Of the Week

John Milton went blind in his forties. The loss of his eyesight, "that one Talent which is death to hide," is almost certainly the subject of this sonnet. It was after Milton went blind that he wrote (dictated)  Paradise Lost, Paradise Regained, and many other works. When I consider how my light is spent,   E're half my days, in this dark world and wide,   And that one Talent which is death to hide,   Lodg'd with me useless, though my Soul more bent To serve therewith my Maker, and present   My true account, least he returning chide,   Doth God exact day-labour, light deny'd,   I fondly ask; But patience to prevent That murmur, soon replies, God doth not need   Either man's work or his own gifts, who best   Bear his milde yoak, they serve him best, his State Is Kingly. Thousands at his bidding speed   And post o're Land and Ocean without rest:   They also serve who only stand and waite. "they that wait up...

Andrew Remillard's YouTube channel is a great resource for finding and learning hymn melodies. He has recorded entire hymnals and continues to upload new videos regularly. Besides hymns, he has also recorded some classical music by various composers. Here are the links to his channel pages, as well as to his website: YouTube channel home uploads playlists about website So go check it out, and enjoy the beautiful melodies. Here's a sample: " O may we ever praise Him with heart and life and voice, And in His blissful presence eternally rejoice! " Jean­ette Threl­fall

A Golden Harvest John Clayton Adams 1889 Harvest Time, Surrey John Clayton Adams 1874 Returning from the Harvest John Clayton Adams Haymaking near Amberley James Aumonier A Surrey Cornfield George Cole 1864 A Surrey Harvest George Cole 1848 At Arundel, Sussex George Cole 1887 August Days George Cole 1881 Landscape — Harvest Time George Cole 1865 The Last Load George Cole 1865 The Veteran in a New Field Winslow Homer 1865 Harvest Scene in the Delaware Valley George Inness 1867 Corn Stooks in a Mountainous River Landscape Sidney Richard Percy 1861? Harvest Edmund George Warren c. 1870s "he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal: that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together." John 4:36

On June 10, 1959, "Sandy" Schmuck was born Sandra Jean Greene in Warren, Michigan to Wyatt F. and Bessie M. Greene. She moved to Pensacola, Florida in 1977 and graduated from Pensacola Christian College in 1980. Two years later, she married Ronald Michael Schmuck. They had three children. Sandy Schmuck taught for many years at Pensacola Christian Academy and through the A Beka Academy homeschool program. After a battle with cancer, she passed away on October 6, 2011 at the age of 52. As part of the A Beka Academy homeschooling program, I had Mrs. Schmuck for 8th grade, 9th grade, and 11th grade English classes. She was one of my favorite teachers, and impacted my life by encouraging me both academically and spiritually. Mrs. Schmuck was an encourager. She depended on God despite her struggles. The poem below the video is an excerpt from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "A Psalm of Life." Longfellow was Mrs. Schmuck's favorite poet, and we memorized the selecti...