I'm From the Department of Redundancy Department

So, I know that I've posted this before... I know I've posted a lot of things before that I post again, but I can't help it!  When I feel like it applies so well, I just have to use it again.  So, without further ado... Eagerly anticipating my favorite season, Spring, being so near at hand... and yet with everything still bare and dreary, here is a passage from Robinson Crusoe which fairly describes my attitude towards the weather. :)

"There are some secret moving Springs in the Affections, which when they are set a going by some Object in view, or be it some Object, though not in view, yet rendered present to the Mind by the Power of Imagination, that Motion carries out the Soul by its Impetuosity to such violent eager embracings of the Object, that the Absence of it is insupportable." (Robinson Crusoe)


I really want Spring. Really really bad. The snow is pretty and everything, but I love hearing the rain on my roof, and think of it cleansing the earth... and I love to think of the earth coming alive... and I love to watch the green tint on the trees when the buds are finally on the trees, but haven't fully developed into... uh... leaves.  And I love to feel the warm breeze on my face, and I love to wake up to the birds singing, and I love to hear the thunder, and... I just love everything about Spring.  It's the season of new birth... if you think about it.  Everything is cold, and dead, and hard.  And then in Spring, everything turns warm... everything is alive... everything is warm. :) 


Spring will come... I'm trying to wait patiently... but the "absence of it is insupportable."

Randomness

I .. am... a...uh... robot??

He's faking.

Epitome of exhaustion.  Except for Grandpa.  Notice Olivia's face.

Big Nose meets Little Nose.... And Little Nose gets scared.

Hi. Are you okay?

Euphoric Nostalgia

is that contradictory? I can't tell... but it perfectly describes what I'm thinking...


I'll explain.

I've been thinking a lot about Scotland.  I wish I remembered more of what I felt when I was there.  It was so beautiful, so rugged... and the hills looked as if they said—"You don't belong here! What do you know of us or our history, the history of this land?"—at first glance... If mountains could mock, these mountains certainly did.  But I came to love them.  I didn't understand the land, and I didn't pretend to... But I knew that I was drawn to it by something I couldn't quite place.  I loved the mountains in spite of their austere nature, and everything about the land.  The vibrant heather against the green, the green against the deep, cloudy sky... Everything contrasted so highly, and everything blending so beautifully.  In short, I believe I rather fell in love.

And I remember feeling rather listless when we boarded the train for London.  I remember thinking: "Why must I leave? Can't I stay here forever? Can't I wander on these roads, wander in the highlands, live among the heather, among the sheep... Why must I leave?"

All good things come to an end.  Except for the best thing of all—too good for our finite minds to comprehend... God never comes to an end.  He is forever.

Ever since I went to Scotland, I have been gripped by a kind a nostalgia... The mountains couldn't care less if I came or went, the land seemed to say: "thousands come to see this... we are here merely for a show." How I wanted to live amongst the people, to learn about the land, to discover, explore, and become part of it!  It was so beautiful... The most beautiful I've ever seen.  Whenever I think of Scotland I am accompanied by a wild, beautiful excitement.  This is the most beautiful land I had seen.  Then I saw, that I was willing to give up a lot... a lot... to fulfill this dream of actually living in Scotland.

Now as I'm thinking about this, I can't help remembering the most beautiful thing I saw when I was there.  We were standing high on a cliff, where Flora MacDonald was buried.  The graves were old and weatherbeaten.  The sea was gray and stormy.  The sky was dark, as if it was ready for a storm... yet it had been that way all day.  We could see the cliffs all around, the inlets, the waves crashing against the barren rocks.  And then.... through that gray, gray sky, there came light, filtering through and resting on an inlet.  It was the most beautiful thing.

"Beyond this labyrinth of darkness, there is a realm of light."


I was so captured by this lovely image.  All around was dark and stormy, and yet the light rested there on the calm water... There was no break in the clouds, and yet there was the light, soft yet strong.

I was blessed to get a picture of it.

And now, looking back, I see that I was willing to give up a lot.

And over the past few days I've asked myself...

