Whispering Winds Blog

I Planned and God Laughed

Thursday was just one of those days. I usually try to go to church to practice the organ for a couple hours about 9:00 every Thursday morning. Last Thursday I was running behind schedule because of being away at Christmas Mountain for a 3-day getaway earlier in the week, and I didn’t have any music…

Marian

April 19, 2016

Life’s Challenges, Music, Reflections

Angelo’s, blueberries, Christmas Mountain, Costco, God’s plans, iPhone, Italian restaurant, lost phone, Messiah Church, Messiah Lutheran Church, Metro Market, my plans, organ practice, practice the organ, Prius, US Cellular, whittlers, whittling, wood carving
The Joy of Being a Piece of the Puzzle

I’m drafting this blog post on Thursday morning. I plan to post it on Tuesday, my usual day for posting to WhisperingWindsBlog.com. I’m writing this post so early because I plan to spend a few days at our Christmas Mountain timeshare, and I want to spend my time reading, walking, and putting together a picture…

Marian

April 12, 2016

God’s Love, Jail Ministry, Lent, Life’s Challenges, Reflections

big picture, Christmas Mountain, Dane County Jail, humbled, jail, jigsaw puzzle, joy, Lent Devotionals, life story, Maundy Thursday, Messiah Lutheran Churc, picture puzzle, piece of the puzzle, pieces of God’s puzzle, pieces of the same puzzle, puzzle, separate vacations, stay awake, testimony, timeshare, vacation
“Good enough for who it’s for”

Last Saturday would have been my dad’s 112th birthday. He was born April 2, 1904, and died at home on June 19, 1991, at the age of 87. “Good enough for who it’s for” was one of his favorite expressions. He used to say it jokingly when he gave a gift to someone, or when…

Marian

April 5, 2016

God’s Love, Life’s Challenges, Reflections

bathroom cabinet, birthday, Carl Korth, carpenter, cultural outsider, dad’s birthday, F-20 tractor, farm, farm laborer, farming, German-American, good enough, Good enough for who it’s for, Happy Birthday, hired hand, hired man, How can I help you?, kindness, Korth Park, Lake Mills, Norwegian-American, old tractor, one-horse sleigh, reminiscences, reminiscing, restored prairie, Rock Lake, Scandinavian Methodist Church, school drop-out, sleigh ride, storage cabinet, team of horses, towels cabinet
Congratulations to My Great Niece Mollie

I was inspired and I learned a lot last Saturday – actually 2 Saturdays ago. It was a great day! Prior to that Saturday, I had never been to a gymnastics meet. I guess that doesn’t make me a very good great aunt, since my 17-year-old great niece Mollie has participated in gymnastics since the…

Marian

March 29, 2016

Celebrations, Goals, God’s Love, Life’s Challenges, Reflections

athletic scholarship, born with springs, congratulations, great niece, gym class, gymnastics, gymnastics meet, kindness, Mollie Korth, National Gymnastics Meet, Regional Gymnastics Meet, rope climbing, springs for bones, state champion, State Gymnastics Meet, stiff neck, summersaults, tumbling, University of Kentucky
A Day to Think

Last Friday morning, bright and early, Floey and I had quite a discussion. This is how it went. “Where were you, Mom? You were gone all day yesterday – from before breakfast till after dinner, almost bedtime. Our friend Kathy was here to take care of Carolyn and Ann and me. She even took me…

Marian

March 22, 2016

Assisted Living, God’s Love, Life’s Challenges, Reflections

cultural beliefs around death, Dr. Ann Catlett, Dr. John Tuohey, end-of-life, end-of-life care for homeless, end-of-life conference, ethics, Floey, health care ethics, hospice conference, Joseph’s House, kindness, legally dead, neurologically dead, Rainbow Hospice, Respecting Differences at End of Life, Rev. John Tuohey, Rev. Ridley Usherwood, spiritual beliefs around death, ventilator
Solving Problems

As a child, I went to Sunday School faithfully at 9:45 every Sunday morning from the time I was 3 years old. I don’t remember much from the first few years. The earliest memory I have of Sunday School was sitting around a small table with all the other kids while the teacher told us…

Marian

March 15, 2016

God’s Love, Life’s Challenges, Reflections

“Christ in Our Home”, 2 Kings, be God’s hands, devotional booklet, Elisha, God’s hands, help the people who need help, lectionary reading, miracle of oil, miracle of olive oil, olive oil, pay your debts, poor widow, power to negotiate, problem solving, solving problems, Sunday School, Sunday School Paper, The Message, trust God
Stories and Feathers

I was sitting at my desk thinking about what to write about for my next blog post, and my dog Floey trotted up to me and sat down. “Hey, Mom, can I talk with you about something that’s been on my mind a lot lately – ever since my last grooming?” “Sure, Floey. What’s on…

Marian

March 8, 2016

Book Recommendations, God’s Love, Life’s Challenges, Reflections

Alzheimers, ARVSS, Bark of the Town, bravery, courage, Creating Moments of Joy, feather, Floey, Great Spirit, grooming, Indian heritage, Jolene Brackey, stories, story, storyteller, storytelling
Tap Dancing in Church

That was a first. A woman tap danced to my postlude in church Saturday evening. I was playing a pretty jazzy arrangement of “Just a Closer Walk with Thee” on the piano, and I heard some rhythmic tapping. It sounded great, and I sensed a few people gathering together to watch someone near the front of…

Marian

March 1, 2016

Celebrations, God’s Love, Lent, Music, Reflections

A Song to Sing a Life to Live, A Sound Spirituality, cat dancing, dancing cat, Don Saliers, Emily Saliers, gift of music, Indigo Girls, Jeff Vanden Heuvel, Just a Closer Walk with Thee, Melody Bober, My Life Flows on in Endless Song, Pastor Jeff, percussion instrument, postlude, praise God, Praise God with dance, Praise God with music, Psalm 150, Robert Lowry, spiritual practice, tap dancing
Another Perspective on CLARK

Last week’s post, “CLARK – One of the best and worst guests in my life” was one of the most looked-at posts in my almost five years of blogging. Typically from 40 to 80 people look at my blog on the first day of a post, usually a Tuesday. The next day, about half that.…

Marian

February 23, 2016

Blogs, God’s Love, Life’s Challenges, Reflections

blog comments, blog statistics, blogging, Clark, Clark Kornelsen, difficult relationships, filters, Joan Chittister, perspective, reader comments, relationships, The Monastic Way
CLARK – One of the best and worst guests in my life

The first time I met Clark was in 1959. I was almost 11. Mom, Dad, Danny, and I had driven to Wheaton College for my sister Nancy’s graduation. We had a picnic lunch on the front lawn of the college, and Nancy had convinced Clark to come over to meet us. Clark had just graduated, too,…

Marian

February 16, 2016

Life’s Challenges, Music, Reflections

barely on speaking terms, Clark, Clark Kornelsen, college graduation, God’s Guest List, imperfect souls, introspective music, Lent, Nancy, prayerful music, spiritual practice, Sweet hour of prayer, Wheaton College