Earth Day ~April 22

From Janis ~
And totally worth an entire blog.

You CAN make a difference AND influence others on EARTH DAY. Our children and grandbabies need our leadership here.

While we should celebrate the Earth every day, April 22 is Earth Day. Please make plans to do something special; public as well as private displays of respect for the earth. Plant a tree with children. They can mark their growth by the tree's growth.

Make it a goal to throw as little as possible in the trash. Compost all coffee grounds, vegetables, and peelings. Recycle all glass, paper, plastic. DO NOT use even one plastic water bottle, refill a thermos if you want water. DO NOT accept one bag from the grocery store. Take your own, already used ones from home, or use one of those multiple use bags you can buy at the store. Can you possibly not use any lights that day? Rely on the light outside and just go to bed when darkness comes.

Here is a poem that I found in Elbert Hubbard's Scrapbook (copyright 1923). Please let your friends know how you will/did spend Earth Day.

Leaf after Leaf Drops Off
by Walter Savage Landor

Leaf after leaf drops off,
flower after flower,
Some in the chill, some in the
warmer hour;
Alive they flourish, and alive
they fall,
And Earth who nourished them
receives them all.
Should we, her wiser sons, be
less content
To sink into her lap
when life is spent?

Wine Dinner

Five courses, each matched with the perfect wine made for a perfect evening.

The cozy Foundation Restaurant was reserved last evening for our event which was an early sell out and no doubt will be repeated.

With each course,

the Chef came out dressed in the traditional all white, big white apron and chef's hat to discuss each course and the Wine Steward, dressed in Tux, did the same for his wines selected.

By the end of the 4th course, they had difficulty stopping the conversations around the room. We had a great time.

Just the most interesting people in this world. One couple we met explained they had been "Happily unmarried for 28 years." Seems that is the norm for seniors these days, but 28 years ago, they were hardly seniors. What a beautiful couple they are.

Another, one of my favorites is a guy who looks and sounds exactly like Sam Elliott.

I love to hear him talk. He has spent lots of time in Argentina and knows the Argentina wines. Looks as if our next trip will be to Argentina.

Meeting people is one thing and getting to know people is another. I have to say, it's amazing to get to know such diverse and interesting people.

The amazing part is to realize there are so many ways to spend your life. Seems many in this group have lead a more free spirited lifestyles of any group I have ever known.

I really like that as seems they are truly enjoying their lives ~ there is never a dull moment when with them.

iJune

Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus in Egypt

"Would I like to see a
water well where your Holy Family stopped to rest when they were escaping into Egypt?" the Egyptian General asked me. He knew they story quite well.

Amazed as again, I had not known of such. "I really would," was my answer. How nice, he arranged for the day off to take me. He knew in the area where this was found, so we were off to explore the northern area of Cairo looking for this ancient well. I had NO IDEA what to expect.

The history of the Holy Family's flight from Bethlehem and Jerusalem is well known. To murder all boys age two and under back in those times was done for any reason the ruling King might have. In the days of Moses, that order was given to control the population of the Hebrews. Now, when Jesus was born, word spread that a new King had been born, which was a threat to King Herod who ordered to destroy the infant in a mass murder. He sent his soldiers out to slay all boys under the age of two.

The Holy Family were warned to flee and left Bethlehem. Their arrived in Jerusalem eight days after the birth. Here, they had the baby circumcised and then traveled on their escape route by crossing into Egypt and make it over the large barren desert.

I have no expectations as we stopped to ask help from several people along the way. For sure, I had been will off the tourist path thus far. Arabic language was becoming familiar, but naturally, it was Greek to me. (smile)

Finally,

In a housing project of four story apartments building on windblown sand roads and no trees was found what we were looking for.

The area was enclosed by a whitewashed concrete wall ~
and of all things...
right in the middle of these lower income apartment builds. Basically the city had extended into the desert here. We unlatched the gate to see a Garden ~ a Garden that someone has kept the Garden green and well preserved.

I couldn't believe what I saw. The walled in area was about 50' x 50 feet and in the center was a small round well. Surrounding were many very old trees, all green and some had been supported by beams to hold them up. Someone had brought ferns and made a square brick planter. The small well is in front of the large tree in the photo.


Next to it was the trunk of a dead fig tree with a new tree branching out from the bottom.




On the wall were three stories for visitors to read. They were in three different languages as well.

First Written Story....
"As the Holy Family crossed the desert, they found this well under a fig tree. They stopped to rest and eat figs. Far out on the desert, they saw soldiers on horses. A magic spider quickly spun a web around the Holy Family to make them invisible. The Soldiers didn't see them and passed on by. "

Second Story..."As the Holy Family crossed the desert, they found this well under a fig tree. They stopped to rest and eat figs. Far out on the desert, they saw soldiers on horses. The branches of the fig tree bent down to hide the Holy Family. The Soldiers didn't see them and passed on by. "



Third Story......"As the Holy Family crossed the desert, they found this well under a fig tree. They stopped to rest and eat figs. Far out on the desert, they saw soldiers on horses. The Holy Family climbed up and hid above the tree. The Soldiers didn't see them and passed on by. "

There was a small wooden box for donations. I opened my purse and emptied what Egyptian pounds I had into the box. I was very moved.

