Here are a few pics that brought me a sense of renewal during my recent trip to NYC. Change is good for us all--a remembrance of the lives of those around us.  The cathedral was just something I stuck my head into while walking to the City Museum of New York. That's what I love about NYC--there's something interesting around every corner. The muppet shot was a joyous moment of reunion w/ 2 friends from grad school, made even more fun with ChatGPT. (We are across the street from the NY Public Library.) Fun fact: my friend Bob and I also got the Jim Henson Award for Projects Related to Puppetry while in grad school at UMD, so this photo is especially appropriate! The last shot is an unexpected  zen-like moment at dusk, walking past Little Island, on the left, and seeing the view as the next pier came into sight. Thanks so much for hosting this blog! -Anne F

Gratitude takes attention; it requires self-awareness and reflection. A deep breath, a look around, and acknowledgement of the beauty that surrounds us, whether we are looking at home gardens or further afield at more dramatic locales showcasing the beauty of the earth. It’s easier to encounter the sublime in mountains or shore, canyons, cliffs, and skylines. It is more challenging to acknowledge magnificence in slugs eating lettuce. We’ve asked members of the church community to post about their favorite places, the places close by and far-flung, where they feel rejuvenation and wholeness. While Hilary is hiking Pacific Northwest forest trails, familiar Green Mountain passes, and overseas landscapes, members of the Good Shepherd community are encouraged to share travelogues and pictures, reflections and thoughts as they enjoy travels and staycations, as well as imaginary or inspirational destinations; where we would like to see and be. Students at home for the summer, at ...

Renewal: agricultural metaphors are common in both the old and new testaments. Mustard seeds, wheat and chaff, weeds and crops: tending to the garden is important. The miracle of the seed planted in spring in the hope of abundant harvest—from the humble dot of a mustard seed springs forth a substantial bush … with thousands of seeds both to harvest and to plant the next generation. I am an enthusiastic if poor and careless gardener. My plot has meandering lines of carrots and crooked rows of beans, green mixed with yellow wax and purple. I know what I am supposed to do to maximize yield, and if I relied on the small community patch to feed my family, I would probably work with greater precision and more planning. But my goal is as much a plot for contemplation and creativity as it is food production. Just yesterday we enjoyed fresh cilantro plucked from a volunteer plant that sprung up from a seed left last fall; a gift and wonderful surprise that I enjoyed immensely on my tacos. ...

Renewal: pruning, dividing, transplanting. Transplanting is transformative. But it is also risky, and violent. Some weeding decisions are easy: we have buffalo grass growing among the irises, cleome, and blue star. Those knobby long stems are easy to identify as intruders, even if the pulling and bending and bundling present a physical challenge.  Some decisions are easy and present minimal risk. Some decisions are more fraught. Change is dangerous, but it’s the only way to open space to grow. In front of our house we have a small flower garden, a strip about 6 feet wide and twenty or so feet long. It’s the sunniest spot on our wooded lot, so anything that needs full sun lives there. It took a few years to establish, but we have two beautiful varieties of bluestar, or amsonia: Eastern which is shorter with willow shaped leaves, and Fringed —taller, needle leaves and lighter blue flowers that produces a golden yellow fall foliage display. The Fringed really took off and crowded ou...

On Mondays, Good Shepherd parishioners walk around West Lafayette and Purdue's campus. I have had the pleasure of walking with them on a few occasions, and I tend to join on the absolute worst days. One day it started raining. Another day it was terribly hot & muggy: the kind of day you swim through the air or cut it to clear a walking path. I took pictures of highlights on the walk, mostly imitations of the pamphlet pictures Purdue uses to advertise itself as a welcoming, green campus in contrast to its image, or my image, of it as a campus amid cornfields. And for quite some time, there were literal cornfields close by academic campus.  I found myself also taking pictures of interesting green spaces, and chasing squirrels ( Purdue's squirrels are quite famous or ... infamous ). But it's the trees that caught my attention, and I cannot help but think about the naked leafless trees that bring me down in winter. But now, in late spring-becom...