Bedlam Farm Blog Journal by Jon Katz

The Cambridge Food Pantry
4 March

Big News For Good: A Special Day For The Cambridge Food Pantry: Sarah Is Asking For Two Of The Healthiest Breakfast Cereals And Food Support For The Dog And Cats. They Need Help Too.

by Jon Katz

It’s a special day for the Cambridge Food Pantry requests for humans and animals. The two healthiest breakfasts requested are Oat Bran and Life cereal (see below).

(Above, three remarkable women unpacking the boxes you and the food bank  sent: Lori, Barbara, Maria.)

Thanks for all you do for the Food Pantry. Sarah showed me the shelves filled because of you, which stirred the heart and soul.

Above: Yesterday’s Amazon Delivery. The Army of Good keeps on giving and giving. Thank you so much.

My research shows that oat bran has 50% more fiber than oatmeal. Fiber decreases blood pressure and bad cholesterol, manages blood sugar, and aids digestive health.

More research: Life cereal is an excellent option for the entire family because it is high in nutrition, low in sugar, and contains good fiber and protein.

The special request for the day is dog and cat food (below) for the new dog and cat shelter. We are out of both, and the family dogs need support and a permanent place on a pantry shelf. This is a very popular item for the families and the Army of Good, a nest of animal lovers.

Sarah is seeking help with two of the healthiest breakfasts the kids need badly:

Kellogg’s Cracklin’ Oat Bran Breakfast Cereal, Fiber Cereal, Family Cereal, Original, (3 Boxes), $14.94.

Life Breakfast Cereal, Original, 13 Oz Boxes (3 Pack), $11.97.

 

Thanks for sending these messages through Amazon. They are a but and affirming gift among the pantry volunteers.

SPECIAL Requests: Dog And Cat Foor the new animal shelf:

Cesar Files in Gravy Adult Wet Dog Food, Filet Mignon and New York Strip Flavors Variety Pack, 3.5 Oz, Pack of 12, $13.97.

Purina Friskies Wet Cat Food Variety Pack, Tasty Treasures Prine Filets (With Ocen Fish and Tuna, With Chicken and With Turkey) – Pack of 12, 5.5 Oz Cans, $8.33.

The newest trend in the Army of Good Pantry Support is people browsing the Amazon Pantry Support Wish List and making their own choices—often in a large box or two. This is great fun for me, wonderful for the pantry, and feels good in times of stress and confusion. We thank you.

I hope you feel good about yourselves; you are angels to me and others.

 

Look at what we have sent in the past few days, a partial list (about half):

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks for your messages to the volunteers; they love them.

 

 

The Amazon drivers love the food pantry; the workers know them all by name. “They’re like family,” said one volunteer.  We love them so much.”These boxes arrived yesterday.

 

 

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Beautiful World
4 March

Cloudy Morning, Can Grey Be Beautiful?

by Jon Katz

Warming up a bit, the long, bitter, and deep cold easing. More melting, less chilled bones.


 

Ian McRae is both a friend and a symbol of the passage of life, which constantly moves more quickly than we think it does. Ian came to dinner last night; we stayed in touch. He is a friend now, an adult and a poet, not a teenager searching for support and direction. He does that for himself now, and we can enjoy each other’s company. Ian is not just a kid who is early to be a poet; he is a poet, and when I look at him across the dining table, I no longer see a kid but a man increasingly at peace with himself. Ian is 25 years old now; I thought he was younger. I remember looking at my daughter one night and realizing she was no longer a child. Ian is no longer a kid.

Windowsill gallery, living room.

 

I found this in an antique store and bought it right away. It became the logo of our blogs and lives and hangs on the back porch. This is us, our life, our story, our home.

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Flower Art
3 March

Flower Art, Back After A Three Day Hiatus For. Illumination Was Waiting For Me In A Beautiful Old And Forgotten Leica Lens

by Jon Katz

There’s a reason somebody or something created flowers. It’s called the Illumination. The illumination, says Joseph Campbell, is the recognition of the radiance of one eternity through all things, whether in the vision of these things must be judged as good or evil. To come to this, you must release yourself entirely from desiring this world’s goods and fearing their loss.

Interviewer Moyer: “Is this just for saints and monks?”

Campbell: “No, I think it’s also for artists. The real artist has learned to recognize what Joyce has called the ‘radiance’ of all things, as an epiphany or showing forth their truth.”

I think that may be where flowers come from.

In the Spiritual World, an illumination is any experience of further understanding, including insight, awakening, realization, and enlightenment. These experiences are illuminations because in all of them, the spiritual light is illuminating something, whether it is illuminating itself or one of its manifestations.

In the Bible, Illumination is a spiritual and intellectual awakening. It is the “click” in your mind when suddenly a spiritual truth makes sense. In moments of illumination, the Holy Spirit is working in you to give you greater understanding and awareness of divine revelation from Scripture.

( P.S. I found an ancient Leica macro lens, which is small and coming apart. I can’t afford new Leica macro lenses. I bought this four years ago for just a few dollars.  I never used it. I was about to trade it off today to B&H Photo, but I decided to try it out on two new flowers I got today at the Cambridge Florist.  These are the flower art photos in this posting. The specialist at B&H says the lens is rare and long out of production.

He was willing to trade more than $1000 for it. I said no. Today, I fell quite in love with this old and forgotten lens and learned a good lesson about dismissing something because it is old. I love these dreamy photos and keep these battered old scarred legs. He deserved a chance.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The Sanctuary Blog
3 March

Reflections Below Zero. The Place To Find Is Within Your Self.

by Jon Katz

Joseph Campbell: “All  life is suffering…” James  Joyce answered: “Is Life Worth Leaving?”

Cambell: “Freud tells us to blame our parents for all the shortcomings of our life, and Marx tells us to blame the upper class of our society. But the only one to blame is oneself. That’s the hopeful thing about the Indian idea of karma. Your life is the fruit of your own doing. You have no one to blame but yourself.”

Campbell:” The place to find is within yourself.”

(When they hate, I will love. When they lie, I will tell the truth. That’s how I intend to handle it.

It feels much better than hating in return, at least for me.

 

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