June

Where Baby Moses Was Found

Moses

In the Exodus account, the birth of Moses occurred at a time when the current Egyptian Pharaoh had commanded that all male Hebrew children born be killed by drowning in the river Nile.

Jochebed, the wife of the Levite Amram, bore a son and kept him concealed for three months. When she could keep him hidden no longer, rather than deliver him to be killed, she set him adrift on the Nile River in a small craft of bulrushes coated in pitch. In the Biblical account, Moses' sister Miriam observed the progress of the tiny boat until it reached a place where Pharaoh's daughter Thermuthis was bathing with her handmaidens. It is said that she spotted the baby in the basket and had her handmaiden fetch it for her.

The year of his birth is 1525 BC (Before Christ).

According to the Hebrew Bible, the name Moses comes from the Hebrew word meaning "to pull out of water".

Learning how the Egyptians view this history is interesting.

From Cairo, a bridge connects to the small strip of land out in the Nile River named Rawda Island. The current building there is "new" in the history of Egypt. I was told...only 600 years old, but built on the ruins of a palace which itself was built on the runs of the original Palace of the Pharaoh era. The Egyptians know the lost history of this place. They know this to be where Moses was taken from the water.

The thrid building which is there was used as for their Nilometer. The Nilometer measures the rise and falls of the Nile River. Before modern dams were built to control the river,

the Nilometer measuered the floods of the Nile.

The more flooding of the Nile, the more land was irrigated allowing the people to have crops, therefore, their taxes woule be higher when the flooding was hight. All taxes were gauged by if and how much the river flooded each year.

Standing on the island of Rawda and looking at the river, one could imagine the history. Or could we?

Yes, this was a wonderful place to have a palace. Was peaceful and private and perhaps chosen as was safe as well. The daughter who found the baby was thought to be one of the 100 children of Pharoah Rameses 11. (2nd)

I walked down to the water and picked the top from a water plant, not knowing "bulrush."

Here is a scan from my album with the dried plant from my afternoon there.

iJune

Baby Moses ~ Nile River near Cairo Episode 7

Leaving the Coptic Museum in Cairo, my English speaking guide mentioned casually.

"Just down that road is were they found your baby Moses on the River Nile."

This sparked much interest for me. I had just explored a museum which houses some of the finest collections of Coptic art dating back to Egypt’s Christian era, connecting the Islamic or Muslim religion which came about after the the Arab conquest in 641AD.

BABY MOSES? I had not known to ask about that site. Just never would have occurred to me. Naturally, I wanted to see this area as visions of artists depictions of the scene in movies and books flashed though my mind.

"Not even I would go down that way as it is very dangerous area," my guide explained.

This young man in uniform have been assigned to me as he spoke English and was my guide; the other man was our driver. I had a car with driver for the days when Spetura, the wife or the General himself couldn't go site-seeing with me.

At this point, I knew I was going to see where they found baby Moses. I asked him to please wait for me.

It was down a narrow back road much like an alley.

Within a the distance of a block, I regretted my decision as the road narrowed as it went downhill towards the river. On both sides of this road were the most pitiful sights of people I had yet to see in my life. (Remember, we lived in South American and traveled widely off the tourist trails, which exposed some very disturbing poverty as well.) Perhaps an Egyptian mas would have been robbed here.

Something within kept me from turning back...I continued down the hill to the river. Almost there, I could see dirty, trashed and dark water backed up under a high bridge and guarded by a tall iron fence. The afternoon sun was dipping low as well.

I couldn't imagine a Palace ever being on this site. Disappointed, I walked fast back towards my Guide who was about the distance of 2 blocks away.

The poor people were staring at me as I walked passed them.

If I had dropped out of the sky I couldn't have had more attention. Actually, thinking about it, I did. I tried not to look their way, but am just to curious not too.

One scene of a woman in rags and her children sitting up under a bridge that was clearly their home. It was well established as if generations had lived there instead of a temporary shelter. Egypt being a dry and hot climate, this would be possible.

The guide searched my face as I told him I couldn't really see anything because of the fence. I, naturally, didn't mention the state of the people down there. He didn't ask.

That night at the dinner table, I related to my host about the incident and both of them were amazed that I would be interested in finding where Moses was found. I wanted to tell them that I went to Sunday School everyday of my youth and loved the story of Baby Moses in the Bulrush on the river...but that would have been too foreign to them.

Both the General and his wife agreed that wasn't the right location. The guide had been mistaken but they could take me and we could explore that area the next day. My heart leapt with joy. To me. that would most meaningful.

Cont ~ iJune

The GREATEST KIDS ON EARTH

Nothing like a trip to the Circus~ A day in the memory of this Grandmother~
The GREATEST KIDS ON EARTH sat on the edge of their seats as the GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH unfolded before them.

Holding their souvenir mugs in one hand, and onto the back of my jacket with the other, we made it through the crowd.

I am learning how to manage the group.

Holding the hand of the youngest while the others grab a swatch of my jacket making them securely connected and towed behind. Interesting how I can "feel" each little hand holding on as we go with and through the crowds. Each little hand is a slight and natural tug as we walk along...I know they are there. Their hold has to bring a secure feeling to them as well.

This group of grandchildren are ages 4, 5, 6 and 7 years old and have proven we can do everything together. We have done a crowded museum of Natural History...no problem at all. As all grandparents, I do think they are the GREATEST.

iJune