The Well-Worn Path

Now is a good time to rejoice in the familiar yet breathtakingly fresh beauty of spring.  The explosions of color after a disappointingly snow-free and warm colorless winter is cause for being outdoors on the familiar path.

Early in the morning I took a long walk with Dudley the dog, following our regular route.

I enjoy the solitude of the path by a stream and through the woods.  It counteracts the noise when we pass the house with the dog that watches for us from the windowsill and barks his head off.

Although we take the same route most mornings, there is always something new.

This time I took my camera to record some of the beautiful spring blossoms exploding along the way; two days of storms were predicted and I wanted to capture it before the flowers were town apart by the rain.

Recently in Florida, I spent 12 days walking the same path every morning and most evenings with Dudley, enjoying the familiar sights and sounds I am accustomed to from previous trips.  The trail we walk is always the same one, but the experience differs with the change of seasons and according to who or what shares the path.

Dudley was reminded that rabbits are faster than little brown dogs

Ibis hunting in the park

morning on the lake

The Rails to Trails Withlacoochee Trail is a beautiful walk between several lakes, loaded with wildlife and blossoms, breezes, sunshine and mist on cool mornings.

I enjoy watching the movements of the sandhill cranes that live on one of the lakes; they fly across the lakes, making their honking noise that can be heard a mile away, and then move around the neighborhood; twice during the last visit, they visited my Mother's porch, sending Dudley into a barking frenzy.

The first mint sprig; ready for a glass of iced tea

first rose

baby pine cone

This year the unseasonably warm weather gave me an early opportunity to start tackling the plethora of weeds in the garden, spreading mulch, cleaning the pond, fertilizing the plants, preparing the vegetable plots, and did I mention pulling weeds?

pond muck in the vegetable garden

future bullfrogs

Muck from the frog pond is good fertilizer.  In the process of harvesting it, a few tadpoles were netted and quickly released.  More changes are expected around the pond as the water plants grow and tadpoles morph.

beavers on the lake in Florida

Like the sandhill cranes, the beavers, rabbits ducks and other wild things, I find comfort in traveling a  familiar path and find it refreshing to notice its changes.  Spring is a spectacular gift from God.

Beans, Beans

Ah the smell of garlic and herbs. Lots of garlic. Any recipe that calls for an entire head of garlic has to be wonderful, doesn't it?


Today was my cooking and writing day. It has been so relaxing and fun.  There is nothing like singing, chopping and smiling all at the same time.  My gift to you is to share the recipes!


Following a chilly morning dog walk, I set everything else aside, donned my 1960's-era June Cleaver apron, started a blazing fire in the fireplace, washed my hands and got to work.


The only sound was the occasional grunt from the sleeping dog in the other room until I turned on the tunes and Moody Blues, Simon and Garfunkel, Bob Dylan and other wonders from my growing-up days filled the house. Perfect energy music for cooking.


My goal was to get Nikos beans in the oven, and make a new dish using kidney beans. I had soaked both bowls of beans overnight in preparation. 


What are Nikos beans? Using Gigante beans from Greece, this recipe was told to me by Nikos, then-owner of Nikos' Taverna in Athens, Greece, where my friends and I joined my cousin, Mary, and her husband, Dimitris, for a wonderful dinner a few years ago. It's a neighborhood favorite of theirs. Then, Nikos was the owner and his wife, Eleni, did much of the cooking. Now, he has retired and goes there sometimes; Eleni is still in the kitchen, and Mary and Demetris remain loyal customers. 


After our delicious dinner, Nikos told me the recipe, in Greek, while Mary translated. He is such a nice man and was very willing to share.  We also met Eleni who was very nice but busy preparing food.  


I have made the beans many times since. Gigantes are similar to limas, but richer, fatter and worth the price and extra trouble to acquire. Give the local Greek store some business if you have one; if not, you can get them on Amazon for about $7 per pound.

