Of Dogs and Bones
I’ve owned three dogs; Teddy the first, Teddy the second and Freckles. I loved them all, but oh, the heartache dogs sometimes bring into your life.
Blogs
Choosing to be thankful
I don’t know about you, but Thanksgiving has snuck up on me this year. Because the first of the month was a Monday, the second […]
Mrs. Maines’s Mustard
It’s delicious with just about anything! Makes about 8 oz. My mother in law’s recipe. I have many many fond moments with Jessie Sutherland! A great cook. A great lady.
Granny’s Tea Biscuits
Take me back 30 years in time and one of my favourite memories would be in the home of my mother-in law on a Sunday, at noon, after church. The entire family sat around the dining room table patiently waiting for the platter to arrive.
“Church Basement Things” from Donna Jean MacKinnon
Back in 1968, Donna Jean MacKinnon came over to my home to share recipes with me. I was about to be married and I suspect she sensed I had little experience in the kitchen.
Every hospital needs a garden
Most pastors have reason to visit the hospital with fair regularity, but last week my visit was different. Wearing street clothes instead of a collar, […]
Clootie Duff (Dumpling)
Rhoda MacRitchie, a native of the Isle of Harris and a Gaelic speaker, fondly recalls the three-hour-long summer communion services of her childhood. Communion was a major event and people would come from miles around. Beforehand, the host congregation undertook a flurry of cooking and baking and there was a competition as to whose house attracted the most guests for a lunch of Scotch broth, roast lamb and trifle.
Hand-crafted World
Our Genesis-charge is to look after the world. Our own place is that of carer. That feels right. We aren’t just wandering around a gallery. We are tending and caring. Maybe that’s why the Psalm opens with the image of singing children. It focusses our minds on care. And maybe also makes us remember that it care isn’t all about shaping and teaching, but also about listening and celebrating.
Small Letter Changes
I am a bit of a hoarder. Well, really I just keep things I feel I might use sometime in the future. When my girls finally have to clean out this place they are not going to think fondly on this habit that is left over from my early years.
Recipes and Memories
Most of us have special memories of Sunday school picnics, Burns suppers, church socials and, above all, the home-baking served at teas and church-basement bazaars. These continue to be a part of the fabric that is woven into belonging to a Presbyterian congregation.
Love and Straw Phobias
One of the things our society seems to be losing in recent years is the ability to be able to disagree civilly. This is especially […]
St. Francis came out of the closet but now he’s homeless
Inspired by another blogger who decided to add a “Saint of the Week” feature to her blog (I didn’t include a link because it looks […]
The Working Girl’s Frying Pan Cookies
Margaret Millar, chief elder at Wychwood, Toronto, has as much tea room and bake sale experience as anyone around. In 1972, Margaret found herself back at Wychwood where her signature raspberry coconut squares and frying pan cookies have appeared at a host of Christmas bazaars and church tea rooms.
Salt, Gardens, Cake, and Peace
I’ve been trying to write about Mark 9 and the stumbling blocks we put before those of little faith. But I keep seeing rubber boots flying and my hands stuffed full of a mad collection of twigs for pooh sticks.
Not Too Smart
Recently a friend of mine raised some interesting tomatoes…they were a maroon colour. I asked her if I could have one and perhaps propagate it. […]
Cape Breton Fudge and Blueberry Grunt
To this day, teas and bake sales in church basements make me salivate. Always, my mother’s date squares and fudge were huge hits. Dorothy MacKinnon’s fudge is still regarded, by one and all, as the finest ever made.
Examine your life, starting with today! (Thanks to Ignatius.)
Have you ever engaged in the ancient spiritual practice of examen? No, it doesn’t have anything to do with taking a test when you get […]
Seasons change and so does a bunch of other stuff
A fresh new school year has arrived and at our house we are all about new pencils, filling out school forms and a return to […]
It’s Bigger than Children
The disciples were squabbling about rank, and Jesus brought in a child to make a point about welcome. And what a point. Because he didn’t say that whoever welcomes a child does the work of the faithful. Or serves God well. Or gets brownie points
Always Learning
Fear of messing things up has kept me from trying out these new things and I am a bit ashamed, especially when I recall the girl who at 18 took a train across Canada, who at 22 walked onto a ship (a very old ship) with her young husband and tiny baby and sailed to France.