Happy Monday!
I wrote a fun new article for The Pioneer Woman that you might like to read.
It's about Moms in movies.
I think you will get a kick out of it.
Memorable Moms in the Movies
*****
Bonhoeffer
Chapters 11-16
This reading is heavy going but I'm afraid to skim too quickly.
In these chapters we see Hitler's tricky and quick rise to power.
He even fools the army into swearing to a new and strange oath.
Would you have continued to shop at Jewish stores?
Hitler instigated book burnings. Does this make you feel different about this activity?
Do you think you would have left Germany?
In 1933 Hitler was already moving toward legalized murder of the disabled. He thought they were a drain on Germany.
Can you see this happening in our land?
*****
I had a very nice mother's day.
I heard from all of the kids.
So that was super nice :o)
I had a good time using my lensbaby.
I took this picture out my bathroom window with my phone.
I just love bird photography and would like to get better at it.
This is my starting point.
Hello chubby cardinal.
(This guy was looking right at me.)
Wishing you a wonderful week ahead!
Encourage one another,
Donna
I have to be truthful. My husband would not leave his job. I really don't think he would.
ReplyDeleteI would perhaps go without him and take the children for our safety.
This I can imagine.
In 1933 Hitler was already moving toward legalized murder of the disabled. He thought they were a drain on Germany.
Can you see this happening in our land?
I can. Abortion.
It is the first santioned murder in our land. Allowed by our courts.
I can see the legalized murder of the disabled potentially happening in our land. Why? Well, for one, when you are pregnant now they ask you - very first thing - about taking a battery of tests, the purpose of which is to determine the likelihood of Down Syndrome and other disabilities. The assumption is that you want to know so you can abort. In my experience, they expect an unqualified yes to their queries, are surprised when you say no, and are sure to ask you at least two more times during your pregnancy.
DeleteSecondly, many of the same philosophies that have shaped law and policy in Europe are becoming popular here. In Belgium and the Netherlands physicians already euthanize for spurious reasons. I recently read the story of a man in one of those countries with a disabled daughter. People stop him the street and ask him why his daughter hasn't been euthazied yet.
Katrina
People always talk about women's rights and my thought is who is standing up for those babies' rights?
ReplyDeleteDonna, you're right - the disregard for human life, people deemed "disposable" - there's no denying it is already the case in today's society. It's already begun. Abortion proves this point the loudest, except people don't seem to want to hear it.
ReplyDeleteThere is no doubt that we would have fled, if my husband and I had met in the 30's and not the 70's, in Germany or Poland, and not in Anchorage, Alaska.
As for book burning, it makes me furious to think about it. Then or now.
Changing subjects (and taking a deep breath):
I love your Cardinal. Come to think of it, I've never seen one here, or a Robin. I think I will have to ask Mr. Google about that.
P.S. I LOVED your post about Memorable Mom Movies. I tried to comment but it didn't seem to take. Great job :-)
ReplyDeleteI think we would have left. But then I think about how often in ministry we've stayed in a place that by many measures is 'unfriendly' to us... Working against the rising tide. But my children aren't, by that measure, unsafe. In that culture in the 30s I think I would have found it to be unsafe. So I think we would have left.
ReplyDeleteI like to think we would have left, but to be completely honest, I don't know if I would have been brave enough. I also like to think I would stand up for what's right in every situation, but this I do know -- doing so wouldn't have been that easy when I was young and insecure.
ReplyDeleteLoved your memorable movie moms article! I would add Susan Sarandon as Marmee in Little Women (she did a nice turn as the mom in Stepmom, too).
Mary Z
I agree totally on the Susan Sarandon mom movies, Mary!
DeleteAnother movie that I love is One True Thing with Meryl Streep and Renee Zellweger - a sad movie for sure, but the growth in their relationship as the Mom's illness progresses always touches my heart.
I can see us doing what you describe, Donna. John staying, us leaving. It would have been so hard. But I also know how easy it is for me to put a bright spin on things and ignore realities...I hope I would not have done that in this instance. And I wonder if I would have been brave.
ReplyDeleteI talked to both of my far away kids last night...it was very sweet. And everyone here did yard work and chores for me. I am very grateful.
We don't see cardinals here in No. Cal. I would love to have a chubby cardinal staring in my window. The color combo in that picture is terrific, Donna. Cute bird feeder.
Love,
Di
Great post over on Pioneer Woman's blog. Some of those movies I haven't seen yet.
