Relishing in the Quiet

For some time I have noticed that I've been searching for those moments that are quiet.  Totally quiet.  These moments, in the busyness of our society, are difficult to find, especially during the daylight hours.  But, when they are found, I relish in them, no matter how brief they may be.

Quiet during the day for me means no cars on the road to be heard, no lawnmowers busy at their task, no squawking birds or chipmunks or squirrels.  No airplanes to be heard overhead, no wild wind blustering about the leaves.  No neighbors, though loved, out in their flower gardens or burning trash.  The daylight requires a great deal of patience to find the Quiet.  But, when I am aware and divorce can myself from the task at hand, I can seize these rare and delightful moments.  There are flowers to be enjoyed, colors to drink in, breathing, deep breathing.  They are like a sweet wine and I drink deeply.

At night, when awakened for some call of nature or call of the body that is in rebellion, these moments are much easier to find and bring different benefits.  These moments may have with them a dark beauty.  The night sky filled with stars unnumbered, a moon giving a soft glow to the landscape, soft, falling snow that drifts past a window.  

 These moments are each different but yet, have the same restoring power.   It is a stillness that invades the mind and then seeps slowing into the marrow of the bones to calm.  Utterly calm.  For those moments, no matter how brief, give life to my soul.  I find myself, when outdoor, searching for them.  Nighttime disturbances, though annoying beyond measure, are not always unwelcome.  Each moment has its own sweetness, its own delight.

Searching and relishing quiet moments.

"Thou hast taught me

   that faith is nothing else than receiving thy kindness;

   that it is an adherence to Christ, a resting on him,

     love clinging to him as a branch to the tree,

       to seek life and vigour from him."

Taken from, Belonging to Jesus,  The Valley of Vision

"When amazing realities of the gospel quit commanding your attention, your awe, and your worship, other things in your life will capture your attention instead. When you quit celebrating grace, you begin to forget how much you need grace, and when you forget how much you need grace, you quit seeking the rescue and strength that only grace can give. This means you begin to see yourself as more righteous, strong, and wise than you actually are, and in so doing, you set yourself up for trouble."

- Paul David Tripp (from New Morning Mercies)

Seizing The Day

Sure, I'm supposed to be snapping green beans.  I"m doing what I do best, procrastinating.  It's going to be a late night doing beans, I'm afraid.  Just had to write about yesterday.

Carpe Diem-from the Latin, literally means to pluck the day.  I've always heard it said to "seize the day".  What happens when the day seizes you, or plucks you.  

Yesterday I  thought the day truly seized me.  A mountain of tomatoes that were in need of being made into soup and the ensuing mess that follows would be in need of cleaning.  My legs were not cooperating at all.  I was constantly needing to sit down.  My maid has never shown up to help with these chores at all! :-)  It came to the point when I need to ask God to give me strength just to stand long enough to get some tomatoes squeezed.  My husband came home thinking he would be cutting grass but in God's providence it had rained here...again....that meant that the cavalry had arrived.  He was such a help to me in the entire process.  God does work through simple circumstances.  

It has been easy to get discouraged lately when my beloved clothes line seems to have moved a mile away,  things just don't get done like they should or when they should and some of the things I love to do seem to be becoming a memory.

This morning a blogger that I follow posed about a remodel she and her husband are considering and how it might make life easier when they are older.  When someone else posted that it seemed "sad".  Here is what was written in return: 

Getting older is actually a privilege 
Sadly lots of people don’t get to find out about it.

Many, many wonderful things come with age and I wouldn’t want to be 25 or even 45 again for anything
(well …maybe I like to look like I did when I was 25 

For me personally every day since June 12, 1976 has been a gift from God. And for the past 38 years I’ve been allowed to grow older so I’ve got no complaints – just gratitude.

--Katherine Grossman

http://www.granny-miller.com/

Grateful.  Learning to be grateful.

Spring?

Most everyone has had enough of winter this year.  Perhaps those that ski found this particular winter rather enjoyable.  Not me.  It has seemed rather endless.

In light of my crankiness, cabin-fever and a recent trip to Wal Mart.  This arose:

An Ode to Spring

March 2014

Spring has sprung,

That's what they say.

I sit enshrined in fleece today!

Crazed with cold,

Four walls I flee,

To a store nearby to me.

Within this place,

Are colors rare

When black and gray are all I wear.

Bright, warm colors beckon me,

To try on clothes,

In a size three!

Lime, lemon-bold and tangerine,

But, do they match,

My flanneled jeans?

Nearby are very tiny things--

Two pieces held,

With little strings.

But could I stand my body bare

Without my thermal

Underwear?

Back home I head with empty cart.

This is not for,

The faint of heart.

My frozen skin,

Not ready for

Bright clothing that is paper thin.

Just six more weeks,

The rodent said.

