Christmas Reflections 2020

 

Thanksgiving in Colorado, 2020

Change. People vary in their fondness or dislike of change. It’s said that “a change can do you good”, and “a change is as good as a rest”, etc., but I’d dare say that even the most spontaneous among us have not loved the changes that 2020 brought with the arrival of covid and the “new normal.”  I’m sure that many of us have come to be thankful for the some of the changes, while at the same time bemoaning others. Our family has been thankful to have Ben working from home, but struggled tremendously with not being able to go to church for 3 months. There have definitely been both blessings and difficulties during this season.

 

 I am so very thankful that in a world that is constantly changing, due to coronavirus and otherwise, that my God remains the same. In a world that is uncertain, I can trust the steadfastness of Christ. During the last 9 months, I have often found myself absolutely overwhelmed by the magnitude and swiftness of the changes, so I have had to constantly remind myself of these truths. I read from a book most mornings that follows the church calendar and the second week of Advent the theme was “In Change, Unchanged”.  I want to share a reading that particularly touched me by J. Campbell Shairp:

 

’Twixt gleams of joy and clouds of doubt

our feelings come and go;

Our daily state is tossed about

in ceaseless ebb and flow.

No mood of feeling, form of thought,

is constant for a day;

But Thou, O Lord, Thou changest not,

the same Thou art alway.

 

 We try to keep focused on these truths each and every day, but I have found that traditions that usher us into observing the church season and focusing our attention on Christ, further aid us in this endeavor. This year especially I have really appreciated our Advent and Christmas traditions. It seems that in a world so uncertain and constantly changing, that lovely traditions bring so much comfort and they provide us with some deep rooting. In our family we try to very intentionally observe a slow and simple Advent, focusing on the waiting leading up to Christ’s birth, and reminding us that we are still waiting for His second coming.

 

 To read more about our Advent & Christmas traditions, please visit https://chalbond.blogspot.com/2019/12/update-on-favorite-advent-and-christmas.html 

 

We pray that whatever traditions your family observe point you to Christ, the steadfast & unchanging One.

 

“Life’s sorrows still fluctuate; God’s love does not, And His love is unchanged, when it changes our lot.”

 –Lytton

 

Boost Immunity and Go OUTSIDE!

For obvious reasons, it is a good time to consider ways we can all boost our immunity.
I want to keep this short and just focus on some of our favorite products we use all year round and in cold and
flu season already, to try to always maintain a healthy immunity. For a longer and more thorough guide to
handling pandemics from a natural health perspective I highly recommend this post from Wellness Mama
(not just for moms!): Common Sense Guide to Viruses and Pandemics and her most recent podcast, Coronavirus:
A Common Sense Approach with Pediatrician Dr. Elisa Song.

As you may have noticed a lot of things are currently out of stock, including some of my favorite products,
so I will share first about the ones that are IN STOCK as of writing this post. 

• I will start with my favorite Shaklee products to maintain and boost health and immunity. 
• I always keep Defend and Resist (elderberry, echinacea blend supplement) and Vitalized Immunity (think heathier Emergen-C) on hand. I’ve also added Nutriferon to the list currently, which provides amazing immune support at the cellular level. You can view those products here. 
• My kids daily take the Incredivites,1  chewable Vitamin C (more when sick), and 1 Defend and Resist (2 when sick). They also take a half tablet of Vitalized Immunity as a drink when they are sick. They get their probiotics daily through the Nutiva Protein Shake (and I put a scoop in my coffee). 
• I aim for daily taking a Vitalizer strip (includes multivitamin, vitamin c, b, probiotic, and more!) and am also currently trying to take the Nutriferon daily. 
• Here’s a pill version of the Vitamin C. It’s also a good idea to make sure your Vitamin D levels are good. 
• We keep garlic on hand if we need a natural antibiotic.  
• We use their Basic G disinfectant as our cleaner, which is proven effective against strains of coronavirus. (on backorder)
• Their amazing concentrated hand soap is another great product that we love. 

*You can order all of these products from my personal website here:
https://pws.shaklee.com/chalisebondurant

• We also love all of the Gaia Herbs Elderberry and Immunity products, but each time they restock they sell out again quickly! My kids love their Elderberry syrup. 

• Another thing we do is diffuse essential oils. We love Rocky Mountain Oils and use Flu Time and
• Immune Strength in a diffuser, as well as the roll on Immune Strength. 

• The natural hand sanitizer that we use is Everyone hand sanitizer, which is currently sold out. 

• In addition to all of these products, we try to maintain a healthy diet full of real food, organic when
• possible, and severely limit our intake of sugar and gluten. 

• This is also a great time to support local farms for your meat and produce or start your own urban
• homestead or garden. We love Marmilu Farms and they deliver to Memphis and Nashville. 

