Green & growing things are important to me. This week I've potted my first house plant & filled my first flowerbeds here in Ghana. While I'm no master gardener, I enjoy the simple pleasure of growing plants & left brain focus it gives me. I've sorted out all types of issues in my mind while potting, weeding & digging. Not to mention every mother of young children knows working in the dirt pleases children of all sizes!
It would seem I'm not the only one feeling that way. A study shows that exposure to Mycobaccterium vaccinae in soil seems to increase release of serotonin. This hormone is secreted in the brain & increases happiness, relaxation & the ability to sleep well. (alive.com)
That is enough to keep me diggin' in the dirt.
That is enough to keep me diggin' in the dirt.
Here we are after planting 10 bougainvillea , 4 vines & one tiny impatient. I am interested to see how large this annual, turned perennial in this climate, will get.
Having a good thing crossed off a to do list isn't a great feeling. But having one less thing on that to do list is almost always a welcome subtraction. And having one less thing on the to do list that falls into the quiet, uninterrupted, clean living room, meal prepared, time of day is a VERY welcome subtraction. So when our internet issues imposed an email only limit on computer time, I crossed this little blog off the list. All that said, we are back to business as usual & I have added this bit of communication back onto the list.
We are enjoying a sense of relief that August is over. The milestone of 6 months is behind us, our much missed coworkers Ron & Audrey Bontrager will return from furlough this month, we'll see family (Mary & Chloe) in just 2 months, & we have distance from those terrible feelings after the robbery. We have continued to take our feelings of frustration to Jesus. We trust His care of us & are so thankful no further damage was done.
(The story is that someone climbed our wall at night, stole things out of our vehicles & used a long stick & reachable power cables to steal Adrian's laptop & our dvd player & usb modem. They were unable to get anything else as all our other windows are louvered with more bars. The living room is slider windows with larger bar grids.
The landlord will complete the razor wire on top of the wall this week. Our dog was useless, we don't know how they kept him quiet. He has barked so loud over small reptiles in the past that we wake up in the middle of the night. Truly, it is God who is our safety.)
September is going to hold some good things for us. While most of you are preparing for fall, we are trading grey skies for the hot sun. And while most of you are leaving summer vacation behind, we are packing up this week for a vacation with Jonathan & Juanita Groff.
We are enjoying a sense of relief that August is over. The milestone of 6 months is behind us, our much missed coworkers Ron & Audrey Bontrager will return from furlough this month, we'll see family (Mary & Chloe) in just 2 months, & we have distance from those terrible feelings after the robbery. We have continued to take our feelings of frustration to Jesus. We trust His care of us & are so thankful no further damage was done.
(The story is that someone climbed our wall at night, stole things out of our vehicles & used a long stick & reachable power cables to steal Adrian's laptop & our dvd player & usb modem. They were unable to get anything else as all our other windows are louvered with more bars. The living room is slider windows with larger bar grids.
The landlord will complete the razor wire on top of the wall this week. Our dog was useless, we don't know how they kept him quiet. He has barked so loud over small reptiles in the past that we wake up in the middle of the night. Truly, it is God who is our safety.)
September is going to hold some good things for us. While most of you are preparing for fall, we are trading grey skies for the hot sun. And while most of you are leaving summer vacation behind, we are packing up this week for a vacation with Jonathan & Juanita Groff.
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