"Have I been so willing to give up so much to follow Christ? Is following Christ more important to me than fulfilling my dream of someday returning to Scotland, to spend as much time there as possible?" Scotland requires me to give up a lot.  God requires me to give up all.  And all includes that dream of Scotland.  Yes, I am willing to remain with this euphoric nostalgia of that beautiful country, being content with that.  I am willing never to go there again, if that is what God's will is.  Because God is more important to me than a country that will pass away.  And as beautiful as it is, it will never be as beautiful as God's grace, or as glorious as he himself is, clothed in holiness and righteousness.  This is beauty.

But there was a time when I was unsure.  For awhile I wondered to myself whether or not Scotland had become more important.  I might be reluctant to give up a few things to follow Christ, but I could certainly think of nothing I was reluctant to give up right then and there to go to Scotland.  Just being there would be reward enough for all I had given up.

But I deserve no reward.  I would have given up a lot, but it was never mine to give up.  Everything I own is a gift from my Father... everything I have is from him.  Nothing truly belongs to me.  And soon, I will die, and the image of Scotland will be unimportant.  It would pass, just like everything else.  I will die, and it will be gone.  Should I give up everything for something that I can only enjoy in this present life—and have no memory of in after-life?  What about God? This life may be full of suffering... full of sorrow... full of trials and tribulations, but we can find beauty and joy in Christ.  He gives us light, just like the light coming through the dark clouds on the water.  And through his strength, we can be a light in a dark place.  If we give up everything—our passions, our desires, our relationships—EVERYTHING, and follow Christ, think of what we will gain afterwords—an eternity with our King!

That is much better than a few years in a rugged, beautiful land.

That is so much better it doesn't even compare...

And I decided that no, Scotland was not more important to me than the task that I have been given: to follow Christ whole-heartedly and proclaim his name everywhere.

It doesn't mean I can't remember Scotland as a beautiful place, but it does mean that it simply won't be as important to me as the life God has called me to live.  

I Was Cleaning My Room....

and i found this. I wonder where I was going with it? i wrote it in november of 2008 when i was reading Lord of the Rings for the hundredth time... got inspired, i guess by Tolkien, but I can't remember what the rest of it was going to be. Oh well.

Under tree, earth, and stone
An ancient people dwell
Diminished is their flesh and bone
Their tales no man can tell.

It's morbid, isn't it?

oh well. :P

I was thinking about how there are great people that are remembered in this life... but without the minor people in their lives, and in the generations before them, they would have never become great.  There are obscure people in history, who, because they existed and did certain things, helped bring about God's plan for the greater people.  Just because they are obscure does not mean they are less important.  They felt things too.  They felt pain, misery, sorrow, joy, love, bliss, anger, happiness.  They felt the same things we feel, and yet, they are unremembered by man.  Their stories are lost in the whirlwind of history.  Their lives are insignificant... not even their names are remembered!

I am not remonstrating.... this is obviously God's plan.  Those obscure people are part of his plan, too, and by being part of his plan they helped bring about his will.  Everybody has a significant role in this world—no one was placed here without a purpose.

But here is what I wonder... What part did they play in the great scheme of things?  What was their role? Who were their friends? How did they die? Did they ever have the joy of being saved by Christ? What were the like? What sorts of things did they think and feel?  Their lives were probably as tumultuous, adventurous, and exciting as many of the novels we read.  But who were they?

I wonder...

Their tales no man can tell. 


But God hasn't forgotten them, has he? How can he forget what he created, what he brought about, what he planned?  No, he hasn't forgotten them... He knows their stories.

Journey To London: Final Stage

(I found some sort of an internet thing for now - getting connected today - so pictures of the flight below....)

The things I remember most distinctly are these: the jerk of the plane, and the speed... how smooth it felt, and how I gasped as I realized we left the ground; the sensation that I was flying; seeing labyrinth of blackness, suddenly streaked with a pale line of light - dawn, in foreign territory; my first glimpse of English countryside; suddenly coming out of the fog and clouds and having five seconds to look around before we hit the ground; my first step on British land.

The plane ride was perfect. It was the perfect length of time.  They showed a favorite movie, which we watched; then they served dinner, and after that a beverage, and then tea/coffee.  I read a few chapters out of Little Dorrit, I wrote a four page journal entry, wrote a few pages in my book, listened to music for a little, and then watched the blackness turn to dawn, and watched the dawn turn into sunrise, and watched the sunrise turn into morning.  But below us there was a thick blanket of grey clouds.  We plunged into it, and couldn't see anything.  As I said, I caught a glimpse of fertile, vibrant green English countryside, marked by hedgerows and everything...  And then we were served breakfast.