Both dishes require a lot of chopping but have some crossover ingredients (onions, carrots and garlic).  I sauté my carrots, onions and garlic separately, because I think it preserves the individual flavors.  There is something wonderful and invigorating about the smell of lots of chopped fresh parsley, an important ingredient in the dish.  It's also worth the effort to grate the tomatoes, as the recipe calls for, if you can find good ones.  This time of year they are anemic and I prefer to use canned chopped organic tomatoes.


I bake the beans for 7 hours, at a low temperature. During that time, the house fills with the aroma; right now I am thinking about how delicious my dinner will be.  I have included the recipe below. Remember what Nikos told me "Cook them until they are just right!"

Georgian Kidney Bean Stew

Once I got Nikos' dish in the oven, I began chopping the ingredients for the second bean dish, Georgian Kidney Bean Stew With Herbs and Walnuts (Lobio Nigvzit). The main seasonings are coriander and fenugreek, with a variety of fresh herbs, walnuts, and some garlic (not as much as the Nikos beans). This recipe only takes about an hour to make, including cooking and chopping time, so I was rewarded with a yummy bowl full for a late lunch.

As I write this, I am sitting by a lovely fire, little brown dog asleep at my feet, and the smell of Nikos' beans is making my mouth water. 


These recipes are perfect for vegans, vegetarians and meat eaters alike. It's hard not to fall in love with both dishes. Enjoy!


Nikos' Taverna's Athenian Baked Beans
from Nikos and Eleni
• 1 package dried large white beans (16 ounces or more)
• Large white or yellow onion
• 5 firm, ripe tomatoes
• 1 bunch of parsley
• 5 carrots
• Olive oil (2/3 cup or less total)
• Head of garlic
• Salt
• Pepper
Soak beans in water for 8 hours, changing water once or twice
Preheat oven 225-degrees


1. Pour off water; place beans in large sauce pan; add water to the top of the beans
2. Simmer until soft for about one hour
3. Sautee chopped onion, parsley, carrot and garlic in 1/4 C olive oil until onions are transparent. Note: I sauté separately to preserve the individual flavors.
4. Mix sautéed vegetables with the beans.
5. Grate 2-5 tomatoes (skins and all) and add to the bean mixture.
6. Add a small amount of water and salt and pepper to taste
7. Place the mixture in a large baking dish (or multiple baking dishes) that has been wiped inside with olive oil.
8. Mix thoroughly. Drizzle half of the remaining olive oil over the beans.
9. Cook 6-7 hours, until the water cooks off and the liquid is thick. It may be necessary to add water, in small quantities, throughout the cooking and small amounts of the remaining olive oil.
Note from Nikos, "cook until just right!"

Waiting for Things to Happen

paperwhites in front of stained glass window

January is a month of newness and there are a few things in my life I am ready to start now, or would like to begin very soon.  The problem is that nothing happens in my time.  I have come to understand that, and accept it with a good attitude.  Patience and waiting are recurring themes in my writing.

Today is the anniversary of my Dad's passing.  It hardly seems possible that ten years have gone by.  Initially it seemed that the hurt and sadness would never go away.  In time - not my time - it did.  That was replaced with a warm fondness and good memories and only a lingering hint of the terrible sense of loss. 

Orchid buds

Dad was not a very patient man.  He talked to me about it; how outcomes were not always under our control - that ultimately it was the Lord's call on everything.  But that doesn't mean he didn't spend a lot of time impatiently drumming his fingers waiting for his teenagers to be ready to go somewhere, for his wounds from surgeries to heal, or for his plants to bloom.  Sometimes he overwatered and overfed the plants and they would die or droop.  True to his impatience, he would buy new blooming ones.

