More Co-winky-dinks

In case you were lost and don't quite know what co-winky-dink means, you must refer to a previous posting that refers to 'coincidences' here:

I was chatting with Rose about coincidences with names because Nate's mom is a "Kristi" and I'm a "Christie". Coincidence? Hmmm.... it would make for very interesting introductions for sure. But I am going to list a few more:

1. I've already mentioned that my husband, Kurt has an initial for a middle name that stands for absolutely nothing. So it would be natural that fate would have it that his wife (me) would have a name that starts with the letter "C" which is his middle initial. Now it can stand for something. Whoa.

2. I told Rose, whose first name is Elizabeth that there is, in fact, a name coincidence between her name and Jordan's. Here it is: Elizabeth is the name of the mother of John the Baptist. And where does he like to baptize? You got it: the river Jordan.

3. Well...Leland's name means "meadowlands". Conjures up visions of pure, virginal lands of green grass, lush vegetation and probably even a babbling brook of pure waters. Hmmm...yes, there may yet be a name coincidence here because "Catherine" which is Greek in origin, means 'pure' and 'virginal". Coincidence?

4. And here's something that I never even thought of: Natascha is apparently originally Italian. And it refers to 'Christ's birthday". We can, of course, have a name coincidence if we refer to the name "David". Who is an ancestor of Christ. : )

5. And lastly, Hannah and Nathan are both Hebrew and Biblical names. Are they even related? But of course! Coincidence does not end here! Hannah is the mother of Samuel who becomes a high priest. And Nathan later, takes his place. The name "Nathan" also means "a gift from God" and of course, "Hannah" is a 'favour from God" or 'grace'. Related? Coincidence?

I attended a luncheon last April 6 which became a...sort of preparation for what would lie ahead. Elder Bednar was our featured guest. And although I did promise that I wouldn't blog about his comments, this blog isn't about him. Anyway, he said that there is no such thing as a 'coincidence' as the hand of God is in all things. He also said that everything we have in our church is for the 'individual' and more importantly, 'families'. This is the basic unit of the heavens. Nothing is more important. No programs, no auxilliaries...all that we have is for the edifying of the individual and families. Little would I know that these concepts would shape many of the subsequent events. And knowing that there are no coincidences opened my eyes even wider to the miracles that surrounded us...none of which were coincidences but rather, manifestations that God is in control and managing every detail and putting things in their proper order according to our faith and obedience.

These are certainly fun coincidences that I listed. But....hmmm.....

I am having a grand moment here whilst passing time.

BIRDZ

Much has happened since April 6, 2009---hence the silence. I learned a lot these past few days about miracles, fasting, prayer and the love of a Heavenly Father. The life of a loved one was pulled out of the valley of the shadow of death and brought back into more light. I am so grateful that his is a life of obedience and righteousness such that through him, great ministrations of angels and manifestations of God's love were wrought ..and the miracle that altered the course of his life was made possible to suit God's plans for him...for his edifying and perfecting--and obviously as a means to bless so many people's lives!

As the sun just left the horizon yesterday morning, I slowly backed out of my driveway and pulled the little lever by my right hand to pull the top down and off of my car. It was still dark but the horizon was almost pink and orange. It was a beautiful morning and something inside me told me to turn off my music. As I slowly drove past the automatic gates, I heard some birds chirping. Without thinking, I turned my head towards that sweet sound...but I did not see any birds. But I knew they were there.

I only heard their chirping for a brief moment as I rounded the corner into the street. As I drove past every pine tree that gracefully lined the street outside the gate, I would hear different sounds. Some were sweet chirpings. Some were baby tweetings. Some were sharp whistles and yet some were loud caws. "Wake up!", they all seemed to say. And then some sounds were melodic, serenading and welcoming a beautiful day about to burst.

When I drove by the intersections and apartment complexes, I would hear nothing but the soft engine of my car and others around me. There! I see another tree! And as I pass it, I hear more birds. Then silence until I pass another tree. Some to my left and some to my right. But every tree I pass had beautiful birds singing. I'd tilt my head to the right as I glided past a tree fat with leaves...and then I'd hear the beautiful tones of chirping. Or I'd lean to the left towards another nearing tree and then I'd hear soft tweets and whistles. What a wonderful, beautiful day!

I had passed these trees thousands of times and yet never had I had the opportunity to hear the musicians concealed in their leafy branches as I did this morning. Driving with my top down helped. I am grateful I can drive a beautiful car that can do this. And turning off my usual jazz music helped...though I love jazz, this day was...for the birds. And even now, as I sit and write this, I hear birds chirping outside.

There is beauty everywhere even in what seems banal. And though obviously one can find metaphorical ideas and messages in this posting, I really don't have much of an agenda in writing about those birds.

All I know is that I had a singular experience yesterday morning. And it made all the difference.