February: The End of An Eventful Month!

This has been a delightful, exciting month. The winter has been a good one, lots of snow! The only disappointment is I haven't yet made a snowman, or put one on my blog. Winter is not over yet, so I have high hopes.
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March will be an especially pleasant month for me. I am happy to know my husband will be auxiliary pioneering with me this month. That is a special blessing and a delight to have my best and closest friend with me in the ministry. We will have alot of fun, and exciting adventures together, and we will enjoy being with all our dear brothers and sisters. What will March bring in the form of weather? Remember the old adage? " March comes in like a lion, goes out like a lamb, or, comes in like a lamb goes out like a lion." We will see what March will live up to, but of course in these last days, even the weather is crazy. Who really knows what to expect. With Jehovah's blessing we hope to have a happy, successful ministry.
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February has been an eventful month, not only because of the abundance of snow, but also because of my being exposed to a fascinating new hobby, blogging. I want to take this opportunity to thank my dear friend Sandy for introducing me to this new adventure and for her encouragement and support. Also, thanks to Arlene too for your support and encouragement. You certainly are helping me to get out of the box, and of course as you mentioned in your blog, it's a way to "bird and bond" and in my case "crow and bond." I appreciate and cherish your continued friendship, and the many adventures and "favorite things" we have shared together in service and otherwise. Thank you!
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Before I sign off of this blog, I would like to share with you the meaning of the idiom, "as the crow flies." I don't know why, but I have always had a fondness for that expression.
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The Raven, which I have affectionately adopted as a pseudonym, is the first bird specifically named in the Bible.(Genesis 8:7) Also, Jehovah selected the raven to miraculously feed Elijah while he was concealed in the torrent valley of Cherith. (1Kings 17:2-6) The Insight book under "Raven," gives interesting reasons why Jehovah may have selected that bird. Anyway, according to Wikipedia, concerning the idiom, "as the crow flies", it means:
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“In a straight line, by the shortest route, as in It's only a mile as the crow flies, but about three miles by this mountain road. This idiom is based on the fact that crows, very intelligent birds, fly straight to the nearest food supply. [Late 1700s] “
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"As the crow flies" is an idiom referencing the shortest route between two points.
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An example is a measure of the distance between Key West and Pensacola, at the two opposite ends of the U.S. state Florida where the most direct route by road is approximately 792 mi (1,275 km) and the direct point-to-point aerial path that might be taken by a crow is 524 mi (843 km).[1]
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The phrase is attested in print as early as 1800, and its origin is often attributed to Waynesboro, Pennsylvania.[2]
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So ends February. See you in March!
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This is Raven-As the crow flies!

Snow Day Delight-As The Crow Flies!

This is a special delight, to wake up in the morning and realize the weathermen were RIGHT!!! It is a beautiful wonderland out there, that's pleasing to the eye, and gives Jehovah glory. My only delema is wondering "Am I going out in service, as I could use the time." This may be a good day to catch up on writing letters to people I have witnessed to in California, and elsewhere, and perhaps count some time that way.

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Enjoy this glorious day, as there will not be another like it! Take delight in the simple pleasures of life, like rain slanting on the windows, and snow quietly covering the ground,

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sipping a warm cup of tea, reading a friendly book, as you hear the crackling of wood burning in the fireplace, sound.

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This is Raven-As the crow flies!

Spiritual Truths-As the crow flies!

One of Raven's delights is to find spiritual truths admitted in outside sources of information.

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In today's Newsday, Saturday-February 20, 2010 in the relgious section, (pg. B15) a question was asked, "When was hell created?" In part, Marc Gellman of the God Squad answered....."the idea of the soul as distinct from the body emerged after the Pharisees(later rabbis) encountered Greek philosophy after the conquests of Alexander the Great in 331 BC. Alexander's tutor, Aristoltle, believed that everything was made of matter and form.

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"Simply put, matter was formless stuff, and form was what made matter into, well, stuff. Form was an idea. God, of course, was pure form (Immaterial).

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"The Jewish thinkers who were enraptured by Greek thought could not endorse Aristotle's idea of a God who had nothing to do with the world.....But the idea of matter and form was very appealing to them. So what they did was to equate matter with the human body, and form with the human soul. That is how the idea of the duality of body and soul replaced the old biblical idea of nefesh as our life, which ends when we die.

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"The idea of body and soul was the most importand idea taken into Judaism, and later Christianty and Islam from Greek philosophy. It was the major revolution in Judaism that separated and distinguished biblical Judaism from rabbinic Judaism. The heart of this theological revolution was that it paved the way for belief in the existence of the soul after death. This was easy since the soul was, like God immaterial and thus could not die."

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This is Raven-as the crow flies

More Winter Fun!

Snowmen fall from heaven......disassembled.

Winter fun is putting them together especially with the grandchildren.

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I'd like to share a poem I recently read, that nostagically describes winter fun when we were children.

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"Winter Snow"

I shall neglect some trivial household task

Here by the window in my chair, to bask;

I'll watch a million snowflakes sifting by
Without a single whisper or a sigh-

Serene and still, they settle one by one;

To lie in wait for children's winter fun.

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I still remember scenes of long ago-

The thrilling sights of wondrous winter's snow.

I can remember stinging hands and toes,

And battling with that irksome, runny nose;

The rolling up of snowmen--fat and tall,

The stinging whack of some cold, icy ball.

Now-let the younger generation play-

I'll thrill to winter's snow in my own way!

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Ready for some winter fun?

Winter Fun - As the crow flies

Winter time is one of Raven's delights. Hope your's too.

There is no such thing as bad weather just different kinds of good weather. Winter time is great weather for the snow!

"O the snow, the beautiful snow,
Filling the sky and earth below,
Over the housetops, over the street,
Over the heads of the people you meet,
Dancing, flirting, skimming along,
Singing God's praise in silent song."

Enjoy the snow tomorrow, and contemplate Jehovah's wonderful works! Job37:6,7

Healthful food coding info, as the crow flies!

When buying fruits and veggies:

4 digit numbers that starts with 4 is normal.

4 digit numbers that starts with 3 is radiated.

5 diget numbers that start with 8 is GMO (genetically modified)

5 digit numbers that start with 9 is normal and organic.

Have a happy and healthful day!

- - Raven