Like the rest of North America, Montreal is now in the throes of Labour Day Weekend, the last fling of Summer. It is rather sticky here, and we had torrential rains last night so there is not as much outdoor activity as usual; although I did put in a couple of productive hours in the garden this morning cutting back many many Iris, Siberian Iris and Day Lilies all of which were ludicrously long of leaf and starting to turn brown, so now they have all had “hair cuts”!
The early part of this week was spent in the “Changing of the Decorations”. Liturgical purists should note that I am well aware that the Season of Pentecost is not yet over (“Trinitytide is such a bore, loud sing Noel”) but we have always chosen to tweak things a bit by having “Harvest/Thanksgiving” decorations during the latter part of the Pentecost (aka Trinity) Season. And, yes, I still incorporate plenty of green in each room!
As of Wednesday everything was pretty well in order and I spent a peaceful hour praying over every room and outdoor area and sprinkling with Holy Water. The house feels “clean”, not just physically (I even vacuumed the furnace room!!) but Spiritually as well and I am very Thankful for this new (demi) Season.
Thus on Thursday it was back to the “trenches” of the Supply Room at Isaiah 40 as Janice and Jillian met me there to help get all the Supply Tubs properly cleaned out and reorganised. Emma and her Team have returned safely from their International Day Camp held in Haiti! so Emma brought her Team supplies on Wednesday evening and we were able to include them in the grand clear up.
Watch for more news about that adventure! Emma plans to assemble a slideshow about the Team’s experiences and we will try to post it here, as soon as possible. I was very thankful to hear that they were safe and that the Lord used them in some exciting ways during the week there.
Once we had completed the work in the Supply Room, J & J also began deconstructing both the Team Leaders’ and the Music binders.These are kept in the office here at home so they did that work while I prepared our lunch. We had a nice visit over the meal and then they headed on their way.
Once we had completed the work in the Supply Room, J & J also began deconstructing both the Team Leaders’ and the Music binders.These are kept in the office here at home so they did that work while I prepared our lunch. We had a nice visit over the meal and then they headed on their way.
Next week, I really would like to complete the last important piece of Day Camps 2013 by sending out the Feedback Forms. They have not gone out because I’m not sure if a new Program Flyer can be produced in time. if not, I will send off the packages with an updated version of the previous “Follow the Leader” flyer.
And so we begin to look ahead to Day Camps 2014 and I begin to turn my back on the
summer that is past and to embrace Harvest time and the season in which giving Thanks
is at the forefront of our minds, just where it should be throughout the year!
summer that is past and to embrace Harvest time and the season in which giving Thanks
is at the forefront of our minds, just where it should be throughout the year!
My bi-weekly Farm Share box is now full of bright red tomatoes, peppers, beans and much more! The most recent box also included green beans reminding me of “Alecha”, an Ethiopian dish my Mum always made at this time of year, so I pulled out her handwritten cookbook (oh SO hard to see her handwriting on the pages!)I’m making a batch to enjoy for dinner tonight with extra to squirrel away in the freezer.
Tzich’s Alecha
- 3 potatoes cut into narrow strips
- 2 cups fresh green beans, trimmed and
broken into 1”lengths - 2 onions, chopped
- 2 tomatoes, chopped
- 4 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1-½ tsps. Turmeric
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/3-cup water
- salt and pepper, to taste
In a large frying pan, cook the onions in the olive oil, until golden. Add the green beans and turmeric to the pan and sauté for 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook over high heat for 2 minutes. Add the potatoes, garlic and water, bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally,
15-20 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. Season with salt and pepper. Serves 4.
15-20 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. Season with salt and pepper. Serves 4.