My friend and writing companion, Sheri Eichhorn, and I have a lot of fun writing haikus for just about any word. Haiku is a writing pattern of 17 syllables divided into 3 lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables. Here are a few summer time haikus…I wrote a few and so did Sheri.
Shade from the hot sun
Wonderfully delicious
and very welcomed. (VB)
Bright, sunny flower in a garden in Colorado.
Sparkles in the night
There is magic in the air
Twinkling fireflies. (VB)
Fireflies at night
Blinking in the forest glen
It is enchanting.(VB)
This is a unique card, received from a friend.
Bicycles ask us
to be both the passenger
and provide the fuel. (SE)
Two wheels on a frame
Around and around they go
Bicycles are fun.(VB)
Bicycles never
run out of fuel until
you climb off the bike. (SE)
And since this is the summer of the pandemic, a few haikus about that…
A “masked statue” in Golden, CO.
Pandemic. That word...
it hurts to hear it, it hurts
to know—it lives here. (SE)
Global pandemic
Novel coronavirus
Took us by surprise.(VB)
The distance we’ve come
from normal with this virus
feels too much too far. (SE)
I didn’t know there was a small town in southeastern Minnesota named Lenora. The name reminded me of my mom’s sister Lenore. It was a fun, fleeting thought.
Of course, there are many small towns in southeastern Minnesota that I have not heard of, but I do know the beauty of the rolling hills dotted with quaint farms and fields, and magnificent vistas in the area. It makes for an amazing place to drive around and appreciate. We spent three days in the area this week; driving around in our car and also riding around on our bicycles.
This is also part Amish country. We caught glimpses of the nostalgic scenes with horses pulling farm equipment in the fields, and buggy’s traveling along the road.
Lenora Methodist Church
Our friends had told us about an old stone church in Lenora. Lenora is an unincorporated community in Fillmore County. A post office was established at Lenora in 1856, and remained in operation until it was discontinued in 1905. But an old stone church remains.
The Lenora Methodist Church was built in 1856, which was two years before Minnesota became a state in 1858.
When we drove to see the stone church we were expecting to admire the church from the outside and not expecting to go inside but alas, the door was unlocked. There was a sign in the entryway reminding people to “social distance” but feel welcome to look around.
This chalkboard sign greeted us in the wooden entryway of the church.
It was a beautiful stone structure, with a wooden ramp up to an add-on wooden entryway. The ramp was lined with huge hosta plants and there was a bell hanging on a pole on one side of the ramp and an old kerosene lantern hanging from a pole on the other side.
The wood stove greeting you as you enter the church.
The interior of the church.
Immediately inside the church was a wood-burning stove. There were wooden pews lined up facing front towards the altar and an organ.
A modern organ up front.
Hanging on the wall behind the altar was a 44-star American flag. Here’s what I found out about that flag from GOOGLE… The 44-Star flag became the Official United States Flag on July 4th, 1891. A star was added for the admission of Wyoming (July 10, 1890) and was to last for 5 years.
You could tell the flag was an original; it had been repaired several times. It was very interesting to see it hanging there.
The 44-star American Flag.
A picture of the church’s first pastor, Rev. John L. Dryer was hanging on one wall. He was a circuit rider.
Reverend John L. Dryer, a circuit rider and the first pastor of Lenora Methodist Church.
According to Wikipedia circuit rider clergy, “in the earliest years of the United States, were clergy assigned to travel around specific geographic territories to minister to settlers and organize congregations. Circuit riders were clergy in the Methodist Episcopal Church and related denominations, although similar itinerant preachers could be found in other faiths as well, particularly among minority faith groups.”
It’s curious to think about who all worshiped within these walls over the years…to think of the families that attended this church and the baptisms and funerals and many social gatherings and other events in the last almost 200 years. As the sign on the chalkboard said, “This historic building has known pandemics before! 1918 flu”
Kerosene lamps on the walls.
Looking out one of the windows of the church.
The lights were kerosene lanterns and I didn’t notice if there was any electricity …but apparently they still use the church for special services to this day.
The lantern hanging out in front of the church.
Lenora Methodist church is on the National Register of Historic places. It was fun to discover this church.
I was invited to a baby shower recently. A baby shower during a pandemic is difficult to plan. Originally it was going to be held using Zoom, the communication app that has become popular these days. However, as the date grew closer and the weather became nicer the event planners figured out a way to bring people together for the shower.
