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A seal like holiday: Lake Vanern and Lake Vattern. But challenges ahead!!

By Anita Mathias

The break-in to our motor home was a bit of a shock. I suppose we were very trusting/careless. Roy wasn’t sure if he locked the motor home. He left the two laptops on the bed, with just a towel over them, left Irene’s ipod touch charging, and left my iPad, in a backpack in the unlocked cupboard. All very professionally taken in the hour we left the camper.

We probably will travel with laptops again–we are digital citizens after all, and the internet–researching things, checking things, blogging, running our business, reading news, writing to people, being wired–is +part of our lifeblood!! However, we will, almost surely, carry them with us in a backpack, and not leave anything valuable in the car!!
                                                                                 * * *

The rest of the holiday, however, was tranquil. I enjoyed lolling seal-like on the rocks on Lake Vanern, the largest lake in Sweden, four times the size of greater London. Irene and Zoe and  Roy swam out to islands, and I joined them a bit but sensibly desisted when the water felt so cold that it was as if I was being bitten. Lake Vanern stretches as far as the eye can reach. It’s like an inland ocean. I had two days praying on the rocks while the girls swam, made barbeques and explored. I feel all prayed up, and envisioned, and have a clear vision, purpose and direction for the year to come.
                                                                                     * * *

Yesterday: Vadstena on Lake Vattern. The Klosterkyrkan was grey, imposing and “humble” on the outside was built according to the specification of Saint Birgitta, Patron Saint of Sweden and Europe (a Swedish Joan of Arc) who saw the yet unbuilt church, abbey and monastery in visions. Inside, like a Tardis, it has rich, colourful medieval art.

The Palace nearby is on the shores of Lake Vattern. We walked by it and enjoyed a most beautiful sunset.

Had a lovely day canoeing on Stockholm’s archipelago today.
                                                                                    * * *

But, but, but…somewhat embarrassed to admit this…. We really are experienced travellers, and generally come to Europe 6 times a year, in every school half term. However, we totally underestimated Stockholm traffic. Thought we had left plenty of time to get to the airport, but the traffic at 5 p.m. was  a nightmare, we crawled at a snail’s pace, and missed our flight!!

So are flying out tomorrow! Spending the night in an expensive 4 star hotel. Disorganization is expensive.
                                                                                   * * *

I have another prayer request, PLEASE, dear blog readers. The first 48 hours in England are going to be super challenging. We arrive at midday on Wednesday (rather than 10 p.m. Tuesday). Zoe and Irene leave for India on their own midday Friday to visit my mother. It’s their second time flying alone to India.  We leave for the Greenbelt Christian artsy festival on Friday evening.

In those 2 days, we have to get lots of present shopping done for their India trip, get badly needed haircuts for me and Zoe!!, get packed for India and Greenbelt, wrap up business stuff, run laundry, report losses to insurance, all while keeping the house tidy for our wonderful friend and housesitter! And Zoe gets her GCSE (national schoole exams taken at 16) results, which might determine what she chooses for her A-lovels. All doable with prayer and keeping on an even keel. Please pray for us.

More from my site

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  • How Francois Mauriac mentored Elie Wiesel for the Love of JesusHow Francois Mauriac mentored Elie Wiesel for the Love of Jesus
  • Opening a New Chapter, a New Year, Under the Eternal Eyes of the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End   Opening a New Chapter, a New Year, Under the Eternal Eyes of the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End
  • In which Fritallaria Meleagris, or Snake’s Head Fritillary tell me something of the goodness of GodIn which Fritallaria Meleagris, or Snake’s Head Fritillary tell me something of the goodness of God
  • God’s Concern for the Individual, Matthew 18, Blog Through the Bible ProjectGod’s Concern for the Individual, Matthew 18, Blog Through the Bible Project
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Comments

  1. Jennifer in OR says

    August 27, 2011 at 3:23 am

    White overnight?? Now THAT is some stress, for sure. You'll look very hip w/ the henna. 😉

  2. Anita Mathias says

    August 25, 2011 at 9:43 pm

    Thanks Jen. I am sure it was all the stress; am slightly feverish, with a bad cough and cold. Was going to camp in Greenbelt, the Christian arts festival, with my blogging friend Lesley revdlesley.net, but am so shattered that I don't have the energy to do that. Am probably going to commute to the festival in Cheltenham which is 47 miles away. English roads though are not great; speed limits are often 50-60.
    I was so stressed with the break-in that a strand of hair turned white overnight. Gosh! Had it professionally hennaed today, but am now afraid to check out the colour!!