Sunset.

Dawn.

Sunrise.

Really, a delightful trip. Except... I didn't sleep at all. Neither did Chloe.  And the best way to deal with jetleg is to not sleep during the day, and try to stay up till 9 PM (London time) and then sleep. So, right now, I have not slept for 33 hours.  Every time I sit down to read, I really almost drop asleep.

Because we were so tired, and because Auntie had to teach a class and wasn't here to keep us awake, Chloe and I decided to hit the town.  We walked down to the British Museum, and then to Trafalga Square and took pictures of Lord Nelson, and then walked down to Westminster Abbey, and went near Buckingham Palace (although we didn't know it was Buckingham Palace - just thought it was some random building :P) saw the Parliamentary Buildings, the Churchill Museum, the Supreme Court, and other buildings.... Good heavens! This was most interesting.  We didn't go in anywhere, because we wanted to wait for Nana and Aunt Paula, but we got our bearings, and it is amazing how easy it is to memorize London. :D  So, when we go the next few days to visit places, we'll know better how to plan our trips.  The great thing is about this place is that everybody is walking.  People do take the buses, but everybody is walking, walking, walking.  Everybody gets their exercise.  It's nice... And it's nice to be able to go out and walk in different directions and see historical statues and stuff.

Speaking of which....

I saw a statue from behind of a hunched man in a long trench coat, with a hunky sort of head... And as I walked towards it, I said: "O, that is Winston Churchill!"  And sure enough, as I walked around to the front, I recognized his hard, stern eyes, and hard mouth-line, and stern, intimidating features.  But I am always amused when I see his face, for some reason. Not in a disrespectful way, though.  I love his writings, and I admire all the research he did and the time he took to write such detailed histories for us...

And before we started the who-knows-how-many-mile trek back to Auntie's flat, we sat under a tree by a statue of a man named "Derby" and ate dark chocolate. :D

And now we are about to have dinner, and after that BED!

Again, I am not connected to the internet on my computer, so I am unable to upload pictures. But I WILL DO SO tomorrow when I get my internet, because we took some really good pictures.

Boyhood Days

The only thing that excuses this picture is that the youngster portrayed here is only two...

The Adventures Of The Hopkins Family With Their First Attempt At Making The Formidable Dessert Formally Called Lemon Meringue Pie And The Consequences

I always thought that anyone could bake; that it did not require talent beyond knowing your ingredients and measuring items etc. But I have since been proven wrong.

Last Tuesday we celebrated my father's father's 90th birthday. (It was originally May 10th, but Tuesday was the day that all his children could gather together.) His favorite pie is Lemon Meringue. In our attempts to honor our grandfather we (out of respect for the people involved in making this pie, I will not list any names) attempted making one. However, it was our very first time. It was then that I learned that anyone can bake, but there are only some people who can bake something that is actually edible. Observe the picture below.

How could such a dreadful catastrophe such as this occur? The pie crust has sunk down, the mixture underneath the meringue is burned, and the meringue itself is flat. Of course we were all in a deplorable state. We stared at each other, and the pie, said "oh no" and "oh dear" and "oh well" a great many times, and then it was time to go food shopping. We wouldn't have time to mend our error.

GRANDMOTHERS TO THE RESCUE!

Have you ever listened to your grandmother talk about the recipes that her mother used to make? Does your grandmother make those good old time recipes that just they can make because they have the old time touch? My grandmother does. And she saved the day. Quickly looking at the clock, she thought she could whip up two of her famous lemon meringue pies before we had to leave. And so she started. And here is where I discover that it does take talent to bake. Observe the picture below.

A true Lemon Meringue Pie....

So, this is how the pie SHOULD look like. The pies came out of the oven, were thrown in a box, and then we left. The timing was absolutely perfect, and dear Nana saved the day. Of course, this talent can be passed down, if she teaches us how she does it, but we'll never forget this incident when we tried to make lemon meringue pies and failed. :P

*****Because I Think We're Nonsensical*****

I don't even know why I humiliate myself like this. ;)

"parting is such sweet sorrow..."

Just A Random Picture...

I guess I just got into a Lizzie Hall mood... :P Expect random posts from a random person!!

