  When we are connected we feel safer and more confident in who we are.  Thus, we feel happier.  For some, a cup of joe (or perhaps another type of warm drink) and a few moments of alone time in a cozy corner with a book or a collection of old pictures that bring back sweet memories can bring happiness.  This is not just a Minnesota for Danish “thing.”  People of all nationalities find this helpful.  Of course there are other components to the feeling of hygge but comfort foods and drink are a great start, which explains our love of coffee and the treats that often go with it.  

Tomorrow I will take the path to the coffee pot in the small kitchen at work and pour a steaming cup, with two cream.  Someone may ask, “What are you doing?”  I will smile and reply, “Finding happiness.  Would you like to join me?”  We will find a place to sit and enjoy each other’s company.  We’ll start our day feeling more calm, connected and happy than we would have otherwise been.  Who would have thought coffee  could create so much hygge! 

Happy Hygge Day! 

JANUARY 2020 

Our family saw  FROZEN II over Thanksgiving break and I loved it for several reasons.  Being a Scandinavian and a Minnesotan I love winter and all it’s traits.  How exciting it would be to be Elsa with her magic powers to create snow and Ice anywhere, anytime.  With the wave of a hand Elsa creates ice castles and snowmen, skating ponds and sparkling forests.  If her good friend, a snowman named Olaf, is melting, she creates a mini snow storm around him bringing him back to good health.  In this movie Elsa, her sister, Anna, and friends Olaf, Sven the reindeer, and Kristoff, conquer the forces of nature and learn to love the ways of the northern people.  They love winter!

I, too, love many things about winter.  It’s here to stay for awhile so I want to enjoy it!  Snow and frost are beautiful as they sparkle on the trees, rock, rivers and houses.   My older grandsons gather snow from all around the yard (some years they have to make their own snow) to build a huge snow fort.  When it’s done several adult size people can fit inside.  The younger grandsons build snowmen and play chasing games through the snowy bushes in the neighborhood.  Our whole family loves downhill skiing, cross-country skiing and sledding together.  A walk on a quiet bike trail through snow covered trees is a great way to relax for awhile.  A cup of hot chocolate by the fireplace or an outdoor fire pit is a great way to end a walk.  The Bartz family, living just north of Salem, builds an enormous snow sculpture every winter that attracts thousands of visitors.  An ice castle will be built near Long Lake this year and many will visit there.  It has been in Stillwater in years past.  I visited it there and loved it!

There are many ways to enjoy winter.  Ice fishing is one very Minnesota choice.  I’m not a fisherman any time of the year but my one good fishing story happened when I was ice fishing as a young girl.  My cousin and I were given permission to use an icehouse on Lake Darling where her parents owned a resort.  We put our line in the water through a hole in the floor which I remember being in the corner of the icehouse floor.  Then we proceeded to do what girls usually do, hang out talking, laughing, maybe we had a snack, I don’t remember for sure.  At any rate, we were not checking our line.  Suddenly there was a splash and a huge (at least by our definition) northern came up the hole in the floor!  We screamed and didn’t have a clue what to do.  The fish flopped around and eventually got stuck between the ice and the floor of the icehouse.  Our screams attracted help and eventually the fish somehow got pulled out of the icehouse and was, at last, laying on the ice outside.  Even though we  really had nothing to do with actually catching this fish, I remember feeling very proud of “the big one” we caught that day!

It’s the beginning of a new year and I’m excited about the winter and all that follows it.

“Do you want to build a snowman?”

DECEMBER 2019  

THE MAGIC OF MUSIC 

Whether instrumental or choral, music brings magic to the Christmas season.  The words and the melodies tell the story of God’s son born to Mary in a humble stable in Bethlehem.  For the young, music captures the details of the story and helps them remember the event.  Mary rode on a donkey to Bethlehem.  She and Joseph had to stay in an animal stall since there was no room in the inn.  That’s when Mary delivered her baby and things went from ordinary to exciting.  The shepherds were young boys watching their sheep at night when the angels appeared in the heavens telling them that God’s son had been born in Bethlehem!  They were told to go and see the child.  How amazing!  In our preschool classrooms we often sing our way through the story with songs we have learned, “Mary Rode a Donkey,”  “Mary Had a Baby Boy,” Away in a Manger” and “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.”  We read the book, “Little Drummer Boy”  and listen to the beating of the drum as a child plays for Baby Jesus.  The Christmas story is told and retold as we sing our favorite songs. 