ReplyDeleteI was able to take an afternoon nap yesterday. That's a rare thing for me right now in my life so I was very grateful to my husband for making sure that Sophia did not wake me up. Mother's Day = a nap for me. : )
Sarah P. from Iowa
Update: I kindly ask you to keep your prayers coming for Debbie and her daughter, Stacey. After a lot of testing and waiting Debbie found out that she does have cancer. She starts radiation treatments this week.
On our walk this morning we were praying for those in crisis with critical illnesses and I thought of Debbie and Stacey and wondered how they were doing. Please know that they will continue to be in our prayers. Praying that the radiation treatments will conquer those cancer cells and that she will be in remission soon. love and prayers, jep
DeleteWould I continue to shop at Jewish stores? I'm afraid I would have been too afraid to if I'm honest. I read about DB and about Corrie Ten Boom and wish I could be that strong. Of course, in my lifetime I haven't really had to prove the strength of my faith ... yet.
ReplyDeleteWould I leave Germany? I believe my husband and I would have. I would not have wanted my children to grow up having anything to do with what was going on.
And, YES, our country already allows the murder of innocent babies. It is repulsive.
I loved your weekend posts, Donna. I just caught up this morning. Beautiful family! Thank you for sharing. You're a blessing.
I can't wait to read your Mom article : )
ReplyDeleteYour bird photography will absolutely flourish. I just know it.
I think I want to try a lensbaby because you love yours so.
I have completed the book and found so many things disturbing about how the Nazis rose to power and how people were treated under the regime. I can see this happening in our country with the low information people who don't have a clue what their government is doing. We need more people like Bonhoeffer who lived his life true to his faith and was not afraid to speak against the government when he disagreed with what it was doing. I really loved this book even though it was rather heavy reading.
ReplyDeleteoh I look forward to your bird photos!! I am a long time bird watcher.
ReplyDeleteIM off to read your article on Ree's site now.
Happy Mothers day Dear DONNA
I love bird photography and am finding that there is an art to it. So cool that you are considering it. Of all the birds, bluebirds are the most difficult for me. Tufted titmice and chickadees could care less if you're moving around outside, and cardinals are quite shy. I use my Nikon 70-300mm lens and try to sit in a spot to capture the most action. Once the birds get used to you sitting quietly there, they begin to come to the feeders. It just takes longer for the bluebirds when you're sitting by one of the boxes . . .
ReplyDeleteI find my movements begin to slow down drastically when I'm outside shooting bird images. You can't read a book because you never know if something is going to show up and you don't want to have to put the book down because the bird will leave in the time you do that and pick up your camera. But I love it and I think you will too. I've gotten some really good shots an it's given me peace.
Oh! Here is one I shot through my living room window. If only I had cleaned it first!
http://chroniclesofacountrygirl.blogspot.com/2013/03/preening-cardinal.html
Hello Country Girl - my elderly doggy woke me at 4:45 a.m. and I am checking comments here at QLCS. These photos of the cardinal are amazing! I love them all. Thanks for sharing the link.
DeleteLong day, but finally here. We had a pediatrician for our boys when they were little who escaped from Germany with his parent who were both doctors. They were fired on during their escape and the boy's Dr. was a little boy himself and was hit by a bullet on his ear. He was such a kind and gentle man. His father was my Dr. and his mother was the receptionist for her husband. She did not pursue getting her license here in the U.S. after they immigrated here.
ReplyDeleteYes, I think my husband and I would have left Germany. And, I am always so sad to think about abortion since we had such a difficult time having our two children.
Beautiful photographs today. We have cardinals that love to build their nests in our trees. Now I am going to read your movie comments on PW. love and prayers, jep
Hitlers ideas are flourishing here in North America for many years, they just have new PC names as "pro choice" and "death with dignity". When the Nazi soilders reported to Berlin on how many people they killed, they dissassociated their humanity from the victims by calling them units or vermin.
ReplyDeleteWell, once again I'm behind on Bonhoeffer.
ReplyDeleteBut I just finished a book that deals with so many similar issues. "When A Crocodile Eats the Sun" is about Zimbabwe. President Mugabe is an evil dictator who has shipwrecked Zim. The author's parents live there and refused to leave because it was home. The same questions with Hitler ring true: how could millions of people stay in the thrall of an old man?
I think the potent pull of the familiar, even if the situation is going sour, wins over the fear of leaving the country and going...where?
Oh Canada!
ReplyDelete