Air Hockey and Shrek

In the last part of this, we're talking about the movie Shrek... But that's not that important unless you're really wondering what we're talking about. :P

It's No Secret That We're A Strange Family

Growing Up

Last night I was thinking about when I grow up, and (Lord willing) am married and have a family. I realized that everything, everything will be different. I had just wrapped up a phone conversation with my friend Rachel Clarke. Even after I'm off the phone, I still laugh. But it suddenly dawned upon me that when we talk on the phone when we're older, she won't laugh the same way. We won't share the same kind of inside jokes as we do now. Olivia and I won't exchange the same kinds of letters. Ashley and I won't carry on the same way we do now. It will be like, "Yes, George is getting pretty big. He is starting to learn to read. How's Frank?" (Hopefully we won't be using those names.) It seemed to me that we would all be so unattractively mature in 20 or 30 years. Not that now we're attractively immature, but to me suddenly it seemed that being mature was growing up, and that thought is so unwelcome at this time.

It is always a good thing to enjoy childhood and youth, but it is not good to not want your childhood to leave you, and be caught up in thinking about it all the time. Because if you do, then you will have a very unpleasant childhood. And you will look back and say, "I could have had a marvelous time if I had not worried about growing up!" We must be thankful for the time that we are given. Of course, some people grow up faster than others, and I think I'm one of the slower ones. I'm in the very rear of the race. :) But it also does no good to wish you were older. Then you're thoughts will be, "Why didn't I enjoy my childhood while I had it?" I know some people (obviously elderly people) who have told me that they bitterly regretted not enjoying their youth.

Now I am not saying that I don't want to grow up because I'm afraid of everything that comes with motherhood, and the responsibilities and all that, because I know that in those things too I will find pleasure, even though there will be many trials to endure and get through. But the more I think about it, the more I like being young. If I could, I might even go to Neverland. :P Just kidding. I'm not that desperate.

When I thought about my approaching 15th birthday many months back, I always thought, "15?! I'll have to mature prematurely!" However, I'm finding that that's not true. Of course, I don't want to strive to be immature, but maybe I meant that I'll have to grow up prematurely. But as I haven't really done that yet, I'm thinking that I won't force myself to do it. Meanwhile, I can employ myself in various ways that are enjoyable, and yet give me training for when I finally do grow up. On my birthday, a friends mother asked me, "And are you excited to be 15?"
"Well," I said slowly. "I REALLY liked being 14."

But another thing I thought of last night was this. My daddy says that our generation (meaning their children's generation) is going to be hard. We have to become strong. We have to help raise a godly generation. I have a lot more I would say about this, but I can't put all my thoughts into the right words. But you get the general idea, right?

There really wasn't much point in this post, except that I just felt like I had to say something, and this was one of the easiest ways to do it. That's what usually happens with these kind of posts. I think my mind is a bit discombobulated. :P

Another Picture

Here's another picture I played around with. It's amazing how it changes from the original.

Tagged!

Dearest Olivia from Eager Hands has tagged me with "Six Random Thing About Me. The Rules state that I have to state the rules, so here goes:

* Link to the person who tagged you

* State the rules

* Write six random things about yourself

* Tag (about) six people by leaving comments on their blogs

* And let the person who tagged you know when you have completed your mission.

Well, this thing might not be so easy, because for one, I don't know many people with blogs, and for two, I don't know many random things about me...

1. I have crazy dreams... And thank goodness, but they don't come true!
2. I read approximately 220 pages of history per week.
3. I look better in sporty clothes than in little black dresses with stockings and high heeled shoes.
4. I like the name Corliss, and everyone wonders why I do. Oh, I also like the name Spartius.
5. I got my ears pierced on Monday, December 13, 2004, when I was (but not exactly) 11 and 4 mos old.
6. I am listening to Your Guardian Angel right now and it's been played 196 times.

I am going to tag...
~ My darling older sister, Chloe, at Beautiful Fidelity...
~ My dear brother Gabriel at The Notes and Past Times of Gub-Gub
... That's all I know! (pitiful I know!)

15th Birthday... Halfway to THIRTY!!! :)

Oh how romantic. :) Those Gerber Daisies are some that daddy bought me... :)

I can't get over how adorable she is...

Or her... for that matter... :)

Another weird picture!!!

Isn't so nice that we love each other??

L'auteur Malade Bientôt à être Bien!

