An Afternoon Walk

Away from the Yard

I'm in Syracuse for a few days. My dad got to come to my nephew's graduation party yesterday. He stayed for the whole afternoon, until he had to return to the rehab. He commented after they brought him back, "I had a nice time."

Praise God from Whom all blessings flow.

Some Blessings are Burdens, Some Burdens are Blessings

So went the words of Dr. T. Crichton Mitchell, a professor of mine in Bible College, 30 years ago. Dr. Mitchell was telling us of a sight he had seen earlier in the day. It was a prospective student getting a tour of the campus with his 2 year old daughter sound asleep on his shoulder. He told us as ministers of the Word of God we would need to keep a keen eye for these things the LORD puts in our path which could be jumping off spots for a message or illustration.

This morning all over the Metro Area people are moaning as they see the rain. Even the forecasters sound gloomy putting a negative spin on it. But not so with us gardeners! We know the great benefits from a nice steady rain. There is nothing on earth like it. God is watering for us today!

Thanks LORD!
Sorry about those who are complaining.

Beautiful Music

One of my heroes is David Kuo. David pastored the Nazarene Church in Taipei, Taiwan for many years. At 60 years of age, when he could have retired he came here to Chinatown, to begin a work among the Chinese. This is a video of his grandchildren singing.

David is now in heaven. I am indebted to him. It was he who played matchmaker with Lucy and I. Little did I know that 19 years after I met him he would introduce me to the lady who was to become my wife.

He had musical ability. Here is his legacy:

The Sounds of Summer

You have to love the sounds of Summer on the Island.

How about these past sounds?
* Like the bells of the Good Humor Truck on those hot summer afternoons?!
* Or the sound of of the pink spaulding ball hitting the building as 4 kids played stick ball.
* Remember the clicking of the baseball cards we used Mom's clothes pins to attach to rub over the spokes?
* How about that tool sharpening truck- They had a straight sound bell akin to the school bells.
* Remember the kids yelling "Car!" when we played baseball in the streets of Bellmore?
* The sound (and smell) of cap guns.
* Kids shouting, "Not it!!!" when we went to play a game of tag or kick the can or hide and seek

We do have some timeless stuff:
* The cicadas.
* The birds
* The toads
* The ocean breaking

But I do miss the old stuff which made up our summers!

This Morning's View

The Secret Garden

Take a couple of walks through the yard

For as the soil makes the sprout come up
and a garden causes seeds to grow,
so the Sovereign LORD will make righteousness and praise
spring up before all nations. Isaiah 61.11

Highlights

A Walk Through a Part of the Backyard

The Daylily Master

A year ago I interviewed the Coach in his gardens. This video has been viewed nearly 1,000 times since last July. Since the interviews and demonstrations yesterday I thought some of you who are new to the backyard blog would enjoy seeing this.

With the Coach in His Gardens

And now a word from our Sponsor...

__________________

Nancy Conigliaro spent a morning in the backyard with her camera this week.
Check out her fine work: http://www.nancyconigliaro.com/backyard/index.htm

Fish Feeding

In the pond in the backyard...

Back Bed

New Daylily Seedlings from the past few years...

One Minute Tour

This Morning In the Backyard

Tony, our faithful mailman, came back for another quick tour. He told me how he is amazed that everything comes back after the winter and during the winter much of what is there is asleep.

Some more visitors are expected this afternoon, including our neighbor's 3 year old granddaughter who was pulling Grandma over to the yard this morning to feed the fish!

Here is a quick peek at the yard from our summer breakfast table this morning...

Visitors, Visitors and More Visitors

Today has brought a number of visitors to the backyard. Besides hosting our monthly prayer meeting last night outback, this morning Bob Pawson came by for a quick tour. Then at 9:30, our oil man delivered fuel and walked in and commented, "Wow! What a peaceful garden!" Rudy Migliore just left and as always gave kind comments. My niece Marlee Mancini, Edie Raevis and Sandy Mucci responded to my latest Shutterfly pictures of the yard. Marlee wrote, "i love them uncles!!! they are beyond beauty!!!!" Sandy's second comment was, "Beautiful, BEAUTIFUL, beautiful!!!!!!!!!!!What can I say. Such a peaceful yard.I know that you enjoy it AND so do the grandkids." Edie wrote, "Pastor, these pictures should be on greeting cards if not in picture frames. Just Beautiful!"

It is the LORD's Garden. He just lets me take care of it!

Follow the link to more pictures of blooms from this morning.
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/slideshow?a=67b0de21b
34439136564&sid=0IZtW7Zy1bMWGU&auto=1&idx=0

Let's Take Another Walk!

Take a Walk Through The Yard With Me!

Virtual Visitors

Yesterday I had two dear persons visit the backyard via Shutterfly. They were
Sandy Mucci and Paul Limmer. Their comments were kind. Coach wrote, "Just gorgeous!" Sandy's comment was, "Oh my goodness -- your Lilies are gorgeous! Talk about a green thumb. I know you are enjoying the yard BUT not as much as the grandkids."

If you would like to take a virtual tour here is the link:
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0IZtW7Zy1bMWF6&emid=sharshar&linkid=link2

More will be added regularly as the Daylilies bloom over the summer.

Also good to have Nancy stop by again this morning- remember you are all welcome anytime!

Rembrances of 4th of Julys

I remember a time, in a town here on Long Island, when 4th of Julys were big - very big. Dad was off and we would do some stuff out back (hmm- guess that is where my desire to do stuff outback too emerged!) We would have a big cookout with watermelon and corn on the cob. One year we headed out to Montauk Point for the 4th and we ended up stopping (it was brutaly hot) at Lake Ronkonkoma- the temperature was in the 100's. My grandparents came out from Queens to take care of our dog and we ended up coming home instead and they got to spend the 4th with us the next day in the neighbor's pool! My grandfather got on my brother's bike and rode it- we thought it was pretty cool because he was 67 years old at the time! I don't remember but I am sure the night ended with fireworks. I remember one 4th (perhaps my first one I do remember) when we had just moved out from Queens. It had to be either 1960 or 1961. We had people over but the houses were so close that we also played in the street with the neighbors- it wasn't a block party but it could have been. That night I sat out on my front stoop and watched the fireworks from Mepham High School similar to the ones in the final moments of the final episode of The Wonder Years. What good memories!

A Dear Friend

One of my dear friends, Angela Oberdorfer, paid a visit to the backyard this afternoon. She was on her way out east. It is wonderful to share the yard with people I know and love.

Happy 4th of July, everyone!