How I like to think him dead.

Random Thoughts on Order

Another potholder is finished.  This one is all the darker colors with a splash of yellow here and there.

A good friend, Kathy, who is a quilter extraordinaire, encouraged quilters in a small class she was doing to put their fabrics into a paper bag and pull them out to create a "scrappy" look.  I've tried that.  Couldn't do it.  Even with these simple potholders, I cannot seem to make a "random" one.  I'll begin with the intention of just pulling any loop out of the bag only to find that it bothers me that there is no pattern or order to it.  The loops are then rearranged once (sometimes three times) looking for an eye-pleasing pattern and color combo.

What does this say about me?  Is this just a "first born" tendency?  Or, is it my love of a created order-- beauty with design?

It brings me joy to discover God's designs in nature.  How He puts colors together in the parts of the flowers that are pleasing to the eye.  Even the colors of vegetables are pleasing, as in carrots--orange with green.  The leaves of beets are a lovely dark green with purple veins.

The colors of fall flood the eyes with the glorious colors of creation.  Golds, reds, yellows are set against a green backdrop completed with a dazzling blue sky.  Certainly there is a seeming randomness to the colors of the woods, but I see a design.  Or, perhaps it is the Designer who shines.  God's choice of colors if for us.  It is a delight to our eyes for a reason.  Is it any wonder that fall is the favorite season of so many people?  Who cannot find beauty in this riot of color?



I've given up trying to create randomness in quilts or my little potholders.  Not that I don't enjoy another's random creation.  I just can't, at least in this way, bring myself to be capricious.  Some might say that this keeps me from being spontaneous.

Alas, for all my fondness for order, it seems that I find it difficult to maintain it in my home.  Daily "to do" lists are often scuttled by unexpected opportunities, unknown plans of the spouse or just plain weariness.  When I can achieve even some small sense of order in my little world, I find it restful.

As I write, it begins to sound as if I'm a control freak.  No, not the case, I believe.  It sands to reason that if God, who created order, would desire his people to be orderly- creative and orderly.  Wanting to control each tiny aspect of our lives to suit ourselves is nothing short of idolatry.  When people are control freaks their trust in God has been shattered somewhere along the way.

Our best plan should always include, "Lord willing".  God is the Master Planner.  He is in control of all those little, and not so little, interruptions that come into our lives.  Accepting and embracing His ordered plan for our lives is often difficult.  I find myself often saying, " for God's glory and my good"(--John Newton).  Knowing that God is in control, that he has the smallest details of my life designed to shape me to better glorify him brings me comfort.  Sure, it is not always very easy to accept and I'm not always in a position to jump up and down for joy when, in my limited perspective, things don't look very wonderful.  I'm a work in progress.

O GOD MOST HIGH, MOST GLORIOUS,
The thought of thine infinite serenity cheers me,
For I am toiling and moiling, troubled and distressed,
   but thou art for ever at perfect peace.
Thy designs cause thee no fear or care of unfulfilment,
   they stand fast as the eternal hills.
Thy power knows no bond,
   thy goodness no stint.
Thou bringest order out of confusion,
   any my defeats are thy victories;
The Lord God omnipotent reigneth.
I come to thee as a sinner with cares and sorrows,
   to leave every concern entirely to thee,
      every sin calling for Christ's precious blood;
Revive deep spirituality in my heart;
Let me live near to the great shepherd,
   hear his voice, know its tones, follow its calls.
Keep me from deception by causing me to abide in the truth,
   from harm by helping me to walk in the power of the Spirit.
Give me intenser faith in the eternal verities,
   burning into me by experience the things I know;
Le me never be ashamed of the truth of the gospel,
   that I may bear its reproach,
        vindicate it,
        see Jesus as its essence,
        know in it the power of the Spirit.

--from the Valley of Vision, Resting on God

Finally!

They have finally bloomed!

They must be a late variety because they are the last of anyone's crocuses to bloom.  However, they are my first.  Just in time for Easter!  As you can see, the other bulbs are popping up, too.  Spring must be coming--finally!

God's promises never fail.

Have a blessed Easter.

Response to "God Made a Farmer"

Since I didn't watch the Super Bowl, I did not see the Dodge Ram ad.  It was not until Monday morning that I heard the ad replayed on the radio.  I must admit that Paul Harvey's voice and the images that it stirred from my childhood made me feel proud to be a farm girl.  Now I've never been one's that real quick, but something about the whole thing didn't seem quite right, but I wasn't able to put my finger on it.  The ad was put on the back burner of my mind until today.

While researching chlorinated water, of all things, I ran across this blog post that I believe you will find very interesting and, like me, helpful:


Sustainable Farmer’s Response to “God Made a Farmer” Superbowl Ad

This response made sense to me.  This may be one of the reasons the ad did not sit quite right with me.