Props for one of the games we played.
The hostesses created a festive atmosphere that adhered to “physical distancing” guidelines…(I heard a commentator say it’s not really social distancing but physical distancing – we still need to continue socializing). They also had Zoom up and running since there were out of town guests participating.
So, I put on a dress for the first time in months and added a touch of make up and headed out the door for an exciting event that almost felt “normal”.
It was a lovely Minnesota morning. The gathering was outdoors. Chairs were set up in a circle, all 6 feet apart, in a beautifully landscaped front yard.
Our individual “champagne” bucket.
Next to each chair was a white paper bucket filled with ice and a small bottle of prosecco and a small bottle of orange juice and a plastic flute glass to make our own mimosas. I thought that was a clever idea.
The individual goodie box placed on each chair.
On each chair was a box with a muffin from Martha’s (a local bakery), a jar of yogurt, a clementine, a cookie, and the paper and pen needed for games. No prizes were awarded however, due to the participants on Zoom…how would they get their prize?
The mom-to-be was able to enjoy opening her gifts with others surrounding her with love and attention.
My cookie decorated as a “onesie”.
People are definitely finding creative ways to make things work in this strange world we are living in right now.
It appears face masks will be part of the new normal as the Covid-19 pandemic has changed our lives forever. Face masks are already required in some stores and requested in many others. It is a safety measure to protect all of us from spreading the virus. We are all in this together.
I eked out two masks on my old sewing machine, which has seen better days.
Masks that tie around the head…they have nose wire and a pocket for a filter.
At the time elastic was hard to come by so I used old t-shirts for the ties, which was suggested and was a good alternative. The masks turned out OK and have served us well.
There are many folks in our town making masks. There is a person in charge of the operation. She sends emails with updates and has created a station at a convenient location downtown Northfield for mask making supplies. She raised funds, ordered supplies including blue filter fabric, elastic (which is available again) and other items. Most, if not all of the fabric, has been donated. Mask-makers go to the station to pick up what they need.
Cutting fabric into 7×9 inch and 5×7 inch pieces.
Since I feel I cannot sew nice masks with my machine I decided to help by cutting fabric. The 100% cotton fabric needs to be washed, ironed and cut into different shapes (depending on style of mask and whether it is for an adult or child.)
Beautiful masks my friend makes with elastic…they have a filter already sewn into mask, and a nose wire.
I was talking with a friend the other day and we were lamenting about wearing masks because you cannot tell the expression on other’s faces when they have their masks on. When you cannot see smiles you miss a lot…so we thought it would be great to have masks with see-through space so you could see more of a person’s expression.
The very next morning on the news I read about see-through masks…made especially for those who need to lip-read.
photo off internet
Hmmm…Our good idea – already conceived, and created – by another. I think of the saying…”Necessity is the mother of invention.”
I saw this masked bunny in a window display shortly after Easter…
I have no doubt face masks will become a fashion statement. Soon.
I had not heard of the communication app called Zoom until this pandemic took over our lives. Then Zoom quickly became a part of everyday language, like email and texting. So we downloaded Zoom and started using the “user-friendly” app to stay in touch with others.
We have used Zoom to connect with both our sons and their families at the same time. It’s so nice to see everyone: Gary and me in Northfield, our oldest son and his family in Minneapolis, and our youngest son and his family in Colorado.
We have used Zoom to connect with other groups too. I meet weekly with my book club.
My wonderful book club buddies.
I’ve participated in a church ministry meeting using Zoom, and small group. We connected with out-of-state friends over a “social hour” one evening.
I have also started a story time with my two grandchildren in Colorado…I set up the meeting and their parents get them situated on their end and then I start reading children’s books to them and they stay focused and seem to enjoy it as much as I do. It feels good to me to be able to connect with them this way.
Reading to my grandchildren on the other side of the screen…in Colorado.
We even had an Easter egg hunt over Zoom. On Easter Sunday Gary and I hid Easter eggs around our house.
An Easter egg hidden in our Christmas cactus.
Gary took his phone using Zoom and walked around the house letting the grandchildren find the eggs as he scanned the rooms. When the kids spotted an egg they’d call it out and tell us the color. It turned out well…it was fun to see all three grandkids engaged in this activity (the fourth grandson is a newborn). They may not remember this Easter egg hunt but we sure will. It helped me overcome my sense of sadness at not being able to gather together in person to celebrate Easter, my favorite holiday.
