Thanksgiving draws near, and I am a firm believer that the turkey should have his day! You’ll find no Christmas decor here until maybe Black Friday or later, because Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. And I have books to share about it. Hop on over to the Story Warren to read the full list. Happy Thanksgiving, y’all!
While visiting a flower farm the other day, I met up with this monarch butterfly for a moment. Such a lovely creature! It kindly posed for a photo before it flew off to another patch of flowers. Soon it will be headed off on a long journey south. And it reminded me of another monarch that fluttered around these parts, years ago, before migrating south.
Jim Gilbert, a man who lives in our little town, is a naturalist and former science teacher. About 50 years ago, he and a few student volunteers tagged monarch butterflies at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum as part of an extensive research project to figure out where the monarchs go in the winter. One of the monarchs Gilbert’s students tagged was later found in Mexico, about 2,000 miles away, by Canadian zoologist Fred A. Urquhart. This was a monumental discovery because prior to that, scientists were baffled by the mystery and had been specifically looking for answers for 40 years!
To learn more about the great monarch migration, I encourage reading the picture book The Mystery of the Monarchs by Barb Rosenstock and Erika Meza and watching the documentary film Flight of the Butterflies (2012) on Prime.
Another great picture book about the migration of monarchs is Home is Calling: The Journey of the Monarch Butterfly written by Katherine Pryor and beautifully illustrated by Ellie Peterson. And for young readers there’s Flight of the Butterflies by Roberta Edwards. It includes photographs, maps, and illustrations with more of a “science textbook” feel.
The Good Book Company just released this rare gem – a storybook Bible that combines stunning illustrations with faithfulness to Scripture. Hop on over to the Story Warren to read my full review. I highly recommend it!
“There’s so much beauty around us – for just two eyes to see. But everywhere I go, I’m looking.”
-Rich Mullins
How can one not be completely dazzled by the dahlias this fall? And the zinnias, too! Enjoying the unusually warm weather, my hubby and I took a little field trip to a nearby flower farm. We’d never been there before, but a friend of mine had mentioned it when she shared some lovely stems she had picked there.
We bought a bucket and collected bunches and bunches of blooms.
We left the bucket outside overnight to let most of the little bugs crawl off. And then this morning I brought it inside and just played with all the flowers!
Here are the results.
“…And God saw that it was good.” (Genesis 1:11-12)
Because of a little business trip detour, I ended up in North Carolina a bit unexpectedly last month. To my delight, that meant my hubby and I got to explore the Biltmore Estate and its gardens. I am so glad I brought my camera along because the butterflies were very cooperative!
I had never seen a pipevine swallowtail before; it was lovely!
This eastern tiger swallowtail looks similar to ones I’ve seen in my backyard at home, but I’ve never been able to capture one with my camera.
And who doesn’t adore the monarch?
“O LORD, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom have You made them all; the earth is full of Your creatures.” -Psalm 104:24 ESV
I cannot say or sing the word “rejoice” without smiling. Can you? Go find a mirror and try it right now. I’ll wait.
How did you do? What expression did you make? And why is rejoice a word you don’t hear much outside of the Bible? We sing the word often in church, and you might even see it in a Christmas image posted on social media, but nobody seems to say the word much in conversation.
The Oxford Dictionary defines the verb as feeling or showing great joy or delight, and it defines the noun “joy” as a feeling of great pleasure and happiness.
In the Old Testament, 1 Chronicles 16:10 and Psalm 105:3 both say, “…let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!” And in the Christmas story, Matthew uses the word when he explains how the wise men reacted to the star they followed to find young Jesus. “When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy” (Matthew 2:10).
Later, just before praying His high priestly prayer and going to the cross, Jesus promises His followers that their sorrow will turn into joy when He sees them again. “So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you” (John 16:22).
And after the death and resurrection of Jesus, the Apostle Peter writes to the early Christians. “Though you have not seen Him, you love Him. Though you do not now see Him, you believe in Him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory” (1 Peter 1:8).
Notice that these hearts are rejoicing “exceedingly” and with a joy that is not only great but also inexpressible, incapable of being taken away, and filled with glory. Wow! Nothing subtle or stoic is going on here. This is heartfelt, out-of-control rejoicing with loud voices, hands lifted high, and irrepressible smiles. Some dancing is probably involved, too!
I love the picture that comes to my mind when I ponder that. And I think I caught a few momentary glimpses of heartfelt joy in 2022. Reconnecting with two sweet Montana friends we hadn’t seen in 14 long years, giving my oldest daughter a giant hug when I flew down to Louisville to visit her at college, cheering while a dear little friend at church got baptized, and treasuring the sound of music as my youngest daughter played “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” on a lovely grand piano to accompany her college choir. My heart overflowed with joy in each of those moments. But oh, how much greater our rejoicing will be when Jesus comes again!
Are you ready for that? Is your heart ready to rejoice? Or is your heart troubled by the thought of Jesus returning?
Jesus says, “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to Myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going” (John 14:1-4).
NOTE: ‘Tis a season of transition. The much-anticipated college years are here in full force. Our oldest just moved into her dorm suite (750 miles away) a little more than a week ago, and our youngest starts early college in just a few days. The following letter is the “you’re off to college now” letter I wrote to our oldest. I share it and pray that it may bring some sweet bit of comfort or encouragement to my friends who are also in this weighty moment of transition or soon to be.
Dear daughter who loves butterflies,
As the last sticky bits of strawberry jam disappear down the drain, I immerse the glass jar into the soapy water and remember countless jars just like it that we cleaned and saved for your butterfly collection. You certainly have had a fascinating relationship with butterflies for most of your childhood.
