So, how does your garden grow . . .

 

The peace after the storm . . .

No sign of economic distress around this neighborhood, last night, as they literally burned their money away in over four hours of fireworks. Judging from some of the more elaborate ones, I'm willing to be a lot of illegal ones were set off. Since we were lulled off to sleep around ten to the continuous blasting of noisemakers and the scent of gunpowder in the air, it was nice to get up early and see how the garden was growing with only the distraction of birds chirping and the dog snuffling around in the bushes.

So far, my husband's garden seems to be flourishing. We actually got our first, four cherry tomatoes 'harvested' for dinner last night. His peppers are growing both in pots and in the garden. Our peach tree isn't as heavy with fruit but there are some nice peaches we hope to get before the birds discover them. Both the orange and lemon tree have large, still-green fruit hanging from the branches. Sigh . . . My pomegranite tree is without fruit but as it is only a year old, I suppose I'm being a bit over anxious.

After 105 degrees during the weekend, we are promised 'lows' in the 95's today. Hey, I'm beginning to feel the difference . . . but hot is hot but the garden likes it and I'll be thankful in the winter when I have a freezer full of tomatoes and such.

Altar girls - my personal reaction.

I have been challenged as to why my daughters don’t serve Mass. My son is a welcome sight on the altar but it didn’t seem right to them that my girls merely stayed in the pew as uninvolved bystanders.

This started me thinking back on the stories concerning Our Blessed Mother. In spite of her major role in the redemption, there is really very little information about her. The main theme that comes through, however, is her devotion to being a mother, a respected mother, by both her Son and her husband, Joseph. You don’t hear her words yet her actions speak quite loudly.

When the Angel Gabriel announced that she could be the Mother of God, she accepted the blessing with love and obedience. What better way to bring about the redemption of the world than by way of a mother’s love?

When Jesus was lost, she didn’t think about herself but of her child. She was a mother first and she didn’t look for recognition beyond that place in life.

At the marriage feast, she had her Son’s total obedience and respect. Christ willingly obeyed His mother’s request to change water into wine.

In all this, Mary was a quiet force, keeping the home and her family in tact regardless of upheaval and poverty. She looked to the ultimate exaltation of her Son keeping a quiet, prayerful, life-long vigil.

When I see young girls serving in the sanctuary, I am very sad. I see them minimizing their femininity, their chance to be Mary-life. My daughters are not serving at Mass because I have too much respect for them and their potential as women. Mary is the perfect example of modesty, love and motherhood.

Trying to be like the ‘boys’ would only dilute my daughters’ efforts to emulate Mary. And the devote prayers of the mothers and future mothers in the pews are listened to by Jesus Christ . . . as He often listened to His own Mother.

(Yes, I know altar girls are allowed and I have never been rude or dismissive of them. This is just my personal reaction to the situation. Altar girls were initially allowed to fill in the gaps when there weren't enough boys available to serve. Too many parishes have put the girls ahead of the boys which has many boys not even bothering. My son has often had to serve with females and has done so in a respectful manner.)

Cheese and Broccoli Soup

Two of my favorite things to eat are broccoli and cheddar cheese. Just imagine how happy I am when I can have them combined.

Cheese and Broccoli Soup

1/2 cup chopped onion
4 garlic cloves, smashed and chopped
1 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups chicken broth
4 cups fresh broccoli, broken down into florets
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
Dash Dried tarragon
Salt & Pepper to tastes
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/3 cup shredded, sharp cheddar cheese (mild is fine if you like a more delicate flavor)

Put a tablespoon of vegetable or olive oil into a large cooking pan. Sautes the garlic and onion until tender but not browned. Add the flour and blend. Cook for a minute or two but don't let it brown. Keeping the temperature on medium, gradually stir in the broth. Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer, and cook for a couple of minutes or until it starts to thicken.

Now, add the fresh broccoli, herbs, salt, and pepper. Return to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cover and continue cooking until broccoli is just tender. The more you cook it after that point, the less pretty, bright color the vegetable will have. Add milk and cook under a simmer for five minute.