Amaryllis flower coming soon

In his later years, Dad's body slowed down and he had to be more patient.  It's something that apparently happens with the aging process when you know for certain that you can't do everything and you will not live forever.  Rather than hearing him clapping his hands to get everyone else moving, or expressing disappointment over the pace of things, we noticed he was a little bit slower and sometimes not the first person out the door or ready to order a meal. 

orchid buds opening

I think Dad learned a lot of the patience he did have from the flowers he grew.  Over time he learned to wait on the blooms, anticipating the annual explosions of color in their Florida garden.  He still was inclined to replace perfectly good bloomless plants with blooming ones, and likely to give away orchids once the flowers wilted.

worth the wait

So this week, in his honor, the buds on my beautiful white orchid began to open for the third time in 18 months.  The first sign of these buds was in August, on a tiny stalk.  Slowly it got longer and another came forth with even more tiny buds.  Now there are three stalks with a dozen voluptuous buds, four already fully blooming.  Dad would be impressed that I coaxed it into blooming again. 

It is a tough day in a tough week when the holiday decorations are gone, sweet treats are again forbidden, the family time is behind us, the diet regimen is solidly back in place, and it is cold.   The orchid blooms are a beautiful reminder of the results of patience and of my Dad's love.  I may still drum my fingers like Dad, and exhibit impatience when things don't run on my schedule, but I do think that I have made progress.  It appears I have some more waiting to do and I look forward to the results.  Thanks for the lessons, Dad!

Moonshadows

Escondido, CA

On the night before the moon was fullest,  I took a long walk with Dudley the little brown dog in the hour before midnight.  The streetlights were out on one street.  There, we saw our shadows from the light of the nearly full moon, elongating our short legs (Dudley and I are both vertically challenged) and slimming our bodies.  Perhaps more impressive were the spindly prints of the newly naked trees, along the sidewalk, embracing us as we walked through them.  A fox crossed the road ahead, startling the dog and sending his back hairs straight up.

Escondido, CA

It was a peaceful walk.  We encountered no one.  I had a feeling that something was about to happen. 

Homosassa Springs, FL

Next morning, I heard that a dear family friend passed in the early morning of that same moon, as the shadows grew longer.   Ed was  of my parents' generation, bedridden for some time.

Blue heron near Great Falls, MD

He would have liked those moonshadows on his last night.  A scientist and a minister, he was a teacher, a friend, and a lover of all things in nature.  He personified love and grace through his tender care of living things and his ability to invoke humor at the perfect time in a conversation or awkward moment.  Under a rock or in the murkiest of waters, he found living treasures.  Under his guidance, plants bloomed and flourished.  

Frog-catching nieces, Greeneville, Tennessee

Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens, Washington, DC

He was my friend when I was a really dorky middle schooler.  I got to accompany him on some of his expeditions to find plants and creatures in lakes and ponds.  He taught me a greater appreciation for living things, and for the thrill of discoveries in nature.   Skinks and worms, beetles and spiders, minnows and tadpoles - they were all part of the nature safari.

San Diego, CA

Fresh water jellyfish, Fleming County, KY

Ed encouraged my love of the pond, and I shared photos with him when I finally had one in my own garden.  I think he liked that.  He bought me a beautiful pair of angel fish for my aquarium when I was about 12.  I was heartbroken when my heater malfunctioned and I poached them - worse than the murders was having to tell him.  He understood but recommended I stick to less fragile aquarium beauties after that.

US National Arboretum Orchid Show

US National Arboretum Orchid Show

Ed conducted the memorial service for my Dad.  He told stories about their adventures; they too were good friends and fellow nature lovers.   He shed a few tears at that service.  I like it that I shared him with my Dad.

Potomac River near Great Falls

Lessons I learned from Ed:

• Creepy crawly things are cool.
• You never know what you might find under a rock.
• Beauty comes in some surprising packages.
• A day by the water is a gift from God.
• Life is both fragile and magical.
• The mentoring of a grownup can change a child's life in countless ways.
• God watches over all of his creatures and we must be good stewards, too.

Hummingbird in Escondido, CA

On the night of the full moon, Ed was in heaven.  He and Dad probably explored the gardens together.

Falls Church, VA

I don't know if Ed was a Cat Stevens fan, but this song makes me think of those days when we explored ponds and of the moonlight walk I took on the night he went to heaven.
Cat Stevens singing Moonshadow (youtube)

Washington's Birthplace, VA