grave-robbing

 "St. John's narrative of the Resurrection opens on the morning of the first day of the week. It is still dark - just the way it was at the beginning of time before God said, 'Let there be light (Gen. 1:3). But a light is about to shine, and a new creation is about to appear.

The stone had been rolled away. That stone, blocking entrance to the tomb of Jesus, stands for the finality of death. When someone we love dies, it is as though a great stone is rolled across them, permanently blocking our access to them. And this is why we weep at death - not just in grief but in a kind of existential frustration.

But the stone had been rolled away. Undoubtedly, Mary Magdalene thought a grave robber had been at work. The wonderful Johannine irony is that the greatest of grave robbers had indeed been at work. The Lord said to the prophet Ezechiel, 'I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves' (Ezek. 37:12)  What was dreamed about, what endured as a hope against hope, has become a reality. God has opened the grave of his Son."

                                                             -   Bishop Robert Barron: a meditation on John 20:1-9

new life on the plum tree

Every time I see a rabbit outside, I wonder if it's the one we rescued from the cat last summer. Did he even survive? 

rather splotchy markings

Happy Birthday, George Washington!

 I've always wanted to make a cherry pie on George Washington's birthday. I cannot tell a lie - today I did it. 

morning surprise

 I know this is the worst photo ever.

At the moment, sunrise is around seven o'clock here, and this morning at seven my brother was outside watering some shrubs before taking his walk. He called to me that the sky was pink and I said it is that way from time to time at sunrise. But then he said there was an orange rainbow and you could see it from the front of the house. Well, I didn't have my contacts in yet, but I went out on the front step to look; I didn't see any rainbow. So, I went to the back door (which is not in back, but on the side of the house), and I saw it, across the street. It was fading, but he said it had been pretty bright. 

Okay, we all know the conditions for a rainbow, I think - I always run outside to look for one after a rain, when the sun is bright somewhere and the clouds are still dark on the other side. But it hadn't been raining. It was dry. And, our rainbows are always in the east, in the back of the house, never across the street, in the west. Not to mention that I never heard of an orange rainbow - mostly orange, he said. 

I can only assume it was due to the aurora, which has been appearing even where we live, a couple of times. Nothing like in northern Europe, but more like a bright pink sky well after dark, at night. So, is this connected to that? It must have to do with the electromagnetic activity.

in season and out of season

 

Yes. This is an amaryllis growing on our property. I am as surprised as you are; we're in zone six.

My brother got one in a pot at Christmas, and couldn't just toss it afterward. He stuck it in the ground, in front, right against the foundation. He just stuck it there, sticking up, in the winter. Obviously there was no snow, and last winter wasn't terribly cold. 

And here we are - it bloomed. I can't say I like amaryllis. But it is rather fantastical looking, here in New England. I feel like we should move it to a spot where it will "fit in". But it's a southwest exposure, and near to the house - it wouldn't do better anywhere else. 

flatbreads

 Last night I decided I should make bread today. This morning I was reading Gretchen's blogpost and when she got to the part about making bread, I hightailed it out of there - I had forgotten. I went to my recipe box and saw a recipe for flatbread with spelt and rye flours. 

It made about ten, and now I know how to cook flatbreads. I had to mess with the ingredients, as the dough wasn't sticky like they said it would be; I had to add flour and water, and I let it rise longer than they said to. But then, you heat up the pan, roll it out thin, and cook it on the stove, with the lid on the skillet, for two minutes on each side. So, you stand there and it takes a while. But I was afraid to go and do anything - this is something I'll have to figure out if I ever make it again. A regular loaf doesn't need any watching, at least for most of its time in the oven. Anyway, it's very good.