"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." -- Matt 5:8

"Who is pure in heart? Only those who have surrendered their hearts completely to Jesus that he may reign in them alone. Only those whose hearts are undefiled by their own evil--and by their own virtues too. The pure in heart have a child-like simplicity like Adam before the fall, innocent alike of good and evil: their hearts are not ruled by their conscience, but by the will of Jesus. If men renounce their own good, if in penitence they have renounced their own hearts, if they rely solely upon Jesus, then his word purifies their hearts. Purity of heart is here contrasted with all outward purity, even the purity of high intentions. The pure heart is pure alike of good and evil, it belongs exclusively to Christ and looks only to him who goes on before. Only they will see God, who in this life have looked solely unto Jesus Christ, the Son of God. For then their hearts are free of all defiling phantasies and are not distracted by conflicting desires and intentions. They are wholly absorbed by the contemplation of God. They shall see God, whose hearts have become a reflection of the image of Jesus Christ." -- Dietrich Bonhoeffer

210!

I'll post pictures at 200.

"It matters more that heaven should exist than that any of us should ever get there."

"In deepest solitude there is a road right out of the self, a commerce with something which, by refusing to identify itself with any object of the senses, or anything of which we have biological or social need, or anything imagined, or any state of our own minds, proclaims itself sheerly objective." -- C.S. Lewis

"We give thanks to Thee for Thy great glory." -- Book of Common Prayer

"I Am." -- God

"When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die."

-- Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship

Strawberries!

And visitors...

Yard Finished

Here's where my lawn is going to be.

Had to bring all this dirt in with my pickup and a shovel to build it up. The stones for the embankment were already here, of course. My truck is filthy. So am I, come to that.

I can't plant yet: too hot right now. I'll wait until late August, and that will also allow it to be rained on several times to help pack it down, and I'll go over it a few more times with the rake and the tamper to get it as flat as possible. I may rent a roller when I plant the grass.

"Who stands fast? Only the man whose final standard is not his reason, his principles, his conscience, his freedom, or his virtue, but who is ready to sacrifice all this when he is called to obedient and responsible action in faith and in exclusive allegiance to God--the responsible man, who tries to make his whole life an answer to the question and call of God." -- Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Shakey Graves - Late July

Why is the world of media and pop culture filled with such absolute crap when there are young musicians like this out there making real music?

"There are three things beautiful to see; beautiful before the Lord and men: the harmony of brothers, friendship between neighbors, and a wife and husband well-adjusted together." -- Ecclesiasticus 25:1

Bonhoffer on Learning Spiritual Endurance

"I'm not quite sure how we have largely got into a way of thinking which is positively dangerous. We think that we are acting particularly responsibly if every other week we take another look at the question whether the way on which we have set out is the right one. It is particularly noticeable that such a 'responsible reappraisal' always begins the moment serious difficulties begin to appear. We then speak as though we no longer had 'a proper joy and certainty' about this way, or, still worse, as though God and his Word were no longer as clearly present with us as they used to be. In all this we are ultimately trying to get round what the New Testament calls 'patience' and 'testing'. Paul, at any rate, did not begin to reflect whether his way was the right one when opposition and suffering threatened, nor did Luther. They were both quite certain and glad that they should remain disciples and followers of their Lord. Dear brethren, our real trouble is not doubt about the way upon which we have set out, but our failure to be patient, to keep quiet. We still cannot imagine that today God really doesn't want anything new for us, but simply to prove us in the old way. That is too petty, too monotonous, too undemanding for us. And we simply cannot be constant with the fact that God's cause us not always the successful one, that we really could be 'unsuccessful': and yet be on the right road. But this is where we find out whether we have begun in faith or in a burst of enthusiasm." -- Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Well, here's the vinyard finished.

And here's this year's berry harvest. This is just from the ones immediately around my house: didn't have time to get to the rest.

I hope all my other plants do as well as these wild berries; if so, I'll never lack for produce.

"Perhaps I seem to you rather fanatical and mad about a number of things. I myself am sometimes afraid of that. But I know that the day I become more "reasonable", to be honest, I should have to chuck my entire theology." -- Deitrich Bonhoeffer

"They were the happiest couple in that country, because they always understood each other, and that was because they always meant the same thing, and that was because they always loved what was fair and true and right better--not than anything else, but than everything else put together."

 -- George MacDonald, The Princess and Curdie

"One feels such a tremendous longing for real peace, in which all the misery and injustice, the lying and cowardice will come to an end."  -- Dietrich Bonhoeffer

So I was moving all the stones out of the orchard area, and thinking about how much lumber and hardware I'd need to bring in to build the planters around the trees...and I thought; "wait a minute...."

"They have but a poor knowledge of God, who suppose Him to be only capable of doing what comes within the compass of their own thoughts."

-- Tertullian, On the Resurrection of the Flesh

Hidden Treasure

Found this today about a hundred yards from my house: a mature American Chestnut! I'd estimate its height at about 30 ft. It's got catkins on it, which means it's old enough to bear nuts. Don't know if it will, as they usually require another tree nearby as a pollinator. But there's got to be something else out here that I haven't found yet, for all these young chestnuts to be growing: an older parent tree that is producing nuts. Because these trees are growing directly out of the ground, not sprouting from old stumps.

Psalm 62 - John Michael Talbot

I was singing this on my back porch this morning, and the birds gathered round and joined in. I felt like Orpheus or St. Francis.

That's my girl: get them started right early.

Orchard Complete

Finished building the grape trellis. All my grapes, berries, and fruit trees are planted. I already have blossoms on my strawberries and one apple tree. 

I still have to finish clearing and cleaning up the ground, to make it nice aesthetically and easier to get around on and maintain. Then fence it in, put the border frames around the trees, mulch, and plant my ground cover. But that can all be done at a more leisurely pace over the rest of the summer; the most urgent and important work is done.