Babies Don't Keep

This lovely poem reflects my own thoughts about my children as babies. I try to pass this on to my daughters, especially on those days when everything seems very chaotic. Our precious babies grow up VERY fast. It is so important  not only to enjoy them but to create pleasant childhood memories as well as the discipline and the hard grind of training them. The house will still be there and need cleaning in eighteen years time!!!

Babies Don’t Keep

by Ruth Hulburt Hamilton


Mother, O Mother, come shake out your cloth,
Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
Hang out the washing, make up the bed,
Sew on a button and butter the bread.


Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She’s up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.


Oh, I’ve grown as shiftless as Little Boy Blue,
Lullabye, rockabye, lullabye loo.
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo


The shopping’s not done and there’s nothing for stew
And out in the yard there’s a hullabaloo
But I’m playing Kanga and this is my Roo
Look! Aren’t his eyes the most wonderful hue?
Lullabye, rockaby lullabye loo.


The cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow
But children grow up as I’ve learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down cobwebs; Dust go to sleep!
I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep.

MoStLy sKoOL

READING

We've been reading aloud "My Side of the Mountain". Americans may be more familiar with it as it is set in the Catskill Mountains in New York State. It was recommended as a good, adventurous type boys book, and although it is a little improbable, we are loving it!
Set in the 50's, when perhaps boys may have been left school and looking for work and so not so obvious when they ran away, it tells the (fictitious) story of Sam Gribly.It never states his actual age but he seems about fifteen. Sam runs away from his family and life in New York to the Catskill mountains where his Grandfather had once had a farm.
Sam has researched many skills to survive in the wilderness and even clothes himself, trains a falcon and endures the bitter winter in his tree home.
He meets some interesting characters, both human and animal.
For children who love to imagine and love the great outdoors, this is a fascinating book. I was initially concerned about the running away aspect but it is not a book about rebellion and the boys and I have all enjoyed it.

ANOTHER WORKSHOP

I have blogged about workshops which the teachers from Groves run periodically, before. This week we really enjoyed the day which was attended by families which home school through the Groves Distance Ed school and a few other families. I love the way Groves always has an open invitation to other folk for these days.
The Highschoolers had a session with the Careers Advisor from the school which was helpful for those who are looking to undertake school based Work Experience & Traineeships and those who are hoping to enter University.

The Upper Primary aged students did an interesting Engineering project constructing bridges. Pictured above is the suspension bridge which my younger son's group made. They did a great job and the bridge actually balanced and stayed up beautifully!

The teacher for our district, who is actually a high school English teacher, ran a session of Creative Writing. As you know, my boys struggle in the reading and writing area. We handled this well by making me the supervising mother of a group of the boys. Phew! Two boys are a handful ~ five are a headache! Actually, we had a lot of laughs. The teacher went through the four parts of a story and gave the setting. Each child had to write an introduction, then pass it around to the next student who wrote the complication, and so on the resolution and conclusion.

Oh, can you imagine what these guys came up with?

Teacher had the kids choose one end result to read out and of course the lads chose the funniest, goriest of our bunch. They were indignant that Mr B altered it a little when he read it out but it was very funny and the rest of the room really enjoyed his little prank of these boys.

CHOIR

It has been another busy week. Rainy and unseasonally cold at night.

Our home school group began practicing choir for the upcoming concert. I am amazed (as a non musical person) how these talented Mums can pull together such good items. My boys are part of a humorous choir piece called "Chiquita Banana". This is something else American readers may be more familiar with it as apparently it was an ad over there. I had never heard it before.

Stay tuned for that. I will try to record it on the big day in October.

AND IN OTHER NEWS

I head to Brisbane again on Tuesday to have my eye checked and a re-assessment done. Lord willing, all is well and the left eye will be operated on in the near future.

I am planning to meet up with a bloggy friend that day too, which is very exciting!

My head is spinning with the excitement of planning a trip for the end of the year.

God is so good to answer our prayers and give us gifts more abundant than we can ever ask or think.

Have a great weekend!

Keepers...

WORDLESS  WEDNESDAY

Ichabod

The Glory has Departed

Lessons from the wife of Phinehas.

1 Samuel 4


19And his daughter in law, Phinehas' wife, was with child, near to be delivered: and when she heard the tidings that the ark of God was taken, and that her father in law and her husband were dead, she bowed herself and travailed; for her pains came upon her.


20And about the time of her death the women that stood by her said unto her, Fear not; for thou hast born a son. But she answered not, neither did she regard it.


21And she named the child Ichabod, saying, The glory is departed from Israel: because the ark of God was taken, and because of her father in law and her husband.


22And she said, The glory is departed from Israel: for the ark of God is taken.

In the preceding verses, we read of the aged Eli, trembling for the Ark, which his sons had taken to the battle field. On hearing that the Ark had been captured by the Philistines and the Israelite army had been defeated he fell from his seat and died.