We collected the empty eggs into an Easter basket I made many years ago.
And so, the beat goes on…and we will continue to use Zoom to connect with family and friends. This pandemic would be a lot more difficult without the technology we have these days to stay in touch. I’m grateful for it.
The live trap was delivered to our front porch. We have had enough with the squirrels in our yard. Squirrels are cute critters with fluffy tails, and it can be fun to watch their antics, but enough is enough. We have several in our yard and we don’t want them there anymore. In particular, I like to feed the birds. Several years ago a friend told me to use safflower seeds…the birds like them but the squirrels do not. So I bought safflower seeds and it seemed to work for years – squirrels kept away from the feeder. But recently the squirrels must have developed a taste for the safflower seeds because now I am feeding more squirrels than birds.
The snow was falling this morning…the trap was tripped
So, we bought a trap. It works well and does not harm the animal, Gary says. He puts peanut butter and sunflower seeds in a ball in the trap and we wait for the critter to go in for this tasty treat. We’ve captured four squirrels already. We could get more in one day but each time we have to drive the squirrel at least ten miles away from our house to let it go. That’s what the research says…if you let the squirrel free any closer than ten miles it will find its way back to you.
It’s so happy to be free!
We look for a nice clump of trees and let the squirrel out of the cage. It’s darts out so fast. I wonder what it’s thinking.
One of the new homes for the squirrels – out in the country.
At first we just took the squirrels away and let them go. With the fourth squirrel we decided to spray a bit of fluorescent paint on it’s tail to monitor the critter…to see if any of the squirrels we take away actually find their way back to our house. We hope not.
A little spray paint on it’s tail to monitor the critter.
During this pandemic is an interesting time to be doing this…our pandemic pastime. We’re taking drives into the country often for “squirrel transfers” and it’s been kind of fun.
This activity happened last week, before the 6″ of snow came falling down on Easter Sunday, snd stayed on the ground…
This scene captured my heart…I feel it shows the essence of this pandemic…isolation. This young man sitting alone under the tree…contemplating these crazy times I’m sure.
Our online church services, including taking communion at home.
Learning to use new technologies…Zoom became a popular connection tool. These are my wonderful bookclub friends meeting on Zoom. We use Zoom to connect with our two sons and their families too.
Sadly, this fresh milk is going down the drain on my sister-in-law’s dairy farm in Pennsylvania. Evidently there is an over supply of milk due to the massive closings of schools and restaurants. Photo by sh
Picnic areas, playgrounds, and gathering spaces fenced off.
Cool Blue and his babe Lil’ Oaty sit on our deck railing watching children walk by on the sidewalk that leads to walking paths and ponds in our neighborhood. The Teddy Bear movement is making a bear or stuffed animal visible for children to hunt for while going for a walk.
Signs of spring and hope!…daffodils recently seen on my daily walk.
A beautiful bouquet from my husband for our 42nd anniversary.
Gary and I celebrated our 42nd anniversary today. Celebrations are just not the same during this pandemic when we have to stay at home and keep social distancing. But we made it a fun day.
Our hand-made anniversary cards. What fun!
Gary bought me a beautiful bouquet of flowers but we decided to make cards for each other instead of buying them, since I am not going into any stores at this time. That ended up to be a fun experience, resulting in memorable cards. We may have started a new tradition.
Ready for a candle-light dinner at home.
We made a lovely dinner together, and ate by candlelight.
I’m used to celebrating spring on March 20 so I was surprised to learn that today, March 19, 2020, is the first day of spring this year. The spring equinox begins tonight at 10:49 pm.
The COVID-19 pandemic is on all of our minds these days…the uncertainty of it and the bigger picture of the fallout…is scary. I will not be posting much about it…it’s too overwhelming…but I am grateful for my faith to see me through.
The clouds have been particularly beautiful and unusual in the past two weeks and I’ve captured a few photos.
Psalm 147: 7 & 8 Sing to the Lord with grateful praise; make music to our God on the harp. He covers the sky with clouds; he supplies the earth with rain and makes grass grow on the hills.
Here’s to spring! May it lift our spirits a bit during these difficult days.
