Category Archives: Friends

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #127: Precious Moments

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This week, as we are approaching the end of 2020, Amy invited us to share some of the precious moments we have had, before or during the pandemic.

I love travel. I know I won’t return to many places I had been and always treasure the experiences of being there and seeing those places. Yet if I must choose between travel and spend time with family and friends, I choose the latter. It is the relationship that makes the moments precious.

“We are travelers on a cosmic journey, stardust, swirling and dancing in the eddies and whirlpools of infinity. Life is eternal. We have stopped for a moment to encounter each other, to meet, to love, to share. This is a precious moment. It is a little parenthesis in eternity.” – Paulo Coelho

Our family photo which was taken in 2006. One young girl on the left got married a few years ago and now has a baby daughter. The other one on the left just got married last month. The three little ones are in college. Lynton’s dad, second from the right, died 12 years ago.

“Every moment of life is precious and can never happen again and therefore is a reason to appreciate, be grateful for and celebrate the fact that you are alive.” – Zelig Pliskin

Eight years ago, we took our family trip to China and stopped by Hong Kong to see my family. Seven of us were in the middle of this photo, with my siblings and their families on the left and right sides. Will’s mom (behind Will, in green) died three years after the trip. My sister, third from right, died last year when we were in Hong Kong for my nephew’s wedding.

“But friendship is precious, not only in the shade, but in the sunshine of life, and thanks to a benevolent arrangement the greater part of life is sunshine.” – Thomas Jefferson

This is a group of my lovely lady friends celebrating Christmas in 2019. We missed each other tremendously.

“The most beautiful discovery true friends make is that they can grow separately without growing apart.” — Elisabeth Foley

Many of my friends and I were in this chorale last year singing in the annual performance of Messiah. The past weekend would have been the usual schedule for the performance. It didn’t happen this year.

“A man travels the world over in search of what he needs and returns home to find it.” – George Moore

This precious photo was taken with my daughter Mercy and granddaughter Autumn last year. We cancelled our trip this year because the Covid cases were worse than when it started.

“Precious moments are small elements of time, we show and share love and kindness, with those we care about.” – Tom Baker

The family of four – from left, Autumn (3 years old), Mercy, Nora (8 months), and Will. Our hearts are together even when we’re apart. We’ll keep in touch with them and will see them very soon.

Thank you for reading!

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #127: Precious Moments

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Lens-Artists Challenge #124 – Now and Then

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Happy Thanksgiving from Beach Ford! | Beach Ford

This week Amy invited us to reflect on our time staying at home mostly due to the pandemic, compared to what happened to our life prior to this situation. What happened then, and what happened now?

“Eventually all things fall into place. Until then, laugh at the confusion, live for the moments, and know everything happens for a reason.” — Albert Schweitzer

It has been over eight months since COVID-19 hit. Did time go by fast?

It did not; it was like forever. The second week of March was difficult to be confined at home. I wanted to run outside to do something. I wanted to shout or talk to someone. It was boring to do the same things day after day. There were no special events such as travel, movies, family and social gathering, birthdays, or holidays to punctuate the different seasons. As time went by, I accepted the new normal and set up my new routine. In fact, I appreciated the concentrated time to do certain tasks without interruption. Even when the social distancing was relaxed, I was not ready to take risk except going to see my granddaughters with great caution.

On the other hand, time went by fast. This one enormous bubble of a single day was in fact eight months long. Yet, it will not last forever. History told us that this will end. I will do my part to observe the safety regulation. I will stay safe and keep healthy, so when this is over, I can fully enjoy my family.

We had been doing major traveling since 2000, went to Australia, London, Amsterdam, Paris, Germany, Austria, Spain, and China, to name some countries. We didn’t go anywhere except Portland to see Mercy and her family. I spend a lot of time gardening.

Toledo, Spain

Thanksgiving is our major family gathering time. Two sister-in-laws and I took turns to host the Thanksgiving dinner. Mercy and her family came to California to join us. Two weeks ago, California, Oregon, and Washington jointly announced a new restriction. Upon arriving in Oregon, we would have to be self-quarantine for 14 days. The new spikes of cases spread throughout the country, it is worse than March when the pandemic started. Hubby and I will spend the holiday just the two of us, and cook a 15-pound turkey, eat some and freeze some for later.

Autumn had a big birthday party with many friends her age in 2019. We are not big cake eaters. Autumn had a birthday pie. This year, she had a smaller birthday party in the front yard serving a cake to her friends and aunties and uncles. They came in masks keeping the social distancing.