  3. Jennifer in OR says

    August 25, 2011 at 7:51 pm

    Oh, no! Ill?? Get well soon, love & prayers, Jen

  4. Anita Mathias says

    August 25, 2011 at 6:48 pm

    And good luck with your exchange student's visit. What a lovely idea!
    I managed to get quite ill, and so have retired from all the stress. Sent Roy and the girls present shopping, which actually isn't a joy for me. And am resting up, though need to pack for the Greenbelt festival tomorrow, if, God willing, I am well enough to go.

  5. Jennifer in OR says

    August 24, 2011 at 6:45 am

    Anita, will be praying for those 48 hrs, and also for the girls' trip to India to be hemmed in and around with His presence and protection.

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Wandering Between Two Worlds: Essays on Faith and Art

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  • A Mind of Life and Peace in the Middle of a Global Pandemic
  • On Yoga and Following Jesus
  • Silver and Gold Linings in the Storm Clouds of Coronavirus
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  • Life- Changing Journaling: A Gratitude Journal, and Habit-Tracker, with Food and Exercise Logs, Time Sheets, a Bullet Journal, Goal Sheets and a Planner
  • On Loving That Which Love You Back
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anita.mathias

Writer, Blogger, Reader, Mum. Christian. Instaing Oxford, travel, gardens and healthy meals. Oxford English alum. Writing memoir. Lives in Oxford, UK