Christmas concerts are on many of our schedules in December.  Colleges, churches and professional groups excite us with their performances of classic Christmas music.  Sung in many languages and played by orchestras, bands and ensembles of many sizes, all in attendance are  swept up in the emotions of the music.  We imagine the events of the story, the surprised shepherds, the wandering Wisemen, the contented animals in the stable, the star and the choir of angels singing of “peace on Earth, good will to men.”  Mothers and fathers alike can imagine the pride and awe Mary and Joseph must have felt seeing this lovely child born of God.  Although the angels weren’t singing the “Alleluia Chorus,” when I hear that powerful song, written in response to the birth of Christ,  it touches my heart,  I feel the magnitude of this event and strong emotions of praise, love and hope!

The power of music is witnessed again in the story of the Christmas Truce of 1914.  With World War l soldiers hunkered down in the trenches on Christmas Eve silence fell over the French countryside.  Quietly, a German soldier began singing “Silent Night.”  Soon others joined in singing in their native tongue, honoring the day Jesus was born for all mankind.  What a remarkable experience in the midst of war.

With the coming of the Christmas season, embrace the music.  It has a story to tell and the power to unify even people of opposing ideologies.  Jesus came for all of us. He loves all of us.  Alleluia!  Praise the Lord!  Merry Christmas!

OCTOBER 2019

I’M STUMPED 

It happened on July 19th.  It was my daughter’s birthday, that’s why I remember the date.  I had had a fun day watching my grandsons and was on the way home when I heard an ominous weather warning for the Balsam Lake, Turtle Lake, Cumberland, Wisconsin area.  Our cabin is right in that area.  Tornados, straight line hurricane force winds, and heavy rains were on their way.  This was a Friday and we often headed for the cabin but we hadn’t this time.   At dinner we decided it would be best to see if there was any significant damage to our property.  The storm had passed and the hour’s drive up there went well, with little sign of damage …..until we got to Turtle Lake.  Turning north off Highway 8 we encountered road after road blocked by fallen trees and electrical poles.  Barns were down and houses were buried beneath trees.  If we could get to our cabin we wondered what we would find.  Meandering through the countryside we eventually got close enough to our cabin to park and walk in along the lakeshore.  The cabin appeared to have minimal damage.  We were thankful.  Then we walked to the back deck and saw nothing but chaos.  Standing at the back door we saw uprooted trees lying across all of the properties in sight.  We couldn’t see our garage or find the driveway.  Sixty to seventy foot trees had fallen covering everything in their way.  Our driveway, a third of a mile long, and the forest surrounding it were impassible.  

The rest of our summer was consumed by storm cleanup!  It wasn’t all bad, however.  Like difficult circumstances can sometimes do, it brought our family together to conquer the issue.  We used loppers, chainsaws, hand saws and wood chippers to attach the debris.  We called in two tree services to help clear the sixty-plus trees down on the property.  Friends came to help and our children’s friends came to help.    We were a team determined to win.  By  Labor Day weekend we felt we could take a break.  The area near the cabin is open and sunny now, very different then it was in the past, but we’ll get used to it.  To take advantage of the new, open space we pounded a piece of plywood on top of a tree stump to make a “forest pingpong table.”  We used chunks of discarded wood from the broken garage joists to make a lawn game similar to Bocce Ball.  We had a great time.  The following weekend we gathered five foot sections of straight tree branches for an all school environmental project at Blake School.  It was then, while hauling branches, that I almost trip on a stump near the driveway.  I  looked down and saw a heart created by the growth rings in the middle of the stump.  I felt a sudden rush of emotion as I looked down at it.  It summarized the summer’s events for me.  The feelings of despair and sadness over the loss of the trees and the damage to property were overcome by the thankfulness and joy of having friends and family around, working as a team to accomplish something worthwhile and to ultimately have lots of fun together.  What could be better than that!  That stump put the exclamation point on the summer’s adventure!  Thank you, God, for reminding us you are always with us, in the hard times as well as the good times.  

MAY 2019

   SHOES

I recently re-read a favorite picture book of mine called, “My Shoes Take Me Where I Want To Go,” by Marianne Richmond.   As she names the various shoes in her young family’s closet our imaginations take us to the various venues where these shoes could be worn, favorite sports, the wild west, the beach, Hollywood, mountain tops, etc.  

