Friday, December 25, 2020

A Heartfelt Christmas Story - A Family for Freddie




M
erry Christmas to all my Home and Heart friends, followers and family.

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas 2020, in spite of the challenges of this year.

I wanted to read the following story to you, but unfortunately Reader's Digest said they would not permit this on social media. They suggested I use this link instead, so here it is:

https://www.readersdigest.com.au/podcasts/heart/family-freddie

May it warm your heart as much as it has mine.

Love, Janene

Saturday, June 8, 2019

Love and the Seven Sacred Pools

On the island of Maui, where the highway ends is the 5 hour road to Hana.
The road snakes around for 30 miles. At the end of the road is a breathtaking view of the Seven Sacred Pools.

These pools were formed in the rocks and lava beds by rain rushing down the mountainside toward the Pacific Ocean.  Originating high above in altitudes unseen because of the ever present rain clouds, the fresh water fell to the ground, first filling the highest pool.

When the top pool was full, the still-falling rain caused its contents to overflow and cascade into another pool down the mountain.  As soon as that second pool filled up, it too overflowed into another one farther down the slope... and another ... and another... until the last and final pool poured its contents into the immensity of God's sea.

Think of the life you are seeking to live. These seven pools illustrate the fullness you and I can enjoy - and the far reaching impact we can have as we live according to our creator's plan.

Picture that top pool - high on the mountain, veiled in a cloudy mist, hidden from the sight of others.

Like that pool, we enjoy our hidden life with God, the private life we nurture in Him.  Unseen by others, we are filled by God's Spirit as we dwell in His presence and drink from His Word.
In the Holy mist, He replenishes our dry souls until we are filled with His goodness. Then that fullness overflows down into the next pool, the heart of the person nearest and dearest to us.

What are your seven pools?

Monday, February 13, 2017

Happy Valentine's Day! 2017

Greetings Homemakers! Happy 2017!💗

It's a bit cliché - but it's truly hard to know where 2016 went, isn’t it?

I find myself convinced that time is indeed speeding up - which makes each and every day exponentially precious.

This past year our youngest child graduated from college, started a new job, got his first apartment, and bought his first car...which means my husband and I, are truly empty-nesters. Of course, that brings with it some feelings of reminiscence in our home and heart spaces, but in reality it's a huge blessing.

I can imagine that for many of you the 2016 U.S. presidential election has had an impact on your Home and Heart. Maybe your family has been divided. Maybe you've lost friends. Maybe you are grieved beyond despair. Maybe you feel hopeful but struggle with guilt and misunderstanding.

And now here we are, well into February....

As I studied a groundhog news photo the other day, I observed how stunned and irritated the poor thing looked. "What am I doing here? I know nothing about the weather - or what's going to happen in the next six weeks. Seriously folks, I have absolutely no effect on the weather, whatsoever!"

As Homemakers (unlike groundhogs), so much does depend on what we see and how we react to the events and changes happening around us. Do we cast a shadow? Is spring ahead - or will there be six weeks (or more) of winter in our Home and/or Heart? 

The fact is - we can have a HUGE impact on the climate around us!

This Valentine's Day - and all year through, I challenge you (and myself) to FOCUS on bringing beauty, balance, serenity and celebration to any community you are part of, and to truly cherish those you love.

I believe that even though we struggle at times - we can make a difference. I hope you can believe that, too.

Happy Valentine's Day!

With Love

Janene


Sunday, May 8, 2016

Happy Mother's Day - A Card from My Mom

These are the beautiful sentiments from a card given to me by my mother in my early college years. 

I remember memorizing and being encouraged by the poem by Helen Steiner Rice.

May it be an inspiration to you, as it is sent especially to wish you well, today.

Much love, Janene


This is Just a Resting Place

Sometimes the road of life seems long as we travel through the years,
And with a heart that's broken and eyes brimful of tears,
We falter in our weariness, and sink beside the way,
But, God leans down and whispers, "Child, there'll be another day..."

And the road will grow much smoother, and much easier to face, 
So do not be disheartened, this is just a resting place...