Plus, why would Big Auto want to glorify Small Ag?  Just say'in.

Starting Seeds

It has been a few years since I started my own seeds.  With the limited window space at our old place, my poor little plants were stringy and weak.  This house has some nice south facing windows on the third floor that I want to try for seed starting.  It is warm enough that the cat fights to be up there as much as possible.

This year, I'm looking at starting some non-GMO and heirloom seeds to put out in the garden.  Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds sent me a free catalog that is both colorful and inspiring.  Of course, there is still Johnny's Selected Seeds.  They, too, have some great varieties.  I'm working on my lists...dreaming of a beautiful pest-free, weed-free, abundant garden this summer.

This Mother Earth News article on seed starting was found at 3Breeze Homestead's Facebook page.  The article offers 11 steps for starting your own seeds.  There is a wealth of information on seed selection, timing of planting, as well as lighting.

While I wait for a cold frame, I may use some clear plastic storage containers to not only keep the little babies warm, but also make it easier to move them around from warm, sunny window to the outdoors, when appropriate.

(from the gardenweb.com)

The wind is howling and the temperature dropped from 67 degrees yesterday to 22 degrees right now.  Checking out seed catalogs on a winter's day makes spring feel right around the corner.  Well, almost.

What will you discover when you turn your eyes in dependence upon the Lord?  You'll find him gazing back at you, eagerly waiting to bless.  Upon tiring of fighting with pigs for food, the Prodigal Son had finally 'come to himself' and begun the journey home.  I'm sure that as he walked, he searched intently for some sign of his house in the distance.  But he wasn't the only one who was seeking.  'But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him' (Luke 15).  While we're still far away, his compassion overwhelms him and he runs toward us!  He is not standing around waiting for us to come to him properly sorry.  He doesn't allow us to come to him as hired servants.  No, if we're going to return to him, then he is going to enjoy the pleasure of graciously blessing us with all the riches of full sonship.

--Elyse Fitzpatrick

Old Dog -- New Trick

When I was young--real young, I was far to busy playing with trucks in the dirt.  As I grew older, I was far to busy keeping up with the local hired farm hands in pitching hale bales.  There were a lot more things that kept me busy as I got older, not just boys, who mostly ignored me anyway.  There were plenty of chores around the farm and garden that needed to be done.  I simply didn't have any interest in hand work, needle work or sewing of any kind.

Fast forward to "much older and a bit wiser".  I love old quilts!  I enjoy hand quilting.  And, I sure wish that I would have sat down with either or both of my grandmothers to learn some stitching.  Grandma Hoovler was an amazing seamstress.  She made a great many dresses for my sisters and me.  Each unique and splendid in craftmanship.

Grandma Blair was a quiltmaker and she loved to embroider.  She made tea towels, pillow slips, as she called them, and samplers.  Whenever we visited, there was never a time she wasn't busy stitching something.  I'll always remember her old, round purple cookie tin.  That tin held mysterious things like her needles, threads and thimbles.  It was always quickly put away when we arrived so that there were no accidents.  Among the many "if only-ies" I have in my life one of them would be to sit with my grandmothers and learn a few things about stitching and life.

This winter I'm making the two older granddaughters each little quilts for their dolls.  Ada's doll quilt will match her baby quilt.  I had some leftover patches and figured it was easy to just make a small one.  Hopefully, she will like that they are matching quilts.  Roslyn's is another matter.   Is it bizarre to agonize over a doll quilt??  There were many minutes spent browsing quilt books trying to find patch I could make without it being so difficult or overly involved that it would take forever.  I kept telling myself, "It's just a doll quilt!".

I settled on a single patch that is a copy from an old quilt that my sister bought me.  She called it a "rescue quilt".  That just means that she rescued it from being ignored and unsold at the Quilt Auction.  I love it.  I only wish I knew the name of the patch.  The fabrics were chosen from my stash that I've gathered over the years.  It went together rather well...not perfectly, but, it is me that is sewing it.   After all, it is a doll quilt.  The center looked too plain and I just couldn't think of what to do to dress it up a bit.  Then the idea of a center initial came to me.  Well, anyone could embroider one letter.  It's a "R"!  How hard can an "R" be?  Checked around online and found an "R".  Not a plain one, but not too frilly or fancy one.  I should be able to do this.  Right?  Here is what I came up with.  It is a little doll quilt sewn with love.  Caution:  This is my first attempt.  Those of you who know what you are doing, there is a reason that the photo was taken from this distance--it looks better the farther away you are.   You can laugh, but just don't tell me you laughed.  It is a doll quilt :-)

I must admit that, while I struggled with getting the hang of even the simplest of stitches, I was sad when it was completed.  There is no consistency in my stitches--some are real short and then the others are kinda long.  It doesn't look too bad, as long as you don't look very closely.  

