First Day of Summer

 

Dear Friends

To celebrate the summer solstice on this first day of the “good old summer time”, I simply wanted to share a poem, some quotes, and a prayer.

Summer Solstice Poem

This was when the whole world measured time

This is when the light would turn around

This is where the past would come undone

And the spinning earth will mark a new beginning

Let’s go back in time to when it all began

To the breaking of new dawns

Four quotes for Summer

Summer is the annual permission slip to be lazy. To do nothing and have it count for something. To lie in the grass and count the stars. To sit on a branch and study the clouds. Regina Brett

And so, with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.  F. Scott Fitzgerald

I am summer, come to lure you away from your computer…come dance on my fresh grass, dig your toes into my beaches. Oriana Green

Be like the flower; turn your face to the sun. Kahil Gibran

A prayer

The sun is high above us, shining down upon the land and sea, making things grow and bloom. So that we may also grow and bloom this summer, give us times of refreshment and peace, and grant that we use our leisure to rebuild our bodies and renew our minds, that our spirits may be opened to the goodness of your creation. Great and powerful Creator of the Sun, we thank you for your gifts. Amen.

Happy Summer!

John

P.S. Words under the picture:

The sun blew out of a coronal mass ejection along with part of a solar filament over a three-hour period (February 24, 2015). Some of the strands fell back into the sun. 

Solar Dynamics Observatory/NASA

My sister's stroke

 

Dear Friends

This blog is dedicated to my dear sister Mary Bek. Five weeks ago, she  had a stroke. If I had only a few words to describe what is responsible for her good progress so far, beyond the excellent care and therapy she has been receiving at Casa-Colina in Pomona, they would include these: her courage, her determination, and her patience. Add her faith and the love and support and prayers she has received from her family and friends, and it is a recipe for continuing progress! 

The place we found for her temporary stay as she continues her journey home is “Casa Sa-villa”, Corona’s only 7 star Respite Center.

Its slogan is

“Rest, Refreshment and Renewal

as you continue on your

road to recovery”.

In addition to nearby outpatient physical, occupational and speech therapy, “Casa Sa-villa” offers many other therapies including:

Fiscal Therapy

Pre-Occupied Therapy

Tongue Twister Therapy

Food Choice Therapy

Current Events Therapy

Nature Therapy

Art Therapy

Game Therapy

Music Therapy

Laughter Therapy

Spiritual Therapy*

The brochure also says “No weapons allowed, limit two pets (must be stuffed) and all insurances and compliments accepted.”

Needless to say, this unexpected, challenging chapter is not finished. We don’t know exactly how many pages it will have, what it will look like, or where it will lead. But the road to recovery continues, and we have good reasons to have high hopes.

What a gift, knowing we can rally around our sister, mother, grandmother, aunt, cousin, wife and friend, and be inspired by her example of how to face a really big challenge. We all have a new pair of glasses to see the miracle and fragility of life, and the intersection of science and faith. We all have a new place to spend the love in our hearts and we are grateful that we have each other.

May God bless all who have, or are, or who will find these blessings during their challenging times.

John

*Spiritual Therapy will include listening to me practice my Sunday sermons, with the possibility it will also become sleep therapy!