Hebrew Treasure

I finally created a picture that I like using flags, a camera on a tripod and lots of patience, (and some great background music), then later tweeking the image on the computer to get what I wanted.

For the past few months I have started taking Hebrew lessons to help me read, write and speak this amazing language. It all started because I was captivated by the hidden treasures that can be found in Hebrew words, giving me a greater depth of meaning and understanding.
So here is a taste of what I found out.

1. Hebrew is an ideogramic language, which means that many pictures are used to express the idea of the word.
2. The Hebrew alphabet is made up of 22 consonants, each one represents a literal and a symbolic picture unlike our English language.

I will be posting some Hebrew text in the future, but for now I will just spell the names of the letters and their meanings.

Let's look at the word fire in Hebrew it has 2 letters, Aleph and Sheen.

1. Aleph means "ox, bull", strength, leader, first
2. Sheen means "teeth", to consume, to destroy

So, these 2 letters together express the pictoral idea of fire as "the strong devourer"

My Cleft in the Rock

What is a cleft in a rock? Why do I call it mine?

The Hebrew word for "cleft" is chagav which means
to take refuge, a rift in the rocks.
I think the following quote from King Solomon sums it up quite nicely for me.
"So I went with Him, and when we were climbing the rocky steps up the hillside, my beloved shepherd said to me. O my dove, while you are here in the seclusion of the clefts in the solid rock, in the sheltered and secret place of the cliff, let me see your face, let me hear your voice; for you voice is sweet, and your face is lovely."

I have found a place that I can run, walk or saunter along, a place where I can be silent, sing or cry out my heart, or laugh to my hearts content, a place not frequented by many others, a place that abounds with nature; eagles, hawks, herons, ducks, swans, muskrats, coyotes, seasonal farmlands, a magnificent view of the mountains, all kinds of weather especially the wind blowing across the valley.

This place I call my cleft in the rock, a symbolic refuge. A place of communion with my Lord, who shares in my joys, my struggles, my hearts cry for my life, my family, my friends, my world. In the very beginning I was walking just for the exercise, but to my delight through the perseverance of walking all year long in every kind of weather, I began to discover the hidden beauty and treasures of this place.

I've posted a photo showing one part of my cleft, it may not seem beautiful to you, in fact it's fairly ordinary by dyke standards, but this windy, winding, dyke calls to me to come!
I have had many surprises and delights over the past 2 years of walking here. Once I spotted a family of skunks walking ahead in the distance, needless to say I slowed down and let them disappear down the grassy bank. I have also come to appreciate the seasons and how they relate to the farmland which surrounds both sides of the dyke. The different colours and designs that you see in the growing crops of corn, or in the bare harvested fields. Later I will post some of the seasonal photos from different angles.

I have also posted a photo of my 2 four-legged companions who faithfully help their human get exercised. Raphael is the long- haired black dachshund (3 yrs), Jordan River is the short-haired dachshund (2yr), they are great fun. Sometimes they need a bath after a visit to the dyke, because they have the knack of finding the fresh duck, bird, or eagle doo doo , which they must sample by rolling around in it and bringing that wonderful aroma home with them. Oh well, I always have towels in the car for the ride home.

Perhaps you have a special "cleft in the rock" place, I'd love to hear about it.

Postscript for Photo's

This past Christmas we all agreed to forgo major gift giving and focus on a family activity. So the search was on for what we could all do together before Jan 6 (Dustin was leaving to go back to school in New Hampshire). Idea's of snowshoeing, skiing, and Oregon Coast winter storms flew around, but we settled on time together at a friends cabin for 2 nights. The cabin was great, only 30 min away from home, and we could take our 2 mini-dachshunds (Raphael and Jordan River).
We feasted on BBQ steak, baked potatoes with the works and ceaser salad, and of course snacks.
In between everything we went for two walks, one on the beach, one along the creek. Anna (our daughter-in-law) learned how to skip rocks for the first time.
Most of the night we played a fun, fast paced version of scrabble called "Take 2".
The 2nd night Rene and I had the cabin to ourselves (plus dogs). We went for more walks(in the rain), spent time reading, and experimenting with our camera's.

The clock photo: Daniel and his wife Anna (married in May '05)
This clock was eternally set at 7:52 , we kept forgetting it didn't work.

The dinner photo: Left side, Anna, David (Elisa's boyfriend), Elisa, Dustin, Linda, Rene

Thanks Jacob & Family

Art de Cabin Cultus

Yeahhhhhhhhhhhhh

I've been delaying writing my first entry because I have so many things that I could say, but what to say first? It's like facing a clean blank canvas, almost too white and clean in the absence of text. Elisa said, "Mom just do it, say this is my first blog, yeahhhhhhhhhhh".
Okay I did it, I have entered the realm of bloggin (is that a word?)
Thanks Elisa for the encouragement!