I'm working on the binding for Ada's quilt, so you'll get to see it when it is all done.

We sang this hymn on Sunday.  It is one of my favorites and I haven't sung it in a long time.  These are a few of the lines:

Be Still My Soul

Be still, my soul; the Lord is on your side;

Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain;

Leave to your God to order and provide;

In every change he faithful will remain.

Be still, my soul; your best, your heavenly, Friend;

Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.

Be still, my soul; your God does undertake

To guide the future as he has the past.

Your hope, your confidence, let nothing shake;

All now mysterious shall be bright at last.

Be still, my soul; the waves and winds still know

His voice who ruled them while he dwelt below.

These two stanzas resonated with me as if it was the first time I had read them.  Such truth, hope and reassurance sung to a beautiful, haunting melody.   Good words to remember.

Stay warm!

Just Picked

A new first!  Picking fresh greens from the garden--in December!!  How wonderful!  I planted collards and kale to have a fall harvest and it has been a delightful success.

The day before Christmas is when these bunches were picked.  There was a huge winter storm coming the day after Christmas and I wanted to make sure the last of the kale was picked before it was buried under snow and I couldn't get to it or, worse yet, couldn't find it.

The collards were getting a bit weary of being frosted on a regular basis so the were all picked.  Yes, all.  I spend a couple of days getting them into the freezer.  There was quite a harvest.

The kale was left in the garden to use as we wanted.  When the kids were here from Minnesota, I cooked a batch for them.  My son-in-law was impressed with the flavor.  The cold and snow seem to give kale a very nice taste; not bitter or harsh.

It is wonderful to have garden successes.  Especially ones that last until Christmas!

Diet Update:

It is hard to admit that the diet for my MS has not yielded the results that I had hoped.  There has been slight improvement, but not in the major ways that I had hoped.  The diet continues (well, I did cheat over Christmas...a few--just a few cookies and some ham--wonderful, delicious ham) and there are other areas to explore.  I like goat cheese.  Yep, I really like it.

Blessed Lord Jesus,
     No human mind could have invented the gospel.  Acting in eternal grace, you are both its messenger and its message, coming to earth as a tiny child, giving yourself over to insult, injury, poverty and death, so that we might be ransomed, redeemed, and freed from sin.  We bless you, Eternal Father, for ordaining this way of salvation.  We thank you, Lamb of God, for opening this way, and we praise you, Holy Spirit, for applying this great salvation to our hearts.
     Lord, forgive us for our obsession with our own righteousness. WE spend many hours thinking about how we are doing spiritually, agonizing over our failures and glorying in our successes.  We spend very little time thinking about your righteousness, and about the truth that even on our very best days, our goodness is tainted with our sin and still looks like filthy rags to you.  It is hard for us to accept that in our strongest moments, we cannot escape our great need for your obedience to cover ours and take its place.  Open our eyes to see our own fascination with our reputations and the many ways in which we use our strengths to belittle others.
     Forgive us for delighting so much in our own gifts and our own obedience, and for trusting in the good things that we are able to do.  Forgive us for our endless desire to steal your glory and take credit for your good work in us, and for insisting that others see our glory and fall down in worship before us.  Forgive us for using the strengths you have given us as weapons against others, to cover our inferiority and make ourselves feel superior to them.  Forgive us for wallowing in our failures, rehearsing them over and over again, and defining ourselves by them.  Lord, have mercy on us!  Thank you for loving us too much to give us what we crave, and for humbling us and choosing to leave us weak so that we could learn to love the strength and goodness of Christ in our place.
     Holy Spirit, show us the bankruptcy and brokenness of even our very best works.  Help us to see the sinful motives we often have for our best acts, like Bible study, prayer, fasting, and service of others.  Teach us instead to delight in all of the spiritual treasure you have lavished on us so richly in Christ; the wealth of his righteousness, given to us; the riches of his grace and kindness poured out on us; the glorious inheritance he has earned for us by his perfect obedience and death.  Remind us often of who we are in Christ as we walk through a world of temptation which dazzles and beckons us, and navigate the sinfulness of our own self exalting hearts.  Draw our minds to the cross often to marvel at your purposeful and determined love for poor beggars like us, who continue to have nothing to give to you but our sin.  There let your transforming love do its powerful work of pulling our eyes away from ourselves to rest on Christ, to see him, to ponder him and to rest and dance in the hilarious nature of his unshakable love for us.  

  ~Adapted from the Valley of Vision by B. Duguid

Merry Christmas 2012

Wishing each of you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year!

Remembering why we celebrate:

The Glory of Christmas

Fondly,
Linda

Loving Flax Crackers-Adventures in Going Gluten-Free

I never really thought that I would be discussing baking and food on this blog.  While the garden and the produce that is gathered from it are a big topic here, not the preparation of food.

