Valerie – Page 53 – Valerie's Voice

Eyes to See

I am thankful for eyes to see. I think of the alternative, being blind, and wonder what it must be like, to not see all the beautiful colors God has created, like morning sunrises. In the last couple of years I have had some special care for my own eyes and I am grateful for eye doctors who know how to care for our eyes.

In January 2016 I had surgery in my left eye for a macular hole. “A macular hole is a small break in the macula, located in the center of the eye’s light-sensitive tissue called the retina. The macula provides the sharp, central vision we need for reading, driving, and seeing fine detail.”* This problem was found by my eye doctor during a annual, routine eye exam. My wonderful eye doctor, Dr. O’Neil whom I have seen yearly since 1994, is going to retire in 2020. It will be hard to say good-bye to him. I trust him completely. (BTW- he thinks it’s great that he’s retiring, from being an eye doctor, in 2020!)

When Dr. O’Neil noticed this macular hole he referred me to a retina specialist. What I found interesting is that before I had this problem, I had no idea there were retina specialists, and so many, right here in the twin cities. My surgery was done in Edina, and I had anesthesia. Thankfully, it was successful, according to the ophthalmologist who performed the surgery.

The recovery process from this macular hole surgery was interesting…one has to keep their head down for 2-5 days. Fortunately I needed only two days. We rented a special chair – imagine a massage chair – where my head rested on a bar as I looked down to the floor and sat on the seat with knees resting on a lower bar. It was very helpful, and fairly comfortable. I could read, listen to books on tape, and use a mirror to watch TV. (On a side note, a friend came over and read children’s books to me.)

October 2018 was my last follow-up appointment for the macular hole and my left eye is back to its normal self…but cataracts are coming.

My eye (old) after the removal of a cyst.

This week I had another eye procedure, this time on my right eye. I had a cyst on my eyelid that was interfering with my tear duct, so it had to be removed. Again, I was grateful to have access to healthcare and eye specialists that can correct these problems. The cyst removal was performed right here in Northfield, in the specialist’s office. From the anesthesia injection it looks like I have a black eye, but the procedure went well and all is good.

I’m so grateful for doctors and specialists that can preform surgeries and procedures that help us retain our eyesight.

I’m so grateful for the gift of sight.

*National Eye Institute

Happy New Year!

Auld Lang Syne – this familiar song has words I’ve never really understood even though I hear it every year… A little research tells me Auld Lange Syne means “time gone by” and it is a Scottish tune written by poet Robert Burns in 1788.

In church on Sunday we sang different lyrics to this familiar tune, the title of the song being part of the chorus which reads:

Chorus
All glory be to Christ our King!
All glory be to Christ!
His rule and reign we’ll ever sing
All glory be to Christ!

Click here to hear the entire song: All Glory Be to Christ our King

Happy 2019!

Como Zoo

It had been awhile since I visited the Como Park Zoo. I don’t remember the last time. We took our boys there when they were young, and I remember we had a winter picnic there one year. I have been back to the Marjorie McNeely Conservatory since then, but the date escapes me.

Growing up in NE Minneapolis, going to the Como Zoo was a popular place for field trips at my elementary school. I remember the cages were too small for the animals. Thankfully, they have changed that. I also remember a very large, and very old, tortoise roaming the grounds. According to Como Zoo history posted online, Toby, a Galapagos tortoise, came to live at Como Zoo in 1958. Small children were allowed to ride on Toby’s back. Toby is the tortoise I remember. In 1974 Toby was moved to the Honolulu Zoo, where he still lives today!

Monkey’s are always fun to see at the zoo.

Two other cute “monkeys” – Ezra and Zoey

Last week, before Christmas, we took our grandchildren to visit the Como Zoo. It is a nice size, not too big, and it is free. We went to see the monkeys first – a request from our granddaughter. We continued to walk around looking at the other animals including reindeer…how appropriate to see reindeer this time of year. It is fun to see the animals through the eyes of a child…

The beautiful poinsettia display in the conservatory.

We took time at the end of our visit to go into the Marjorie McNeely Conservatory. I particularly wanted to see the sunken garden room which was decked out with red poinsettias, white paper whites, and purple lavender…it was warm, smelled good, and was beautiful to look at.

Lovely to see fresh flowers in the sunken garden.

We all enjoyed wandering through the warm displays of plants in the conservatory. It is a special place, especially this time of year when the weather outside is frightful…

I’m thankful for St. Paul Parks and Recreation Department who maintains the Como Zoo …I will not wait so long to visit it again.

Orchids…always colorful… always spark joy.