If you have an immersion blender, you can use that to blend your soup and make it smooth. Otherwise, as it is with most of us, a blender is find. Do the soup in small batches until it is all blended. Gently reheat and add approximately three-fourths of the cheese to the pot and stir until melted. Serve with a sprinkling of the rest of the cheese over each serving.

Garlic bread goes very well with this soup. Add a salad and you have a meal.

If you soup doesn't thicken up as much as you like, my 'secret' trick is to add a tablespoon or two of instant mashed potatoes to the simmering soup, stirring well to avoid lumps. This usually brings it to a more 'cream of soup' texture. I never make mashed potatoes from the package but keep it on hand for this reason or to make potato bread or yeast pastry. Recipes for that to follow in the near future!

Thought-provoking . . .

There is an alchemy in sorrow. It can be transmuted into wisdom, which, if it does not bring joy, can yet bring happiness.

Pearl S. Buck

A new vocation?

I think I should open up a barbecue help-line for our neighborhood next year. People should be told that gasoline isn't a good idea for starting the charcoal. Even if they are careful, it smells really bad and will add that bad smell/taste to their meat. If they are smart enough to have starter fluid on hand, one does not need to use a whole bottle of the stuff to cook a dozen hamburgers. It smells really bad and will add that bad smell/taste t their meat.

Since the departure of our neighbors from . . . Oh, well, it seemed like they originated from a bad place, we haven't had it quite so bad re. the barbecue lighting. The first time the former  neighbors started their grill, I spent an hour looking for a gas leak in and around my house. Their grill was on the opposite side of their yard but their generousitly with the starter fluid filled our home with the smell of gas. I'm sure their food must have been very tasty.

The neighbor behind us like to start his barbecue around nine in the morning but they don't eat until evening. I always wonder where they keep the cooked meat for those four or five hours? He is also the number-one building code violator in the neighborhood so I don't imagine he would be too concerned with his barbecue offerings.

Yet another neighbor (we have an interesting neighborhood) sets up his smoker and barbecue right behind the gas valve on his parked car. We wonder every year if this is the year the car explodes. It will take out his whole family as they have their plastic lawn chairs circling the cooking food.

Besides the trip to Walmart, my husband and I celebrated with a stop by a new frozen yogurt shop for a cold treat. I'm grilling our chicken on an in-door grill - no starter fluid need apply. I like quiet, boring Fourth of Julys!

Did I miss a gift-giving holiday . . . ?

My husband and I went to Walmart this morning to return an item. We figured that it would be an easy deal because how many people return stuff on Fourth of July. We walked in the door of Walmart and the return line is 15 people long! We decided we could wait on our return.

When we checked out, we asked the cashier why there was such a long line for the return cashier today. She said that no one had any idea but that this morning, they actually had to open up four extra cash registers just to accommodate the people pouring in for the return section. She said Walmart was just as bemused as we were about why so many and why today.

My husband said this sort of thing usually happens after Christmas when people return unwanted gifts. I said  the last holiday before the Fourth of July was Memorial Day . . . so, were we supposed to give out gifts on Memorial Day? :-)

We took a few peeks to see what the people were in line to return and there wasn't any common ground to give us a hint. I suppose a lot of people woke up this morning, started the holiday barbecue and suddenly exclaimed, "Let's go return stuff to Walmart!" And they did.

A Fitting Tribute to the Fourth of July - Our Nation's Birthday

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors and tortured before they died.
Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.

Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army, another had two sons captured.

Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.

They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.

What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated. But they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives.

His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year, he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished. A few weeks later, he died from exhaustion and a broken heart.

Norris and Livingston suffered similar fates.

Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution. These were not wild-eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians. They were soft-spoken men of means and education. They had security, but they valued liberty more.

Standing talk straight, and unwavering, they pledged: "For the support of this declaration, with firm reliance on the protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor."

They gave you and me a free and independent America. The history books never told you a lot about what happened in the Revolutionary War. We didn't fight just the British. We were British subjects at that time and we fought our own government!

Some of us take these liberties so much for granted, but we shouldn't.

So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July Holiday and silently thank these patriots. It's not much to ask for the price they paid. Remember: Freedom is never free!

It's time we get the word out that patriotism is NOT a sin, and the Fourth of July has more to it than beer, picnics, and baseball games.


. . . Author Unknown