Saturday, March 26, 2011

Reading Henry Nouwen and Watching Tomatoes Grow

We're already having 80 degree days down here in the swamps! I have tomatoes on all three of my plants and my lettuce, swiss chard and spinach is ready to be picked. I plan on having 3 crops of tomatoes this year.

After spending over $600 at the vet on my kitty, Catfish, he's finally home and better. He had sand in his kidneys and bladder. If you feed your animals dry food from any major 'box' store, it's full of sand. The poor cat had to be catherized 5 times, then have an enema. He was one UNhappy camper when we finally got to bring him home, but he's better, eating prescription catfood and taking antibiotics. It's no easy task getting a pill down a cat's throat, let me tell you. LOL! I hope to be up and running at home soon. Catfish ruined my budget for a while.

Thank you all for your kind words. I've missed you all!! And now for some of my favorite quotes by Henri Nouwen, (Henri Nouwen, Born January 24, 1932 – Died September 21, 1996) a Dutch-born Catholic priest and writer who authored 40 books about spirituality.

Love & Blessings,
Marion


"Forgiveness is the name of love practiced among people who love poorly. The hard truth is that all people love poorly. We need to forgive and be forgiven every day, every hour increasinly. That is the great work of love among the fellowship of the weak that is the human family." — Henri J.M. Nouwen


**********

"Dear God,
I am so afraid to open my clenched fists!
Who will I be when I have nothing left to hold on to?
Who will I be when I stand before you with empty hands?
Please help me to gradually open my hands
and to discover that I am not what I own,
but what you want to give me.
And what you want to give me is love,
unconditional, everlasting love.
Amen." — Henri J.M. Nouwen (The Only Necessary Thing: Living a Prayerful Life)

**********

The soul of the artist cannot remain hidden."
— Henri J.M. Nouwen

**********

11 comments:

Kelly said...

I'm such a crappy gardener, Marion. I just got my seeds planted this week so my tomatoes will be late. But..... I planted some moonflower seeds, too!!! I hope they germinate and thrive when I move them outside!!

I'm so sorry to hear about Catfish's problems! We've had some extra vet bills this month, too. (our Blue girl) The things we do for our babies.

I'll be glad when you're back online at home. I miss you!!!

Marion said...

Oh, how I miss having a garden in March!! There is still snow on the frozen ground here, although recently I did see the tips of daffodils.

I had no idea they put sand in cat food. One day I'll have another cat and I'll remember this. I hope Catfish will be much better soon.

Good luck with your harvests! xo

Margaret Pangert said...

Poor Catfish! Thank God his kidneys are going to be all right. Oh, yeah, putting a pill down a cat's throat is no easy task--they can spit it out halfway across the room!
Your vegetable garden sounds like the middle of summer for us! We're starting now to plant sunflowers and castor beans in paper cups...
I love this idea of forgiveness. Gratitude is a good one, too. Love

ds said...

Poor Catfish! One of our cats endures two pills twice a day (just reduced from three--yippee!), plus a bimonthly shot for allergies. And yet, he's the sweetest thing...Hang in there!

Thank you for the Nouwen quotes. Words to live by.

Serena said...

Hey, it's good to see you back! Sorry poor Catfish has had such a hard time, but glad he's on the mend. I read one of those funny pieces once about trying to give a cat a pill and nearly died laughing. We've had some 80-degree days, too, so it's a rude shock to the system to have it 36 and raining off and on today. At least it's not snow!:)

audrey said...

Hi Marion! Happy to see you back. And I'm glad that Catfish is going to be ok.
Tomatoes, already? That's great. I thought Spring was here, but it snowed this morning. UGH!
Enjoyed the poems.
Enjoy those warm temps, Marion!
♥ audrey

Wine and Words said...

Awww...Catfish. He liked me that one. Remember how he flirted? Tell him best wishes for a speedy recovery.

The sould of an artist can not remain hidden. Damn true my Marion. So damn true.

Margaret Pangert said...

I'm prayig to St. Anthony to revive your computer! One of the joys of my life is talking to you... ♥

erin said...

holy hell you love your cats. i'm so glad for you've just saved his life. scratch him once for me.

i love poorly.

xo
erin

quid said...

How awful for Catfish! Glad you are back.

Teri and her Stylish Adventure Cats said...

I tell people I can't grow things that thrive at the side of the freeway--pretty true! But I planted Coral Bells last year and they survived, as did the Butterfly bushes!

Poor Catfish and light wallet! If you look back on my cat blog to June 2010, one of my kitties spent 3 days in the emergency hospital due to a urinary blockage, not from crystals but mucus and blood--FIC (feline interstitial cystitis) which people also suffer from and is related to stress. I was on vacation, so now he goes everywhere with me. He is doing great on all canned food, with a can of water added to each meal, as well as a new water fountain and some nutraceuticals--glucosamine and cranberry.

It makes me anxious that he will have a reoccurance and I watch him like a hawk...