The burning fire

The backyard resort is now equipped with a heat source for the evening movie watching on the big screen.

Opening ceremonies included making smores.

It is a beautiful thing.

What is sacred...

Prayer is an attitude toward life that sees everything as ultimately sacred, everything as potentially life-changing, everything as revelatory of life’s meaning. It is our link between dailiness and eternity.

- Joan Chittister

Turning points

Thirty three years ago a decision to leave Mozambique was being made in the room below.

At 13, I had no idea what impact that would have on my life. I carry a bit of the country with me.

If you eat...

Again, pictures from MAC...

We are involved.

They have extensive cotton fields. I have not touched that stuff yet, but I really want to.

I lived in a house in Portugal where the water source was one of these.

Not sure what this guy is protecting. They have a research facility on site and test seeds and many growing conditions.

A shed in the play area.

Corn

On a school trip to the Maricopa Agricultural Center, we learned all about corn.

This patch is planted just for the maze.

One of the maze corridors.

Grinding the corn as the natives would.

16 rows and 800 kernels.

Indian corn

Liberation

It is not only the freedom of the oppressed that is at stake ... but also the liberation of the oppressor.

- Allan Boesak

African minister

This one is very much worth pondering...

Home grown

My peppers were sweet.

The tiny thing there was not so sweet. It burned Grasshopper's mouth. Hey, she insisted on eating it.

Portuguese Sweet Bread

Once again I traveled down memory lane to my Portuguese roots and smelled the scent of pastries and rich, sweet breads from all the Portuguese places I have lived in. Kelli made this recently and directed all us Africankelli groupies to her friend's blog for the recipe.

It was well worth the search. My two loaves.

I was afraid of the results as I watched it rest and rise. I don't have a history as a baker, you see.

This was way too much fun.

I kept watching the clock to see when the 10 minutes were up.

My taste buds were happy and my soul grateful for a piece of my history I could make myself. Obrigado cara amiga.

HOPE

"Hope" is the thing with feathers – That perches in the soul – And sings the tune without the words –And never stops at all.

- Emily Dickinson

Quilted Art

Sometimes it's fun to be out after a long day at school or work, so I drove us to the Chandler Center for the Arts. The current show features contemporary art quilts.

Flowers by the lake.

Grasshopper was intrigued by the stitches in this one.

One of Snowden's favorites.

I love this one.

She cuts the kite line.

What's in us

The moment we begin to fear the opinions of others and hesitate to tell the truth that is in us, and from motives of policy are silent when we should speak, the divine floods of light and life flow no longer in our souls.

- Elizabeth Cady Stanton

speech to the National American Woman Suffrage Association, 1890.

VOTE!

On Sunday, The Arizona Biltmore was gearing up for McCain's party today.

It was interesting being a witness to history in the making.

Power

The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.

- Alice Walker

The Jewel of the Desert

The Arizona Biltmore. Wonder inside this beautiful hotel and discover local history.

Art by Frank Lloyd Wright

Courtyard.

The Sprites. They were resurrected from their demise and given to the Arizona Biltmore Resort and Spa as gifts. Now called the Biltmore Sprites, the Sprites of Midway Gardens were in a sense the lost children of architect Frank Lloyd Wright and sculptor Alfonso Iannelli. These geometric architectural statues were conceived in 1914 for the specific purpose of adorning and watching over Midway Gardens, once a center for premier entertainment, fine food and music on Chicago's lakefront. Most of the Sprites met a premature and unfortunate demise during Prohibition.

A door to the one of the villas.

Entrance

We were exploring our city. As fans of the Samantha Brown shows, we knew this jewel was right in our backyard and we decided to make its acquaintance. You can see it here too.

The candy hunt

On October 31st the little children and Gilligan go out hunting for candy.

Some friendly ghosts.

Gilligan leads the way.

The organist's spooky music rang through the air.

A carved pumpkin.

Venus and the crescent moon in the sky.