Category Archives: Itsnotta farm

Enjoying the Peace and Quiet

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One comment I often get since we moved out to the country is “Oh, you must be enjoying the peace and quiet so much”. And I am not sure how to answer that. It certainly is quiet. A different kind of quiet. The first few days you could actually “hear” the quiet. You can’t explain it until you’ve experienced it. Like labour pains. We have gotten used to the sound now. Or what people think is quiet. Nature has its own ebb and flow. Cows don’t have a curfew. Crows and jays are early risers. School buses and diesel trucks are not exactly quiet when they travel by. But sure, I’ll give you quiet.

Throwback to December 2019…another thought on Peace

Peaceful. Now there is another muse. What exactly does that mean? I’ve written about peace before. We talk about it. Peace after war. A sense of calm. A thought process to relieve your anxiety. A tranquil moment in nature. People find it on top of a mountain or at some yoga retreat. I think the definition is slightly different for everyone. Maybe it’s different for the same person at different times. Peace. What does it mean for you?

I took this picture the other day at the top of my farmhouse stairs. It was the moment I had been dreaming about. The sun was streaming in through the widow’s balcony (I actually heard the explanation for that yesterday so it’s gonna be my new name for it), and the fluffy, pretty cat was all curled up on the antique chair at the top of the wooden Victorian staircase. A picture of perfect peace.

Or is it? How do you explain a feeling? How do you describe an emotion that may be different for each one of us? How do you capture the thought of an experience that may change depending on where you are in your life journey? Very recently I was chatting with a friend who’s loved one was in the final throws of his servant filled life here on earth. She tells me that they were praying that the Lord would take him so that he would finally be at peace. I’ve heard many prayers for the same thing. An end to suffering. I, too, have called out to God on more than one occasion, questioning why He would let this or that go on for so long? We crave peace. We crave it for ourselves. We crave it for those we love. We even crave it for those we don’t know. We watch the news or hear reports of some cruelty and we cry out for peace. For justice. For an end to suffering.

My kids tease me that I end up blubbering at movies where this emotion is stirred up within me. Usually it’s about a creature. I know, I know, human beings should take on more of a precedence than that faithful dog, but I can somehow explain away the suffering of people. Oh, they did something to deserve it. Oh, they were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Oh, where were their mothers? They likely had a bad upbringing. That cute puppy is innocent though! I’m wrong in my justifications, of course. God did not design suffering. He did design consequences to sin, but they shouldn’t explain away why innocent people have to endure some of the hardships we do. The whole earth is on a collision course with affliction and lack of peace because of the darkness that entered the World with Adam and Eve.

So, yeah, as I sit here with my laptop perched on a straw bale (It’s part of my sad attempt at fall porch decorations) with the dog laying at my feet, I’m tempted to say I am enjoying the peace and quiet. The crisp air is casually swaying the lilac bushes and the crickets are still humming. All too soon though, the “silence” is broken by the call of a noisy blue jay, followed by a school bus rumbling by on its way back from drop offs. The dog barks at it, my writing momentum is broken as my attention shifts and chaos resumes. Our weak and feeble minds don’t hold onto the “peace that passes all understanding” for very long.

Denali National Park Photo by Kent Miller NPS

I’m comforted to know that the anxieties and worries and the constant brain battles we face were not the original plan. We pray for peace because we know that God in His infinite wisdom made it to be the norm. We crave it and it renews us because He made it part of our being. And it will come again one day when it all gets “reset”. Until then, I promise to share little glimpses of it that I see here on Itsnotta farm and mittonmusings. There will be chaos, crazy, death, destruction and suffering too. Although, I wish you peace this week, my friend. Whatever that looks like for you, I hope you see it and take the time to thank the One who designed it that way. May it calm the mayhem in your brain and give you a glimpse of Heaven. Peace and quiet. Now there’s a concept.

It’s All in the Details…

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My goodness! Where has the time gone?! With a family vacation, and an upcoming wedding, and moving in and adjusting to “all the new” it’s a good thing I am currently unemployed… there’s been no time to work! Some days I feel like I have been juggling a thousand things but none have been accomplished. It can be frustrating. How does one manage it all without getting stressed? As I age, I have been learning to write all the details down. Anyone else? Often, it’s all in the details… and so the muse for the week.

Despite the busyness, I have noticed how many little things are ever-so-present in life. One of the big ones out here in the country are the insects! We are fighting the wasps and house flies constantly. The hubby is repeatedly complaining about the mosquitoes. Seriously. All. The. Time. Mosquitos. We also have a resident spider on the front porch which has been a unique source of entertainment. She lives in our Yucca plant and is huge.

Our Reminder of “the little things”

We think she’s a she because she is big and bold. Apparently, these common yellow garden spiders are also known as zipper spiders because they have these thick zipper patterns at the base of their webs. (You can’t see it in my bad photo but it’s there!) I have had the unique opportunity to watch her capture and devour several prey… including one of those pesky wasps! Fascinating. Even if you are not a fan of spiders… one must appreciate their ability to paralyze their prey and wrap them for later use – a process that takes about 30 seconds flat. I wish my grocery shopping was that quick. Like I said: detailed.