He trembled, for the Ark of the Lord, the symbol of the Lord's presence among his people, had been removed from its rightful place. The tablets of His covenant, the mercy seat, the manna. He quaked, for he knew that this was disastrous for Israel and though he grieved the death of his sons, which had been prophesied in the previous chapter, he mourned more greatly the loss of the Ark of God's Covenant.

And then we meet the wife of Phinehas. Phinehas had been described as a son of Belial. He was wicked, without moral integrity, he had lain with the women at the door of the temple and abused his office of the priesthood. What the life of this woman was like we do not know, it does not sound as though she had a devoted husband, but how touching it is to read that she, like Eli, grieved more greatly the loss of the Ark and all it stood for, than for her own husband.

Pastor used this as an occasion to speak to the young women about making Godly choices in marriage.
(I wonder though, in Israel at that time, whether a young girl had any say in whom she married? Abigail comes to mind also.) It is sad that sometimes a believing woman will marry a man of unsuitable character.  Perhaps she is too caught up in the idea of love, or not wise enough to discern bad traits, before they marry. Perhaps she was not saved before her marriage. Many  women live lives to the glory of God in difficult circumstances. His grace is sufficient and we see that even in the evil times in which she lived and what ever her circumstances were, the wife of Phineas gives us a lovely picture of the virtuous woman, who dies with the name of her Lord upon her lips.

God's Word should be precious to us, as the Ark of the Covenant was to the Israelites. Herein lie the words of salvation and instruction to us. Do we value his Word as highly as we should? Do we place God above all others and glorify Him?

Good questions to keep before me this week.

Psalm 78

59 When God heard this, he waxed wroth,

and much loath'd Isr'el then:

60 So Shiloh's tent he left, the tent

which he had plac'd with men.

61 And he his strength delivered

into captivity;

He left his glory in the hand

of his proud enemy.

62 His people also he gave o'er

unto the sword's fierce rage:

So sore his wrath inflamed was

against his heritage.

63 The fire consum'd their choice young men;

their maids no marriage had;

64 And when their priests fell by the sword,

their wives no mourning made

(Scottish Metrical Version)

This section of Pslam 78 retells the events of 1 Samuel 4, which I will post on later.

When I make up my Jewels

I had the great privilege to sit and reason together with two very dear and aging saints today. Where two or three are gathered, there is the Lord in the midst of us. As we yarned, laughed and praised God for his unfailing goodness, I sensed that true and beautiful unity that the saints share when we fellowship in his name. This godly man, now in a very rigid and painful stage of Parkinson's disease rested his head  back and  tears began to run down his face. His dear wife questioned him in alarm. But they were not tears of pain, he was trying to express something.
"Malachi, jewels," he said hoarsely.
"It's a verse!" I suggested. He's trying to tell us a verse."
Sure enough! As she pressed him and looked it up, he was quoting Malachi 3.


16Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name.


17And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.


18Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.

Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.

Need I say that I too shed a tear '-)

Decisions, Decisions....

WORDLESS  WEDNESDAY

Trusting God's Sovereignty

1 Samuel 3: 18
And Samuel told him every whit, and hid nothing from him. And he said, It is the LORD: let him do what seemeth him good.

I was struck again by these words uttered by Eli, the high priest. Though Samuel had just told him that the Lord was going to punish, yeah, extinguish his lineage, yet the old man, knowing his own sin and yet trusting his God, recognized this revelation was from the Lord and submitted to it.

Some of us were discussing the way we are easily able to say, "It is the Lord" and give him praise and thanks when good Providences come our way. It is much more difficult to say this same thing when things look less than rosy, especially when the situation is dire.

Our God will do all things for the good of his people and for his own glory. Blessed be his name!

Around the Boree Log

by John O'Brien

Oh, stick me in the old caboose this night of wind and rain,
And let the doves of fancy loose to bill and coo again.
I want to feel the pulse of love that warmed the blood like wine;
I want to see the smile above this kind old land of mine.

So come you by your parted ways that wind the wide world through,
And make a ring around the blaze the way we used to do;
The "fountain" on the sooted crane will sing the old, old song
Of common joys in homely vein forgotten, ah, too long.

The years have turned the rusted key, and time is on the jog,
Yet spend another night with me around the boree log.

Now someone driving through the rain will happen in, I bet;
So fill the fountain up again, and leave the table set.
For this was ours with pride to say - and all the world defy -
No stranger ever turned away, no neighbour passed us by.

Bedad, he'll have to stay the night; the rain is going to pour -
So make the rattling windows tight, and close the kitchen door,
And bring the old lopsided chair, the tattered cushion, too -
We'll make the stranger happy there, the way we used to do.

The years have turned the rusted key, and time is on the jog,
Yet spend another night with me around the boree log.