That motivated me to look in my own closet.  I’m not much of a shoe guru.  I wear my shoes and boots until they fall apart and I don’t have too many choices. Take my rubber boots for example.  I have had them for at least 10 years.  My daughter took them to Costa Rica when she was in college.  She worked in the rainforest and needed to protect her feet from unacceptable critters.  Recently they have lived at the horse barn where I boarded my horse.  I wear them in the spring, mostly, when the mud in the paddock is deep and stinky.  They aren’t allowed in the house!  The same rule applies to the winter boots I wear out to the farm.  I do have a new addition to my “horsey”  foot attire, my “horse slippers.”  To be clear, these are for my feet not my horse’s feet.  My children gave them to me for Christmas this year.  They are toasty warm, felted wool, made in and shipped from Estonia!  

My black leather shoes are my school shoes.  They’re comfortable and easy to put on.  My feet need comfortable shoe these days so I wear them often!  I try to polish them from time to time to make them look work-place worthy, but the streak of glue, enhanced with glitter still shows if you look closely.  If I notice you looking at my feet I’ll know what you’re looking for.

The navy blue shoes in my closet looked so scuffed up I didn’t wear them often………until recently.  My sister and I were reminiscing about how nice looking our dad kept all the family shoes.  It was his army skills that kept them shiny.  “Spit and polish” he called his method.  He never taught us the technique  and now our shoes look pitiful.  Plus, I had no navy polish to work with, since the shoe repair store has such short hours and I can’t seem to get there on time.  BUT, “what to my wondering eyes should appear,” in my basement pile of  memorabilia from Dad, but his shoe box with bushes, rags and BLUE SHOE CREME, still soft and useable after many years!  My navy shoes look great now.  I’m proud to wear them!  Thanks, Dad!

Lastly, I love my gray and pink running shoes.  I’ve put many miles on them over the years running down the road at the cabin and in the neighborhood.  They feel so comfy I have taken them  as my primary footwear to Ireland, Scandinavia, the Grand Canyon and Canyonlands National Park.  They’re showing a little wear but how can I part with something that has made so many memories with me?  

Shoes, shoes, shoes, they let us be who we want to be and take us where we want to go.  They protect our feet, take us to work,  help us play and they wear us out.  At the end of the day, when I’m tired  and worn,  they take me home, bringing me to the feet of Jesus where I can feel safe and loved like a child climbing into her mother’s lap at the end of the day.  There is no better place to be.  

Where  will your shoes take you today?

UNFINISHED PROJECTS

Like many people, I have some unfinished projects around the house.  I’m a knitter and I have to admit, what I enthusiastically start doesn’t always get finished.  I am conscious of the fact that it’s still in my knitting bag but it is too far down the priority list to get taken out except on long drives to distant destinations.  It’s a dark cloud hanging over my head.  Maybe that’s why an article written by a therapist who took out her unfinished knitting project and discovered it had therapeutic benefits, caught my eye.  How could that be?  The therapist invited others, who also had unfinished projects, to join her as she knit.  That way they could hold each other accountable for finishing the items.  What she discovered was remarkable.  Each person in the group began to share various touching stories from their lives as it related to the project in their hands.  They talked about their children who once would have fit the sweater they were knitting or the special person who taught them the skill but who is no longer with them.  On and on the stories went.  They became something of a support group for each  other over time.  I’m assuming their projects eventually got finished but that became secondary to the friendships that developed.

With that in mind, I took out my mittens that I have been working  on, intermittently, for many years.  In the meantime I have knit many other articles, hats, baby blankets, scarves, Christmas stockings, felted purses and pillow covers.  I just can’t seem to finish the blue and green mittens.  I bought the yarn in Bozeman, Montana when I was on a ski trip.  My friend, Linda, and I both love to knit so over the 17 years we went to Big Sky we always took a day out to shop for yarn (and other things.) Those are sweet memories!  When I’m not working on the mittens I keep my knitting bag in a wooden storage box that my dad made when he was in high school.  He said his mom used to keep old socks that needed darning in that box.  On the wall above it is a cross stitch piece made by a dear friend of our family, Lorraine.  Lorraine was like a second mom to me and her daughter, Bonnie, is still  one of my treasured friends.  Bonnie recently found the cross stitch project, unfinished, among her mother’s boxes of saved  treasures. The directions were stored with it so Bonnie bought matching embroidery thread and finished the hanging, sending it to me for my birthday.  What wonderful memories that brought back for both of us!  

