A folk song sort of day. . .

It's a "folk song" sort of day.  I slept in a bit this morning since I found myself struggling with insomnia most of the night.  By the time I did my morning workout on my new Total Gym, made coffee, hung sheets on the line, and settled in at my favorite little corner on the porch for breakfast, most of the morning was behind me.  I don't like it when that happens.  It always leaves me feeling unsettled for the rest of the day; like I'm running behind and have missed a part of my journey I can never reclaim.  With Pandora Radio playing sentimental folk music in the background, accompanied by live bird songs, I have tried to simply bask in this amazing day the Lord has made!  It is sunny and warm with a light breeze and not a speck of humidity.  The leaves rustle quietly.  The gentle breath of the fresh air stirs  the fragrance of mock orange blossoms, roses, field clover and fresh hay. Despite this serene setting, my attention is drawn to all the "spots" in the yard that are calling me.  In my mind's eye I see myself tending to them. 

 

So that's exactly what I will do for the rest of the day.  By doing so I will have the honor of being in union with the splendor surrounding me and I will rejoice in this day......

 

......wherever the music, mingled with my thoughts may take me.      

Many shades of green. . .

Coffee on the porch this morning in my favorite little corner.  The sun always rises over the Hobbit Hole, first glimmering through the trees then cascading over their top branches and spreading around the yard like warm butter.  I cherish these moments of timelessness when the world stands still as dimensions blend and reality becomes blurred.  If I were to try to describe these moments, I would say that when they happen I feel as though I slip into the pages of a book. 

 

I think I first learned to indulge in these momentary 'escapes' from reality as a child.  It all began with a coloring book (Andy Panda, to be exact).  I was intrigued by the pictures as I colored carefully, in order to stay between the lines, and to make sure to use many shades of green so that each type of outdoor greenery could be unique.  For instance, evergreen trees needed to be much darker than grass, and various leaves needed to be a variety of shades somewhere in between the evergreens and grass.  What a world I discovered on those pages!  I discovered that if I gazed at a page long enough, in my mind's eye I could superimpose myself into it until my senses reacted and that 'place' became my reality.  I was enthralled with that feeling; it was such a warm and safe place to be.  It never lasted long and I was always disappointed that I had no control over that.  Today, looking back, I realize it's probably a good thing that I never captured that control.  Who knows what the outcome would have been if I had 'stayed there?'  

 

But I know Who is the only One in control and always knows what He is doing.

 

This morning as I sipped coffee and gazed at my own yard, many thoughts sifted their way into my head and lingered there awhile.  There were too many to recall all the thoughts I had but I know I spent a fair amount of time remembering my sister-in-law, Bonnie, who left her earthly home going on nineteen years ago now.  Her birthday is today, June 14th, on Flag Day.  Sadly, she was stricken with early onset Alzheimer's disease when she was in her forties and a diagnosis was not readily forthcoming at that time.  When I think of her, for the most part, I remember the teenage girl and young mother I knew.  Many of the wonderful attributes she had to offer may have gone unnoticed due to her shyness but I happen to know she was extremely bright and compassionate.  She was quite lovely, too, with her large brown eyes and honey blond hair with just the right amount of natural curl.  I wish we had spent more time together.  I wish I had told her how I admired her.  I wish I had been a better friend. I wish she was here to grow old with me. I wish......  I wish I understood the many shades of green.

 

But I know Who is the only One in control and always knows what He is doing.

 

Happy Birthday, Bonnie!  The green font is for you...your favorite color!

  

More projects. . .

Ready, set, go. . .



...in progress

Garden Angel got a new look too...



Finished

If wishing made it so. . .

 

It is a peaceful drizzly Friday morning.  I enjoyed my coffee and oatmeal at the little corner table on the porch while taking in the fresh view and listening to the gentle rain.  It is oh, so soothing as I let my imagination carry me away to a place where that soft rain might be, not only one of God's gifts to the earth and us but an anointing for all who believe, that would cure all the illness that we have failed to conquer on our own.  Do I believe such a thing *will* happen?  Not really, because it is beyond my humble comprehension.  Do I believe it *could* happen?  Absolutely!  The miracle of God always has been, is, and always will be.  That I trust, even without comprehending.

 

On a lighter note. . .

The other day I wrote a post about my sluice/ditch cleaning project that included the comment that maybe the town road crew would finish the job.  Well, they did!  The very next day!  They rolled that road and scraped that ditch in fine fashion.  I am, of course, delighted...but I really have to wonder about the timing.  Hmm...  Was it a miracle?  Did someone read my blog?  Or was it pure synchronicity?  I will probably never know since I am certainly not going to ask.  Some things are best left alone.  *wink*

 

After all, God also has a sense of humor......         

Day is done. . .

3:00 pm...inside for cold water...going back outside to keep working in my sorry looking herbs that didn't winter very well.  Very hard on the back because I can't bring myself to lean against the stone wall of the Hobbit Hole.  I keep imagining it full of snakes.  I remember one summer when I was around, say 7 or so and my favorite morning ritual was to walk to a neighboring stone wall where 'dozens' of garter snakes would be sunning themselves between the layers of stone.  I would poke a stick at them to watch them stick their tongues out and slither back inside the earth.  I wondered where they went, visualizing secret little snake homes complete with furniture and light fixtures.  Maybe that's not something I should admit to but what the heck; I've already once admitted to thinking I could take a radio apart and get the little people out and play with them.  Ah, childhood.  Yes, please...I'd like to go back for a visit.