At the advice of a friend and after doing some research on the subject, I have put myself under the care of a nutritionist.  This doctor has me on a diet that is supposed to help with my MS symptoms.  It has been a couple of months now that I have been gluten-free, dairy- free, corn-free and, basically, sugar-free.

This new diet has presented all sorts of challenges.  First, I love bread--fresh bread, especially.  My fresh bread.  The one that comes with the fragrance that only a loaf of bread fresh from the oven can deliver.  The one that comes with the delight of the first slice of slightly warm bread covered with a generous lather of cool butter that hints at melting into the curves and grooves of the bread.  If not butter, homemade jam--apricot jam. Fresh bread fills the entire house with a feeling of love.  But now pizza crust, muffins, cornbread, pies--they are off limits.  Can you tell it has been a rough couple of months??  I'm in mourning.

Just this past week, I've been permitted to add millet, sorghum and oat flours to my diet.  All of these grains are gluten-free.  These along with buckwheat are my new bread and baking flours.  I was able to find these flours at the best price on Amazon.  The fancier Whole Foods and Trader Joes type stores are a bit of a drive and I'm not at all sure that these prices can be beat.  It's great to have all this delivered to the door.

I am a bit anxious to try some bread.  All the gluten-free sites I checked warn that this bread will not be what one is used to in the line of bread.  I'll have to prepare myself.

When my mother-in-law died last year, we were thankful to have her Vita-Mix passed down to us.  It sat in the basement for months, but it has been moved to a place of honor on the kitchen counter.  I've been able to grind oats into oat flour, buckwheat groats into buckwheat flour and garbanzo beans into bean flour.  Some things that I've made have not been horrid.  The apple crisp has been good.  The buckwheat pancakes need a different recipe...flat in every way.

While I wait to experiment with new flours, I have tried my hand at crackers.  Since I am allowed seeds, I stumbled on a recipe for Flax Crackers.  I was able to grind up some flax seeds and some sunflower seeds and then use some other seeds to make these delightful crackers.

These little goodies have helped to keep me sane.  They are wonderful with hummus.  (Not so much with peanut butter.)  Good with goat cheese - yes, that's the dairy-free alternative (that takes a bit of getting used to, but it's good--different, but good.  They have a wonderful, savory flavor and appear to have additive properties.  (Yes, that is vintage Tupperware!)

If you are interested, the recipe with detailed instructions and pictures are on this site:  Scratch Love.  You'll find she has other gluten-free recipes to explore.

Each person has challenges they are called to meet.  My hope is that this new diet will help in many ways to get my health a bit more on track.  It is going to take time, I'm told, so we'll see where this road takes me.

Blessings!

Ahhh, Books

I'm becoming increasingly aware that I could become a compulsive book buyer.  Here are my latest purchases.

The top book  is one that I've been working on for the past few months.  With the garden and grass, I've been neglecting the poor thing.  It is a great read.  Those Puritans had some great, spot-on insights.

The delightful bookmark was purchased at the Somerset Historical Society's Mountain Craft Days that we attended in September.  It is tatted with little beads.  We watched the woman make them for quite awhile.  It is an art I might consider trying.  Tatting is such simple, beautiful needlework.

Last fall, I was in a study that looked at John Newton's letters.  This man was amazing.  He, too, had great insights into the heart of men and could explain his deep thoughts in such a witty way.

Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God by J.I. Packer was recommended as a "must-have" for the home library.  No doubt, most of Packer's books would fall into that category.

I enjoy Michael Horton on the White Horse Inn.  His writing style makes the complex easier to understand.  this is my second book purchase by Horton.  The first was an inspiring, thought provoking read.

We'll have to see about Disability and the Gospel.  I read a few pages and I'm not sure it is what I had in mind.  A few pages, though, can't tell the whole story.  It may be awhile before I get back to it, though.

When new books arrive, it is like Christmas.  I love the smooth cover and the newness of the pages.  It is a bit hard for me to crack open a new book and crease the first page.  Since these are paperbacks, the newness fades quickly.  While the book is digested, pages read and reread, bookmarks inserted, margins written in, the contents become a friend.  One with which I can argue, agree, smile or cry.  One that comforts, challenges, enlightens, frustrates.  If I could only figure out how to read and quilt.  To be able to do two of my favorite things at once, would certainly make my winter recreations an even greater delight.