O, Holy Night

For several years now (it has become a tradition) we enjoy going to the late Christmas Eve service in one of the historic Valley Grove Churches.

As we walked in we noticed the huge decorated Christmas tree in the front of the sanctuary, and a Hardanger fiddle, flute and an organ filled the church with beautiful music.

The beautiful, full Christmas tree filled the front of the sanctuary.

Then the church bells rang to announce the start of the Christmas Eve service.

A trio making music: organ, flute and the hardanger fiddle.

We enjoy this service for many reasons, one being… there is a time for just singing Christmas carols. The congregation make requests for different carols and we all sing to our hearts content the old familiar tunes.

Pastor John Gorder, gave a sermonette. This year he included thoughts about the beloved, old, oak tree that a tornado ripped down last September. This tree was love by many folks. The rings of the tree indicated the tree was there long before the settlers, in 1862. I can only imagine all the special events that happened around that tree.

There was a branch from the tree in the church, in front of the Christmas tree. It was holding a photo of the old oak tree before it fell. Pastor Gorder had visited the stump of the oak tree a few weeks before the service, and found an acorn from that tree. The acorn… a small seed grows into a great tree, so with baby Jesus… born to be a great King.

A branch from the beloved old, oak tree, holding a photo of the tree.

As is tradition in many Christmas Eve services, we lit candles and as the lights dimmed, sang Silent Night, Holy Night, a favorite.

We saw a few friends and said “Merry Christmas” as the ringing of the bells accompanied us out of church, after the service. A beautiful Christmas night scene met us as we walked out of church – with a bright moon and stars, and a few wispy clouds in the night sky near the old stone church and I imagined a stable long ago.

The amazing view we witnessed as we departed the historic church which is directly across from another historic church in Valley Grove.

Thank you God, for giving us a holy night indeed.

Merry Christmas

…The children in each different place will see the baby Jesus’ face

Like theirs, but bright with heavenly grace

And filled with holy light. O lay aside each earthly thing

And with thy heart as offering, Come worship now the infant King

‘Tis love that’s born tonight….

Some Children See Him – Traditional – A. Burt, W. Hudson

This nativity set was a gift from my mother. She brought it back for me from her trip to Israel, years ago. It is made of Olive wood. The grand-kids wanted to add felt characters from a play nativity set I gave them.

A Cute Pink Elephant

When my grandson came upstairs the other day he was carrying a pink elephant he found in our bassinet filled with stuffed animals. It made me smile. This pink stuffed elephant always makes me smile. It holds very fond memories of a special young man who lived in Cherkasy, Ukraine. His name was Sasha.

I went on three mission trips to the city of Cherkasy, Ukraine and I met Sasha on the first one in 2004 (and again in 2005). I, and four others, went with a couple that had been taking mission trips to the Ukraine since 1991– sometimes as medical missionaries (he is a doctor, she is a nurse). On this trip, in 2004, they were organizing an English Language Camp, using Bible stories for curriculum.

The English Language Camp was well attended with middle and high school age students. The kids were eager to learn English from a native speaker. We spent the week in large group activities: learning songs, hearing testimonies and playing games, while spending time in small groups on English lessons. There were seven leaders, and we each had our own small group of students, and our own interpreter. Sasha was in my small group.

At the end of the week we had a celebration before traveling back to America. It was a festive event, but emotional too. We had all grown attached to our students, and to our host families (we had been placed in homes of church families and grew attached to them also).

Prior to the celebration we had packed our suitcases because we were going to leave early the next morning. At the end of the evening, when it was time to say good bye, Sasha came up to me and handed me this cute pink stuffed elephant as a going away present. It was such a sweet gesture. He was a precious young man, and we had made a special connection.

Since my suitcases were packed and there was no more room in my bags, I somehow tied the pink elephant to my carry-on…I really wanted to bring it home with me. So there it was, a cute pink elephant hanging from my bag as I walked through airports, and rode on airplanes, all the way home.

This cute pink elephant found its way into my home, and now it has found a way into my grandson’s arms and I am happy.

Poster Child

When my son and his family knew their arrival date to Minnesota, from Mozambique, he asked us to set up dentist appointments for the family – if possible before the end of the year. So I did, but the only times available were 36 hours after they landed. They were still dealing with a significant time change, travel wearies from over 30 hours of travel time, and jet lag. On the way to the dentist office, Ezra age 2 ½, fell into a deep sleep.

Once we arrived at the office, Zoey who is 4 years old, went first. She did just fine for Dr. Brust, and enjoyed picking out a new tooth brush.

