Writer's block unblocked (let's hope)

(See if you can figure out what this photo has to do with what I wrote. I had two things in mind when I chose it.)

Okay, it's been how long since I said I would be back here to continue? Yikes, has it been three weeks? Too long.

And I've realized one reason why. It's because every now and then I think of something that I really would like to write about, but then I think, "Oh, I can't do that until I finish the 'Croatian Chronicles....' "

Kind of feels like a writing assignment. The result is, it kind of squelches my desire to write, and I don't do anything.

Not that I don't want to share our Croatia trip with you! Not at all! It's just that there are tons of pictures and things to say, and I get overwhelmed by the thought of having to finish it all before I can write anything else. The Myers-Briggs folks would probably say it has to do with my being a "perceiver" rather than a "judger." In other words, I don't always like to finish what I've started before I start something else....

So, I think I've hit upon a solution. I will continue the Croatian reporting, but I will also intersperse it with other things as they hit me. You can find the Croatian stuff because I'll always label it "Croatian Chronicles."

So, do come back for photos and comments from our trip, and feel free to read or skip the other stuff, as you wish.

As for today, the thing I want to write about is something I heard today on Mars Hill Audio. This author/political philosopher was pointing out that the people who most say they believe Darwin's ideas prove that his ideas were wrong, and the people who most say they don't believe them actually show evidence for them.

What??

He was saying, look at Western Europe and even some of affluent America. These are the people who most often say they buy Darwin's ideas. They are the richest, most comfortable, most powerful people on the planet. Maybe the healthiest, physically speaking. They represent the strongest segment of the human species, which should, in order to survive, do things to reproduce and better itself.

And they are for the most part dying off, because they are choosing to have so few children or none at all. (We won't go into whether or not they neglect their living offspring, but they are the most vocal proponents of abortion, it seems.) Low birthrate has developed into a crisis in Europe, if you're not aware.

And the people who for the most part disagree with Darwin's ideas, conservative Christians, tend to have the most children and to put a lot of energy into nurturing them and preparing them for life....the kind of thing that naturally contributes to the survival of the species. Which is what Darwin says is the natural course of things.

I'm not a scientist or any kind of professional who can go into much analysis of this, but I found it fascinating.

And if you're not familiar with Mars Hill Audio, you really ought to check them out. Listening to Ken Myers' interviews will enrich your faith, your worldview, and it wouldn't surprise me if listening to Mars Hill while driving helps create new brain cells.

www.marshillaudio.org

Croatian Chronicles: Blue, blue, my world is blue

Yesterday and today we have had beautiful morning weather here in Memphis. The air is cool, the humidity seems to be down, breezes are blowing. My Gregorian windchime has been singing all morning.

Yesterday I walked with a friend in the Botanic Garden. We went to see the water lilies and wound up seeing three hawks flying above, soaring against the blue sky, calling out their otherwordly cries, and one even flying very low so that we felt he might be trying to telling us something. My friend had to leave, but for nearly two hours I stayed and enjoyed their company.

This morning I went out to the hammock in our backyard. The green leaves of the pecan tree above were amazing against the blue of the sky, with the sun piercing their leaves, making the green almost magical.

All this blue sky and fresh air seems a good transition back into the Zadar photos, so here are some shots of the sea and sky, in varying shades of blue.

The north end of the old city...where the ships come in.

"Yours trulies."

Along the western side, as the famous sunset was beginning further north, out of sight.

Intermission: Back again

If you look carefully, you can see me walking on the street in this photo, taken in Zadar.

And I've decided to resume the "blog walk."

Thanks to all for the feedback. It really does make a difference. Once July 4 is over, I'll be back to finish up the tour.

Oh, and I'll send a prize to the first person who correctly identifies which figure in the photo is me. If I have your address, that is. If I don't have your address, I'll come up with some kind of virtual prize....

Needing feedback...

This is me by the sea in Zadar.

I'm putting this photo here to show how I feel when I come to my blog...quite alone out on the pier, with a big expanse all around me! Only two people have left comments in the past ten posts, and I'm wondering if perhaps my travel reports are boring my readers? (And a couple of people have given me verbal feedback.)

Please let me hear from you, whether by leaving a comment or sending me an email.

When I'm sure that it's worth it, I'll continue the Croatian Chronicles. Or if not, switch to something else.

I vowed when I started this blog that I wouldn't do it as an exercise in self-absorption. Personally, my time could be better used creating a real scrapbook rather than a virtual one. The point of blogging is the interactivity, is it not?