Nora is growing fast. The first two years of a kid’s life is the fast growing period in proportion to the remaining of one’s life. When I visited her in August, she was not sitting up yet. She turned eight months two days ago. She is now sitting up and enjoys eating many mashed veggies.

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Lens Artists Challenge # 124: Now and Then

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Merry Christmas

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It has been a challenging time for me since the beginning of November. I have an allergic reaction toward something, possibly medications. After having gone to the Urgent Care twice, Emergency Room twice, hospitalized for five days and seeing eight doctors, no doctor could pinpoint what happened to the constant inflammation of my skin. All they could say was to ask me to discontinue this and that medication. I will discontinue ALL my medications in less than a month. What a motivation for me to get rid of all the medications I have been taking. They gave me some treatments such steroids and antibiotics. I spent Thanksgiving in the hospital and was hoping not to miss all the celebrations in Christmas.

 

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Messiah Performance

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Messiah Performance

With great effort and determination, I gathered my energy and ensured a pleasant appearance; I managed to sing in one of the two performances of Messiah. I couldn’t sing in the first one because I was still miserable. Laying in my bed, I could hear the choir singing. My disappointment was no greater than my motivation. I quietly plead for good health the next day so that I could sing. Oh, what a miracle! I woke up feeling the coolness of my body. It was a great joy for me to spend hours to prepare myself. The photos showed my red face (with no make-up) from the inflammation. My friends in the audience were happy to see me.

 

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Retirees singing to the retirees

I also got to sing in one of the two chorale concerts. I missed the first one when the group sang in a retirement home. The second one was as fun when we sang to the fellow retirees.

 

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Precious group of ladies at the Christmas dinner

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Joy to the World celebration

There were two Christmas parties I was delighted to go and had fun seeing my friends of thirty years. One was the ladies Christmas dinner, and the other was the adult fellowship Christmas party.

I haven’t seen the end of the tunnel yet. I’ll still must take a blogging break until my health is fully recovered. Until then, I wish you all

A Merry Christmas!

 

 

 

 

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #67 – Candid

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Ann-Christine has a fun theme for us this week for the Lens-Artists Challenge. We get to look at the candid photo.

Ann-Christine said, “Taking photos of people or animals when they have no idea that you’re doing it is called candid photography. One of the beautiful things with photography is being able to catch someone in the act. It adds natural life to your pictures.” 

 

1.You did what Took my donut photo

“You did what? You took that doughnut photo? Now everyone knows about it.”

“A good snapshot keeps a moment from running away.” ― Eudora Welty

 

2.Is that how I look when I don't pose

“I looked funny when I laughed, but thanks for the photo anyway.”

“The best thing about a picture is that it never changes, even when the people in it do.” – Andy Warhol

 

3.Ahhh, I can go from here to there without touching the ground

“Ahhh, I wasn’t that scared of the crowd!”

“Photography is the story I fail to put into words.” – Destin Sparks

 

4.What do mom and grandma put in their purses

“Hmmm, let me see what Mommy and Grandma put in their purses.”

“You can look at a picture for a week and never think of it again. You can also look at a picture for a second and think of it all your life.” ― Joan Miró

 

5.You need help.Nope I'm the flower girl

“Do you need help?”  “Nooo, I’m the flower girl!”

“In photography there is a reality so subtle that it becomes more real than reality.”
– Alfred Stieglitz

 

6.Come on I got plenty of seeds for all of you

“Don’t worry! I have plenty for all of you.”

“Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever… It remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything.” – Aaron Siskind

 

7.Be quiet, he's taking a nap.

“Shhhh……”

“Taking pictures is like tiptoeing into the kitchen late at night and stealing Oreo cookies.” – Diane Arbus

 

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #67 – Candid

 

 

 

Spring Brunch

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Our church fellowship has an annual auction fundraising event for the missionaries. There are open auction and the silent auction. Members of the group donate goods or activities for auction. We then bid on the items and all proceeds go to the missionaries.

My husband and I donated a steak dinner event, and the bid went up to $400 from two couples. A friend and I sponsored a silent auction of brunch for 12 ladies with $25 each. There were more ladies who wanted to sign up, but it quickly filled all the spots.

We signed up for five silent auction events and bid for two open auctions. One of the silent auction I got was a Spring Brunch held last Saturday. The hostess decorated her home with Paris theme. The co-hostesses did a fabulous job to make the event memorable. The food was delicious and beautiful. Being with this almost 30 years of long-time friends is always a delight and enjoyable.