This fascination was probably already developing, but I don’t think I noted it before that last month of Kindergarten when we raised those painted lady butterflies. “You can’t be a caterpillar all your life!” you emphatically encouraged a slow caterpillar. (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Remember “Butterfly Meadow” and how we stood there in wonder as the butterflies hesitated a good long while? Did they not see how bravely we had unzipped their habitat, expecting them to rush out?
Did they not realize we were setting them free to fly high and far? Eventually they fluttered off, and you chased one of them far into the field. Letting go felt bittersweet and confusing and glorious all at once.
Since that noteworthy morning, we have added more memories of raising and releasing painted lady butterflies and monarchs, too.
You have collected jars of butterfly specimens to study, painted watercolor butterflies, crocheted butterflies, and folded more origami butterflies than anyone else in the history of ever. As I was typing up these thoughts earlier this month, you handed me your newest creation: a macrame butterfly keychain. Of course!
Although you have successfully caught butterflies (and dragonflies and fireflies, too!) with your bare hands, you have not stopped chasing butterflies – across fields, apple orchards, gardens and parking lots.
But earlier this summer, it was like the tables had turned, and the butterflies began chasing you! How did it happen that not one but TWO butterflies landed on you while you were sitting in the middle of a yellow innertube, floating in the middle of a river, near the Smoky Mountains in eastern Tennessee? How kind and gentle of you to give the one butterfly a safe ride to the riverbank. All joy!
Like those lovely painted lady butterflies from your Kindergarten science project, you also hesitated a bit when I thought you were ready to be released into the world. You didn’t rush off. You dared to go slow. You took a gap year to work and write and serve. You explored your options carefully.
Frankly I wasn’t quite sure what to think of that plan at first. It was hard to see you not take off when so many of your friends left for college. It was hard and a little heartbreaking to be in a place of not knowing what was next for you, even though we treasured every moment of our “bonus year” with you at home.
But looking back I see how God had plans for your writing. TWO BOOKS! And I see how God was answering our prayers for wisdom and discernment. He was guiding your steps, preparing your heart for this big move. And now, in obedience to Him, you are flying off to where God is calling you – flying to a new city in a new state with a different climate and with friendly people who speak in lovely southern accents.
Letting you go so far away (a full day’s drive!) feels both scary and sacred. It’s bittersweet and confusing and glorious all at once.
Life in our family won’t ever be quite like this again. And that is why I hold on tight. I thank God as I joyfully tag along to all the last things before you leave home – a dentist appointment and an orthodontist appointment, a trip to the library and a trip to the movies. I hold on tight as we listen to that audiobook or spin around on the newly installed tree swing, as we go on a last-minute sailing excursion or grab lunch at the place with your favorite salad bar and have a deep discussion about biblical manhood.
As we take family pictures and selfies and fill these days carefully, the song lyrics to “These Days” by Love & the Outcome fill my head and my heart.
“These are the days, these are the days / The days we’ll never get back
These are the days, these are the days / And these days are all we have
I don’t wanna miss, miss / The moments slip away
It’s a gift, a gift / Every breath you take
Wake up, wake up / Feel your heart beating
Wake up, wake up / Alive and you’re breathing“
And so, filled with gratitude and wonder at the gifts and the time we’ve been given, I wake up. I breathe deeply. I dry the inside of the empty jar. What treasures might you fill it with in this next chapter of life, I don’t quite know. I set it aside for you anyhow.
These new days ahead are like empty jars, ready to be filled with beauty and joy and wonder. As you study God’s word and His creation, as you worship and fellowship with new friends, and as you discover more of the good plans He has for you, I pray.
May goodness and mercy chase after you all the days of your life, like you chase after butterflies. May you recognize and welcome that goodness and mercy when it lands on you in the most unexpected places. May you always remember that “The best is yet to come.” May you hold on tightly to God’s promises and trust Him always. He is faithful.
C.S. Lewis encourages us, “There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind.”
So go forth, go find something marvelous to fill that empty jar.
And fly high, my beautiful, lovely Butterfly! God made you to soar! (Isaiah 40:31)
Love,
Mama
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:2 NIV
*photo cred: @lilahutchphotos
Autumn means apple season, so today the girls and I took a little afternoon trip to the orchard.
This was our first visit to this particular orchard, and despite having a map and instructions for where to find which specific apple varieties, we kept heading off in the wrong direction and then needing to turn around and head off in the right direction. We never truly got lost in the woods. And certainly when the woods look this astonishing, nobody complains.
Eventually we found the Sweet 16 apples in a far-off row in the back of the orchard. They were a little past their prime, so our soon-to-be-sweet-16 just picked one to pose with.
She’s had a sweet tooth for apples for at least 15 years now.
Checking that off the list, we headed off toward the front of the orchard to find some apples for baking pies and dumplings.
My heart is like a singing bird
Whose nest is in a water’d shoot;
My heart is like an apple-tree
Whose boughs are bent with thick-set fruit.
Christina Rossetti
My youngest and I took a short nature walk with our cameras yesterday evening. It had been far too long since we spent time outdoors, and the shining spectacle that is “September in Minnesota” was calling. We didn’t have much time before the sun sank behind the trees, but we captured some images to share. May you smell the earthy-sweet scent of the fallen leaves as you scroll.
(revised from Habakkuk 3:17-19)
Though the choir should not sing its songs,
Nor ballerinas take the stage;
Though the sanctuary sits dusty and silent,
And a never-worn prom dress hangs;
Though the old and sick be abandoned,
And the grieving mourn unembraced;
Yet I will rejoice in the LORD;
I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
God, the LORD is my strength;
He makes my feet swift and graceful like the dancer’s;
He puts a song of joyful praise in my mouth,
And it rises with hope higher than the heavens.
Starlight Writer 