I can feel the magic working for Linda, Bonnie and me as we use our unfinished projects to instigate discussions about our past.  One story leads to another and another.  The unfinished projects that once felt like such a burden helped us look back and appreciate  many of our life experiences.  We can see how God has walked with us all the way.  Next I plan to get out my mom’s unfinished weaving project.  I wonder what stories God has in store for me next?  I can’t wait to see!

FEBRUARY 2019

What’s For Dinner?

February………the shepherds are back in their fields, the wisemen have gone home, the Christmas decorations are put away.  Now it is time for the Christmas work to begin, sharing faith, hope and love with family, friends and community.   My birthday falls just before Christmas and I received a wonderful book from a friend.  “Table Life, Savoring the Hospitality of Jesus in Your Home,” by Joanne Thompson opened my eyes to the wonderful gift of hospitality as a way of doing Jesus’ work in the world around us.  I love the fact that, as Joanne says, we don’t have to be fabulous cooks or have fancy houses to reach out to others inviting them into our homes to sit at the table with us and Jesus.  Looking at Jesus’ life in the New Testament we see many examples of Jesus taking time to quietly share a meal with others.  Even as a young child, Jesus needed to be fed as all of our children do.  There was always a blessing and a spirit of gratitude to God for providing food.  There was conversation and listening and a feeling of love present at the table.   

One of the first chapters in the book caught my attention.  The chapter was titled, “Thanks for Supper, Mom.”  It addresses our current cultural tendencies to let our busy schedules at work and school become more important than taking time for the family to have dinner together at the end of the day.  When it does happen we often find ourselves checking our phones or watching TV.  We’re all guilty at times.  

Finding time to sit down together for dinner is a gift we need to give our children.  This is a time when they hear our voices thanking God for his gift of food and family.  They learn a attitude of gratitude that they can take with them the rest of the week.  When we look our children in the eyes and focus our attention on them they see our love for them and recognize our faith in Jesus to show us how to live.

    Okay, I have four children and I remember some chaos at the table when they were young.  It’s not always easy to make dinner a time that children look forward to.  Joanne Thompson makes some suggestions.  All of you have young children and this is an opportunity to  establish a family dinner ritual.  That includes involving your children and your spouse in the meal preparation.  Good conversation happens when the table is being set or the carrots are being peeled.  Let them all have some skin in the game.  Be creative by using “special” dishes on occasion or lighting candles.  Mix up the menu.  Try serving a fruit dessert first and then the main dish.  Crazy?  Maybe not once in awhile.  When you talk to your children, avoid general questions like, “What did you do today?”  Be more specific by asking, “Who did you play with today?”  “Did you like the story, “The Three Bears?”   (We post the preschool activities of the day next to the classroom door to help you out with this.)  Making dinner pleasant will make it a time your children will look forward to each day, now and when they are grown up.

Having regular family meals has been shown to have a positive affect on your child’s development cognitively, emotionally, socially, physically and spiritually.  I’m thankful for the positive example my parents set for me and my siblings.  I hope I have done the same for my children and grandchildren.  Blessings on you and your family dinner rituals as your children grow and learn to join you and Jesus at the table.

A  Dr. Seuss Day

After the holidays does your house look like Thing One and Thing Two have paid you a visit?  After all the entertaining do you wish you could hire someone to take down the tree, put the decorations away, remove the  chocolate from the table cloth and suck the glitter out of the carpet?  You’re not alone!  Thank goodness we live in the northern hemisphere!  The holiday season is followed by the month of January and we have many cold, snowy days to pick up the house. 

I admit that I remember running wild with the cousins at the holiday gatherings, hiding in the closets, running around the basement, creating puppet shows for the aunts and uncles.  Sure, lingonberries spilled on the table cloth but we didn’t like them anyway.  Gifts were unwrapped and the paper and ribbons adorned the room.  It was great!  The grownups finally kicked us out of the house.  They told us to go sledding or skating for awhile to get the wiggles out.  That worked for the time being but the pile of snow pants, boots, mittens, hats and jackets that were left on the floor in addition to the melting snow was a bit overwhelming.  Some years the adults bundled us up and took us downtown Minneapolis to see the magical windows in the Dayton’s department store.  I’m dating myself I guess!  It got us out of the house so the meal could be made or cleaned up, whichever the case may be.  Did I mention there were 21 cousins in all?  It was a busy place, but we loved every minute.

