SEPTEMBER INSIGHTS

September is a great month of transition as the days cool a bit and moisture decreases.  Our summer in Pennsylvania was no different than in Florida with 90 % humidity, 90 degree days and so much rain that we did not water the garden until this month.  Plenty of time to linger a little longer inside, near our window overlooking our back yard.

Words escape me as we travel to Canada and return via Boston.  

We now linger over chores we have left for dryer weather: painting the back door, cleaning and painting the bird house that is now empty, framing pictures, cleaning the garage and shed, clearing out more nooks and crannies of stored ‘stuff’ that “we might use some day.”

Umbrellas hover over the quaint Quebec City street as we enjoy weather brought to us by the tail of hurricane Doriane.  Thirty degrees with high winds and rain did not move these well attached umbrellas.

I have gathered wonder-filled quotes from others far wiser than myself.

Enjoy words of wisdom with pictures from our month of adventure.  If an author of one of the quotes is unfamiliar to you, look up the name.  Each has shared wisdom with the world, some for centuries.

Hotel Frontenac at the top of the citadel in Old Quebec City.  We lingered over lunch as the wind blew a smattering of rain.  We then walked the 365 stairs to the lower part of the old city and enjoyed reams of people who did not let a bit of bad weather stop them from having a wonder-filled day.

“ You say grace before meals.  All right.  But I say grace before the concert and the opera, and grace before the play and pantomime, and grace before I open a book, and grace before sketching, painting, swimming, fencing, boxing, walking, playing, dancing and grace before I dip the pen in the ink.”  G. K. Chesterton

I couldn't help it.  Dessert at the Frontenac Hotel was a chocolate cookie-box filled with chocolate and cream.  This artistic desert was a delight.

“When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, “I used everything you gave me.”  Erma Bombeck   

A little rain did not stop the tourists on the steps of Old City Quebec.

"In the old days, when there was less education and discussion, perhaps it was possible to get on with a very few simple ideas about God. But it is not so now. Everyone reads, everyone hears things discussed. Consequently, if you do not listen to Theology, that will not mean that you have no ideas about God. It will mean that you have a lot of wrong ones—bad, muddled, out-of-date ideas. For a great many of the ideas about God which are trotted out as novelties today are simply the ones which real Theologians tried centuries ago and rejected.”  C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, p. 155

This is the back of the Notre Dame Basilica in Montreal.  I love the Romanesque architecture mixed with Gothic.

“Gratitude is one of the greatest Christian graces; ingratitude, one of the most vicious sins.”  Billy Graham

This is a rare find in the middle of a large city.  It was on the side of the ancient church building in Montreal.

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"There are two loves, the love of God and the love of the world. If the love of the world takes possession of you, there is no way for the love of God to enter into you. Let the love of the world take the second place, and let the love of God dwell in you. Let the better love take over."

St. Augustine, p. 34  Augustine Day by Day

We almost missed this mural on a building in a dark alley at the edge of the shopping area in old Quebec city.  Amazing!

Now if you are unwilling to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve . . . but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.  Joshua 24:15

People in Montreal are very proud of their Notre Dame Basilica.  It's a tourist hot spot with a beautiful, large chapel on the side that provides a quiet place to worship.  This incredible edifice was swarming with the curious but conversation was is whispers.  Magnificent!

“Blessed are the single-hearted for they shall enjoy much peace.  If you refuse to be hurried and pressed, if you stay your soul on God, nothing can keep you from that clearness of spirit which is life and peace.  In that stillness you will know what His will is.”   Amy Carmichael

Of course we had to see the Old North Church in Boston. A glorious day to walk the cobbled streets near the harbor.

“When we were children we were grateful to those who filled our stockings at Christmas time.  Why are we not grateful to God for filling our stockings with legs?          G. K. Chesterton

We just happened to pass where the "Tea Party" took place.  This replica seems smaller than I'd imagined.  "No taxation without representation" was a good beginning for a nation that, for the most part, still relies on this motto.

“Destiny has two ways of crushing us - - by refusing our wishes and by fulfilling them.  But he who only wills what God wills escapes both catastrophes.  All things work together for his good.”  [Elizabeth Elliott, wife of 1 of 5 missionaries killed in the Amazon by Caniblals.  Years later she returned with others to lead this tribe, and others, to Christ.]

Elizabeth Elliott also said, “It is always possible to be thankful for what is given rather than to complain about what is not given.  One or the other becomes a habit of life.”

I love architecture.  Boston gave us plenty of opportunity to linger among fabulous old buildings.  This was my favorite.

George Mueller once said, “Pray with all your might for the blessing of God; but work, at the same time, with all diligence, with all patience, with all perseverance.”

Home is where our heart is.  Always nice to be back home to linger in the garden, especially as the weather remains balmy and bright.

“I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought; and gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.”  G. K. Chesterton

That's it for September.

As with each month, we loved every minute and look forward to the next.