Thanks for letting me know whether or not to continue.

Croatian Chronicles: Intermission

Another late night. My car broke down again today (it did yesterday, too), which has a way of messing up the schedule.

So, a quick single photo before I delve into the next series.

This is someone you know walking through what used to be a moat. The wall in the background is the old fortification for the old castle in Cakovec, the town where someone else you know grew up, and where we lived for one year. Actually, our house is in a nearby village, but our mail comes through Cakovec. (Though not through the castle, just to be clear....)

My beloved remembers the moat full of water when he was a boy, and recalls its being drained because of the snake and frog population. Until he told me about that, I never thought what a gross thing a moat would be. I'm sure it they added to the mosquito population and other populations, as well. I imagine it didn't smell very good. Life in those castles was not the fairy tale Walt Disney has made it out to be!

Anyway, these days the moat is gone, and the ground is covered in beautiful green grass with tiny white flowers, and it made for a lovely little walk, almost like walking through part of a fairy tale.

(Back to reality: Does anyone know of a good used car for sale??)

Croatian Chronicles: Donat Details

I was about to say that flowers like this would be a lot easier than the kind I've just come in from planting and watering....but then when I think how long it must have taken someone to carve this, I have to change my mind! I think that would require a lot more patience and perseverance than does my gardening. These are found at the base of one of the pillars in the church of Sveti Donat.

This fascinated me. The church builders used as part of the foundation these Roman pillar fragments turned sideways. (In case it isn't clear, look for the circle on the left.)

Looking out a window, you can see fragments like the type seen in the previous photo.

Looking straight up (as straight as the camera could get it) at the ceiling from the floor. None of our photos turned out well because of the darkness and the height. This dome is lovely, apparently made of two types of wood, and it almost looks as if it is woven, like the bottom of a giant basket. I haven't found any information on it, except that it is not original. But it is quite unusual.

A close up of the top of one of the Roman columns, incorporated the expected way.

I hope you've enjoyed this "tour" of a place that we really did enjoy. Tune in next time for pictures of the rest of Zadar. (Well, not ALL of it, of course....)

Croatian Chronicles: Look Up!

Well, the "blogsite" (?) has been down each time I've tried to get on and add something. It's working now, but I only have a couple of minutes.

When I first moved to Italy, my friend Jay, while taking me around the city, pointed out the importance of stopping to look up often. He said if you don't look up, you miss most of what there is to see. I like the metaphorical possibilities with that idea, but it's also true in a very literal sense when you're walking narrow European streets surrounded by architectural details on every side.

So, here's one shot of the top of Sveti Donat, with the belltower of Sveta Marija (you guessed it, Saint Mary) behind.

I love the way the church is sprouting greenery and flowers in its cracks and crevices, and no one is rushing to stop it.

And I've never seen an angel like this atop a bell tower. It almost looks as if the angel is conducting the chorus of life that goes on in the city, doesn't it? (Remember to click on the photo to enlarge it. You can see it quite well that way.)

If all goes well with the weekend and with Blogger.com, I'll add more photos this weekend and move on to other parts of the trip.

(So, how many of you recognized the man in the photo of the previous post?)

Croatian Chronicles: Special Guest

Had a wonderful weekend with all kinds of people who had ties to the churches in Italy. It kind of made up for not getting to go to Italy when we went to Croatia.

Well, jetlag seems to be over and I guess I am officially back into the swing of things. Which means today was work (with a run to the garden center at lunch), a return to the garden center after work, grocery shopping, then coming home to spray bug-infested bushes and plant verbena and pull up dandelions and other things that came up while we were away. We were both out in the yard until dark.

Which means I am officially tired now! So until I have the energy to do more, I offer a special guest appearance by someone you will probably recognize. This was a big poster we saw in Zadar, with a story below, in five languages, about his visits to Zadar and his saying that Zadar has the most beautiful sunsets in the world. It was the oddest thing, after seeing statues of Francis of Assisi and of various renowned Croatians, to come across this.

They've got some creative tourism marketers, I think!

Croatian Chronicles: Hiatus

Tune in Monday for more photos and stories. This weekend we are off to Arkansas for a reunion of people who have worked with churches in Italy.

Croatian Chronicles: Church Windows

Below are views of, or through, windows in the church Sveti Donat. I especially like the ones with flowers growing in them: they weren't planted there, but grew from seeds that had landed in the accumulated dirt. Amazing how little soil it takes for a seed to grow!