Hullo my jolly good readers!

This post is written specifically to inform you (though I do doubt that some of you would hardly care) that I am on the mend, and expect to be completely recovered by Tuesday. As though I could name the day or hour of when my good health will return, but I am only saying that I expect it to return then... And I know I am sounding very confusing right now! As though you would even care whether I am well or ill... But I like to write, and since I can find nothing to write about except the state of my health, I am afraid my honest and highly esteemed readers, if they so choose to read my blog, must read what they find, which is an absolutely dull and droll account of no-one-in-particular's sickness. So, please bear with me.

I have a soar throat, a rather "congested" cough, a stuffy/runny nose, and fits of sneezing and wheezing which aren't that pleasant to those around me. Thankfully I won't die. And that is it. Was that so very bad, my dear patient and constant readers? (Well, for those of you who are constant.)

The only reason I have entitled the last two post names in French is because any other title in English would seem absolutely droll and utterly idiotic. These will be the first... (and perhaps last) of my posts entitled in foreign and unknown (to us that is) languages.

And now forgive the absurdity of this post, but because I am sick, I beg forgiveness of all my fair readers. :-)

I thank you profusely and prodigiously for getting through these unseemly and tedious post.

Goodnight, and farewell!

~Ruby

WARNING!!! BLOG ON HOLD!!!!!

Well... Kind of. I don't know when I will get a chance to post next, so I'm just warning you that I might not get around to it for awhile. However, if I do get to it soon, then hip hip hurrah! :) But if not, well, at least you won't be left wondering. Tomorrow is Luther's birthday, and the next day is Daddy's birthday. I will be getting up at 6:30 every morning to read Vanity Fair, as I need to have it done by my birthday. If I finish it by the end of the week, I'm aiming to have Queen Victoria done by my birthday. :-| We'll see how that goes.

So, in case I don't post for awhile, adios my fair amigos!

~Ruby

I Can't Think of A Title... How Droll

Okay.... So the past few days have been pretty hectic... Well, maybe the past week. On Saturday the Howard's had a huge yard sale, from eight AM to one PM. So Olivia (see here and here) and I got up at five thirty AM and made berry coffee cake for breakfast, then helped set up. Around eleven fifteen, I told Emma that I was going to go lie down for fifteen minutes. The next thing I know Olivia comes in the room and says, "Hey Ruby you might want to wake up... You've been asleep for four hours."

:P

Then on Sunday I took a two hour nap in the library... and on Monday I didn't have a nap because we went to Cabelas! Yay! :) That was so exciting. I'll have pictures up later, but I seriously was impressed, and their fudge is soooooooo wonderful!

That night we also went to Oglebay (I was corrected and told it is pronounced O-GAL-BEE ;) lol) Park. We got tons and tons of pictures by the pond, and Emma and I had loads and loads of fun rolling down this HUGE hill! I tell ya, if you haven't done that yet, do it, even though you might be 58 years old!!!!!! But the second time down, Emma got stung by a bee on her neck. Olivia got stung four or five times on her hip, and I rolled over a few roots of a tree on my way down the hill, which resulted in a huge black and blue and red bruise. Yuck.

Tuesday we went school supply shopping. I can't believe that season is almost here! You see, I stopped math this past Spring in the middle of a math problem and lesson. :P Bad me... But I am excited, because I want to go shop for binders and notebooks, etc., etc.. Yay! *excited*

Today was nothing eventful... We went on our daily walk (we've been walking 1-4 miles every day--no hyperboly) and took care of the kids and did the dishes, and made dishcloths, and then the Howard's dropped me off here! (At the Clarkes). Tomorrow morning I'll travel to Solon with Mr. Clarke, and my family will pick me up there at Mr. Clarke's office probably around lunchtime! I am so excited! But I thoroughly enjoyed my time here, and I think it was very good for me. :)

I will definitely be getting some pictures up for those of you who care... :P

~Ruby Jean

A Chocolate Facial

Okay... So last night Olivia and I were up late baking and cooking lots and lots of.... stuff... for Emma's late tea/birthday party. We made chocolate covered strawberries, and we had quite a bit of the milk chocolate left over. So, we decided that it really needed to go on my face. Hence, the pictures below. Then... I saw the bag of flour... :D























































My nose is NOT that huge!!!!

An Odd Picture