Writing Thoughts

In Like a Lion,Out Like a Lamb!

/ Jeanne Lemmon Skinner / Leave a comment

Roar! It’s almost spring!

This beautiful guy was created for Columbus’s Home and Garden Show. The theme this year was Africa and each landscape company was given a wire animal to make come alive. The Seely Landscape Company were so determined to do this they contacted a taxidermist for eyes in order to obtain the life-like quality. They won best of show for their amazing landscape which included the lion.

The saying In like a lion, out like a lamb is a weather prediction that many of us grew up hearing. This year, March came in like a lamb, sooo we’ll wait to see if we experience a roaring ending. In the past, people believed nature maintained a balance and the month of March is a perfect example. In Ohio, we have both wintry snow and beautiful spring days. My blooming spring flowers always receive a little snow.

We often hear people talk about finding a balance in life. This is usually directed at work and family or work and play. Finding a balance of foods we eat is also a balancing act. Those noodles throw my diet askew. I however wish for imbalance in my life. I desire an imbalance of love and joy! I want an imbalance of sunshine. Those of you who live in Ohio understand this. I don’t care if it’s cold, but I want sun!! I’m happy March is here and my daffodils and tulips are pushing through the soil. I have bluebirds eating at my feeder and today we have sun. I appreciate this imbalance in my life and hope that it continues. I hope March has an imbalance of warm sunny days. I’m done with winter and wearing my winter coat!

Fat Tuesday or Shrove Tuesday?

/ Jeanne Lemmon Skinner / Leave a comment

Last Day to Feast!

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday which is the beginning of forty days of fasting for Christians and perhaps for those who want to end a bad habit. The forty days is because Jesus spent forty days in the wilderness praying.

For many it is Mardi Gras which is the French term for Fat Tuesday. It is also Shrove Tuesday. It was customary for early Christians to ask to be forgiven of their sins or shriven on this day. The Pancake Bell would ring, people would confess their sins and then make pancakes in order to use up all the rich ingredients. During lent, people were not to eat eggs, milk, butter, or meat. People around the world will eat pancakes today in keeping with this custom.

It makes me wonder what people did with the eggs they gathered and the milk that the cows produced during that time. Cows have to be milked twice a day, so they probably made butter and cheese and ate it on Sundays along with eggs. Sundays were exempt from fasting because they were (and still are) considered days of joy in celebration of Jesus’s resurrection.

I always give up sweets and seldom make it the forty days. I have chocolate chip cookies to eat tonight! I plan to make it this year. (I always plan to make it!) I will give up the unhealthy sweets and add more prayer time. A time to grow spiritually is the benefit of lent. Hope you all find a benefit in this lenten season.

Witch Hazel Blooms First!

/ Jeanne Lemmon Skinner / Leave a comment

Witch Hazel has Angelic Qualities!

Seeing blossoms in February is a treat, and that is what our witch hazel tree provides. If you have one, prune after it blossoms and before the leaves come out. (Little gardening advice!)

I grew up with my mom and grandmother both using witch hazel on insect bites. It burned less than alcohol and it worked as well. Until I researched witch hazel, I didn’t know it came in a bar and is recommended to help with poison ivy itching and burning. It is also used to treat acne.

Native Americans boiled the bark and used it to treat a variety of skin irritations. The colonists learned how to use herbs, bark and roots from the natives in making teas to treat many ailments.. My grandmother talked about making poultices from onions and other natural ingredients in treating pneumonia. She wanted my mother to make one for me, but my mother used Vicks instead. If you read the Vicks ingredients you’ll see eucalyptus oil is listed along with other natural ingredients.

I have a bottle of witch hazel in my cupboard and still use it on insect bites. I read some of the things people use it for and was surprised. One person claims it removed the dark circles under her eyes and another said it lightened the dark spots on her hands and face. It can also be used on hemorrhoids if you’re interested. Amazing stuff!

When our witch hazel blooms, I know it won’t be too long until spring. For you gardeners, you can now sow grass seed until mid-March. The freezing and thawing of the soil works the seed into the soil until it germinates. Apparently it works, so I’m trying it this year. I’ll let you know the results!

Valentine Trees Speak Volumes!

/ Jeanne Lemmon Skinner / 1 Comment

A new idea with lots of potential!

Tired of the flowers, candy, dinner out routine? How about a tree? Of course mine isn’t finished yet. I still have a couple days. My idea is to tape little messages on the ornaments. I read that many of the first valentines were puzzles. They were handmade and the creator probably spent hours thinking on it. I could put clues on the ornaments that leads to a hidden gift. That might be fun. Again, I have a couple days to decide.

The first commercial valentines were made in England in the late 1700s. They were printed or engraved and then colored by hand. In the mid 1800s Esther Howland started a valentine making venture in the top floor of her father’s Massachusetts home. She and her friends made intricate three dimensional valentines and sold them for $5.00 each. They made a nice profit of $100,000 in a single year! They are credited with making the first commercial American valentines.

I like Valentine’s Day because it is a day of love. One doesn’t have to have a sweetheart. I love my family, my friends, nature, good food, my kitties, I could go on. It’s a day to take stock of all the things I love. Of course a little chocolate will make the day extra special and perhaps another house plant would brighten my day. Just a suggestion to my sweetheart.

Winter’s Beauty!

/ Jeanne Lemmon Skinner / 1 Comment

Every season has beauty!