7:00 pm...day is done.  (Isn't that a Peter Paul and Mary song?) 

Today's projects:

Chili with apple and carrot added.  Tasted good and it made the house smell heavenly!

Weeded the chives and planted some garlic.  Love the chive blossoms.

Refreshed the landscape around the Hobbit Hole and tended the herbs.  

This year, I am *going* to harvest the horse radish!

Look who I found hiding under a rock.

Blasted deer anyway!!  Had to spray all my hosta with 'liquid fence.'  It smells horrible but it does work. 

 

Projects. . .

I enjoyed a beautiful drive through the countryside this morning accompanied by my grandpuppy, Pippin.  It reminded me of the days when my own dog, Ginger, was my sidekick everywhere I went.  Pippin likes to ride, too, but he wasn't very happy when I left him at the vet's.  The pungent stench of the dog's breath is enough to overpower an elephant!  Hopefully he'll be 'fresh as a daisy' when he comes home and he'll hear us say nice things to him again instead of "go away!" 

This afternoon's project was house painting...birdhouses, that is.  And starting the prep work for re-painting the garage doors.  There must be an easier way; I hate prep work.    

 

My mailbox was badly in need of a face lift too.

...started scraping old paint off



There sure was a lot of chirping going on in this one.  It is inhabited by a wren family.  Mama bird scolded me something fierce from her vantage point in the rhododendron. 

 

 

All on a Sunday afternoon. . .

Another good day!  What's this, three in a row?  Church in the morning then lunch with a beautiful friend.  While driving home I pondered some choices for an afternoon project.  As I drove in Ray Road, noticing the unsightly non-functioning sluice pipe, I knew what my project would be.  The purpose of the sluice pipe is to divert the flow of rainwater that runs off the highway, down Baudendistel Road and bears left onto Ray Road where it takes another left down my driveway...and occasionally in my basement. 

 

I've decided that water must be very lazy, always taking the easiest path.  Where is its sense of adventure?  I'm glad my journey is not so predictable and I know I have God to thank for that!

 

Anyway...the sluice.   It had been buried underneath a few years' worth of gravel, rocks and leaves.  The tall weeds that had greedily moved in obscured the sluice even more.  Since this is a township road, it is routinely maintained by the Town of Hancock...with the exception of the sluice pipe which they may have forgotten about.  I ended up working at my unearthing project for several hours - for a time during a brief shower.  But the pleasure I felt was worthwhile and far outweighed the discomfort of being filthy and sweaty with dirt balls in my hair and shoes.  I find that once I'm already dirty it doesn't bother me so much to dig in.  After exposing the sluice to my satisfaction, I then started clearing the ditch but didn't finish all of it.  (I love my Toro leaf blower!  It not only blows the leaves but rocks, sticks and small piles of dirt, too.) 

 

Maybe the road crew will finish what I started.  Gee, maybe they'll put me on the payroll.  Do you suppose?  =^) *snicker*

Outdoor compromise. . .

A free picture slideshow by Smilebox

Bummer!  Here it is a most gorgeous summer-like day and I have had to stay inside for most of it.  Well, maybe I shouldn't say I 'had' to stay in.  My banishment from the yard was self imposed since I can't seem to muster up enough willpower to stop doing yardwork!  I overdid it yesterday many times over and last night I had an attention getting wake-up call. 

 

I spent most of the day on the ground, scooching along all the areas in the yard that have borders, scritching and scratching and pulling the fine weeds - the kind you need just your thumb and forefinger for.  At the time, it felt wonderfully relaxing to mingle with the sights and smells of a hot sunny day here in the woods.  I was so immersed in the profound "meaning-of-life" thoughts flowing steadily though my head that I never considered the hours that were passing.  All I knew was that I was having what is, for me, a near perfect sort of day; the kind when Bob and I would say, "It doesn't get much better than this!"  (I have stopped using that expression since it no longer feels like it fits.)  But I have recently had some magnificent days and yesterday was one of them.

 

That is...until later the same night.

 

The aches and pains of manual labor are painfully (pardon the pun) quite familiar to me.  My philosophy when it comes to hands-on outdoor work has always been "where there's a will, there's a way" regardless of the task at hand.  However, I am reluctantly coming to grips with accepting the fact that that kind of stamina diminishes as the years progress.  The first clue came after a soothing bubble bath that I assumed would offset any discomfort or stiffness I might be in store for.  I couldn't move.  "This is peculiar," I thought as I pondered how I was going to get out of the tub.     After while I came up with a plan that worked.  It involved lifting my right leg with both hands to try to avoid the pain that started in my knee and shot down to the bottom of my foot.  Massaging seemed to make it worse.  The throbbing lasted well into the night and at one point I dearly wanted to take some pain medication. . . . . .but I couldn't get out of bed.  So I decided to use the well known remedy for any type of problem:  Ignore it and hope it's gone in the morning.  Thankfully and for the most part, it was.

 

Today I have been giving my knee a break (ha!...another pun) and using it very gingerly since I still feel it retaliating a bit.  Hence, an indoor day.  I tried going outside just for relaxation and to enjoy the enticeing elements but I couldn't resist a little weeding here, a pruning there, a hole that needed filling, some old paint I wanted to scrape......

 

So...to satisfy my longing

to be outside, I grabbed my camera instead of my tools and strolled around the yard snapping random pictures instead of weeding and snipping.  The compromise felt good this afternoon and with this personal little slideshow, I can take that stroll anytime I feel like it.  Even in January!