VINTAGE: JUST THE WORD EVOKES MEMORIES

'vin-tage:  of old, recognized,

and enduring interest, importance,  or quality.

Old photographs that make us smile at the

hair and clothing styles.  

How "innocent" it all seemed

way back then.

Did our grandparents really chug across the

country in a jalopy like this?  They must have
survived, because we're here...

These plates hold memories of long-ago meals,

served with lots of laughter and a dollop of panache.

Remember the glass milk jugs

just waiting on your door step in the morning?

Long-ago tradesmen learned a craft,

did it well, so well that it lasted

hundreds of years.  A red rose graces

it's faded glory.

Folded, patiently-stitched quilts 

still give comfort

on a cold night,

and light up those grey days.

Old silver-plated spoons need not be put

in the back of the drawer--

they can soldier on with new faces!

A well-worn chair could tell many tales

of those who sat and supped and talked,

and dreamed,
 and cried.

A herringbone-pattern floor

crafted with love and care,

now shows a lovely patina

so real you can smell the lemon wax.

Beautifully made copper pans still shine.

Quality is like that.

There were days when even the humblest items

were given the artist's time, careful 

hand and eye...

…like this finely crafted drawer front and key hole.

The fruit of their work became heirlooms,

not throw-aways, when they got old.
Wouldn't you love to run your fingers over this carving
each time you opened the drawer?

Old leather-bound books that have become

friends to more than one generation.  I like the
ones that have been written in pencil on the margins
when the reader was deeply moved by a passage.

 Moss-covered terra-cotta pots

can last for many summers--

they just keep looking better.

Vintage materials and style.  This apron

must have lit up the kitchen,

and the cook.  It would be strange to
"sling hash" in something this feminine!

Who would have the heart to throw away
a piece with a history like this?
Chipped, but still lovely,
like some of us.

"They don't make them like this anymore".
Well if they do, you pay the price.

Now THIS has all the earmarks of a time-tested recipe!

Don't you think they are often the best?

An old work horse, many miles to go

before being "put out to pasture".

Vintage cool.
"Out to pasture", but still an eye-full.

TIMELESS: SHOULDN'T GO OUT OF STYLE

DEARIES, IT'S THE LITTLE THINGS...

LIGHT REVEALS

THAT INWARD EYE

William Wordsworth

(Born April 7, 1770; died April 23, 1850)

THE DAFFODILS

I wondered lonely as a cloud

That floats on high o'er vales and hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd,

A host, of golden daffodils;

Beside the lake, beneath the trees,

Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine

And twinkle on the milky way,

They stretched in never-ending line

Along the margin of a bay:

Ten thousand saw I at a glance,

Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they

Outdid the sparking waves in glee:

A poet could not but be gay,

In such a jocund company:

I gazed--and gazed--but little thought

What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie

In vacant or in pensive mood,

They flash upon that inward eye

Which is the bliss of solitude;

And then my heart with pleasure fills,

And dances with the daffodils.

APPROPRIATE FOR A MONDAY...

Don'cha think?

SOMETIMES WE JUST DON'T GET IT...

And so our God shouts it from His creation: I have loved you with an everlasting love!  If we will but open our eyes we will see His heart beating...

Carved in stone

Falling in delicate tracery

on a rock wall

From a prickly pincushion

in the desert

Formed in low green moss,

hugging a water-splashed rock

Using a wee spider to 

weave a tender poem

Carved in a tree He grew

Set in a red burst of 

floral glory

Backlit in a foamy cloud by

a searing sun

Peeking from a faraway atoll

Emerging in whispering leaves

Dripping from Bleeding Hearts

Formed and painted by the

Master Artist in tropical places

 Twisted and twirled 

in forest shadows

Patterned in coral lace

in the depths of the seas

 Or flung into outer space

by the breath of His mouth!

"For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead…"

~Romans 1:20

"…that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height--to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God."

~Ephesians 3:17-19

"…for God is love."

1 John 4:8b

FROM THE HEIGHTS, WORDS OF FIRE

 

Amy Carmichael served 55 years
in India, never returning to Ireland, 
her birthplace.
She founded Dohnavur Fellowship,
rescuing and raising children for Christ
who had been marked 
for temple worship practices.
This Fellowship continues today.

TEA AND HONEY. YES, THAT'S JUST WHAT'S NEEDED...

Ahhhhh, there there,

much better now!

JUST FOR THE TEENS? NO WAY.

POTATO-LEEK SOUP

Now THIS is the soup supreme to warm your tummies during our blustery, rainy winter days.  My suggestion would be to try and get your produce as fresh as you possibly can, the difference will thrill you!  Also, make it to the consistency that appeals to you using either more or less liquid.

INGREDIENTS

6-8 medium POTATOES, Yukon or

German Butterball the best

3 cups cleaned, thinly sliced LEEKS,

including tender part of greens (look

for soil between the greens, wash out)

3-4 large CARROTS, chopped or sliced

3-4 ribs CELERY, chopped or sliced

6-8 Tbsp. real BUTTER

1 tsp. SALT, or to taste

1-2 cups CHICKEN STOCK, VEGETABLE STOCK

 or WATER (homemade stock wows it)

3 cups whole MILK, or to 

consistency you prefer (the potatoes

tend to "drink" up the liquid a bit--you 

can always add more, subtracting it is

difficult)

1-2 tsp. HERBES DE PROVENCE, or

to taste (or snippets of herbs you love)

Instead of black pepper, I use 

WHITE PEPPER (white for a cream soup)

Start with 1/8-1/4 tsp. of the pepper

I will tell you the SECRET INGREDIENT

at the end, which drives this soup

"over the top"

PREPARATION

1.  Scrub the potatoes, and cut them into small chunks like this.

2.  Place them in a dutch oven or stock pot with the leeks, celery, carrot and butter.  Add salt.  Cook the vegetables, stirring over medium heat until the butter is melted and everything is coated (about 5 minutes).  It will look like this. The smell will hurry you along!

3.  Add the stock or water, bring to a gentle boil, cover and reduce heat to a simmer.  Cook until the potatoes are very soft (20-30 minutes).  Check the moisture level while simmering--you may need to add a little more stock or water if it gets too low.

4.  When the potatoes are tender, remove the pan from the heat and puree the contents with the milk added (if you have a wand that purees, this is the best as you do not have to remove the contents from the pan--if you don't, use a blender or a food processor fitted with the steel blade).  Make sure the mixture is utterly smooth.  Return it to the pan if need be.

5.  At this stage, add Herbes de Provence, or fresh or dried herbs of your choice (such as parsley, thyme, marjoram, etc).  Add the white pepper if you have it on hand, if not, the black.  Taste to see if it needs more salt.

6.  Now this is my secret ingredient that I came upon years ago by accident:  I finely grate the zest of an organic lemon into the soup!  It might be good for you to start with HALF the zest, taste and see if you should go further.  This truly adds an extra ZING to this old favorite.

7.  Heat the soup gently, stirring, until just hot--do NOT let it boil or you will burn your soup!  Serve it right away with fresh chives, parsley, or herb of your choice finely minced on the top, along with hot crusty bread.  Bon appetite my friends!

pinodra

themurmuringcottage

This is definitely a keeper!

Note of thanks:  I have used this recipe,

originally from The Enchanted Broccoli Forest by

Mollie Katzen, for years, altering it to my personal tastes.  Thank you, Mollie!

IS IT TIME?

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