GLORIOUS JEHOVAH, MY COVENANT GOD,
All thy promises in Christ Jesus are yea and amen,
   and all shall be fulfilled.
Thou hast spoken them, and they shall be done,
   commanded, and they shall come to pass.
Yet I have often doubted them,
   have lived at times as if there were no God.
Lord, forgive me that death in life,
   when I have found something apart from thee,
   when I have been content with ephemeral things.
But through thy grace I have repented;
Thou has given me to read my pardon in the wounds of Jesus,
   and my soul doth trust in him, my God incarnate,
   the ground of my life, the spring of my hope.
Teach me to be resigned to thy will,
   to delight in thy law,
   to have no will but thine,
   to believe that everything thou doest is for my good.
Help me to leave my concerns in thy hands,
   for thou hast power over evil,
   and bringest from it an infinite progression of good,
   until thy purposes are fulfilled.
Bless me with Abraham's faith
   that staggers not at promises through unbelief.
May I not instruct thee in my troubles,
   but glorify thee in my trials;
Grant me a distinct advance in the divine life;
   May I reach a higher platform,
   leave the mists of doubt and fear in the valley,
   and climb to hill-tops of eternal security in Christ
      by simply believing he cannot lie,
      or turn from his purpose.
Give me the confidence I ought to have in him
   who is worthy to be praised, and who is blessed for
      evermore.
--Divine Promises from The Valley of Vision

If you wish to purchase The Valley of Vision,  you may try here at Amazon.  Or, here at Banner of Truth

Fall Garden

It is a beautiful fall day.  It's warm--mid 70's--the sun is shining, but the clouds are beginning to appear.  There is a cold front coming in tonight.

Knowing that we are to get into the 40's over the weekend, I figured I better see what I could gather from the garden that the cold is likely to kill.

Here's what I managed to salvage.  A few tomatoes, some peppers, a bit of lettuce and the parsley.  The parsley may very well manage to last awhile in the garden, but I need it for dinner this evening.

There are a few other veggie plants in the garden that have been thriving in the cooler weather that has been with us since September.  This is our first year for kale and other greens.

So far they look great.  From what I understand, these greens should only improve in flavor with the cold weather.

It was an interesting garden year.  Some things did well and other, well, no so much.  The sweet potato crop was another disaster.  Our onions seemed to rot quickly after they were dug.  The beans did well, as usual, the corn was good, except for what the bugger of a coon ate.  The garlic was smaller, but the crop was plentiful.  As always, these are things that are not in my control and it yet it proves, again, that God is faithful to provide what we need.

P.S.  It seems I was delayed in getting this posted.  I was having company for dinner and did not get my Puritan Prayer added until now.  Suffice it to say, the chilly weather arrived today, although it turned out to be a lovely, sunny day.

I continue to slowly work my way through Jeremiah Burroughs's The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment.  Here is a portion of Contentment from The Valley of Vision.

HEAVENLY FATHER,
If I should suffer need, and go unclothed, and be in poverty,
   make my heart prize thy love, know it, be constrained by it,
   though I be denied all blessings.
It is thy mercy to afflict and try me with wants,
   for by these trials I see my sins,
   and desire severance from them.
Let me willingly accept misery, sorrows, temptations,
   if I can thereby feel sin as the greatest evil,
   and be delivered from it with gratitude to thee,
   acknowledging this as the highest testimony of thy love....
Teach me to believe that if ever I would have any sin subdued
   I must not only labour to overcome it,
   but must invite Christ to abide in the place of it,
   and he must become to me more than vile lust had been;
   that his sweetness, power, life may be there....
When I am afraid of evils to come, comfort me by showing me
   that in myself I am a dying, condemned wretch,
     but in Christ I am reconciled and live;
   that in myself I find insufficiency and no rest,
     but in Christ there is satisfaction and peace;
that in myself I am feeble and unable to do good,
     but in Christ I have ability to do all things.

A Visit to the Farmer's Market

Wednesday and Saturday mornings are very special to me.  As I have written in the past, these are the days that the Farmer's Market is open in our little strip mall parking lot.  It has done my soul good to see the booths all bustling and crowded this summer.  If it were up to me,  I would bring a lawn chair and enjoy watching the transactions of the morning.

One can learn a great deal by listening to others as they choose their purchases.  There are elderly women, who still like to can, choosing just the right cucumbers for pickles.   Some folks are seasoned veterans at picking the perfect peppers.  When the sweet corn comes in, the place is very busy with people wanting to taste the delights of summer.  From apples, eggplant and tomatoes to broom corn, fresh flowers and herbs and jellies, there really is something for everyone.  It is one of my happy places.


For the longest time I have wanted to attempt to capture the Market on film.  This past Saturday, I finally remembered the camera.  It was not one of the busier days, but then the season is winding down for some of the vendors.  Most gardens are about done.

This is one side of the area.  Armello's brings fresh Italian bread, pizza shells and rolls from Vandergrift about  45 minutes away.  The baker told me he is up at 3 am so that the bread is fresh for the Market.  And it is.  I've had their bread and pizza shells.  They are so good.  The fresh fragrance when the bag is opened is....well, uh, I guess beyond words.

