Thanks Giving – Part II.  A tour to my gardenhouse

Three years ago, when I had my weekend house constructed, I just woke up one morning that I didn’t have enough money to finance the construction.  Contractors, after advancing money, work a little then just disappeared.  I had drained my savings, business was down, thus, salary increases and bonuses that I had expected did not come.  Along the way, my husband was diagnosed with diabetes and hypertension which early stage medications were quite expensive.  My daughter Dana was in her final year in law school and my daughter Mariz was getting married.  The bulked of my financial downfall was the big sum of money borrowed by several friends who I trusted so much but turned out the other way around.

Also that morning, I prayed to God, I prayed very hard.  I talked to Him to come into my life and take charge as I feared the financial pressures.  I stopped the construction.  I borrowed money from my sisters/friends and loaned in the office to pay off the hardware for the construction materials.

As days passed, God was at work.  He is my great Engineer and best Financier.  The house is articulately done, I had paid off all my debts, Danny’s diabetes/hypertension is under controlled, Dana passed the Bar exam, with a bonus—my son, Dan passed the ECE board exam.  Chris & Mariz gave us a wonderful grandson, Mateo, and have a comfortable life.  My salary increases and bonuses are back.  Well, my friends did not pay me back yet, sad, but still they are in my prayers.

My special thanks to my husband, children, my sisters, real friends, my employer for the support and VianChris Hardware for the patience.

Now, I see blessings from God. Tour with me in my garden house.

“Don’t run up debts, except for the huge debt of love you owe each other.  Roman 13.8a”

Trust God.  Give thanks for God  does wonders.

 

Living Creatures and Art/Ornamentation in my Garden

When I was a kid, I would chase butterflies, dragon flies, beetles, even frogs.  I would throw stones to dogs, cats and birds.  I would even catch fish and put it in the bottle.  Now, I take good care of them. 

In my gardenhouse, seeing these creatures reminded me of a life the way God intended it to be.  I feel like a loving hand had picked me up and put me in a garden surrounded with my dogs as they wiggles their tails, cats as they rub their bodies in my feet, the tweets of the birds, the splashes of the waters as the colorful koi swims gracefully in the lagoon.  The butterflies and dragon flies fly around freely and gently being the trees, plants and flowers as their haven.  And at night, the sounds of the beetles are my lullaby. 

These creatures are beautiful in their own right but the finishing touches such as the well place garden ornaments which add extra sparkle, complete my garden.

Tips for adding art and ornamentation in your garden, 1) should match the theme of your garden and/or house; 2)  should match the scale of the garden (don’t over crowded or lost in one large garden.); 3)  Always create the element of surprise--have a story to tell. If budget is a problem, you can always substitute inexpensive beautiful/interesting items from garage sales, junk shops or do it your own. Like what i did.

So now, what do you have in your garden?

The best place to seek God is in a garden.  You can dig for him there.  - George Bernard Shaw

If you pause to reflect, you will find time to count your blessings.

Above pictures were taken by my niece, Maita. Maita was chasing for this butterfly but all of a sudden this butterfly did come to me which was a surprise to everyone.  Below pictures are diligently taken by my son in law, Chris.

CHIPPY, COCO, VIANCE, RANQUIE ... they are members of the family.  They make our days happy.

Even snake...