Barely Giving

Four dozen persimmon cookies –all to share with folks who visited our church for the Liturgical Arts Festival. (The festival was amazing and the cookies quite tasty…)

Chocolate chip cupcakes–happily handed out to many small and sweet hands–just because we need to keep practice sharing.

A full batch of rosemary rolls, none shared, all gobbled.

So… the lemon cake helped heal the no-good, very bad cold, but believe me when I say I couldn’t find anything to help heal the internal bleeding that kept me bedside this last week. Or the two massive rejection letters that came my way. Or the cold that pounced on top of everything.  Oh, my.  Things do tend to come my way in waves. Gets all of the ick out of the way at the same time, I suppose.

So, no need to spread the germs and tell you any of the gory details. Just know that right now I’m armed with antibiotics and tissues, and the knowledge that it’s my choice whether I smile or frown, simper or simply get on with it.

I’m hoping next week might mean a new spate of baking. But even if it doesn’t, I’m still thankful for oh, so many things. Finches still darting from fig tree to fountain, a little boy who loves being homeschooled even when I’m in my PJs, a husband who hunts and gathers cheesecakes when all is dismal, and laughter in this little house of ours despite trials and a growing basket of laundry.

Lastly, an encouragement to all of you to continue to pray for Nataliya. She went back into surgery just this morning with new complications. May God heal her, and bless her, and bless us all. May we find a way to give and love and laugh even in the middle of whatever this lovely autumn air might bring…

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A Little Lemon

It had been three days of a bad cold. My daughter and I were curled on opposite ends of the green couch, complaining and commiserating.

You know, lemon cake might help, I said.

Her eyes brightened. She stopped talking about her  biology class where everything went wrong. She even half-way sat up.

Really lemony lemon cake. Super sour.

That did it. She turned on the music, I hefted my way into the kitchen, she pulled out the ingredients, and I set to mixing.

Once I started to smell the lemon filling the kitchen I knew this was a treat to share–with someone else who needed a lemony cure. I tried to think of others who were suffering with the same nasty, horrible, no-good cold, but everyone I could think of was (thankfully!) healthy. Then, I remembered… My heart sunk. I knew the lemon cake would only be a token gift, but my heart told me not to worry that the giving would be small.

A young mom in our church is strangely, seriously ill. The doctors are at a loss. Natalyia’s liver shut down, and in just one week she went from living a normal life to the very doorstep of leaving. People have rallied, her mom has returned from the Ukraine, and friends are caring for her young son. On Saturday I took the family who is caring for the young boy the lemon cake, and yesterday another young boy had a tragic car accident and the family donated his liver to Nataliya. We are waiting to see how her body reacts to the transplant. Please think of them all, pray for them all, and if you happen to be healthy at the moment, maybe you, too, can give a little something to someone who is on the other side of well.

Meanwhile, I’m on the mend, and seeing the bright, sweet lemony side of things before me. Especially hopeful for Nataliya.

Especially hopeful for Nataliya.