Welcome to the   June  edition of"What's  Cooking     June Facts for the June Bug * June's flower is the rose or honeysuckle. * June's birthstone is the pearl, Alexandrite, or moonstone. * June is named for the Roman goddess Juno, wife of Jupiter and the Greek equivalent of the goddess Hera. * In the 19th century, Catholic countries devoted June to the worship of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.   Today is the first day of June, but apart from it being a month mid-way through the year heralding Winter/Summer depending on which hemisphere you live in, what else do you know about it? Try these interesting facts out: * No other month begins on the same day of the week as June. This year, that day is Friday. * June 19th is the birthday of Garfield, a comic strip created by Jim Davis.   _______________________________________________   "Inspiration & Motivation  Thoughts"   Among all human constructions the only ones that avoid the dissolving hands of time are castles in the air. Frederico de Roberto A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral. Antoine de Saint-Exupery If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; there is where they should be. Now put foundations under them. Henry David Thoreau The Wedding Month" June Weddings �?Their Origin For as long as I can remember, getting married in June seemed to be the right thing to do. That is why when an aunt of mine got married in December, I couldn’t quite understand why. Come to think of it, I never understood why people wanted to get married in June either. So where did tradition stem from? Remember that cliché all roads lead to Rome? Well, June weddings can also be traced back to the Ancient Roman times. For one, the Romans placed special attention to June weddings because that month was the time when they paid special obeisance to Juno, the goddess of marriage. As such, getting married in June was deemed lucky. We all know how the gods of the ancient times were very much involved in day to day living. On the other hand, it was not all luck and superstition that had it going for June weddings. It also had a practical aspect to it. If a couple got married in June, it meant that if the wife conceived, she would give birth before harvest time. This translated to the fact that she would be well enough to work the fields come harvest time. There you are �?the nitty gritty stuff about June weddings. With time, however, these reasons faded into the background. People of the modern times merely held on to the tradition that June is a good time to get married and that there is no other more romantic month than this. I have been trying to come up with modern reasons for June being the wedding month. I have done research and racked my brains but to no avail. Unfortunately, I think it is all based on the age old tradition which many do not know about now. No matter what the reason may be though, June weddings are still quite popular today (though probably not as much as before). With the month of June just peeking around the corner, countless couples are probably getting ready for their own wedding. Their reasons may vary but the fact remains that June is still the prime month for weddings. In the next few posts, let us look into different topics relating to weddings held in June. Though it may be a bit late to plan your own wedding for this June, it will only be a matter of time till the next June comes around.         "Father's Day History" Facts for Features �?Father’s Day: June 15, 2008 The idea of Father’s Day was conceived by Sonora Dodd of Spokane, Wash., while she listened to a Mother’s Day sermon in 1909. Dodd wanted a special day to honor her father, William Smart, a widowed Civil War veteran who was left to raise his six children on a farm. A day in June was chosen for the first Father’s Day celebration �?June 19, 1910, proclaimed by Spokane’s mayor because it was the month of Smart’s birth. The first presidential proclamation honoring fathers was issued in 1966 when President Lyndon Johnson designated the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day. Father’s Day has been celebrated annually since 1972 when President Richard Nixon signed the public law that made it permanent ________________________________________________________      "What's Cooking Index" Page 2: Group News Page 3: Mouthwatering Recipes and Tips for summer