All I saw when I raised the blind was another gray, rainy day. January and February are known for long, gray days in Ohio. My eyes went to the birdfeeder and then this tree. It was beautiful!

I knew I had to get a picture, so I headed outside. I took several shots and then began to explore the yard. I noticed a few green leaves pushing through the dirt, a busy squirrel digging in my flower bed, and two robins hunting for worms. It was great! Mother Nature had given me a dose of her natural medicine.

We have several more weeks of these rainy, gray days but today there is snow on the ground. It brightens the day even with gray clouds. It’s not enough to shovel, but enough to make everything look fresh. I’m grateful.

I enjoy living in a state where I can experience four different seasons. This winter has been mild, and we are all eager to see if that will continue. I don’t want a delayed winter. Please no snow on my hyacinths this year! Today I will walk in the snow and look for other beautiful things nature has waiting to be discovered. Every day has something to rejoice in, and I need to remember that!

Pollyannas Make Us Grateful!

/ Jeanne Lemmon Skinner / Leave a comment

The Glad Game can change anyone’s outlook!

I was talking with a friend who had never seen the movie Pollyanna, but she knew what it meant to be called a Pollyanna. I think if there were more Pollyannas, people would be happier. Think of all the books written about how to be happy. Surrounding oneself with happy people is one of the suggestions.

Pollyanna was written in 1913 by Eleanor H. Porter. It eventually became a board game and a movie. It’s the story of a little girl who went to live with her rich aunt after her missionary parents had died. Her father had taught her the glad game and she taught it to the people of the town.

It’s definitely a feel good movie, which I like. It’s also a lesson in gratitude. Finding something to be glad about when a person is facing great difficulties is a challenge, but there is always something. Maybe it’s just a friend to talk to, which of course is something to really be grateful for!

Pollyanna is a fictitious character, but the story had a tremendous effect on its readers and obviously the entertainment world. I know it had an effect on me.

What Inspires You?

/ Jeanne Lemmon Skinner / 5 Comments

Where does the path lead?

This picture hung in my classroom all year. It was now spring and one of my students asked, “When are we going to write about that picture?” I had not thought about making that an assignment. I told her if the picture inspired her she should write about it, and I would love to read it. She said she didn’t like to write that much! So Sad!

The picture could be the basis for several stories. At the end of the path there’s a tree that the cat would climb in my story. The tree allows the cat to have a different perspective of the garden. She would see the homes of the garden insects and critters and appreciate the beauty of what the gardener created. Maybe she’d see the gardener differently and understand why he didn’t want her using his flower beds as a giant litter box! It’s just a thought.

I enjoy art and don’t feel every piece speaks to me. But when they do, I feel I have a connection with the artist. Someone took this picture who had an artistic eye. I wonder what he or she would write about it. Any thoughts?

Beautiful Imperfections!

/ Jeanne Lemmon Skinner / Leave a comment

This bowl was created with a bump!

I love pottery. In fact my husband calls me a pottery junkie. This is one of my treasured bowls. I like it because it’s so different. I have a cupboard full of pottery bowls that were each uniquely created.

There is a Psalm that calls God the potter and refers to us as the clay. I’ve always liked that. It also helps me accept the fact that I’m not perfect and don’t have to be. My bowls aren’t perfectly created and yet they are beautiful and they hold a variety of things.

We hold a variety of talents and knowledge. I have bumps and imperfect coloring, but I still have talents. I can make a great pie and I can design a beautiful flower bed. However, being a good person who accepts others is what is most important to me.

The political environment of our country is so divisive it’s scary. I love my family and friends for who they are as unique individuals, and it really doesn’t matter if we have different political views. The potter who created me, created them, so I think that’s what is important. Wouldn’t it be great if everyone remembered our shared creator?

Fairies and Fires!

/ Jeanne Lemmon Skinner / Leave a comment

A Fire Provides More Than Warmth!

I love our wood burning fireplace. No, I don’t mind building the fires or removing the ashes. I think a fire has a magical quality as many stories have been told along side one.

Obviously man has used fire for centuries for heat, light, and cooking. It also keeps unwanted animals away. It even keeps the fairies away until the fire dies down and only the embers are left. The soft, red glow of the embers is an invitation to the fairies to come out of hiding. They cautiously gather in the ring of light and the ceremony begins.

The dance of the fairies is well known for its beauty and mystical quality. Only a few have witnessed it. I was told the fairies’ wings were silver and their clothes shimmered in soft colors of blue and green. After the dance, wishes were taken to the embers to see if they would be granted. Wishes that caught fire were accepted and white smoke carried them into the night sky.

I wonder if this will work in my fireplace. I think it’s worth a try!

Tell Me About Yourself!

/ Jeanne Lemmon Skinner / 2 Comments

What a terrible comment!

Could you be more specific? Perhaps ask where I’m from or my education or what is my job? I just heard this remark on a TV show and was irritated. I can remember sitting in a chair squirming while the guy across from me grinned. He had said, Tell me about yourself! What did he want to hear? My life’s story? I won a blue ribbon for the train I drew in elementary school; I should have started with that.

This was not a job interview, but it felt like it. I was introduced to a friend of the man I eventually married. If I hadn’t been so intimidated, I could have thought of some interesting attributes!

People are interesting. Their talents are discovered through conversation. Artists, chefs, writers, and scholars can be revealed. I don’t think anyone would share his or her talent in response to that comment. Maybe the best response is, I’m a great listener. Tell me all about you!