Because of these memories, I can’t complain about the mess left after the holidays.  It’s proof that we had a good time.  Thing One and Thing Two did a number on the house, as always, but I found hope in Dr. Seuss’s book, “The Cat in the Hat Comes Back.”  Perhaps you’re read it.  

When “Sally and I”  were left at home to shovel the walk, Cat in the Hat showed up, entered their house and proceeded to eat cake in the bathtub, leaving a red ring in the tub.  He wiped it up with mother’s white dress, then wiped red on the wall, then on Father’s $10 shoes, and on and on it goes!  You get the picture.  Eventually guilt overcomes Cat in the Hat and he brings in friends to help clean up the mess.  One by one he brings out Little Cats A, B, C, D, E, F, ………..all the way up to Little Cats X and Y.  Still there is a mess!  The red is now outside on the snow.  Enter Little Cat Z with something called Voom.

Now, don’t ask me what Voom is.

I never will know.

But, boy!  Let me tell you

It DOES clean up the snow! 

There you have it!  Forget what you heard on social media.  Ignore the adds on TV.  Get Voom by Dr. Suess and all your cleaning problems will be solved.  That’s my advice for 2019.

Happy New Year!

Receiving

December 2018

Even before the jack-o-lanterns were blown out and the Halloween candy was put on sale, the Christmas retail wars began.  Free shipping and deep discounts became available  immediately.  In some stores, Black Friday sales were offered before the end of October.  Yikes!  

Christmas is all about giving!  It’s our opportunity to tell family and friends we love and appreciate them by the giving of a gift.  Plus, admit it, there is a certain amount of pride a person feels in being able to snag a real bargain  during this frenzied shopping season.  I’m sure it’s good for the economy, too, and we need to be supportive of that, right?  Off we go, cutting coupons, searching online to compare prices, waiting in long lines for deep discounts at Walmart or Target or Costco.  Maybe you’re a DYI person who finds yourself knitting, quilting, sewing or baking up a storm at this time of year.  Good for you!

Often times I find myself annoyed by this early emphasis on Christmas shopping.  It makes me feel like I’m already “behind” on my plans and responsibilities.  Just let me eat turkey and count my blessings first.  Then I can begin to think about what the best Christmas gift might be.  

Maybe I need to go back to the original  reason for Christmas to discover the best gift. Christmas is about the birth of Jesus, the Son of God. Maybe I need to look for the best gift ideas in the Bible as opposed to the catalogues.  Jesus’ birth is the first Gift of Christmas.  He is God’s gift to us showing us how much he loves us.  We did nothing to earn this gift.  It is truly an offering from God which he hopes we will humbly accept.  We Minnesotans are not always good at accepting gifts.  We feel self-conscious or undeserving.  We might push it away or give it back, not wanting  to appear needy or greedy.  God’s gift of love is one he wants us to embrace, allowing it to change the way we live.  It will overflow in our hearts, spilling out to others in our  lives.  

Does that mean I should skip shopping?  I love the spirit of giving.  Can I get it done early, like the retail stores are encouraging me to do, leaving December for a focus on Jesus?  I want to visit Bethlehem with the shepherds to see the  baby in the manger, recognizing him as God’s gift of love and accepting that gift in my heart.  To experience the meaning of Christmas is to  learn the importance of graciously receiving God’s love.  This year I want to make Christmas a time of humbly receiving not a time of pride in what I’m giving.  We all know the cliché, “It’s better to give than to receive.”  Maybe we need to turn it around for Christmas.  Embrace that baby Jesus and let him grow in your heart all year!  

Uff Da!

