A while back I was telling Jesus that I was lonely. Being a homemaker and homesteader whose life and work is at home means I have more ‘free’ time than my friends who work full + time jobs. Yesterday a friend took time out from her busy schedule to come by and visit with me. First of all, it amazes me that she’s a friend at all. She’s like a prom dress and I’m the bib overalls in the closet of life. I can’t ever imagine her making the social bloopers I make. I have another friend who is like Gina. Both friends are pure class and not in a snobby way at all. I mean true class - the kind that makes everyone feel special. Some how after time spent with Gina I feel like I could conquer the world, or at least my world. She doesn’t set out to exude faith and confidence but it flows from her center.
Today John’s having 3 co-workers over for training on a new system he developed. We’ve known these guys for years now but to have them here today is like finding crocus blooming in the snow - a rare treat! I’ve been planning what to fix for lunch all week. Baked a coffee cake yesterday but after waking up this morning knew I HAD to fix brownies with peanut butter icing cause Jeff & Robin love choc-peanut butter anything. Fried chicken, roasted chicken (not sure if Todd likes fried), real mashed potatoes (John likes instant - go figure! so this is a splurge), corn, green beans, gravy (from a jar, I’m a horrible gravy maker), deviled eggs and applesauce. I’m in my hay-day cooking and baking so no one better even mention diet or low fat anything.
Monday 4 of the quilting women are coming here for a “field trip” - aka a good excuse to get together and talk about quilting. Donna and Dorothy are the quilt shop owners in Bonham and Patricia is a faithful customer of theirs who I met and we clicked. They want to see the new quilting frame. Since it will just be us women I think I’ll fix a quiche - John doesn’t like them so this is a chance for me to have one without eating the whole thing. If weather permits we’ll tour the gardens, grow house and the barn so they can meet the Dwarf goats and cats.
Later this month a woman who wants to rebuild her grandparents smoke house is coming down from Oklahoma to visit so we can dig through my books and come up with a plan. We’ve got to work out both of our schedules yet but the visit in the process. I’ve never met her. Someone gave her my phone number years ago and she’s held on to it til she moved to the old homestead. A friend in the making!
A family in Kenya have been emailing and writing to us for a couple of months now. They read the Farm and Ranch Diary we wrote way back. They held on to the magazine for 5 years til they had email access to contact us. They sent us pictures of their home with a banana grove and we sent pictures of our homestead here. So different yet so very much alike. They have opened their hearts, home and doors to us literally, offering to host us in Africa.
The Gaither’s tape (video) playing in the background says it all “Loving God, loving each other and the story never ends.” Kind of hard to be lonely.
January 19, 2009 at 07:08 pm
Hey!! You need to send them that article you sent me about farming above ground in Africa!