February Notes of Gratitude

February 1.
Psalm 107:
“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!”
A short walk with Freddy.
Coffee with Susan.
Roasting a chicken.
February 2.
Up at 6.
Snow.
Matthew 7:7.
Effective Prayer;
“Keep on asking, and you will receive
What you ask for. Keep on seeking
And you will find. Keep on knocking
And the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks; receives.
Everyone who seeks, finds.
And to everyone who knocks,
The door will be opened.”
A short walk with Freddy in the snow.
Birds at the feeder.

Chicken on rye toast for lunch.
Making chicken stock.
A call from my son.
February 3.
Matthew 7.
“Do not judge others, and you will not be judged.
For you will be treated as you treat others.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Photo of camper with logo.

Picadillo for dinner.
A call to my sister, Darlene.
Now home after surgery.
February 4.
Up at 6:15.
Matthew 7:24-29.
“Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise,
like a person who builds a house on solid rock.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Coffee with Susan.
A meeting with Janel of Web-tactics.
Leftover Picadillo for lunch.
Ordering out for Chinese food.
Watching Mass on Catholic TV.
Reading The Economist.
Reading The Cantos.
February 5.
Up at 5:30.
Acts 1:1-50.
The  of The Holy Spirit.
Coffee and toast with Susan.
Contractors arrive at 8:00.
Dinner at Shortstop Bar & Grill.

February 6.
Up at 6:00.
Acts 2:1-4.
The Holy Spirit Comes.
February 7.
Up at 6.
Zechariah 11:1-3.
Open your doors, Lebanon so that fire may devour
Your cedar forests. Weep, you cypress trees, for all the ruined
Ceders; the most majestic ones have fallen.
Weep, you oaks of Bashan, for the think forests have been cut down.
Listen to the wailing of the shepherds,
For their rich pastures are destroyed.
Here the young lions roaring
For their thickets in the Jordan valley are ruined.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Bacon and eggs and toast for breakfast.
Making Catalan Beef Stew.

February 8.
Up at 5:45.
1 Timothy 2:1-15.
“I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people.
Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf,
and give thanks for them.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Coffee with Susan.
Smoked Salmon on Bagels for lunch.
A call from my daughter, Danielle.
“Dad, I made Tamago-Yaki.”
Pasta and meatballs for dinner.

February 9.
Up at 6:00.
James 3:13-18.
“If you are wise and understand God’s ways prove it
By living and honorable life, doing good works
With the humility that comes from wisdom.”
A short walk with Freddy in snow storm.
Coffee with Susan.
Leftover Catalan Beef Stew for lunch.
Roast chicken for dinner.
A call from my son.
February 10.
Up at 6:00.
James 4:10.
“God opposes the proud
But favors the humble.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Making chicken stock.
Picking out tile for bathroom.
Happy to write a check for Janel of Web-tactics.
Dinner at Shortstop Bar & Grill.
Working on new letterhead.
February 11.
Up at 6:20.
Luke 8:4-10.
Parable of the Farmer Scattering Seed.
“And the seeds that fell on the good soil
Represent honest, good-hearted people
Who hear God’s word, cling to it,
And patiently produce a huge harvest.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Coffee and toast with Susan.
Playing with Freddy in backyard.

Contractors working on bathroom renovation.
Ordering out for Chinese food.
Watching Jeopardy.
Burning incense.
February 12.
Up at 6:00.
Psalm 4.
“Answer me when I call you,
O God who declares me innocent.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Coffee and toast with Susan.
Snow falling.
Susan making us Ham Salad sandwiches.
Fluffy snow.
Beef and Barley Soup for dinner.

Watching Mass.
Watching Jeopardy.
Watching Market Warriors.
February 13.
Up at 6:15.
Psalm 113.
Praise the Lord!
A short walk with Freddy.
Egg on marble rye for breakfast.
Writing check for contractors.
New magazines at Post Office.
Cooking Light and The New Yorker.
Leftover Beef and Barley Soup for lunch.
Brewing tea. Tension Tamer.
Making pizza dough.
Meatball and mushroom pizza for dinner.

Watching Mass.
Watching Jeopardy.
February 14.
Up at 6:15.
Matthew 7:13-14.
“You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow
Gate. The Kingdom to Hell is broad, and its gate is wide
For the many who choose that way. But the gateway
To life is very narrow and the road is difficult
And only a few can ever find it.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Very cold. Minus 2.
Leftover pizza for breakfast.
Tuna on rye for lunch.
Cleaning my closet.
Haddock for dinner.

February 15.
Up at 6:15.
Wind and snow. Cold.

Matthew 8:1-4.
“I am willing. Be healed.”
A short walk wit Freddy.
Organizing closet.
Farro and Broccoli Frittata for breakfast.
Susan making us tea.
Letting go of all my ties.
And a few shirts.
Roasting a chicken with grapefruit and ginger.
Watching Father Brown with Susan.
Watching The Great British Bake Off with Susan.
February 16.
Up at 6:20.
Matthew 13:31-32.
Parable of The Mustard Seed.
Jesus used this illustration.
“The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed
Planted in a field. It is the smallest of all the seeds,
But it becomes the largest of all the plants; it grows
Into a tree, and birds come and make nests in its branches.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Cold. Minus 7. Windy.
Coffee with Susan.
Buying paint for bathroom.
Running ad on Facebook.

