Remembering my paternal grandmother

Today would be the 120th birthday of my father's mother, Edith Belle Bradley Shepherd - her birth name was Isabelle Miller, but she was adopted at the age of 5 by her Bradley relatives. She was a complicated, very complex person - who isn't?! - but I loved her and loved staying with her on weekends when I was young. She died 37 years ago - may she rest in peace, and rise in glory, and may her memory always be a blessing.

Early Weekends

Weekends with my grandmother

Were wondrous experiences:

Making miniature bouquets of pink sweetheart roses;

Sucking juice from an orange through a peppermint stick;

Weeding the flower beds and pulling carrots for lunch;

Jumping rope to fifty-year-old rhymes;

Eating “exotic” foods: asparagus spears, sardines, kippered herring;

Believing there was a ghost living in the cool, dank cellar;

Moongazing with my great-grandmother;

Watching television late into the night – first Dragnet, then

Hoping against hope that I’d fall asleep before

Alfred Hitchcock walked into his cartoon outline.

[-from Handful of Stars, 2018]

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Wren update and Goodbye to Anastasia

I am very glad to report that three, or maybe four, wren nestlings are doing well! Both parents feed the babies, and they are extremely busy these days. The wrens are not at all happy when multiple beagles run past their flower pot nest, so we are trying to keep doggie outdoor playtime to a minimum. Fortunately, since the weather is quite hot, the beagles are content to be in the air conditioned house On a sad note today, our kitty Anastasia left us for the Rainbow Bridge - not a great surprise since she was about 18 years old, but she ate supper last night, and I didn't expect to find her gone this morning. Over the years, Anastasia had served as foster mom to several kittens, especially Pye and Weej, two black kittens whom we saved from being thrown into the Manokin River. Farewell Anastasia - we'll see you again at the Bridge! And for a puzzle, Noelle on the edge of the cabinet where she likes to nap!

Wren

Without a doubt, one of my favorite birds is the wren . . . I hope momma wren who discovered this plant hanging just outside the Sanctuary House door knows what she is doing. Maybe she thinks that the comings and goings of the very vocal beagles will keep predators away. She just started this little nest yesterday. . . want to see what's inside the nest? Just click on the nest puzzle! nest puzzle God watches over the sparrows, so I know He also watches over the wrens . . . but yes, I'll try to keep an eye on her too in the rain and wind, and when the beagles play!

Baby chicks and diamonds in the tree

Our Board member Aimee Lauer brought four little chicks this morning - they were rescued from Craig's List. As far as we can tell, two Easter Eggers and two Legbars. This weekend is a strange mixture of weather - rain, wind, and sometimes moments of sun. The sunlight in the tree this morning made the wet leaves and branches look as though they were decorated with diamonds. We are hoping and praying that Hurricane Florence will miraculously weaken, although current maps show East Coast landfall and predictions are that the storm may be a category 4. Stay tuned . . .

Letters from Ascension Hermitage and Sanctuary

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