Yes, it’s that time of year again: the Springtime at Ananda Tulip Festival is officially underway!
Visit the Crystal Hermitage Gardens website for information, then come and immerse yourself in beauty.
Tulips and more tulips
Corner turned
There are times when an appropriate medication is the only way to go.
Today I’m feeling extremely grateful for the Rx that seems to have finally ended my recent malady. I’ve had my first completely “normal” day in almost a week; what a relief!
I’ll still follow the doctor’s recommendation to get some bloodwork done, mainly as a precautionary measure. But my energy is back and I feel confident that I’ve turned the corner.
Eclipse happenings
The eclipse happened, but Ramesha and I pretty much missed it because we were on the road all day, from 9:15 to 6:00.
We had a variety of errands and medical appointments that took us from Grass Valley to Auburn then all around Grass Valley once again. I’m grateful for the fact that we actually accomplished a whole lot, thanks to grace and serendipity.
But we just didn’t have the bandwidth to pay close attention to the eclipse as well. Listening to the Gyatri mantra while we drove around was the best we could do.
More Easter joy
As happens every year, it takes some time after the Oratorio to get caught up on things. So, though some friends sent me a beautiful e-card for Easter, I didn’t actually see it until almost a week later.
That ended up being kind of a blessing, because now that I wasn’t in the midst of so much busyness, I was able to really take in the inspiration. Also, the music used in the e-card is a hymn that I grew up with, which was used in such a sensitive and uplifted manner that it deeply touched me and opened up my heart.
I wanted to embed the e-card in order to share with you as a video, but it wasn’t possible on my blog platform. However, you can click here to view the card instead.
As it was an instrumental version of the hymn, I wanted to be reminded of how the lyrics went, so I did a quick Google search.
Well, I was delighted to discover that the hymn “All creatures of our God and King”, is an adaption of St. Francis of Assisi’s poem “Canticle of the Sun” — also known as “Canticle of the Creatures”. The words of the poem were translated to English by William Draper, who then paraphrased the poem and set it to music in the early 1900’s.
No wonder I’ve always loved it so much!
Here’s a beautiful choir rendition of the hymn, although they sing only four of the seven verses. Check out the lyrics below to see the verses about flowing water, mother earth, and gentle death. So powerful.
LYRICS:
- All creatures of our God and king
Lift up your voice and with us sing,
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Thou burning sun with golden beam,
Thou silver moon with softer gleam!
Refrain
O praise Him! O praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
- Thou rushing wind that art so strong
Ye clouds that sail in Heaven along,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Thou rising morn, in praise rejoice,
Ye lights of evening, find a voice! [Refrain] - Thou flowing water, pure and clear,
Make music for thy Lord to hear,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Thou fire so masterful and bright,
That givest man both warmth and light. [Refrain] - Dear mother earth, who day by day
Unfoldest blessings on our way,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
The flowers and fruits that in thee grow,
Let them His glory also show. [Refrain] - And all ye men of tender heart,
Forgiving others, take your part,
O sing ye! Alleluia!
Ye who long pain and sorrow bear,
Praise God and on Him cast your care! [Refrain] - And thou most kind and gentle death,
Waiting to hush our latest breath,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Thou leadest home the child of God,
And Christ our Lord the way hath trod. [Refrain] - Let all things their creator bless,
And worship Him in humbleness,
O praise Him! Alleluia!
Praise, praise the Father, praise the Son,
And praise the Spirit, Three in One! [Refrain]
TMI warning
This week I discovered that I had no real understanding of diarrhea.
I assumed that I had encountered it before, but no. Or at least, if I did it was so many decades ago that I have absolutely no recollection.
It’s a strange malady, in that it hardly seems like a malady and yet it manages to rather completely disrupt one’s life.
I’m ready to be done with it.
Travel time again
We leave for Lugano in ten days. I can hardly wrap my mind around the fact that our departure date is almost here.
But I really must get my mind in gear so I can start addressing the practical realities of international travel.
Actually, I deserve some credit — this afternoon I finally got myself to order some key items that might not have arrived in time otherwise.
It’s a start!
Coping with the unexpected
Today I had a noon time medical appointment in Grass Valley, followed by a mid-afternoon appointment in Auburn. This was perfect, as it allowed me to set up a lunch date with my Dad and two of my siblings.
Unfortunately, my body took exception to something I ate yesterday, throwing my system off and making last night and this morning more than a little uncomfortable.
My energy was pretty zapped but I still got it together to drive to my appointments. So far, so good…except that it decided to rain and then snow throughout the whole drive. Thank goodness it didn’t accumulate much, so the roads remained clear!
Needless to say, I was pretty much wiped out by the time I got home.
Getting back in gear
I feel like I actually accomplished a lot today — for the first time since the Oratorio! 💪
But now it’s late and tomorrow’s another early day, so…
Dinner time
I’ve been craving spaghetti lately. Who knows why?
All I know is it’s time to pack up, shut down the computer, and start boiling water.
A bit of a backslide
Encountering the same old pattern of making progress on establishing positive new routines/behaviors only to sabotage that progress with a get-to-bed-super-late night.
Sigh.