Great Possessions

"Blessed of the Lord be His land, for the precious things of heaven, for the dew, and for the deep that coucheth beneath, And for the precious fruits brought forth by the sun, and for the precious things put forth by the moon, And for the chief things of the ancient mountains, and for the precious things of the lasting hills, And for the precious things of the earth and fullness thereof, and for the good will of Him that dwelt in the bush."........by David Grayson written in 1917.

Great book talking about possessions and then the real advantages of country life. He talks about our senses, hearing, seeing, smelling as being far greater possessions than anything else on this earth. After coming in from a hard day in the field, swathing hay by hand he states: "As I came in from the field that night the sun was low in the hills, and a faint breeze had begun to blow, sweetly cool after the burning heat of the day. And I felt again that curious deep sense I have so often here in the country, of the soundness and reality of the plain things of life."

A big reminder

Just finished this piece and it was a project. Made from old army blankets that I buttonhole stitched around. The lettering is from recycled wool. I'll leave it out on my table as a reminder of the direction I want my life to wander.

Latitudinal Migration

What is latitudinal migration? It is the movement of animals north and south and the geese are on the move. Yesterday I experienced latitudinal migration in a BIG way. I heard the geese while heading to the compost pile and soon ,from the north, came three different V formations of geese heading south. Suddenly it was like the entire canadian goose population was in the sky. I think I stood and watched for 10 or 15 minutes, maybe more ,as flock after flock flew over. These were big flocks of geese filling the sky! One bunch was heading southwest and I am assuming they were going to St. Joeseph, MO. to look for new spring bonnets. They did not have a directional leader and there was a swirling bunch of them just over the house. Several other groups followed them instead of those traveling straight south. It was pretty amazing to just stand and wonder if it was ever going to end.

Hearts

Antique rug

Antique rug

Woolley Fox pattern....my favorite

Circa 1900 rug

Kris Miller adaption of antique rug

Tagged with questions

I was tagged by John at The Simple Life blog with 11 questions so here goes:

1. What is your favorite place in the world?.......any hiking trail be it on the Continental Divide, the Natchez Trail or even just east of the homeplace along the river.



2. Who is your favorite person?.....Jesus



3. I'm happiest when?.....I am holding hands with my best friend/husband, LaVern



4. Most admired public figure of the past 100 years?....could be several but today I will say Tasha Tudor



5. My first job was......babysitting but then waitress at A&W on roller skates, outside



6. I am most at peace when.........I'm at peace every day and takin joy



7. Who has inspired you the most between 6 and 18 years of age?....my paternal grandmother



8. I wanted to grow up to be.......a park ranger or cowboy on a ranch in Montana



9. Favorite movie........can't nail this one down, too many; Forest Gump, Spies Like Us, Pelican Brief, The Replacements, Swiss Family Robinson, Pale Rider, Jumpin Jack Flash, John Wayne and the Cowboys, Flashback, Sleepless in Seattle, Wild America, Somethings Got to Give, Down Periscope.....



10. Favorite type of music.....again, like all music but enjoy Brule', Anugama and Enya for easy listening



11. Best life-changing decision made............trusting God for everything in my life

Well, that was thought inspiring and fun. Kind of gets you to look at the priorities in your life! Thanks, John.

Be joyful

Romans 12:12 Be joyful because you have hope. Be patient when trouble comes and never stop praying.

Selling the American Dream (nightmare)

LaVern's grandmother Burtis lived to be 102 and she still lived at home. She did finally move off the farm in to an apartment in town but not until she was in her late 80s I believe. When she was 100 a few of her grandchildren did a little "mini interview" with her. The thing I remember foremost was the question of during her 100 years and all the changes during that time, what was the single thing that she thought change life the most. Her answer, electricity. The following is a portion out of the book, Surviving Off Off-Grid by Micahel Bunker:
"Think of it. Electricity was easy to sell, and the American dream hinged on it. It was probably one of the easiest sales jobs ever. With electricity in your house and barn you won't have to produce, make, store or buy candles, fat, or kerosene. Imagine walking up and pulling on a chain and having your room flooded with light! Think of getting up at night to go to the restroom, and not having to light a candle or lantern. Then, think of all the things you can do now that it won't be dark all night. Your day can start earlier and end later! Think of all the time you will save! (ching, ching! goes the time bank) And, if you already have power coming to your house to provide electric light, why not think of what a refrigerator will do for you.....and a freezer.....and a washer and dryer, and an iron, and an electric stove. I mean, you already have electricity, why would you deny yourself the good things in life? All of these can be added for a nominal fee, and each (on its own) is relatively cheap to operate. And if you cannot afford them all right now, you can get credit at the store or from the manufacturer. You can pay it off by the month in easy payments. Of course, you'll have to work harder and longer hours, but that should be easy with all that electric light at your fingertips. If it gets to the point where your farm will not support all the new payments you've accrued, you can always get a job in town......but you'll need a car....and insurance.....and your taxes will go up so you can have a nice road to drive on....but then, your wife can get a job too."
Think about when there is a storm and you loose that electricity for a few days.

Spread kindness today

These boots are made for walkin

No Excuses. That is the "theme" for this year's Biggest Loser show. How easy it is to make excuses for everything. I can't walk today: I have a big blister on my heel, it is muddy on the road, I don't have enough time now, I have too much to do yet. Excuses. Right then I thought of the show and realized that was exactly what I was doing, making excuses. Not going to get healthy that way. I put my mud boots on, out the door I went and walked my two miles. Despite the mud I enjoyed the fresh air and felt really good when I got home. No excuses, keep going.

Before the rain

The sky this morning, early, before the rain was beautiful. This photo just doesn't show it but pink, yellow, gold. Truly beautiful. Gave me pause and a thank you to Him.

Groundhogs

Also known as woodchuck. Been reading up on facts about the groundhog and was surprised that they are the largest member of the squirrel family. Did not know they climb trees and swim. I was discouraged to read the female may have a litter of six! Did not read anywhere about how distructive they can be. We have one(??) in the pole building and this spring I AM going to get him trapped. He has burrowed huge holes in the ground and made a mess. He is down there right close to my garden...........his meals! If I knew for certain his head would poke out today........the live trap would be baited and we'd have a talk about the weather! If a woodchuck could chuck wood how many pounds could he chuck? About 700. (And he is right there with our firewood!!)

Patience