Images from walks around Oxford. #beauty #oxford # Images from walks around Oxford. #beauty #oxford #walking #tranquility #naturephotography #nature
So we had a lovely holiday in the Southwest. And h So we had a lovely holiday in the Southwest. And here we are at one of the world’s most famous and easily recognisable sites.
#stonehenge #travel #england #prehistoric England #family #druids
And I’ve blogged https://anitamathias.com/2020/09/13/on-not-wasting-a-desert-experience/
So, after Paul the Apostle's lightning bolt encounter with the Risen Christ on the road to Damascus, he went into the desert, he tells us...
And there, he received revelation, visions, and had divine encounters. The same Judean desert, where Jesus fasted for forty days before starting his active ministry. Where Moses encountered God. Where David turned from a shepherd to a leader and a King, and more, a man after God’s own heart.  Where Elijah in the throes of a nervous breakdown hears God in a gentle whisper. 
England, where I live, like most of the world is going through a desert experience of continuing partial lockdowns. Covid-19 spreads through human contact and social life, and so we must refrain from those great pleasures. We are invited to the desert, a harsh place where pruning can occur, and spiritual fruitfulness.
A plague like this has not been known for a hundred years... John Piper, after his cancer diagnosis, exhorted people, “Don’t Waste Your Cancer”—since this was the experience God permitted you to have, and He can bring gold from it. Pandemics and plagues are permitted (though not willed or desired) by a Sovereign God, and he can bring life-change out of them. 
Let us not waste this unwanted, unchosen pandemic, this opportunity for silence, solitude and reflection. Let’s not squander on endless Zoom calls—or on the internet, which, if not used wisely, will only raise anxiety levels. Let’s instead accept the invitation to increased silence and reflection
Let's use the extra free time that many of us have long coveted and which has now been given us by Covid-19 restrictions to seek the face of God. To seek revelation. To pray. 
And to work on those projects of our hearts which have been smothered by noise, busyness, and the tumult of people and parties. To nurture the fragile dreams still alive in our hearts. The long-deferred duty or vocation
So, we are about eight weeks into lockdown, and I So, we are about eight weeks into lockdown, and I have totally sunk into the rhythm of it, and have got quiet, very quiet, the quietest spell of time I have had as an adult.
I like it. I will find going back to the sometimes frenetic merry-go-round of my old life rather hard. Well, I doubt I will go back to it. I will prune some activities, and generally live more intentionally and mindfully.
I have started blocking internet of my phone and laptop for longer periods of time, and that has brought a lot of internal quiet and peace.
Some of the things I have enjoyed during lockdown have been my daily long walks, and gardening. Well, and reading and working on a longer piece of work.
Here are some images from my walks.
And if you missed it, a blog about maintaining peace in the middle of the storm of a global pandemic
https://anitamathias.com/2020/05/04/a-mind-of-life-and-peace/  #walking #contemplating #beauty #oxford #pandemic
A few walks in Oxford in the time of quarantine. A few walks in Oxford in the time of quarantine.  We can maintain a mind of life and peace during this period of lockdown by being mindful of our minds, and regulating them through meditation; being mindful of our bodies and keeping them happy by exercise and yoga; and being mindful of our emotions in this uncertain time, and trusting God who remains in charge. A new blog on maintaining a mind of life and peace during lockdown https://anitamathias.com/2020/05/04/a-mind-of-life-and-peace/
In the days when one could still travel, i.e. Janu In the days when one could still travel, i.e. January 2020, which seems like another life, all four of us spent 10 days in Malta. I unplugged, and logged off social media, so here are some belated iphone photos of a day in Valetta.
Today, of course, there’s a lockdown, and the country’s leader is in intensive care.
When the world is too much with us, and the news stresses us, moving one’s body, as in yoga or walking, calms the mind. I am doing some Yoga with Adriene, and again seeing the similarities between the practice of Yoga and the practice of following Christ.
https://anitamathias.com/2020/04/06/on-yoga-and-following-jesus/
#valleta #valletamalta #travel #travelgram #uncagedbird
Images from some recent walks in Oxford. I am copi Images from some recent walks in Oxford.
I am coping with lockdown by really, really enjoying my daily 4 mile walk. By savouring the peace of wild things. By trusting that God will bring good out of this. With a bit of yoga, and weights. And by working a fair amount in my garden. And reading.
How are you doing?
#oxford #oxfordinlockdown #lockdown #walk #lockdownwalks #peace #beauty #happiness #joy #thepeaceofwildthings
Images of walks in Oxford in this time of social d Images of walks in Oxford in this time of social distancing. The first two are my own garden.  And I’ve https://anitamathias.com/2020/03/28/silver-and-gold-linings-in-the-storm-clouds-of-coronavirus/ #corona #socialdistancing #silverlinings #silence #solitude #peace
Trust: A Message of Christmas He came to earth in Trust: A Message of Christmas  He came to earth in a  splash of energy
And gentleness and humility.
That homeless baby in the barn
Would be the lynchpin on which history would ever after turn
Who would have thought it?
But perhaps those attuned to God’s way of surprises would not be surprised.
He was already at the centre of all things, connecting all things. * * *
Augustus Caesar issued a decree which brought him to Bethlehem,
The oppressions of colonialism and conquest brought the Messiah exactly where he was meant to be, the place prophesied eight hundred years before his birth by the Prophet Micah.
And he was already redeeming all things. The shame of unwed motherhood; the powerlessness of poverty.
He was born among animals in a barn, animals enjoying the sweetness of life, animals he created, animals precious to him.
For he created all things, and in him all things hold together
Including stars in the sky, of which a new one heralded his birth
Drawing astronomers to him.
And drawing him to the attention of an angry King
As angelic song drew shepherds to him.
An Emperor, a King, scholars, shepherds, angels, animals, stars, an unwed mother
All things in heaven and earth connected
By a homeless baby
The still point on which the world still turns. The powerful centre. The only true power.
The One who makes connections. * * *
And there is no end to the wisdom, the crystal glints of the Message that birth brings.
To me, today, it says, “Fear not, trust me, I will make a way.” The baby lay gentle in the barn
And God arranges for new stars, angelic song, wise visitors with needed finances for his sustenance in the swiftly-coming exile, shepherds to underline the anointing and reassure his parents. “Trust me in your dilemmas,” the baby still says, “I will make a way. I will show it to you.” Happy Christmas everyone.  https://anitamathias.com/2019/12/24/trust-a-message-of-christmas/ #christmas #gemalderieberlin #trust #godwillmakeaway
Look, I’ve designed a journal. It’s an omnibus Look, I’ve designed a journal. It’s an omnibus Gratitude journal, habit tracker, food and exercise journal, bullet journal, with time sheets, goal sheets and a Planner. Everything you’d like to track.  Here’s a post about it with ISBNs https://anitamathias.com/2019/12/23/life-changing-journalling/. Check it out. I hope you and your kids like it!
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