Dallas Arboretum

It is rare to find a place that has been planned and tended so carefully that every view, vista or passing glimpse is a beautiful one. It is even rarer that you can spend as long as you like in such a place for a mere dollar apiece. The Dallas Arboretum during August is just that place.

Dallas skyline in the distance.

An infinity pond merges seamlessly into White Rock Lake.

The garden was planted on the grounds of two estates. I believe this was one of the original houses.

For added interest, there were children's-story-themed playhouses dotted around. This rather abstract one is The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. I'd heard of this book a few times but never tracked down a copy, so was delighted to find an online text here.

This next is Hansel and Gretel, of course. Disappointingly there was no view of a witch being pushed into the oven when you looked through the windows. Only some old chairs.

Eragon by Christopher Paolini. He was 15 when he wrote the book and it is well worth reading. Pretty typical fantasy fare (dragons, magic, swordplay, good vs evil) and good fun.

Comments

Theme Week: Air

A beautifully wide theme which can cover everything from blowing bubbles to spotting planes. Sorry for the belated blogging! Activities 1. Straw painting Toby loves straws at the moment and usually has at least two in his drink, sometimes up to five! So I thought he might enjoy a spot of straw painting. We dolloped watered-down paints onto a big sheet of paper, and blew air through the straw to spread the paint out. The results weren't quite as spectacular as I'd hoped, but it was quite fun. 2. Balloon on a string Toby had already been introduced to the idea of blowing a balloon up and letting it go whoowheeewhooo around the room, so we tried the next stage up - racing it along a string. Thread straw onto long piece of string. Tie string across room. Blow up balloon. Tape balloon onto straw. Let go. Wheeeeee! Duck! 3. Paper aeroplanes Yeah. This and the balloon on a string was my attempt to keep us entertained on a wet Bank Holiday Monday. Ver

Reckoning with righteousness

'Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.' The preacher was reading from the book of James. It was a passage all about how faith is useless if it isn't accompanied by good works - actually feeding the hungry instead of just saying you'll pray that they'll have food! And James used Abraham, that patriarch of the Jewish faith, as an example of someone whose faith showed up in action. 'Hang on,' I thought. 'I'm sure I've seen that quote in one of Paul's letters, too.' I flicked back a few pages and found it in Romans 4. 'Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.' But in this passage, Paul is arguing exactly the opposite thing! The whole chapter is about how we can't earn righteousness through works, but only by faith. And Paul uses Abraham as an example of this, too. Abraham was righteous because he trusted God, not because he followed the law. So the exact same quote is use

Reading for Spiritual Formation 2021-22

Do you read books in order to live a better life? I read books for lots of reasons, ranging from escapism and enjoyment to information and obligation. In some sense, every book we read lodges somewhere inside us, affecting who we are and how we react to life. I am the product of many books (far too many, some would say!) Not my library! (Image: Pixabay) Last year, though, I read four books with the specific intention of growing spiritually. These four books were chosen by the Renovaré Book Club. Renovaré Book Club Renovaré wasn't a name I'd come across before. Turns out that it's a Christian group founded by Richard Foster (who wrote Celebration of Discipline ) and involving Dallas Willard (who wrote The Spirit of the Disciplines ), which probably gives you a good idea of their emphasis! I was impressed with the quality of resources offered with the book club - podcasts, articles, discussion boards, online Q&A - and I also thought they'd done a good job get

Martha's Marvellous Munchies

Search This Blog