While the Dog’s Away…
This cute little bird and his buddy birds took turns diving from this phone pole line into the backyard. They feasted on the dog’s food… I didn’t know birds liked cooked chicken, but they indulgently gulped it down their little bird-beak hatches… A nasty crow came and chased all but one brave little bird away……
Random Ukrainography
Just out enjoying Odessa, Ukraine, on this sunny spring morning. Some sights are unique to Ukraine, like these street cleaning women in their neon-colored vests… Others are not… The city is beginning to show a few signs of spring… Some buildings are in desperate need of refurbishing… I would love to have seen this city…
haiku: self portrait
hard edges softened by loss, pain, grief, betrayal joy beyond this life who has not envied a bird in flight, soaring up above life’s chaos mid-life assessment fewer questions and even less answers to flaunt people do not seek answers but understanding and heartfelt comfort not Pollyanna but joy surely follows…
Tatyana’s Ukrainian Borscht
This is Tatyana and her husband on the streets of Odessa. They are our best buds here in Ukraine. I have been enjoying Tatyana’s wonderful cooking, and especially her borscht, for almost 14 years now. I asked her if she would mind sharing the recipe with you. As you can see the ingredients are simple;…
Black Sea
Odessa sits on the Black Sea and is known through the former-Soviet Union as the “pearl of the Black Sea.” I never really considered the sea near this port very pretty–rather dirty and cold. But today the sea seemed prettier than I remembered, even though we were cold… I saw these cute little birds in…
The Womb
Hebrew words are so fascinating! Today I want to write about the Hebrew word for “compassion.” As a pastor’s wife, mother, missionary, and humanitarian aid worker, compassion is a necessary tool to my trade. It is in fact essential. It would be impossible for me to reach out to others without a good dose….
Gotta Love Russian Dills
If you haven’t tasted Russian or Ukrainian dill pickles, then you are in for a treat. They are the best I have ever eaten; and here in ex-Soviet country, they are so popular they are practically a food group–about as popular as chocolate. In fact, when the pickles are gone, families fight over who gets…
Odessa, Ukraine!
“Booliltsya Deribosivskya” This is the main walking boulevard in Odessa, Ukraine. More than a decade ago, we lived just off this main street in the downtown area. My, my, how it has changed! There are so many modern restaurants, shops, and stores now. It is really hard to believe. Many beautiful, old buildings are being…
haiku: relativity
relativity is gray and lacks the sharpness of life black and white
Bonnie Saul Wilks 