He'll fill his pipe, and good and well, and all aglow within
We'll hear the news he has to tell, the yarns he has to spin;
Yarns - yes, and super-yarns, forsooth, to set the eyes agog,
And freeze the blood of trusting youth around the boree log.

Then stir it up and make it burn; the poker's next to you;
Come, let us poke it all in turn, the way we used to do.
There's many a memory bright and fair will tingle at a name -
But leave unstirred the embers there we cannot fan to flame.

The years have turned the rusted key, and time is on the jog;
Still, spend this fleeting night with me around the boree log.



Boree (sometimes accented on the last syllable) is the aboriginal name for the Weeping Myall - the best firewood in Australia except Gidgee.


John O'Brien AKA  JP Hartigan

San Francisco 1906

               Wordless Wednesday

What Cost?

"The cross is laid on every Christian. The first Christ-suffering which every man must experience is the call to abandon the attachments of this world. It is that dying of the old man which is the result of his encounter with Christ. As we embark upon discipleship we surrender ourselves to Christ in union with his death—we give over our lives to death. Thus it begins; the cross is not the terrible end to an otherwise god-fearing and happy life, but it meets us at the beginning of our communion with Christ. When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die. It may be a death like that of the first disciples who had to leave home and work to follow him, or it may be a death like Luther’s, who had to leave the monastery and go out into the world. But it is the same death every time—death in Jesus Christ, the death of the old man at his call.

"(The Cost of Discipleship, by Dietrich Bonhoeffer)

Friday....Phew!

Winter made one last frosty blast for a couple of nights this week. Other than that, absolutely glorious Spring weather.  Sigh....some days it is difficult to stick to the scheduled program but we are keeping on nicely after our week away.

My sister is continuing her weekly reading sessions with the boys, at least until their current book is finished. She has read a couple of books and many short, general knowledge pieces with them. She is the ideal person for reading this kind of stuff as she is widely travelled and the boys are wide eyed with fascination when she has so much first hand knowledge to share of the places and people they are reading about.

They are now reading Alan Marshall's "I Can Jump Puddles".  Are you familiar with it? I had read it a couple of years ago after reading it many years ago, perhaps in high school and marked it to read to them. This is Alan's autobiography, as a young Australian boy in the 20s/ 30s who contracts polio. It is vividly and realistically written. It has a little *bad* language. My boys are liking this book and love the stories of his life and school days which parallel their grandparents experiences. Of course, the effects of his polio, his hospitalization and the hardships he endure are quite emotional but told in a very matter of fact manner which appeals to boys. (Warning: We Googled the film and alas, the language was a little bit over the top so if you are planning to watch it at all, preview it!)

School went exceptionally well this week and I am very grateful to be able to see and read everything easily again. The boys are appreciating that as well. I was blessed to have these two young gentlemen to escort me over curbs and take my arm when a car was coming. Now, even though I can see all these pitfalls they still rushed to my aid a few times this week and alerted me to oncoming cars in the traffic. Sweet  ♥

We also undertook a few hours wall cleaning each afternoon. Yikes, I was quite alarmed with the state of the walls and general dirt during my *blind* period. I have never pretended to be a meticulous house keeper and my high maintenance and rather cluttered and aging Queenslander doesn't help much. But whoa! even I am well....aghast. My project is to do a little each day and get round our rather large house by the holidays, before the hot weather sets in.  Roll on September!


BLOOPER:  Funny story to end my week. Sorry, no pics available.
I was in the supermarket with only my purse and keys. The keys were getting in my way and so I tucked them in the only available spot, my bra :-) As you see in the pic, it is only one key on a small ring. As I went through the check out with a courteous young fellow serving me I glance down. To my alarm, and embarrassment, the single key had worked its way down and was sticking out at a very perturbing angle!   Oops.....

Simple Pleasures

WORDLESS  WEDNESDAY

The Highest Mountain and the Deepest Valley

There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

1 Corinthians 10:13

Once, at a time of extreme crisis, I confided to a minister that I must not be one of the Lord's people since I was no longer able to bear my situation. That Godly man reassured me that this is the pilgrims experience, and as I acknowledged my complete inability, God would carry me through. And, of course, He did!!!
The christian walk is a walk of faith and a journey up and down the high mountains and through the deep valleys which dot our pilgrimage to the Celestial City.
I have not written a Monday "Sabbath Thought" post for a couple of weeks. I have been in a valley. Not a steep, cliff faced and jagged valley, just a shadowy dell.   We all linger there at times. One of the most beautiful experiences of my years following the Lord has been his absolute faithfulness in carrying me and bringing me through every trial. I joy to see this outworking in the lives of the dear saints around me also.
One thing I have noticed over the years, but only after the event, is that I almost always go through a time of spiritual joy and inward peace before a trial hits. I recognize it afterwards as the way in which I am sustained through what ever the Lord brings into my life. What a gracious and merciful God we serve, who will never allow us to be tempted more than we are able to bear!

Isaiah 49

15Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.

16Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.