These folks have quite a variety of wares; from vivid yellow flowers to honey and jams and watermelon.  They even had maple syrup.

The Hooks Family.  This is where I buy most of the veggies that I don't grow myself.  

Mr. Hooks is in the center of the picture in the "Maine" sweatshirt.  He has been very helpful answering my many gardening questions and is delightful to talk with.  His sweetcorn is the best by far.

Mussers Fruit Farm.  My "Apple Guy".  It seems they have every kind of apple, old and newer varieties.  They had pears several weeks ago that were amazing!  Mrs. Musser had blueberries for sale for the first time this spring.  These folks know each variety of their apple's best qualities.  The Mussers know which of their apples are good for sauce, baking or eating fresh.  He is a wealth of apple wisdom.  Since I am on this no sugar diet, I wasn't sure if my normal Cortland apples would be the best for my applesauce this year.  When I asked him about canning sauce with no sugar, he recommended Ida Reds. The result was perfect.  It is nice and thick with a great flavor.  I headed back for another bushel a week later.  For his other apple choices, he says the Cortlands are still his pick for a drying apple.  Empires are his favorite eating apple.  I've seen folks buy quite a bit of their grapes, too.  I can't wait for the cider!  It's pure, unfooled around with, nothing added--or taken away--cider.

There are not many weeks left until just the Mussers will be at the Market.  They will be there until Christmas with apples and cider.  At that point, I wait until the late spring to see the delights of the Market.

O DIVINE REDEEMER,
Great was thy goodness
   in undertaking my redemption,
   in consenting to be made sin for me,
   in conquering all my foes;
   Great was thy strength
   in enduring the extremities of divine wrath,
   in taking away the load of my iniquities;
Great was thy love
   in manifesting thyself alive,
   in showing thy sacred wounds,
      that every fear might vanish, and every doubt be removed;
Great was thy mercy
   in ascending to heaven
   in being crowned and enthroned
      there to intercede for me,
      there to succour me in temptation,
      there to open the eternal book,
      there to receive me finally to thyself;...
Great was thy grace
   in commanding me to come hand in had with thee to the Father,
      to be knit to him eternally,
      to discover in him my rest,
      to find in him my peace,
      to behold his glory,
      to honour him who is alone worthy;...
When thou art absent all sorrows are here,
When thou art present all blessings are mine.

--A selection from Victory, from the book, The Valley of Vision.



 

9/11 and God

For your reading pleasure:  A Shocking Day That Neither Shocked nor Surprised God.

Childhood Memories -- A Craft From the Past

Of course, there is the usual grass cutting, garden weeding and tomato canning, but I've been busy reliving my childhood...

A few months ago, I had delivered a meal to a friend and their puppy promptly chewed two of my old, but loved potholders.  My niece had made some for me a long time ago.  I always loved making these as a kid and when I needed replacements the store bought ones just didn't cut it.  They just don't seem to stand up to the heat from the oven like these good ole ones do.

When I was telling my husband about my dilemma of trying to find decent potholders, he went online and found a kit with the whole works.  Frame, directions, helpful metal weaving tools and enough bright cotton loops to make two potholders.  This is the beginning of the first one that I made.

This is potholder #1!

This project brought back many memories from my childhood.  I loved weaving these--creating patterns with the colors--then, I remembered how difficult they can be to remove from the frame.  That brought back memories, too...the ones when I would get frustrated and yell and want to pitch the whole thing....yeah, those wonderful memories.  I did have to fight with this one getting it off the frame.  The second was a great deal easier.  I had left it on the frame for a couple of days knowing that I wanted time to put up a good fight.  Well, it seems that letting it sit for those two days helped a ton.  No fighting!  Lesson learned.

It was interesting for me to remember my frustrations as a kid and, thankfully, see that I'm no longer so easily frustrated and how God has grown me.

There is one problem, it is not all that big of a problem, really.  There have been quite a few admirers of my new potholders.  I may need to find a larger bag of loops to make some for gifts!  This is potholder #2.

P.S.  I realize that today is the 11th anniversary of the attacks on America on 9/11.  It remains a day of reflection and remembrance.  I cannot forget the horror of that day and how we have all been changed by such an attack.  God, however, was not asleep.  He is sovereign.

"My Father,
Enlarge my heart, warm my affections, open my lips,
   supply words that proclaim 'Love lustres at Calvary'.
There grace removes my burdens and heaps them on the Son,
   made a transgressor, a curse, and sin for me;
There the sword of thy justice smote the man, thy fellow;
There thy infinite attributes were magnified,
   and infinite atonement was made;
There infinite punishment was due,
   and infinite punishment was endured.
Christ was all anguish that I might be all joy
      cast off that I might be brought in,
      trodden down as an enemy
         that I might be welcomed as a friend,
      surrendered to hell's worst
         that I might attain heaven's best,
      stripped that I might be clothed,
      wounded that I might be healed,
      athirst that I might drink,
      tormented that I might be comforted,
      made a shame that I might inherit glory,
      entered darkness that I might have eternal light,
My Saviour wept that all tears might be wiped from my eyes,
      groaned that I might have endless song,
      endured all pain that I might have unfading health,
      bore a thorned crown that I might have a glory-diadem,
      bowed his head that I might uplift mine,
      experienced reproach that I might receive welcome,
      closed his eyes in death that I might gaze on unclouded brightness,
      expired that I might for ever live.

