August 1 - 20
It is important to me that I challenge myself to learn and grow. I want to stoke the flames of curiosity not stifle it. I want to push myself a bit to experience new things that might fan those flames. Here is what I have done in August, thus far, that have furthered that goal.
-I read the minor prophets of the Old Testament: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah Nahum, Habakkuk, Zepheniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.
- I have read the first three gospels in the New Testament: Matthew, Mark, and Luke.
- I have read several books: Meditations for the New Mother by Helen Good Benneman, A Year of No Clutter by Eve O. Schaub, The Story of My Life and Work by Booker T. Washington, Miss Austen by Gill Hornby, The Case for Faith by Lee Strobel, and At the Waters Edge by Sara Gruen. Meditations for the New Mother was a book that I discovered in a thrift store in Philadelphia about twenty years ago. It is full of poetry and short essays that reflect the joy that accompanies motherhood. Throughout its pages, it poignantly describes my thoughts and feeling about being a mother. A Year of No Clutter is a memoir in which the author addresses her complicated relationship with things. Her insights really resonated with me and has provided me with plenty of mental fodder as I continue to work on my relationship with objects. I admire Booker T. Washington and was pleased to learn more about his journey in establishing Tuskegee Institute. Lee Strobel's books are always thought provoking for me. Miss Austen is a piece of historical fiction that stoked in me some curiosity about Jane Austen's life and family.
- I've been working out in a variety of ways. I have been getting to the gym at least twice a week. I have added deadlifts into my leg workout. I've done some workouts in the parking lot - squats, walking lunges, and tiptoeing, etc. I have gone walking, hiking, and have played a little basketball.
-I tried hydromassage, a massage chair, and the tanning beds at the gym. I was collecting information and contemplating upgrading my gym membership. I have decided that those things don't add enough to my life to pay for that upgraded membership.
- I have been learning about the Philadelphia-based cult MOVE. I had remembered the bombing of the MOVE headquarters and the subsequent fire that annihilated 65 houses but I had no understanding what the organization was about and what precipitated the bombing.
-I have been watching Professor of Rock videos and am learning more about the songwriting process and the interconnectedness between folks in the music industry.
- I recently learned the word jeremiad and its definition - a long literary work bitterly lamenting the state of society and its morals, prophesying society's imminent downfall. The book I read last month, Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neal Postman, is a jeremiad!
- For the first time, I have viewed some of the classic western films featuring Roy Rogers.
- I am continuing to use Balancing the Sword to help guide me through my Bible readings.
- I walked at the botanical gardens with the hubby. We dissected some of the garden layouts and discussed how some of it could be translated at home. I also saw a Green Heron.
- I went to the zoo and thoroughly enjoyed observing the elephant, tiger, mountain lion and siamangs. The elephant was feeding himself with hay that he pulled out of a barrel that was suspended from the tree above him. The barrel had holes that he would locate with his trunk. It was fascinating to watch his trunk maneuver, pulling the hay out, putting it in his mouth, and then sweeping the ground to pick up stray pieces of hay. Fascinating. The tiger was sleeping right next to the fencing so it was easy to see just how large he was and to make note of his beautiful markings. I lingered with my observations and was rewarded with him stretching and checking me out. He moves just like my Othello. There was a young mountain lion that was "stalking" a toddler, on the opposite side of the fence of course. It was intense. The siamangs put on a tremendous display. They were screeching and making thonking sounds with their inflated throat sacs. Totally fascinating. Also, while at the zoo, I worked on experiencing the zoo in a way that was satisfying for me without self-consciousness.
- I tried a new curry at a Thai restaurant. I love culinary adventures!
- I am currently reading Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher: The Epic Life and Immortal Photographs of Edward Curtis; From Chaos to Clarity by Mike Signorelli, and Pillage by Obert Skye.
- I played Battleship with the hubby. I hadn't played it in years and was a decent little brain workout.
-I went for a hike at a nearby state park. I made natural observation. I was really thrilled with the variety of native flowers and fungi that I observed. I really do want to be able to identify them with more ease. I have more to learn!
-While hiking, my sister and I observed a bulbous growth on native flower that appeared to be a yellow coneflower of some sort. We took a specimen home, identified the flower as a cutleaf coneflower, and dissected the bulbous growth. After some research, we learned that the growth is a coneflower gall. The growth hormones of the plant are stimulated as a response to the saliva of a midge that was feeding on it. I love when a mystery of the world around me is revealed to me ;)
- While researching the coneflower gall, I learned of the existence of phytoplasmas. Phytoplasmas are bacteria that infect phloem and are transmitted from plant to plant by insect vectors. This bacteria than causes abnormal growth.
-While reading the book on Edward Curtis, I learned that Geronimo was born in what is now New Mexico. So much of my life has involved New Mexico, yet I never knew this.
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