I’ve also had the pleasure of being attacked by several plant species in our brush. One must respect a creature who cannot move and yet is able to defend itself with thorns, stinging nettles or “share” their wealth with sticky little burrs. Nature is cool. God is super creative and thought of every little detail.

My sweater after a little walk outside… tiny details!

And so I muse. Not only about the tiniest of details I see around me, but about what kind of little things am I doing to enrich the world I live in? Some of ya’ll are good at those little details… the party has just the right amount of fine details to make it perfect: a place card, a flower vase, a touch of this or that. That cute garden gnome tucked in among the wildflowers. A painted rock with inspiration left on the beach during lockdown. An encouraging note for someone who needs it. A never ending prayer list of names and their individual needs.

You and I both know how important the fine details are. Sometimes they are absolutely needed… like in a recipe or pattern. If the details are lost, your final product just won’t turn out right. Your efforts will be in vain. Other times the details make things just a bit nicer. A dab of whipped cream. A scented candle. Little things just because you care. Other times being aware of the little things save you from trouble. Topping up on fuel – or bug spray, makes all the difference!

Have you tapped in to all the richness of the fine details God has blessed us with lately? Do we take the time to add them in to our plans or are we too busy to care? Would they make your life easier? Would they enrich someone else’s soul? Trust me, it takes effort. Disciplines often do. Yet, I think God gave us nature’s little quirks to remind us that He’s all about the details. And we should be too. I’ll miss my little spider come winter, but for now I will cherish her company. And her prowess. And take the cue to be all about the little things.

The Least of These (Part 2: Rats in the Cellar)

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Sorry for the delay… I promised part 2 a week ago… but we do things slowly here in the country! Nonetheless. Here we are! Back in the basement!

Remember this stain?
This is the after!

If you haven’t read part one of my basement reno, you can check it out here. It took a long time. After plenty of ducking and dodging crevices and spiders, the final coat of epoxy paint was on the floor – and then the hot water heater began trickling condensation. The paint wasn’t even dry yet and I had a puddle! Argh!! I pulled out the roller and spread that puddle around – mixing up my concrete paint with the slightly rusty tinge of puddle. Done.

Seriously?! Puddle extinguished.

And then we began the task of “moving in”. The cellar will be no more than storage and laundry and extra space for the zoo, but I was determined to make it nice. The dog is afraid of the steep basement steps so the cat food is stored down here with little chance of getting eaten up by the Labrador. The previous owner had stapled a large amount of fabric around the laundry tub – which I considered a valiant effort on prettying up a dismal space, so I embraced it. I ripped off the the fabric and decided there was enough to create curtains for the “windows” and decorate up the tub again. I still haven’t put the spare bedroom together but here I was sewing curtains for the basement. I guess this was how I roll. I made no attempt to put up floating shelves and funky laundry signs or fake succulents. My decorating skills for the basement only went so far.

Before
And after!
Crisp white walls!

Although the hubby was quite pleased with the folding table for laundry piles so we replaced the large wooden one with a plastic folding one we had stored at the previous house. I have a picture to put up. The hubby thinks that’s crazy – but we’ll see if it ever gets hung on the wall or simply sits on the ledge for the next 50 years.

After some debate and discussion, we agreed that our pet rats will start out in the basement. Yes, we have rats in the cellar! The creatures have been with us for several years and our youngest has started breeding them as her small side hustle. If you want to get in to a debate on keeping rats as pets, I’m happy to save that for another blog post! Anyway, despite the fact that there is no natural light down there we decided the rat cages would do well in the big open space. The barn would be too cold in winter and the fuzzies are a little stinky even though we housed them in the bedrooms at the old house.

So moving day for the rats was upon us. Trust me, this is no easy hamster wheel and hanging water bottle challenge. The youngest and I had to tackle this on our own as we needed the whole van to transport the two multilevel cages and all the equipment we house to host our little beasties. We packed, dismantled, cleaned and rearranged. We have four boys and eight girls. Two young girls were recently returned to us so we are in the process of making them a little tamer. Van is packed. Bigger boys in a carrier. Smaller girls caged for transport … until one of the young girls squeezes out from the bottom! Yup, escapee in a van load of endless hiding spaces!

We tried coaxing her out with a cracker… which she promptly snatched and stole away with. We waited as she snacked unawares in an unattainable corner. Forty five minutes and another cracker later, we were on the road for the hour long journey to the new house to unload, reassemble and unpack, again!

And so, the basement has been tackled. The first loads of laundry have been done. The rats seem happy and comfortable. The picture is still on the ledge. We are happy.

The Rats have moved in.

Do you ever wonder if all the time and effort you put in to seemingly “useless” tasks is worth it? Who cares about decorating non window windows for a bunch of rats? I’m learning that patience and following through is rewarding. I can sit back now and say – I did that and it looks good! The “ratty” people in our lives are worth the effort. For “the least of these” are children of God too, and He cares for each one of us. He is willing to wait while we munch away on our crackers under a pile of stuff, not knowing that our safety is in His best interest always.

The cellar of our century home is another reminder to me to not overlook the little things. To be patient and trust the process. To wait and not get frustrated, even if it means mixing up your paint with a little rusty water. In the end it’ll be worth it. I’m sure.