Ever since I was a young girl I looked forward to going to Sweden.  My beloved grandfather, Erick Nordeen,  came from Sweden in the early nineteen hundreds at age 19.   My paternal great grandparents, Alex and Anna Bjorklund, emigrated from Sweden to a farm near Princeton in the 1880s.  Although there was never much talk about it, I always wondered why my ancestors left their country and members of their family to come here.  Grandpa Nordeen knew he would never return to his homeland.  It was an expensive, long and difficult journey.  He had done it once and that was enough.  This was his home now.  He did, however, make a few comments about “home” on occasion.  If we took him to Duluth to enjoy the scenery along the North Shore or drove through rural farmlands he would quietly nod his head and say, “Just like home.  Just like home.”

Now it was my turn to travel across the ocean to Scandinavia.  My family and I visited the mountains and fjords of Norway and the beautiful city of Copenhagen.  Touring Sweden was the most meaningful for me.  Before leaving for our trip I tried to discover why so many Swedish families left home for a land they knew little about.  My grandparents never talked about their struggles.  I read “The Emigrants”  by Wilhelm  Moberg and joined ancestry.com to learn more about my family.  Farms in Sweden had become so small, as they divided them again and again to hand them down to family members, that a family could not survive on them any longer.  The church of Sweden was so controlling  that individuals were ex-communicated  for any differing opinions.  Perhaps these were part of the decision to leave.  America offered a better chance for  happiness and Minnesota felt like home.  It was sad to leave family.  The travel and transition was difficult.  In spite of it all, they were thankful to be here.

Sweden was lovely.  The small farms were well kept, dotted with red barns and red farm houses.  The rolling hills were planted with grains and hay mixtures that we would recognize in our own farm fields.  Rocky outcroppings left by the glaciers thousands of years ago and lakes, surrounded by pines and birch, dotted the countryside.  Stockholm  and the archipelago on it’s eastern edge were picturesque.  It reminded me of Duluth and Lake Superior.  Now, here I was in Sweden, wanting to say, as my grandfather did in Minnesota, “Just like home.  Just like home.”  

This Thanksgiving, as I reflect on the Pilgrims’ emigration to America, I will have a new appreciation for the courage of these people who left the known and came to the unknown and for the depth of thankfulness for their new life here.  After surviving the first year in America, with the help of the Native Americans, they were not rich and they did not live in fancy houses.  They were in a difficult situation but they were thankful.  We’re blessed to have a national day that celebrates the importance of being thankful.  Blessings to you as you celebrate this year!  

SUMMER OPPORTUNITIES

There is so much to do and so little time!  That’s how we feel at the end of our school year.  At Preschool we always go out with a BANG!  Half of our students will be graduating from our school and be off to their various school districts for kindergarten.  We will miss them but we know they are well prepared for the next step.  We will celebrate that progress plus the accomplishments of our younger students in the month of May.  During our last month of school  we will have many visitors including Paxton Schmidt’s dad, Philip, who will demonstrate throwing pots (He is a potter.  Had you worried didn’t I?) and teach the four year olds how to create their own pots with real potter’s clay.  The New Brighton Police and Fire Fighters will visit all of our classes this month as will Julie Philbrook the Safety Educator from Hennepin County Medical Center.  

  We like to get out a bit in the spring.  Our four year olds will be spending a morning at Silverwood Park  where the staff there will provide a program about birds and print  making.  The three year olds will be taking a school bus for a morning at Como Park Zoo.  The animals are exciting to see but the real thrill is the ride on the bus!  

Knowing that spring is bound to show up soon, our students have been planting seeds and making plans to get out in our Preschool Garden.  Our students plant the garden each spring to grow food for the Ralph Reeder Food Shelf.  Our Summer Session class and volunteer families care for the garden all summer, watering and pulling weeds.  In the fall broccoli, carrots, potatoes, beets and zucchini  are harvested by our students and donated to the food shelf.  Planting and caring for our garden is one way we can give back to our community!  

      SUMMER SESSION

We say good-bye to our school year students in May but that leads us to the opening of our Summer Session.  We want to keep the learning going and the fun happening as long as possible!  Your 3-4-5 year olds can join us on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings from 9:00-11:30, June 12 through July 19 for science, gardening, outdoor games, stories, music, a bike rodeo and much more.  During Salem’s VBS week we will join in some of the exciting activities planned for all the Bible School kids!  We don’t want to miss out on anything. ( We will not meet the week of the 4th of July.)  The cost of this program is $237 for five weeks of fun.  To register email Pam Carlson, pam@salemcovpreschool.com.  We would love to have you join us!