   
 


Wednesday, March 9, 2016

Health Benefits of Jasmine Oil

The health benefits of Jasmine Essential Oil can be attributed to its properties as an antidepressant, antiseptic, aphrodisiac, antispasmodic, cicatrisant, expectorant, galactogogue, emmenagogue, parturient, sedative and uterine substance.

jasmineessentialoil
Jasmine Essential Oil is extracted from the flowers of Jasmine, and it has various scientific names including Jasminum Grandiflora (Royal Jasmine) and Jasminum Officinale (Common Jasmine). The oil is extracted mainly from the latter variety.
Its main components are Benzoic Acid, Benzaldehyde, Benzyl Acetate, Benzyl Alcohol, Indole, Benzyl Benzoate, Cis-3-Hexenyl Benzoate, Cis-Jasmone, Ceosol, Eugenol, Farnesol, Geraniol, Linalool, Methyl Anthranilate, P-Cresol, Nerol, Gamma Terpineol, Nerolidol, Isohytol, and Phytol.
Jasmine is a very famous flower. It has a strong yet sweet, pleasing and romantic fragrance, which is very common in flowers which bloom only at night. Girls are often named “Jasmine”, primarily in the Middle Eastern region and the Indian Subcontinent but also in other parts of the world. The jasmine flower is often associated with romance and love. Heroes in romantic novels and movies can often be found addressing their heroines by the name “Jasmine”. For ages, jasmine has been inspiring poets as well.  This flower blooms only at night and fills the surroundings with its unmistakable and alluring fragrance.
However, this flower has much more to offer than its sweet smell and romantic associations. For the moment, let us put our poetic feelings aside and explore some of the impressive health benefits that jasmine can also provide us.

Health Benefits of Jasmine Essential Oil

Antidepressant: The aroma of jasmine essential oil has a pleasing and uplifting effect on the mind and actively fights depression. This makes a person feel happy and potentially awakens romantic and poetic feelings, just as it has done in literary and music history! The aromatic effect of jasmine oil stimulates the release of certain hormones in the body, including serotonin, which results in the boost of energy and the uplifted mood.
Antiseptic: It is also a very good antiseptic and disinfectant. Its constituents like Benzaldehyde, Benzoic Acid and Benzyl Benzoate have very effective germicidal, bactericidal, fungicidal and antiviral properties. When externally applied to wounds, it prevents them from becoming septic and effectively eliminates potential infections from tetanus. It can also have internal applications, and when inhaled, it is known to reduce infections in the respiratory system and can relieve colds and coughs.
Aphrodisiac:It is actually the aphrodisiac property of Jasmine Essential Oil that makes you feel romantic or in love. This oil puts people in the mood for love and also enhances your libido and feelings of sexual desire. Due to this property of jasmine oil’s aroma and the fragrance of Jasmine flowers, it has been in use during First Nights, particularly in the Indian Subcontinent where it is in practice to decorate the bride and the First Night Room with these flowers and use its oil to spray in the room. It also helps cure problems such as premature ejaculation, frigidity, impotency, and various other sexual disorders. This property is also derived through the oils impact on the hormones and chemical reactions within the body, so millions of lover around the world have jasmine essential oil to thank for their newly sparked sex life!
Cicatrisant: Are you worried about the scar marks and after spots left by boils, acne, or other wounds? You should definitely try Jasmine Essential Oil. Since it is a cicatrisant, it can help fade those scar marks and after spots. It can also help you eliminate the fat cracks that often happen in pregnant mothers.
Expectorant: The expectorant property of Jasmine Essential Oil can help you have an undisturbed night of sleep, even when you are suffering from a cough or cold. It provides relief from coughs by helping clear out the accumulation of phlegm in the respiratory tracts.  It also eliminates snoring by clearing the congestion from nasal and respiratory tracts. With jasmine essential oil working in your system, you be kept away by coughing endlessly through the night, nor will you constantly snore in your sleep.
Sleep Aid: A combination of jasmine essential oil’s properties make it an ideal tool for inducing long, restful, and undisturbed sleep. Its behavior as an expectorant, sedative, and antispasmodic combine to create the best situation for falling asleep and staying asleep for the entire night. By reducing signs of insomnia and sleeplessness, you can go back to your old self again, well-rested, kind, patient, and productive at work and in your personal life.