 

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Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #22 – Happiness Is…

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Ann-Christine gave us a thought provoking prompt this week – Happiness Is… We can ask if we are happy at this point of our life. If we’re happy, what makes us happy? If we’re not, what makes us unhappy?

I’m thankful to be where I am. I’m thankful for loving relationships with family and friends. I’m thankful that I could be helpful to people with my time and energy. It’s being with people and seeing people happy that makes me happy.

Seeing Mercy, Will and Autumn is always a priceless joy.

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Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #8: Colorful

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End of Summer Party!

Our weekly women’s group has the summer off, but we had fabulous summer breakfast gathering four times. I couldn’t go to the previous three events because I went to see my granddaughter once a month. I was glad to join the lovely ladies two Saturdays ago. The hostess did a marvelous job of decorating the tables with colorful table clothes, matching napkins and centerpieces. The vases for the centerpieces were made with fresh lemon peels (scooped out the pulp and juice).

The food was also colorful with quiche, mixed berries, slices of bacon, toast and other items I didn’t have on my plate. I had coffee and orange juice for the drink. We had a good time catching up with each others of our summer travels and news. Most of these friends have been together for more than thirty years!

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In the courtyard, the hostess has a wooden bench. The back of the bench is a one-piece carving of a colorful fruit basket.

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Nothing gives us a happier memory than having a photo taken with lovely smiles on these ladies in colorful fashion.

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Happy End of Summer, my friend around the world!

 

Please visit Tina for this week’s photographers and their colorful posts.

Tina R Schell Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #8: Colorful

 

Tuesday Photo Challenge – Memories

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I can’t believe that Randy passed away in January 2016. I still can hear his cheerful voice and his laughter. Randy was our neighbor living two doors down the street. For twelve years, he and my husband went to the gym on weekdays, mountain bike riding on weekends, and happy hours on Fridays. I went with them for happy hours because I was the designated driver. We had barbeques on holidays and spontaneous game nights.

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During the twelve years, Randy drove one and a half hours each way to take care of his ex-mother-in-law. When she was not able to care for herself, he helped to move her to a skilled nursing facility in our neighborhood and helped to sell her house. It amazed me at how a guy could take care of his ex-mother-in-law to that extent.

When he studied to take the Commercial Appraiser exam, his study materials made me dizzy. He was brilliant yet humble, accepting and non-judgmental. He kept in touch with childhood friends and held his own High School Reunion regularly.

Twenty-six months ago, Randy went on a mountain bike riding with a fellow from the gym. He had a terrible accident that smashed his head and face. He didn’t make it to the hospital. He’d be 65 years old on April 2, 2018

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Randy was my husband’s best friend. Having a best friend in the next door is a rare, once in a lifetime experience. We miss Randy!

Frank’s Dutch Goes the Photo: Tuesday Photo Challenge – Memories

SoCS February 3, 2018

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The prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “in other words.”

Last Saturday, January 27, 2018, I attended a Women’s Retreat. It was a day of reflection on our personal life in 2017. We spent the first hour leisurely charting the major events, the spiritual journey, and our insights. The following hour was sharing our charts and thoughts. The next hour was meeting in groups of three to pray for each other. We also had individual time to be alone doing the reading, meditating and writing.

The retreat was from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. held in a private home with plenty of space for small groups and individual time. The pace of the schedule was just right. I came away feeling very refreshed and peaceful, ready to face my new journey of 2018.

One precious thing I valued deeply was spending a whole hour with just three people sharing. We were not chitchatting superficial things. We shared our deep concerns and prayed with each other. It was a unique experience that I didn’t have before. It is so often when we meet, we talk about the busy events. If we don’t share our concerns, even when we talk for hours, we still go away feeling unconnected.

After the retreat, one lady and I decided to meet once a month not chitchatting but to share and listen. In other words, we want to be caring friends to each other.

Badge by J-Dub @ https://jilywily.wordpress.com/

Linda G Hill’s SoCS February 3, 2018

 

Dessert for Breakfast

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We get together with friends and have dinner or potluck at each other’s homes for many years. Many wives and some husbands know that I drink hot water instead of coffee for dinner. I can’t have dessert after a certain hour either. Caffeine and sweet simply keep me awake for hours at night. My friends take me seriously when I say I could eat dessert for breakfast. That’s the time I could eat sweet without affecting my sleep.

I went to a breakfast party lately. The hostess served me hot water instead of coffee. She knows I drink hot water, not coffee for dinner. Perhaps I failed to tell her that I could drink coffee for breakfast.

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It was a beautiful morning. I enjoyed this delightful breakfast with my coffee and dessert.

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