This has been a weekend of glorious weather – totally sunny and not getting out of the 70s, with a mild breeze. To me – that is perfect. I have putzed in the garden, eaten out on the patio, enjoyed coffee and the paper, ate pizza with the kids at the picnic table. Quite lovely – however, I also found out that a dear friend is not doing well with her cancer – I heard of a death – cancer, of course – and I stabbed myself with a shrub stem requiring a beautiful afternoon spent in the freezing ER and getting 5 stitches between my fingers. Left hand thankfully! On Sunday, church made me cry – two hymns that always bring the tears and then the words of the sermon slapping me upside the head and challenging me to wrestle with God for what I really need – which is of course Him – not wallowing in what I don’t have.

Received a text – “Need anything?” The answer to that is always – “Yes – Paul.” Maybe someday, when I have been in the ring longer and fought harder the answer will be “Yes – God.” But the words “Hold on” ring in my head. So I will – today.

It was so lovely out, that I grabbed a bucket and my clippers and went out to stroll the grounds – pulling the occasional weed, deadheading the roses, trying to balance the beauty and the bleakness inside. And then I saw it – a yellow foxglove. Now I love my pink foxgloves and the way those tall pillars of flowers rise out of the rather plebeian leaves but yellow is unusual and special in foxgloves. I must have planted this thing but totally forgot. So here it was. Planted just for this day. A benediction. Thank you.