As you stroll through the church yard this summer make sure to check out our garden and perhaps snip a small bouquet of flowers to take home!

APRIL2018

A BUCKET LIST VACATION

Do you have a bucket list of places you would like to go before you’re too old to go anymore?  Sweden has always been on my list, probably because my maternal grandfather immigrated from there when he was 19.  I knew him well and loved him dearly.  We lived above him and Grandma in a duplex until I was two.  They babysat my siblings and me often as we grew older.  Although Grandpa often said the scenery along the North Shore was “just like home” he never talked about his life before coming to the United States.  I never thought to ask.  He died when I was in junior high. 

All my grandparents, on both sides of the family, are from Sweden, most of them second generation.  At Christmas my husband and I received the DNA testing from Ancestry as a gift from our children.  We were excited about this because we have decided to go to Sweden this summer.  So, we spit in the tube provided and mailed it off.  I did notice there  was a disclaimer on the web site reminding everyone that we need to be prepared to possibly find out connections we didn’t want to know about.  Hummmm.  My results were not surprising, mostly Scandinavian with a touch of Finnish/Russian (what?) and a tiny sprinkle of northern European.  Since then I’ve been filling in my family tree on-line.  As I have been looking at the regions  of Sweden most of the family came from I have begun wondering why they left and how they chose Minnesota for their new home.  Why didn’t I ask my Grandpa all these questions?  Did he know he would never go back to Sweden or see his family members left behind?  During the 1800s there were millions of Swedes who left Sweden for America.  Many of them came to Minnesota to farm.  That is what they knew how to do and land was available.  The Swedes created Swedish communities where they were comfortable.  They could speak their native tongue to others as they learned English.  They could comfortably share their Swedish customs with their neighbors.   

Immigrating might have been easier in the rural communities than in the Minneapolis and St. Paul area.  In the city the Swedes looked like most other light skinned  Europeans but when they started saying “Uff dah” or “You betcha”  they might have stood out from the rest.  Or maybe it was the herring and lutefisk that made them unusual.  On a more serious note, life was not easy for these new immigrants who were looking for a better life for themselves and their children.

Not knowing the stories that brought my family members to the Wyanett/Karmel area and to Minneapolis I have turned to Vilhelm Moberg’s book, “The Emigrants,” for some possible answers.  This is the story of the southern Swedes who emigrated to Minnesota in the 1800s.  Although I haven’t finished the book which is the first of a trilogy, it is clear that life was extremely difficult for these people in Sweden and there didn’t seem to be any hope of life getting easier in the future.   Saying good-bye to family and friends and heading off on a long unknown voyage to a strange country was scary.  These people were courageous!  I try to put myself in their situation and I can’t imagine doing what they had the courage to do!

There has been so much talk about immigrants and their families in the news lately.  I am not one to say how you should feel toward them and the predicament they are in.  However, I find myself understanding them more then before.  I feel good about the fact that we have a country others see as a safe and potentially prosperous place for them to live and raise a family.  I understand that this is a courageous thing for them to do.  Their journey becomes a more personal journey for me now that I have looked into my grandparents lives.  Uff dah!  This is complex!  Lord, give us wisdom and help us understand!

                                                       

MARCH 2018

SAYING GOODBYE

Many of you who have been at Salem for a few years may know that I am a horse person.  I had a horse, Indy, who was a big part of my life outside of school.  I rode him and drove him hitched to wagons and sleighs.  He was a big Shire but he was gentle and trustworthy.  On February 2nd I had to put my buddy down because of a sudden intestinal emergency.  Standing in the equine clinic, looking into his big brown eyes and hearing the vet say that his kidneys were failing and his heart was being affected made my heart sink.  There were really no choices that would reverse this condition.  He was dying.  I had to make the decision to put him down.  I stayed with Indy until the end so he would not be alone with strangers.  I said goodbye and took a snip of mane to keep in a shadow box with his picture.  When I left the clinic I felt crushed and strangely isolated.  He was my only horse and now he was gone.  Was I going to loose my connection to all horse activities?  Would I be able to contribute to the horse and carriage club I belonged to?  Would I be able to keep in touch with my equine friends and the other horses I have helped train and drive?  I felt alone.

