Valerie – Page 43 – Valerie's Voice

Cards, cards and more cards

In the past couple of months I have had two friends lose their husbands. I’m sorry for their loss. It is so incredibly sad.

One of the friends asked for memories to be sent to her, of her late husband, who was not very old. She wanted to compile a booklet for her young grandchildren to remember Grandpa. I thought it was a wonderful idea. It will be a very special gift to her, and her children and grandchildren, now and in the future.

Although I was 20 years old at the time when my dad died (young), I do not have a memory book about him, but I sure wish I did.

So I got the idea to go and look over the cards my mom received in 1974 when he passed away. I thought I had them, but I guess I don’t. I asked my brother and he doesn’t have them either. I do have cards from when Gary’s mother, father and brother passed, and when my mom passed. I read through them the other day. It was a special time of remembering people, however most cards offered loving condolences but few memories.

As I looked around the different places I might have stored the cards from my dad’s passing I found so many other cards I’ve kept over the years. I asked one friend what I should do with them and she said, “toss them!” I think I might…it’s hard…but I’m not sure of alternatives…

One of two boxes of cards from family and friends.

One box I call “love notes” – special cards people have sent to encourage me or thank me. One box is cards Gary and I have given each other over the years…that one I will keep for sure. Another box is sympathy cards, one box is wedding invitations over the years (fun to look at!) and two boxes are of random cards from family and friends, including some birthday cards…and that’s a whole other category.

A treasure chest of wedding invitations.

So, I’ll continue to figure out what to do: how to organize the ones I keep, and decide which ones to toss. And I’ll be asking others… what do they do?

Happy Valentine’s Day

How exquisite is your love, O God!
You are a fountain of cascading light.
Psalm 36:7&9 (The Message)

Rime Ice

Over the weekend we got 8-10″ of fresh snow. It was a nice clean blanket covering the ground, although a lot of plowing had to be done.

Then, the morning after, came rime ice (a new term for me…it’s thicker than a hoar frost) covering every single branch with ice crystals. It was breathtaking!

I knew pictures would not do it justice but I couldn’t stop myself from taking a few anyways…

Into the woods, a favorite spot of mine in Riverbend Nature Center.

The trees were like flocked Christmas trees, along the roadway.

Straight River flowing through Riverbend Nature Center.

Rime Ice – a new term for me – it’s thicker than hoar frost.

Psalm 148: 7-9

Praise the Lord from the earth,
    you great sea creatures and all ocean depths,
lightning and hail, snow and clouds,
    stormy winds that do his bidding,
you mountains and all hills,
    fruit trees and all cedars…

Another Indoor Plant Story

Once upon a time there was a young man and a young woman who met and fell in love. A few months after they met the young man was transferred out of state with his job. He offered his dieffenbachia plant to the young maiden, which she kept, and it continued to grow.

The tall plant on the left – the dieffenbachia plant – is over 40 years old (1976).

Their long distance relationship continued to grow and they got married. But his job took both of them to another state so she left the dieffenbachia behind with her mother to care for it. Her mother was very good with houseplants. And it continued to grow. It eventually reached the ceiling, so her mother cut a branch and rooted it and it started to grow again.

Two years later the couple moved back to Minnesota and once again took the dieffenbachia back into their care. It continued to grow and when it reached a certain height they cut it back and it continued to grow. The young family grew too…the couple raised two sons and lived in Burnsville for fourteen years. The dieffenbachia grew right along with the family.

Then the family moved to Northfield and they took the plant with them…and it continued to grow. After many years the middle-aged woman decided she didn’t have room for the plant any longer, so she brought it to her church and placed it in the fellowship hall between two large windows. Some mystery person watered it and tended to it and it continued to grow.

And someone has watered the dieffenbachia and cared for it for many, many years now and it continues to grow (the couple has attended this church in Northfield for 25 years, the plant has been in the church about 10 years, or more). The plant has been moved to various spots around the church building but it continues to grow.

Nobody at church knows the story behind this beautiful, faithful, dieffenbachia plant that continues to grow and bloom where it is planted… a lesson for us all.

Amen.

My Hibiscus

I have written previously about my dear hibiscus plant. I have nurtured it for many, many years. My hibiscus loved warm temperatures and in the summertime it would happily sit on our deck and bloom and grow and bloom some more, all summer long.

And, as much as I don’t like indoor plants I brought in my hibiscus each winter. Often times I’d threaten to put it in the compost and then it would start blooming or showing- off so I would tend to it another winter.

My hibiscus also had an advocate… my friend Jayne always talked me into giving the hibiscus one more chance when I was going to toss it out. My hibiscus’ life was lengthened many years because of her!

Good-bye hibiscus. It’s sad to see you go.

My hibiscus had tiny specks (mites) on the leaves, last winter and again this winter. I didn’t want the mites to get on my other indoor plants. Also, the branches of the hibiscus were old and gnarly and woody, so I decided it was time to say good-bye and set my hibiscus in the garage.

As much as I love flowers and gardens and nature, I don’t like to tend to indoor plants so much. But I have four (now). One is the Christmas cactus; from a parent plant that is generations old I’m told.

Another is a palm plant that will occupy the hibiscus spot in our home during winter and will be put outside in summer. The palm plant was from an arrangement we received when Gary’s mother passed away several years ago.

The palm plant moved into new winter home, former location of my hibiscus.

The other two plants are hardy pothos plants I bought for pops of greenery in our house.

Although I think it was the right time, it was a very hard decision to say good-bye to my hibiscus.