Next, it was Ezra’s turn. We could not wake him up, no matter how hard we tried. So, Dr.Brust just checked Ezra’s teeth while he was sleeping.

Dr. Brust said maybe he could use this photo for an advertising poster – to show how relaxed his clients are in his dentist’s office.

Dr. Brust checking Ezra’s teeth while Ezra is sleeping.

Ezra slept through a couple other events, but is well on his way to adjusting to the new time zone.

Arrived!

Our son and his lovely wife and their two adorable children have arrived safely in Minnesota. They are here for the long term…Andrea left her childhood town in Mozambique, Africa. They are beginning a new chapter in their lives, here in the USA. We have prepared a space for them in our home for their transition period. We are so excited this day has finally come. We are grateful.

I’m in a happy place…reading to the grandchildren.

Northfield’s 20th Annual Winter Walk

We attended the 20^th annual Winter Walk in Northfield last night. The downtown is festive: all lit up with white lights and Christmas decorations, different groups of carolers singing, and stores offering sweet treats.

One of the decorated trees downtown Northfield. Photo taken right before sunset.

We received a special invitation to stop in at a business in town, which is where we always start our walk, after tasting some wonderful morsels.

Beautiful and creative special invitation for a Winter Walk event.

Next we visited Content bookstore, then checked out two new stores downtown before heading to the old Model Train exhibits, set up in our library at the end of Division Street.

We strolled back towards Bridge Square, along the closed-off street, full of cheerful folks meandering, a horse-drawn carriage, fire pits, and different music groups. We stopped at a couple other favorite stores: The Rare Pair and an antique store. They were packed with people. Depending on the weather the stores can get very crowded. It was chilly and the stores were full.

Bridge Square during Winter Walk, Northfield.

When we first arrived downtown we caught the beginning of a parade. This is a first for Northfield’s Winter Walk. For me it was too chilly to stand out to watch it go by, but we did see a couple of the entries while walking to our first stop. I enjoyed seeing the tractor decorated in Christmas lights, then we dashed inside.

The lighted tractor to begin the parade at Northfield’s Winter Walk.

Last weekend we planned to go to Faribault’s Winterfest Parade of Lights, including fireworks, but it got postponed due to weather. How ironic, the Winterfest, postponed by winter weather. HA.

That parade has been rescheduled for December 14^th so hopefully it will be “warm” enough to bring our newly arrived grand-children from Africa to see it. “O, what fun…”

The St. Olaf Christmas Festival

The 2018 St. Olaf Christmas Festival, Good News of Great Joy, was performed over the weekend, and we were in attendance for one of the productions. It has become a tradition for us, and ushers in our Christmas season.

The program for 2018 St. Olaf Christmas Festival.

I smile when I think of my first year working as the Christmas Festival ticket coordinator several years ago. Many people told me that same thing, “the St. Olaf Christmas Festival is a tradition to begin their Christmas season”. If something would go wrong in securing their tickets they would get feisty. It’s as though Christmas would not happen if they did not get their tickets to the Festival to start the season!

Years later, I understand the reason behind their thinking. It is a fabulous event and the timing is wonderful…after Thanksgiving and before Advent. I love going to it each year, and it does start our Christmas season out right (but I also remember the reason for the season and it’s not the Christmas Festival.)

Beautiful Christmas ornaments adorn the trees in the student center.

Music was the theme for the decorated Christmas trees in Buntrock Commons (the student center) with fun ribbon, musical instrument ornaments and more. There were four, gorgeous trees flanking the fireplace creating a festive atmosphere for people gathering in the commons area. They are set up and trimmed for the students, faculty, staff, and visitors to enjoy.

I love this musical note ribbon intertwined in the trees.

The set design for the St. Olaf Christmas Festival in the auditorium was beautiful. Wide swaths of fabric criss-crossed the back of the stage and a lighting crew would somehow change the colors on the fabrics during the concert.

The orchestra warming up before the performance. The backdrop for the performance changed colors as different lighting worked its wonders.

This year’s music selection was wonderful and the five choirs and orchestra sang and played their hearts out for two hours, leaving the audience in awe of another amazing performance from the students. A few scripture verses are always read, making it feel more like a service than a concert.

Decorations on the Christmas Trees in Buntrock Commons.

I love and cherish the traditional ending song, Beautiful Savior, and it always brings tears to my eyes.

Even though I am no longer an employee of St. Olaf College, I think I will always feel a part of the Christmas Festival. It is near and dear to my heart and I am grateful to be able to attend this event and begin our Christmas season with fine music, carols and songs of praise. It is a special gift.