An excerpt from "Love Lustres At Calvary" from The Valley of Vision. (This selection is the favorite of my friend, Bill, who would, at any given opportunity, read from The Valley of Vision during Worship.)


Here is a a selection from "Valley of Vision" a CD of songs inspired by the book, Valley of Visions.  This song is based on this selection.  It is called "How Deep".
      

Mr. President, I Built This

I stumbled on this video put together by Bristol Palin, Sarah Palin's daughter.  It certainly made me smile.  What a wonderful response to Mr. Obama's remarks about the government building businesses.  I'm certainly glad that there was a farm mentioned--and from Pennsylvania at that!

Mr. President, I Built This


We are surviving the drought.  God, as always, has provided for us through our little garden, which we consider important to our living a more healthy life.  We also consider it important to help get us through these economic times.   It is good to have more than enough so that we are able to share with friends.  Food prices are only going up, it appears.

Pride is so subtle, that it can gather strength even from those gracious manifestations which seem directly calculated to mortify it; so dangerous, that a [besetting sin] may be esteemed a mercy, if overruled and sanctified by the Lord to make or keep us more humble:  therefore, though we can never be too earnest in striving against sin, too watchful in abstaining from all appearance of evil, and though those who wait upon the Lord may confidently hope that he will preserve them from such things as would dishonor their profession in the sight of men; yet I apprehend those who appear most to adorn the Gospel in their outward manner of life, are conscious of many things between the Lord and their own souls which covers them with shame, and that his tenderness and mercy to the, notwithstanding their perverseness, constrains them with admiration to adopt the language of Micah, "Who is a God like unto you, who pardons iniquity, and passes by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage?"  -- John Newton   (they wrote long sentences in those day!)

Garden Tool Quiz

Do you know what this is?

When I was growing up, we called it a hand cultivator.  It was used in our garden from the time I can remember.  Ours did not have the multiple attachments, just the prong thingy that is in the middle of the picture.   Since dad didn't want it anymore, for sentimental reasons, I nabbed it.  I always used it and liked it.  Yeah, I know, how weird is that?  Most people would prefer a "real" tiller.   I still have this darling antique.  The center prong is missing, but it still gets the job done.   Since our little Mantis tiller isn't working (something about gunk and a carburetor), I've been using this old one.  It looks like this only with more dirt ground into the wooden handles and a bit of rust on the wheel.  It is a great upper body workout, for those who are interested in such things. I'm probably just old-fashioned or maybe I just like to live in the past, (sometimes, I still like my telephone and running water) but there is something satisfying about using this old cultivator.  It helps me remember my dad, who taught me about planting and caring for a garden.  Who taught me about putting up fence and burning horns off calves.  He taught me about loving the country.  There I go getting nostalgic. It was a lovely, cool evening.  Perfect for working in the garden.  Garden work is usually preferable to cleaning the bathroom.  Bathroom cleaning is important, too, It's just that I would rather be outside.  I was able to get half of the upper garden worked up this evening. The happy news around here is that my John Deere, while repairs are yet to be completed,  is about done with her surgery and just needs to be stitched up.  That can't happen soon enough. Giver of All Good, Streams upon streams of love overflow my path. Thou hast made me out of nothing,    hast recalled me from a far country,    hast translated me from ignorance to knowledge,                                  from darkness to light,                                  from death to life,                                 from misery to peace,                                 from folly to wisdom,                                from error to truth,                                from sin to victory. Thanks be to thee for my high and holy calling. I bless thee for ministering angels,                   for the comfort of thy Word,                  for the ordinances of thy church,                  for the teaching of thy Spirit,                 for thy holy sacraments,                 for the communion of saints,                for Christian fellowship,                for the recorded annals of holy lives,               for examples sweet to allure,              for beacons sad to deter. I entrust myself to thee, for thou hast redeemed me. I bless and adore thee, the eternal God,    for the comfort of these thoughts,      the  joy of these hopes. ~an excerpt from Comforts, from The Valley of Vision

Charles H. Spurgeon

A fellow blogger and Christian agrarian, Brenda, at A Separate Path, has a great post on Spurgeon.  There is a selection from the introduction to his book, Farm Sermons.  It is well worth the read.  I invite you to check it out here.