Emmenagogue: This property is meant to give relief to those women who suffer from irregular, obstructed, or painful menses or an untimely menopause. The emmenagogue property of Jasmine Oil regulates period cycles, and makes the periods clear and less painful, while also helping to push back menopause. It also provides relief from other problems associated with menses such as fatigue, annoyance, nausea, and mood swings. Regulating your period is also a great way to balance the hormonal levels of your body, which can help keep a vast number of other bodily functions from occurring naturally and in a healthy way.
Skin Health: Jasmine oil has long been associated with skin care, particularly in terms of treating dry, brittle, or dehydrated skin. However, since it does have certain non-sensitizing effects, it is not always pleasant to use on cracked or open wounds on the skin, as it can cause an allergic reaction, or irritation. That being said, it is still frequently used for the treatment of eczema and dermatitis.
Galactogogue: Jasmine essential oil increases milk secretion from the breasts and is therefore very good for lactating mothers and their new babies. This property also helps protect from breast tumors and breast cancer.
Parturient: The essential oil of Jasmine facilitates and eases the birthing process and reduces labor pains. This feature can be very beneficial in today’s situations when a normal delivery is a rare sight and most of the cases are handled with Caesarian sections. For many women who choose to use jasmine essential oil, they find that the recovery process is less painful and the post-natal period is also shorter. Furthermore, it can strengthen contractions and shorten the time it takes to deliver a baby. At that point, many women suffer from post partum depression, but jasmine essential oil also combats that tragic condition due to its antidepressant and uplifting qualities.
Antispasmodic: Jasmine Essential oil is very good for treating and relaxing spasms. It provides quick relief from spasmodic coughs, cramps, congestion, asthma, breathlessness and even spasmodic cholera. It also alleviates intestinal cramps and pains resulting from spasms in other parts of the body. Spasms can be dangerous, disruptive, and even deadly, so any substance that can alleviate this serious condition quickly should be respected!
Sedative: Jasmine essential oil calms down the body, mind and soul while bringing forth positive and constructive emotions. It gives relief from anxiety, stress, annoyance, anger and depression as well as from inflammations of all sorts, which can affect mood and pain throughout the body. Although further research must still be conducted, this sedative and anti-inflammatory property might give jasmine another impressive health benefits, the reduction of associated pain and discomfort of arthritis and gout!
Uterine: This oil is good for uterine health because it tones the uterus and promotes the secretion of certain hormones which ensure good health and proper functioning of the organ. It also helps protect the uterus from tumors, particularly after menopause, by restricting the flow of estrogen.
Other Benefits:  It can also be used to free people from narcotic and other addictions.
A Few Words of Caution: Pregnant women, before they are at the actual birthing process, should avoid using this oil since it is an Emmenagogue. It is highly relaxing and sedating and thus heavy doses should be avoided. Again, those who are allergic to Jasmine should avoid using it, as with any essential oil made from a known allergen.
Blending: Essential Oil of Jasmine blends well with the essential oils of Bergamot, Sandalwood, Rose and citrus fruits such as oranges, lemons, limes, and grapefruits.

https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/essential-oils/health-benefits-of-jasmine-essential-oil.html

Thursday, March 3, 2016

To Love and Be Loved

"To love and be loved will be the greatest event in our lives." Rousseau

 
"Then we sat on the edge of the earth with our feet dangling over the side, and marveled that we had found each other." Erik Dillard
 
When we read those words, most of us think of romantic love, but, what if we apply this to relationships in general?
 
How about your children? Your parents? Your sister, a really good friend or even a beloved pet?
 
I thought about my beloved piano teacher and the day I first met her. "Marveled that we had found each other" aptly describes the feelings which flooded me on that sparkling afternoon my mother, sisters and I first walked through her door...
 
