"All Along You Were Blooming" poems and my pitiful left knee

 I just happened to find and buy a poetry book by Morgan Harper Nichols. The book looked like it would be a treat and a spirit lifter, and it is. I read that she has 2,000,000 social media followers and she is admired for her poetry and her art. The book I bought is her "All Along You Were Blooming: Thoughts for Boundless Living" and I am very pleased with it.

Above is the young lady who is the gifted poet. Here is her book cover:

Here is one of her poems that is very meaningful to me.

In case it is hard for you to read: There will be days when you do not feel fearless, and you choose to get up and go out to sea anyway.

And my friend, let me tell you, that is what it means to be brave.

It is that gentle shove toward the water that says "I will go, and I will go afraid."

It is not a feeling. It is not a thought. It is that inward wind that pulls you out of sleep and says "I will go forth with all I have now: a breath, a dozen steps, and a pocket full of fears,

but no matter what tries to pull me back, I will find the strength to be here." 

This is a nice size smaller hardback, maybe six inches tall, full of Nichols' art and poems. It would make a nice gift book for anyone or for you; you deserve a treat too.

 

Poor poor pitiful me! On June 8 I took Bounce on a leisurely walk and came home and was standing in front of the closet when my left knee went out. Terrible pain. I think this is connected with growing so old. I was not moving. My knee just went! I could only hobble, three inches at a time, saying ouch with each step. What a night. All the next week my knee has been healing, aided by rest and my answered prayers.  That night and all the next day Bounce stayed close by, looking worried as I moaned and limped. He is a true companion. Be well my friends. 

Update on June 25: I got 4 x-rays of my knee and it shows arthritis. They say this is pretty common in people 65+. I am going to sign up for physical therapy.  One thing I will say about my insurance (Medicare plus Supplemental Insurance) is that all this is paid for, here in the USA.

Annie Johnson Flint, Gifted Poet and Blogging Question

 

I recently discovered a poet and hymn writer, Annie Johnson Flint, who wrote deep and yet easy to understand poems. Her book "He Giveth More Grace" contains 100 poems that are a delight to read. On Kindle her books are about 99 cents, a bargain price. Above she is in a wheel chair due to extreme arthritis from a young age. She wrote by hand with hands terribly twisted and painful from arthritis.

Annie lived from 1866-1932. After treatment when young at a sanitarium she moved in with a family named Flint and became part of their family.

Above is the book "He Giveth More Grace" that I bought, these 100 poems are all appreciated by me; here is one of them:

Thy Strength and My Day

Give me Thy strength for my day, Lord

That wheresoe'er I go,

There shall no danger daunt me

And I shall fear no foe; 

So shall no task o'ercome me,

So shall no trial fret,

So shall I walk unwearied

The path where my feet are set.

So shall I find no burden

Greater than I can bear,

So shall I have a courage

Equal to all my care;

So shall no grief o'erwhelm me,

So shall no wave o'erflow;

Give me Thy strength for my day, Lord,

Cover my weakness so.

Annie Johnson Flint found her inspiration for this poem in Deuteronomy 31:6 "Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them; for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee."

When I face challenges, which happens more and more now that I am a senior citizen, I love these reminders of good courage, "there shall no danger daunt me".  Well, the words are helpful at any age.

BLOGGER QUESTION. How can I add those little buttons some of you have with each of your posts so that people can click on a button to leave their opinion? Buttons that say Like, Funny, or other comments. A blog friend asked me to add this feature and I can't figure out how. I hope one of my helpful followers will enlighten me. Thank you blog friends for letting me know that this option of buttons that say "like", "funny" etc. is no longer available on blogger. 

Also, something awful has occurred, my blog roll has disappeared! I loved that list of all the blogs I follow, and I used it to check out blog posts if I haven't seen a post from a favorite blogger in a while. Very big loss for me!

Journey to Heal by Wei Wei

 

My friend, Wei Wei, has published a beautiful book, with photographs of nature taken by her, and words to accompany each photo.

Wei's words and photos in "Journey To Heal" are glimpses of beauty and her book is a delight to read. Her photos celebrate calm moments in nature and she has a gift for poetic words. The story in it has sadness caused by the death of her father, yet the book's words and photos reflect a deep joyfulness and healing. 

I like how the photos she chose often have a bit of mist or fog, ocean spray or clouds. Here is a sample of Wei's words: Take me, take me, to the other side of the mountain ... Take me, take me, to the other side of the cloudy sky.

Wei's book is available on Amazon and at her publisher as an ebook, paperback and hardcover. Here is a link to Wei's publisher: Friesen Press

My brilliant red Cantua flowers from Chile

This bush is my fifteen year old Cantua, which is a popular plant in Chile. My shrub is about 6 feet tall, and my friend who moved here from Chile told me that a Cantua at her home there reached her second story bedroom window. The flowers form only on the tips of the branches.

Like me, do you collect quotes? Garden quotes are favorites of mine and I have several books of them.
"Flowers are heaven's masterpieces." -- Dorothy Parker
"See nature, and through her, God.." -- Henry David Thoreau.  My dear uncle Leroy Pelkin introduced me to reading Thoreau and Emerson beginning when I was a child of perhaps ten.
I still have some old hardcover books by Thoreau and Emerson, printed about 1906, that Uncle Leroy gave me.

"Flowers are our greatest silent friends." -- Jim G. Brown
"The man who has planted a garden feels that he has done something for the good of the whole world." -- Charles Dudley Warner. I agree, she or he has done something good to benefit all of us.

"My Garden" poem by T.E. Brown

My Garden
A garden is a lovesome thing, God wot!
Rose plot,
Fringed pool,
Fern'd grot -
The veriest school
of peace; and yet the fool
Contends that God is not -
Not God! in gardens! when the eve is cool?
Nay, but I have a sign;
'Tis very sure God walks in mine."

Written by Thomas Edward Brown. 1830-1897. Victorian scholar, teacher, poet, and theologian, from the Isle of Man.
For my dear blog friends with different beliefs, please don't mind this poem, I wanted to share this because it is beautiful. Some poets from Victorian times have a mystical way with words.
The flowers are Canterbury bells and nasturtiums in my garden.

Emily Dickinson "If I can stop one heart from breaking"

Hi Friends,
I bought the cutest little book of book marks, published by Dover, at my public library's store. You tear out the book marks along the perforations.
Each bookmark has a different poem, each with a garden painting.
Here is a favorite:

If I can stop one heart from breaking,
I shall not live in vain;
If I can ease one life the aching,
Or cool one pain,
Or help one fainting robin
Unto his nest again,
I shall not live in vain.

Do y'all love this like I do? Well written Miss Emily.