Robins in Winter

As I looked through my kitchen window over the weekend I noticed a flutter of bird activity on our crabapple tree out front. On closer look I noticed the birds were robins. I was able to capture a photo of two as several flitted in and out of the tree, enjoying the berries still hanging on the branches. Robins and winter…I’d fly south if I were them.

Skiing By Candlelight

Nerstrand-Big Woods State Park held their annual Candlelight Ski/Snowshoe/Walk over the weekend. We enjoy this event. This year all conditions were just right for cross-country skiing…the trail was well-groomed, the temperatures were above average, and there was no wind.

The beautiful twilight when we started skiing.

It was a delight to be out there in the woods, lit by luminaries. It was calm and peaceful which made for an enchanting evening.

On of the larger luminaries, made of ice. A lot of the lights on the trails were white plastic buckets illuminated with candles, interspersed with balloon ice luminaries and big bucket luminaries. This event requires a lot of volunteers. I’m grateful for the people who set this up for others to enjoy.

There were a lot of visitors to the park…walking, snowshoeing and skiing. Thankfully out on the ski trail it was not crowded.

As it grew darker, sometimes it was hard to see the track in front of us between luminaries, which made it dicey at times. We chose to not use headlamps. The moon was shining through the trees, casting shadows.

Keeping skis in the track. My flash went off when I took this photo.

This was our second time out skiing that day…we skied at Riverbend Nature Center in the morning and that, too, was beautiful. It also gave us reason to believe skiing conditions would be favorable to venture out again in the evening for the much anticipated Candlelight Ski.

Skiing along the Straight River at Riverbend Nature Center.

A Visitor

This little guy greeted us the other day when we drove into our garage. We watched him make his way to the opened garage door and fly away. I’m sure he was anxiously waiting for us to come home.

A Sunday Afternoon Drive

We took a Sunday afternoon drive recently, and headed down a gravel road we had never been on, about three miles from our house. The corner of this intersection is familiar to us because we usually turn right on asphalt to a friend’s house. On the corner sits an antique truck, which is always full of flowers in the summer or greenery in winter.

Continuing straight through this intersection the pavement turns to gravel and on this gravel road we had a fun afternoon of discovering new territory to us.

An interesting old dilapidated building.

Right away we noticed a dilapidated building that must have been really spectacular in it’s day. At first we thought it was a huge barn…but unlike any barn we’ve ever seen. It sits far off the road so it was hard to get a good look. I would have loved to get up close; to walk around and to take photos. It had a gabled roof on the main structure with two wings sections on each side making it look massive and impressive, even in the bad shape it is in. We wondered about the stories it could tell. It was on farm property.

Next door, a ways down the road, was a unique dome house. In contrast to the old building, this modern house stood out. Dome houses are unusual dwellings and you don’t see them very often. Our friends lived in one for years, in a different part of town.

Then we came upon a sign “Former site of Fagen”. I was very surprised to see this marker reminding us of a former town, with a history, and it being within five miles of where we lived. Yet, I had never heard of it. I wondered if the farm with the old building considered the former town of Fagen it’s home address?

Driving further we found what my husband was searching for…an old mill. He had ridden by this old mill on his bicycle one summer but couldn’t quite remember how to get there, so we meandered the roads until we found it.

The eagle taking off when we opened the truck door.

We noticed an eagle perched in the treetop as we pulled over to the side of the road to park, but then it flew away as we got out of the truck to take photos of this beautiful, but decaying and crumbling three-story mill made of limestone, with its walls tumbling down.

With a little research I found out it is called the Oxford Mill Ruin and it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The mill was built in 1878 and burned in 1905 and never reopened after that. Click here for more history about this old flour mill.

It was a large mill on the Little Cannon River. Apparently it was one of 27 flour mills in Goodhue County at that time.

Continuing on our way we saw a brick silo standing solo, on the side of a road. Brick silos always look strong and sturdy and are usually in good condition. We did not see any farm houses or barns nearby this lone silo, and again we wondered… if only these structures could talk.

We did drive by many farms, some very well kept, others not so much. Out here in the country the vast fields were covered with freshly fallen snow, dotted with some drifts caused by the strong winds.

The roads were icy and the sky was gray, but it was a delightful drive and a fun day of discovery… so close to home.

Cross Country Skiing

The weekend snowstorm brought fresh snow, and enough of it to make it decent for cross-county skiing.

We went out skiing the day before the snowfall and it was icy, cold and cloudy.

We went out a day after the snowstorm and it was sunny, warm (relatively), and good skiing conditions.

We’ve been going to Riverbend Nature Center to cross-country ski. It is a nice park, close to home. The trails are well groomed and there are a lot of trails – both flat and hilly.

We stop every once in awhile to look at the horizon and listen to the silence. These are peaceful stops.

Recently this quote caught my attention, from the book, Where’d You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple.

“When your eyes are softly focused on the horizon for sustained periods, your brain releases endorphins. It’s the same as a runner’s high. These days, we all spend our lives staring at screens twelve inches in front of us….”

Taking pictures while skiing requires a different kind of stop. It more complicated than a listening/peaceful stop. You have to stop, unstrap your ski poles, take off your gloves, get the camera ready, and shoot. Then put the camera away, put your gloves back on and poles back in place and continue skiing, all the while hoping you don’t drop the camera in the snow. It slows us down and that is another reason I don’t take many photos while skiing.

I am always attracted to tree lined paths or streets.

On cloudy days it’s easier to get better photos because I can see the screen. On sunny days I cannot see the screen on my camera so I just point and shoot and hope for the best.

Ornamental sumac pods hang on and stand tall in the winter landscape.

Cross-country skiing helps us enjoy the great Minnesota outdoors for fresh air and exercise in the winter. Our stops along the trail to look out over the horizon seems to be an added benefit.