Okay. I’m fine. I’ve just taken a rest from posting as it’s been hard to find new ways to say how much I dislike…so many things.

But here are some good things to report:

Despite the ninety degree weather, my yard has produced spectacular blooms this year. The trumpet vines, roses, hydrangeas and even the hostas have outdone themselves. Sincere thanks to God for that.

My family is just the best. My son and daughter are still wonderful. Their spouses are people I love and my four grandsons make me endlessly proud and happy. Oh, and my husband is still cute.

Our church is living out our faith in many ways including intentionally developing community on the inside, and sharing love with those in the broader community as well. I love that.

I have more than enough. I have a lovely home even though it is still torn up and full of sawdust. I have food and access to medical care. I have friends who care about me. I have family who love me. I have coffee, chocolate, books, my tennis racquet and lots of ideas to write about.

The ocean is still there, two hours away and I got to see it several times this summer. There is sand and driftwood and fog and broken shells, with always the promise of finding a perfect one.

I’m sure there’s more, but all the above are good things.

While my head has been retracted inside the shell I’ve continued to ponder.

I ponder the ways people are alike and different all over the world. Similar needs and hopes, in wildly different environments and circumstances.

I wonder at inconsistencies in belief systems—how perfectly kind people adhere to beliefs that when acted upon are cruel and unkind.

While Jesus asks us to turn the other cheek and go the second mile I wonder why we don’t do better at finding common ground in the problem-solving process.

Have I forgotten the way news used to be or has it always been a litany of crime, violence, and utter lack of love shown one to another? And if it’s as bad as it seems, why?

I’m thankful God is still the plumb line for truth in a day when bald-faced lying is commonplace and condoned.

I wait for good manners to be reinstalled as preferred behavior for adults rather than taunting, name-calling, threatening and other appalling displays.

I search for the heart of Jesus’ Gospel—good news for one and all.

I sometimes envision Jesus showing up in our world today, right smack in the middle of our daily lives. How would he react and what would he say? I know I’d be found wanting.

Turtles do put their heads back out of their shells, but sometimes they’re slow about it.