Who do you marvel at having found?

 

Sunday, February 14, 2016

What's Happening in Your Home and Heart?

 

Valentine’s Day has always been one of my favorite holidays, which may not surprise you, as you’ve probably already categorized me as a romantic with a fondness for hearts and flowers. And of course, this is true.

I LOVE seeing bright red and pink roses, and heart shaped boxes – everywhere I go!  
I’m sure I’m not the only one!
 
But, what does Valentine’s Day do to YOUR heart?
How do you feel this year? Are you happy? Lonely? How is your life?
What’s happening in your Home and Heart?

As I thought about experiences which have been especially meaningful to my heart this past year,
I decided to share the following… I would love to hear yours as well:
 
Beauty

Breakfast with friends at the Pierside Restaurant at Semiahmoo - with breathtaking views of the Strait of Georgia. One mile to the north of the tip of the spit, lies the US/Canadian border, and four miles to the northeast you can see the city of Whiterock.
It’s expansive, soul-stirring beauty… and a place I go back to in my mind, when I need a bit of beauty therapy. What's your beauty therapy memory?

Balance

The discovery of the uplifting effects of a Bergamot Oil Bath.
As you know I have a real passion for essential oils in the home. They can holistically brighten your mind and space faster than anything I know! Bergamot is both an antidepressant and a stimulant (now there's balance for you), an antibiotic, a disinfectant, an analgesic, a deodorant, a relaxant, a tonic, and a sedative.
Pretty amazing stuff - and it smells GREAT!

 Serenity

The blessing of pneumonia, reminding me that I’m dependent on the Spirit of God for my every breath, and that even when I feel abandoned I am not alone.
 
Celebration
 
As I watched a friend proceed down the aisle at her daughter’s wedding, I was flooded with memories of the two of us, as pregnant mothers of preschoolers.  Remembering our hopes, our fears, and our tears, my heart warmed, thinking about what a diligent, loving and good mom she has been. Being a good mother is something to celebrate!
It’s the most important job on earth. If you're in a place where you're struggling with motherhood - seek some help and hold on.
What you're feeling, and what you do as a result - really matters!

Some other heart-warming celebrations for me:

A widowed friend who has suffered emotionally for many years 
found the love of her life! I confess, I danced a jig (literally) for her!

My sister, became a grandmother and has tasted the inexpressible feelings of love and protection that this brings. I have not yet had this privilege but, I know from what I've heard that it’s a life-changing, heart-warming, experience!
And my grandnephew is a treasure!

Wonderful Celebrations!

But...

Every morning, I pray for friends of mine; good women, who are the mothers of substance-addicted children. That’s real heartbreak.

 And...
Unable to care for him, a woman who has placed her husband in a care facility, and faced tremendous loneliness as a result, shares:
 
“I expected to face health problems as I aged; but, I did not anticipate ever feeling this lonely.”
 
I know there are many who feel the same...
 
A card, to a bereaved woman says, “It is because of love that we grieve, and it is because of love that we will be comforted.”

This Valentine’s Day, 
please let me know if there is anything this Home and Heart organization can do for you,
or if you see yourself in a place where you feel able to use your story, time or experience to help someone else...
 
You can email janene@homeandheart.net or send your letters to:
 
Home and Heart
PO Box 27384
Seattle, WA 98125
Wherever you are in your life, remember that God has you in the palm of His hand and that He LOVES YOU.

Whatever you are going through, do your best to reach out with your love to someone – a motherless child, the staff at a homeless shelter, a friend with a breaking heart… You may be the comfort they need and you may find some comfort for your heart, as well. Sharing your story - even just how you are feeling - can be a blessing to you and others.
 

Happy Valentine's Day!

Wishing you a Home and Heart - Full of Happy!

With Love,

Janene

A Heartfelt Christmas Story - A Family for Freddie

M erry Christmas to all my Home and Heart friends, followers and family. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas 2020, in spite of the challeng...