• Get Outside! And lastly, but definitely not least, spending a lot of time outdoors in the fresh air has
• innumerable health benefits, along with reducing stress and anxiety and promoting peace of mind.
• If you’re local to Memphis here is my list of favorite places to hike and explore in the woods.
• Spring is the perfect time to enjoy the outdoors, and during these stressful and uncertain times,
• it has never been a better time to get out into nature! 

Immunity and Wellness Pinterest Board: https://www.pinterest.com/chalbond/immunity-and-health/

Get Outside! Memphis Nature Locations

Memphis Nature Locations

Spending a lot of time outdoors in the fresh air has innumerable health benefits, along with reducing stress and anxiety and promoting peace of mind. If you’re local to Memphis here is my list of favorite places to hike and explore nature. Spring is the perfect time to enjoy the outdoors, and during these stressful and uncertain times, it has never been a better time to get out into nature! (Be sure to check and see if a location is still open).

(within 45 minutes of Memphis)

Shelby Farms

Meeman Shelby Forest

Botanic Gardens

Lichterman Nature Center

Overton Park Old Forest Trails

Kennedy Park- Raleigh

Wolf River--various trails

Nesbit Park-Bartlett

Herb Parsons Lake Trails- Fayette County

Farm Park Germantown*

Windermere Farms (during picking season)*

Jones Orchard- Millington

ARK Farms- Arlington*

T.O. Fuller State Park

Oaklawn Gardens- Germantown

Peterson Lake Nature Center- Collierville

International Harvester Managerial Park-Lakeland

Robbins- Halle Nature Preserve- Collierville, TN

Dixon Gardens (and Gallery)

Agricenter International*

Davies Plantation nature trail- Bartlett

Lucius Burch State Natural Area

William B. Clark Conservation Area- Rossville, TN

(45 min.-1.5 hours from Memphis)

Hatchie National Wildlife Refuge- Stanton, TN

Lower Hatchie National Wildlife Refuge- Henning, TN

Holly Spring National Forest- various, MS

Strawberry Plains Audubon Center- Holly Springs, MS

Village Creek State Park- Wynne, AR

Wall Doxey State Park- Holly Springs, MS

Chickasaw State Park- Henderson, TN

*best suited for group field trips or not open to drop in visits from the public

Christmas Reflections 2019

Groaning. Waiting. Hoping.

The definition of “groan”, according to Merriam-Webster, is “to utter a deep moan indicative of pain, grief, or annoyance”. Synonyms for groan are howl, moan, lament, and wail. Now, if you don’t mind me asking, have you experienced any groanings this past year?

 I feel more groaning in my heart this year than I have in past Advent and Christmas seasons. I groan over the death and loss that I and those close to me have experienced, and the depth of that grief for those I dearly love. I groan over the fact that many of my friends are struggling with autoimmune diseases or children with difficult diagnoses.  I groan over the continual conflict in the Middle East and the refugee crisis. I groan over the many conservation crises currently looming. I groan over all the many injustices in this world. I groan. I lament. I wail. What about you? 

A passage of Scripture that I’ve been pondering a lot lately speaks to these groanings.

“18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. 23 And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.” Romans 8:18-25

To begin a Christmas reflection focused on groaning isn’t very cheery is it? In fact, a couple of antonyms for groaning are rejoicing and exaltation. I think to truly experience the Christmas season one must allow space for both the groaning and the rejoicing. 

I imagine Mary, the mother of Jesus, experienced some magnitude of labor pains. I imagine she probably groaned as our Savior was born that night. It is because of these groanings that my groanings can also give way to rejoicing. She experienced the groaning of labor pains to deliver the One that would one day deliver us.  About 33 years later that Deliverer would experience His own groanings as He died upon the cross. And because death could not hold Him, His groanings gave way to rejoicing when 3 days later He rose from the grave. We too can rejoice!

Yet today we still groan. Still lament. Still wail. It is true that in this world we all experience and witness a multitude of sufferings. So we groan… It is also true that those that follow Christ have a confident assurance (hope) that one day these groanings will end once and for all when Christ comes again. It is through this hope that we can rejoice in the midst of the groaning. The present sufferings cannot even compare to the rejoicing we will experience for all eternity for those that know Christ. 

We can only experience that hope by knowing the Deliverer. It is through knowing that Deliverer, Jesus Christ, that we can rejoice in the midst of the groanings. We can rejoice because we are dearly loved and forgiven. We can rejoice because He hears our groanings and He cares. We can rejoice because one day He will return and make all things new. He is our Hope and it is for Him that we wait.

  We groan. We lament. We wail. 

We rejoice. We hope. We wait.