God's Hostage: A True Story of Persecution, Imprisonment, and Perseverance by Andrew BrunsonMy rating: 5 of 5 starsWhen Andrew Brunson and his wife answered a request to come to the police station in Izmir Turkey on October 7, 2016, Andrew didn’t realize that he wouldn’t see the inside of his home again for almost two… Continue reading God’s Hostage – review
One of my favourite scarves, 2019 sketch. Wear a Scarf Wear a scarf with memorysweat-cloth of ancient RomeChinese army neckerchiefsilk mask in cockpit fume. Wear a scarf that’s beautifulcashmere, pashmina, silkwoven or embroideredin gold or silver gilt. Wear a scarf that’s versatilestole over evening gownshawl covering for the time of prayerpouch for your little one.… Continue reading Wear a Scarf
It’s Father’s Day this weekend. Many years have passed since I was able to wish my dad a happy Father’s Day in person… he died in 1975. But he lives on in memory, which grows more haloed as time passes. He was a quiet, kind, hard-working man. Very creative too, always fixing things using the… Continue reading In His Shop
Do you make New Year’s resolutions? Any success at keeping those resolves? Here’s a tongue-in-cheek poem I wrote some years ago, that addresses the phenom of resolution keeping. "That frozen stash of Christmas treats..." - sketch by V. Nesdoly. JANUARY, FEBRUARY… It's January, all must changemy resolutions cry it!I'll clean the cupboards, shine the glassCompletely… Continue reading January, February…
Rich Mullins: A Devotional Biography: An Arrow Pointing to Heaven by James Bryan SmithMy rating: 4 of 5 stars Streaming services make it easy to connect with musical memories and artists of many eras. I used to listen to Rich Mullins—had several CDs of his back in the day—but he had slipped my mind. However,… Continue reading An Arrow Pointing to Heaven – review
Sunday is Mother’s Day—I’m sure I don’t need to remind you! Mother’s Day reminds me of my own mother and the fact that it’s already 15 years ago that I gave her her last Mother’s Day card. She died about six weeks after Mother’s Day in 2006. I still miss her, though signs of her… Continue reading “Portrait of my mother at twenty” – a poem
HOME - what a huge topic. I love it! As I have wandered more into the world of art, subjects of home hold the greatest appeal. Ordinary things can become beautiful when one takes the time and attention to reproduce them on the page. When I look closely at the things in my home and… Continue reading The simple things of HOME (SJT)
Welcome to Spiritual Journey (first) Thursday, hosted here today. This month we’re exploring the topic “special days.” Following my thoughts, below, is a widget where you can leave the link to your post. Somebody's turning seven! (Photo © 2018 by V. Nesdoly) The look on the face of my four-year-old granddaughter—of excitement, anticipation, I’m-ready-for-the-spotlight—said it… Continue reading Special Day (Spiritual Journey Thursday)
I cannot remember a time when music wasn’t part of my life. The steel-backed Heintzman that I grew up with— that my mom played with flowing chords and that I attacked at 6 a.m. to practice scales, arpeggios and four-note chords in my Royal Conservatory days—still lives with me. One of my earliest memories is… Continue reading Gospel Choir Newbie and other reflections on music (Spiritual Journey Thursday)
Today is Family Day in B.C. In the year since I first posted the poem below, we’ve discovered that our littlest granddaughter’s developmental delays are most likely caused by cerebral palsy. And so a family very precious to us is walking a new-to-them path with lots of challenges—and the sentiments expressed by little A’s grandma… Continue reading Cheerleaders (a poem for Family Day)
Violet Nesdoly 