... remembering emma-mummu ...

my aunt reminded me that it was 9 years ago today that my maternal grandmother died ... it doesn't seem so long ... yet, time is elusive and passes quickly without us even realizing it ... so i thought i would share what i posted about my grandmother back in 2005 ...

(i wonder if maria and emma-mummu have had a visit by now?  just thinking outloud ... )

 

 

Emma-Mummu died 3 years ago today, at the age of 92 ... she was my last grandparent to slip into eternity ... now that generation is no more ... she was a gutsy lady who left an imprint on the lives she touched ...

her life began in Finland and ended an ocean away ... in Canada ... a land she grew to love ...

a teenage mother at 16, she steadfastly waited for her fiancé to return from his adventures in America so that he could meet his daughter and wed her, his sweetheart ...

she was a hard working woman ... who kept the family farm going during W.W.II, while her husband fought to keep Finland safe from the Russian invaders, who were gobbling up all other neighbouring countries ...

my grandfathers health was a casualty of the war, so Emma-Mummu continued to work the farm, as well as nurturing 10 children (23 years span the ages of the youngest to the oldest) ... she was one strong women ... it was her indomitable will and sheer determination that kept the family fed and clothed ...

my own little family had immigrated to Canada when the news came ... my grandfather had died ... i was only 5, but i can still remember the cloud of sadness that settled over the house ...

a year later, Emma-Mummu came to Canada with her 4 youngest children in tow ... what a move, half way across the world, not knowing the language ... financial concerns were only one of many for her ... she left behind 4 adult children (plus their families), her siblings and lifelong friends ... she also left behind a half century of living, loving and even her own identity of self ...

a new chapter in her life had begun ...

Emma-Mummu was ever the survivor ... for the next 40 years Canada WAS her home ... she married again and lived happily with our step-grandfather for over 25 years ... they created a cozy little nest, where her large brood could drop by at any time and feel welcome ...

she cultivated a deep faith in her later years ...

she graced our lives with her vibrant spirit, quick wit and dry humour ...

i’ve reminisced about my Emma-Mummu this weekend ... like a cherished old movie, my times with her have mentally replayed over and over again in my mind’s eye ...

her life really could have been a movie ... it contained high drama, romance, comedy, tragedy and ended happily with a soul at rest with her God ...

social media

here is a good sermon in a minute ... my cousin just shared it with me today and i thought it was a good way of making folks think of HIM who came to REDEEM us ... you could tell she was giving the GLORY to GOD ... just sharing!

devotionals

i love the fact that there are so many good devotionals available to us ... in every form ... online, in print, youtube ... the formats really seem endless ... the Lord gets my attention - or answers a question - or gives a hug - through these means (and through my blog buds) ...

so i just wanted to share these good thoughts on forgiveness, from my "living truth" devotional  (http://livingtruth.ca/) ... 'cause at one point in my walk i had such a hard time forgiving myself - i needed to be reminded about what God does with our sin ... blessings on your weekend!!!!

What God does with our sin

"He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities.  For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west so far does he remove our transgressions from us."
- psalm 103:10-12

Why do we find it so difficult to accept God's forgiveness?  First of all, we must still live with the inevitable consequences of sin, the domino effects that our actions have set into motion.  The man who repents of his adultery still must reconcile with his wife or face divorce.  The forgiven alcoholic who has lost his job must still face life without a pay check.  Forgiveness will not bring back the aborted child.  Forgiven people sometimes have been sentenced to die in a gas chamber.

Another reason so many of us are reluctant to accept forgiveness is because we think we deserve to feel guilty.  We think, it's not fair for me to be free of guilt, given the wretch I am.  But guilt can never pay for sins.  Guilt of the most torturous kind does not commend us to God - we don't make ourselves any more presentable to God by enduring the misery we know we deserve.  Our guilt cannot add to the value of Christ's death on the cross for us.

In light of God's grace, it is sheer arrogance for us to hang on to our guilt.  C.S. Lewis put it like this:  "I think that if God forgives us we must forgive ourselves.  Otherwise it is almost like setting up ourselves as a higher tribunal than Him."

We might be troubled by our forgiven sin, but God is not.  Because of the death and resurrection of Jesus, our confessed sin has been so thoroughly put away that it no longer presents a barrier to our fellowship with the Almighty.  Forgiven sin is only what we make it to be:  Either we can allow it to plague our conscience, or we can send it to where God has already put it.

When I was a boy of about ten, my sister gave me a Magic Slate.  I would draw pictures and write words and phrases on it, then lift the transparent page and watch what I had written disappear without a trace.  Just so, our lives are written on God's tablet, but he can blot out the words we have said, the thoughts we have entertained, and the deeds we have done.  Yes, the consequences of our actions may remain, but our sins themselves are no longer visible.  God has put them out of His sight. - Erwin Lutzer



"if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" - 1 john 1:9 -

what to do when it's -35C

i woke up to a brisk and bright day ... but -35C cannot be called "pleasant" ... it's downright chilly out there!  so what's a girl to do????

why make pea soup! 

this is a pea soup recipe from old fort william (in thunder bay) that goes back quite a few decades.

1 lb. split peas (i use yellow split peas)
1/2 lb. salt pork (i omit)
1 meaty ham bone (i use only the meat)
2 med. onions, diced (i use onion powder, easier on leo's stomach)
1/4 cup carrots, diced (i omit - it's beginning to look like i don't use any of the original recipe!)
1 tsp. dry mustard
1/4 tsp. ground savory
6 whole cloves
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

add 10 cups water.  add all other ingredients; bring to a boil and immediately turn down heat until a gentle simmer is achieved.  Cook 1 1/2 to 2 hours.  when peas are done, sample and add additional seasoning to taste.  sprinkle 1 tbsp. parsley over, stir, serve at once.

bon appetit!

the Potter ...

i feel so much better when i trust the Potter to do His work in me ... instead of trying to be the potter, and thinking i can do it myself ...

2010 card tree

i didn’t think i would have a full card tree this year ... i mean we are all cutting back on sending cards ... we do so much electronically or by phone – but look at this – a full tree again for 2010 ... ... this pic was taken today – and these are the last christmas decorations i have up ... i will be taking the cards down soon (sad thought – i like seeing them!) ... it was fun to read greetings and look at the cards ... one of my favourite christmas pastimes ... christmas cards seem to be something left-over from a simpler and slower moving time ...

happy new year ...

aren't these lovely?  a present from one of my young cousins ... one of those things that makes me smile ... i love flowers ...


the last days of 2010 ... and the beginning of 2011 ... have been very very nice ... we've had company every other day ... family/friends ... all folks who brightened our home with their visits ... *huge smile* ...


i'm not in the blogging mode, as i type this ... but i just wanted to post something 'cause my blog buds are friends (after so many years!) and i don't want to lose touch with you guys ... plus i noticed that i had only posted 48 times last year ... not much, eh? ...   i will try not to fade into the night of cyber space ...  poetic eh?  *grin* ...

my lack of posting seems to say i don't have anything to share about my life and my Lord - but i do ... His mercies are new every morning and He encourages me to lean on Him ... which i've been doing ... i think i have just been distracted in the past while, lost in thought sometimes ... and i'm sure that maria's death in july has played a part in my reflective, quiet spirit ...

yup - there is a season for everything under heaven ... i do pray that 2011 might have a season of pure joy in it ... for us all ... blessings on ya!