Western sandwiches for lunch.
Haddock rice cakes for dinner.
February 17.
Up at 2:15 to feed Nadine.
Up at 4:00. Nadine meowing at door.
Up at 6:20.
Matthew 13:36-43.
Parable of the Wheat and Weeds.
“The son of man is the farmer who plants
The good seed. The field is the world
And the good seed represents the people
Of the Kingdom……The righteous will shine
Like the sun in their Father’s Kingdom.
Anyone with ears to hear, should listen
And understand.”
A s short walk with Freddy.
Seven degrees.
Coffee and toast with Susan.
Again the contractors arrive at 8:00.
Contractors arrive bearing gifts.
Three bottles of wine.
Thanking us for our patience and understanding.
Shower floor completed.
Turkey on rye with avocado for lunch.
Dinner at Shortstop Bar & Grill.
Tired.
In bed at 8:30.
February 18.
Up at 5:45.
Matthew 13:44-46.
Parable of The Hidden Treasure and the Pearl.
“The kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure
That a man discovers hidden in a field.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Cold. Minus seven.
Coffee and toast with Susan.
Susan making chocolate pudding.
Chicken chilli for dinner.
Watching Mass.
A call from my son.
Falling to sleep reading The Economist.
February 19.
Up at 6:45.
Matthew 13: 47-52.
Parable of the Fishing Net.
“Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a fishing net
That was thrown into the water and caught fish of every kind.
When the net was full, they dragged it up onto shore,
Sat down, and sorted the good fish into crates,
But threw the bad ones away.
That is the way it will be at the end
Of the world. The angels will come and
Separate the wicked people from the righteous……”
A short walk with Freddy.
Coffee with Susan.
Western sandwiches for lunch.
Chicken breasts for dinner.
February 21.
Up at 6:30.
Matthew 13:53-58.
Jesus rejected at Nazareth.
“A prophet is honored everywhere except
In his own hometown and among his own family.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Cold. Minus ten.
Coffee with Susan.
Susan making us oatmeal.
A short walk with Freddy.

February 22.
Up at 6:00.
Matthew 15:21-28.
The Faith of a Gentile Woman.
Roast chicken for dinner.
Watching Father Brown with Susan.
A call from my daughter.
February 23.
Up at 6:30.
Matthew 16:13-20.
Peter’s Declaration about Jesus.
“Now I say to you that you are Peter
(which means rock)
And upon this rock I will build my church,
and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Coffee and toast with Susan.
Contractors arrive at 8 and finish cleaning.
Western sandwiches for breakfast.
Eleanor visits to see new bathroom.

Meatloaf for dinner.
Watching documentary on William E.B. DuBois.
A call from my son.
February 24.
Up at 6:00.
Matthew 19:13-15.
Jesus Blesses The Children.
“Let the children come to me.
Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven
Belongs to those who are like these children.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Cold. Minus 10. But birds singing.
Coffee and toast with Susan.
Making Pasta and Bean Soup.

A short nap on the couch with Freddy.
Pasta and Bean Soup for dinner.
Watching Mass.
Watching Jeopardy.
A call from my daughter.
Falling to sleep reading The Economist.
February 25.
Up at 5:45.
Matthew 19:16-30.
“……keep the commandments……and those who seem
Least important now ill be greatest then.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Mailing cards and prints to Janel and Deborah.
Filling bird feeder with sunflower seeds.
Leftover pasta and bean soup for lunch.
Pecan-crusted chicken for dinner.
Watching Mass.
Watching Jeopardy.
February 26.
Up at 6:30.
Matthew 18:21_35.
Parable of the unforgiving Debtor.
“No, not seven times,” Jesus replied,
“But seventy times seven.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Coffee and toast with Susan.
Western sandwiches for lunch.
Dinner at Shortstop Bar & Grill.
Watching Jeopardy.
Watching Market Warriors.
Falling to sleep reading The Economist.
February 27.
Up at 6:15.
Mark 11:1-11.
Jesus’ Triumphant Entry.
“Go into the village over there…As soon as you enter it,
You will see a young donkey tied there that one has even ridden.
Untie it, and bring it here. If anyone asks,
‘What are you doing?’ just say, ‘The Lord needs it
And will return it soon.'”
A short walk with Freddy.
Birds singing. Sunny. Ten degrees.
A mushroom spinach omelet for breakfast.
Vacuuming the house.
Meatloaf sandwiches for lunch.
Susan buying Shetland Salmon.
Salmon, Farro, Brussels Sprouts for dinner.

Watching Mass.
“God loves me!”
A call to Darlene.
February 28.
Up at 7:00.
Mark 12:1-12.
Parable of the Evil Farmers.
“The stone that the builders rejected has now become
The cornerstone. This is the Lord’s doing,
And it is wonderful to see.”
A short walk with Freddy.
Coffee with Susan.
Watching A Chef’s Life.
Bacon and egg sandwiches are breakfast.
Meatloaf sandwiches for lunch.
A visit from a friend, Dianne Provost, bearing
Wedding gifts. Great conversation.
A walk with Freddy.
Dinner at Karen and John’s home in Granville.