Shortly after I lost my big buddy my friend  from the farm where I boarded Indy recognized my dilemma.  She kindly said she felt like I had become part of their family and I should come out as often as I wanted to and continue to work with the other Shires they owned.  They would continue to need help bringing the horses to club events.  There would be times when they needed “horse sitters” if they wanted to travel.  I began to feel a sense of relief.  I was   not alone.  Perhaps I still had a purpose in the equine world.

Not meaning to sound trite, but this experience, happening at the beginning of Lent, has given me a new perspective on how Jesus’s friends and family may have felt after his crucifixion.  This person that meant everything to them and gave purpose and meaning to their lives was suddenly dying before their eyes and there was nothing they could do to reverse it.  They must have felt isolated.  The focus of their lives was gone.  What would they do now?

When God closes a door he opens a window!  Alleluia!  Christ was raised from the dead and He appeared to his disciples to remind them that they continued to have a purpose in this world.  He was sending them out to spread the Word of God to all the world and they would not go out alone.  Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to walk with them.  Once again they had purpose and direction in their lives.  What a wonderful feeling.  

We are all part of God’s family.  Lent is a time for us to feel sorrowful as we recall Jesus’ death.  My recent experience has reminded me of how deep this emotion can be.  In contrast, we will come to the resurrection on Easter morning experiencing true joy as we witness Jesus, raised from the dead, giving us hope and purpose for our lives.  We are not alone. Jesus wants us to join with others in witnessing to the love of God throughout the world.  Thank you, God, for Easter!

SEEING IS BELIEVING

Knowing that I am a preschool teacher it is no surprise that I love picture books.  

While others are reading historical novels, theology or science fiction I am enjoying the rhyming words, fantasy and illustrations found in short stories by authors such as Jan Brett, Mary Ann Richmond and Ezra Jack Keats.  While the text is simple, some would say very basic, the details are often in the illustrations for the reader to discover on his own.  In an adult book one can skim the pages and come away with the gist of the story.  If you read a picture book you must s-l-o-w down and scan the illustrations for the details of the story.  Jan Brett’s book, “The Mitten” is a good example.  This is a story about a boy, Nicki, whose grandmother reluctantly knit him a pair of white mittens.  She feared that if Nicki dropped one of his mittens he would not find it in the snow.  Sure enough, Nicki unknowingly did drop one of his mittens in the snow.  One by one, various forest animals found the mitten and crawled in to stay warm.  Although the text does not tell us, as the pages of the story are turned the artwork shows us Nicki dropping the mitten, playing in the snow with only one mitten and finally discovering he is missing one mitten.  Unknown to Nicki, eight animals crawled into the mitten as it laid in the snow, stretching it to many times it’s original size.  The last visitor, a mouse, caused the bear to sneeze and all the animals exploded out of the mitten which then flew into the air.  Only in the pictures do we see the animals sprawled out on the forest floor.  At last we see Nicki spying his mitten, grabbing it and running home to show grandmother that he still has his mittens.   The last page of the story is wordless.  We see grandmother holding the mittens, one small and one very large, in her hand with a questioning look on her face.  Nicki is sitting by the fire with his back to grandmother.  The reader is left wondering if either of them ever learned of the animal adventure in the forest.

Looking for the details …….that is something we can do from the moment we wake each day until the time we fall in bed at night.  When our feet touch the floor and we greet the day we should be awake to the world around us.  Although the frustrations and difficulties we encounter daily can dominate our thoughts we can see God’s constant presence as we look for the positive details around us.  That snow is heavy to shovel but the beauty of the snowflake is amazing.  A colleague’s  comment is degrading but we know we are one of God’s children, loved just as we are.  When a smile comes our way, when we taste hot coffee in the morning,  when a cardinal comes to the feeder or a squirrel performs a gymnastic feat to get to that same feeder we know God is there wanting us to smile and see Him in our day.  He loves us!  Seeing is believing.  Look for signs of his love all day and teach your children to look.  Believe in God’s love.  It is real! .  When we are quiet and watching, God finds an opportunity to speak to us or point out the answers to our prayers.  

A couple years ago I was challenged by a Face Book friend to name three blessings at the end of each day for a week. What a blessing it was to end each day looking back at all the positive events of the day.  God was present in my day, whether I looked for signs of it or not.  It was up to me to see the details and thank him for his love.  I challenge you to end your day naming at least three blessings.  It will help you see your day in a different, more positive way.