Bradley Geoghagan 9/10/21 Bradley Geoghagan 9/10/21

Leonardo DA Kitty

A day in the life of Leonardo Da Kitty. (Missing are any photos of him trying to climb into the rafters because I usually panic seeing this and it takes two hands to get him down.)

Bradley Geoghagan 8/13/21 Bradley Geoghagan 8/13/21

St. james (Santiago)

St. James (Santiago)

Known as James the Greater (older) was one of the first of the 12 apostles who followed Christ. He and his Brother John were nicknamed the Sons of Thunder by Jesus because of their fiery tempers.

He was also one of 3 apostles chosen by Jesus to bear witness to the Transfiguration. James was the first disciple to be martyred for being a “Christian.”

Herod the king executed James by the sword in 44 A.D.

About the Cross of Saint James (Santiago)

In heraldry, the Cross of Saint James, also called the Santiago cross or the cruz espada,[1] is a charge in the form of a cross. It combines a cross fitchy (the lower limb is pointed, as if to be driven into the ground) with either a cross fleury[2] (the arms end in fleurs-de-lys) or a cross moline[1] (the ends of the arms are forked and rounded).

Most notably, a red Cross of Saint James with flourished arms, surmounted with an escallop,[2] was the emblem of the twelfth-century Spanish military Order of Santiago and Portuguese Military Order of Saint James of the Sword, both named after Saint James the Greater.

The Pilgrimage

The Camino de Santiago, or the Way of St. James, is an ancient pilgrimage trail originating in medieval times. Made up of a vast network of roads and paths, pilgrims travel these to arrive at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. The cathedral is found in the ancient city of Santiago de Compostela of Galicia in the northwest of Spain.

It was no coincidence that I finished this cross on July 25th this year. (Shown in pictures on the night of July 25th in the finish room.) I’m baffled by this honestly and I had no idea that it is the Day recognized in western religion as the Feast of St. James.

Every time I make these crosses I always imagine what it is like to have a sharp sword at your neck and to not deny Jesus for fear of death.

Could we do this today in the face of death?

Bradley Geoghagan 8/7/21 Bradley Geoghagan 8/7/21

God is Greater

No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:39 - NLT

Brandi Geoghagan 7/25/21 Brandi Geoghagan 7/25/21

From transgressions to blessings

So I sat down and made a list of what I was thankful for, and I found that I had a longer list than I imagined. Last night I had a list of transgressions. Today I had a list of blessings.

In 1 Thessalonians it says that “In everything give thanks. This is what God wants you to do in Christ Jesus.” What a difficult lesson to remember. I’m sure that we all know how to give thanks to God when He has provided us with whatever we think we need at the moment, but the hard part is to be thankful when things are tough.

Today is my first day off after a stressful three days at the hospital. I’m so exhausted: mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually. Don’t get me wrong, nursing is an incredibly rewarding profession, but it can take its toll. Today is one of those days. Today I questioned my career choice. It’s not like I haven’t questioned it before, but this week was a doozy and the questions have been LOUD!

After feeling sorry for myself and my coworkers all morning, I decided to get out of the house, and go to the barn. I needed to get some computer work done for Divine Crosses, and I saw this block when I sat down at the computer. I stopped for a minute, and I looked at it for a while. I made this block on a whim a couple of weeks ago, trying to get ready for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I wasn’t under any pressure when I made it, and the layout just flowed. God knew that I would need it soon, of that I am absolutely positive. Because today, it stopped me in my tracks.

How can I be thankful for this week? Is it possible to find anything to be thankful for when I feel so defeated and insignificant. I opened the bible to look up the verse and read the rest of the chapter. “In everything give thanks.” In everything. Every-thing. That means I should be thankful for this week. All I could think was “how in the world do I do that?” Incidentally, the bible told me how. Through Christ Jesus. Through love and forgiveness and kindness.

So I sat down and made a list of what I was thankful for, and I found that I had a longer list than I imagined. Last night I had a list of transgressions. Today I had a list of blessings. Remember, when you need guidance, the Lord is with you and He left you with a guide book. You just need to be still and read it :)

Love to all my coworkers. I see you and love the work you are doing. You are God’s children, doing God’s work, and I am eternally thankful for you.

-Brandi Geoghagan

Brandi Geoghagan 5/3/21 Brandi Geoghagan 5/3/21

Rainbow of Hope

Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Romans 12:12 ESV

Last year when we were cleaning up trees that had been knocked down during Hurricane Sally, we noticed that the limbs of the chinaberry tree looked like a rainbow when they were cut in half. I immediately knew that I would do a rainbow block, andI knew exactly how it should be done. As soon as we were back in the barn, I made this block, but it’s been sitting on a shelf for a year. To tell you the truth, I don’t know why we didn’t just get them made and up on the website. It just wasn’t God’s timing, I guess. That’s the only explanation that I have.

Every couple of months I would tell Brad that I needed to start working on the rainbow blocks. And still the logs sat there. Finally, a couple of weeks ago Brad sliced them for me and I sanded them. And they sat. Until yesterday.

Before I tell you about yesterday and show you the photos, I want to share a few things with you. The rainbow is a symbol of hope for many things. And that is wonderful. I don’t take that away from anyone. However, for me, the rainbow will always be a symbol of hope after a family has experienced a miscarriage or infant loss.

Did you know that 10-15 known pregnancies out of a 100 end in miscarriage? You may not have because we, as a society, tend not to talk about it. This is not a new phenomenon. We have been experiencing miscarriages, infertility, and infant and child loss from the beginning. For thousands of years….and we still have a hard time talking about it. And it is still as devastating. Every. Single. Time.

I want to talk about it.

I just finished working my three shifts at the hospital and I usually have a hard time the next day recovering. I’m really tired and my legs just don’t want to carry me anymore. I didn’t really look at Facebook, just got up and ate breakfast and slowly made my way to the barn. I finished the last Song of Solomon cross that was on my list, and I looked at the stack of rainbow blocks. I’ve had them prepped and ready for at least a week. I had no more excuses.

When I got started, I knew exactly why I had put off making this block. I started thinking about all of my friends that have experienced a loss. And Mother’s Day is coming up. I felt such sorrow for them. Not pity, but sadness. Broken heartedness. Heaviness. Then I had to burn in the word HOPE. How do you keep hope alive when you are so sad? There’s only one way, FAITH.

I have been so priveledged to have people in my life that have so much faith and so much hope. They have taught me so much about perseverance and the love they have for our Lord. It is truly amazing.

I finished the first block yesterday evening. While I was standing in the finish room, I told Brad that I think there is going to be a rainbow outside. We rushed to the window but didn’t see anything. But the sky was perfect for one. Still nothing. About 15 minutes later, we were heading to my parent’s house for dinner and the sun popped out from behind the clouds. So bright. We looked to the dark sky and waited, patiently. God did not disappoint. There it was, a rainbow. And with a sun dog! We tried to get a photo for ya’ll, hope you can see it.

Last evening, I realized (after finally looking at Facebook) that yesterday was Bereaved Mother’s Day. I know it sounds strange to say Happy Bereaved Mother’s Day, but this day allows those mama’s to share that they are Mamas and they get to say their children’s name out loud. We want to hear your child’s name. Say it loud!!!

I don’t believe in coincidences. I worked on this block when I was supposed to, and here, in our neck of the woods, there was a rainbow. A Rainbow of Hope, for all the Mamas.