Treasures and Time

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Greetings, my beloveds! Another week… thought I’d shake it up a bit and post a day late. Truth is, we had our first power outage last night and no posting was going to get done without power. The winds blew something fierce and we got a bit of freezing rain and then, poof! darkness fell upon the land. Thankful for our wood stove and the hubby’s persistence in purchasing wood, we survived the five or so hours of “living like pioneers”. Minus the data on our phones, and the battery operated flashlights, and the printed card game we played…

Would you like to live like a Pioneer? Photo by dogadakisakal on Pexels.com

I suppose the blackout added to my muse for today, which was prompted by a question I saw posed a week or so ago: What would be an era you would have liked to live in? Take a moment with me. Live in forever? Visit? Future? Past? I suppose the scenario may change if you were stuck there versus time travelling through… so let’s say we were just visiting. I’m hearing many of my generation and the next saying “Oh, if only we could go back to the good old days — live off the land, no pressures, no this or that” Which seems fair coming from a girl who just moved to the country to raise chickens and bunnies and learn to grow her own veggies. Still, there’s a never ending amount of work involved with those things… and no Home Hardware to help in 1800.

Perhaps some of you would say Bible Times would be the ticket. Meet Jesus and the disciples. Get a true feeling for the scriptures and the parables as a people of the time. Still, as a young woman, my life would look very very different. Perhaps my stubborn attitude would’ve gotten me into trouble. Jesus or not. Or swing the pendulum. Future? Automated everything. Convenience extrapolated to the max. What kind of satisfaction, or lack thereof, would that elicit? All fair assessments, and worthy of musing.

Where would you go if you could time travel?

A week or so ago we made an impromptu visit to an old friend who is now living in an old century home in a quaint little town not too far from us. Her place is fabulous! Perfectly accented with antiques and knick knacks that truly bring her showcase home to full beauty. I craved her secrets and sources, and kicked myself for being the realist I am, and that I am entirely too cheap. Besides, our century farmhouse has to be knocked down a notch due to dog hair, house flies and the manure patch next door. Pioneer times, my foot.

Still, I am taken in by things that various people treasure. I marvel at home reno shows and thrift finders who have a gift for finding that perfect thing. That little gem that fits exactly on that shelf and screams I am the G.O.A.T! Perhaps, you’ve DIY’d something or inherited a family heirloom that you display with pride. I found a little egg cup at the thrift store the other day that did me in. Normally, I gloss over the knick knack section (“frugal” remember?) but I picked up this little thing and hummed and hawed at the price tag (a whopping $1.98!) and decided it was too cute. Chickens. Farmhouse. Maybe even bordering on “vintage” … a farmhouse needs a chicken egg cup, right??

And so I enjoyed my hard boiled egg in my new egg cup on Saturday morning. And dream of chickens come spring.

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Matthew 6:19-21

Does this mean we cannot collect the goods and find that perfect piece? I don’t think so. It’s a good reminder to stay balanced. To live with Heaven in mind. To treasure our relationships and nurture our love for others not things. I can easily get sucked in to the beauty of “things” (or creatures…) instead of my people, so I must check myself every now and then. A good power failure reminds me that all that I have right now, in this era in history, in this moment in time, was designed perfectly just for me. I am given what I need and blessed with so much more. And so, although it is fun to dream and ponder and muse about this time or that treasure, reality tells me that you can’t take it with you. Be grateful and generous. Be thankful and thoughtful. But dream a little.

Persistent

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Persistence. It’s what I’ve been musing about today. The thought popped into my head as I sat watching a lone ladybug crawl up my windowsill this morning. Golly, these insects are persistent, I thought to myself! This morning we had our first dusting of snow. It’s the end of October, and the weather has been exceptionally warm up until today. We are finally getting the seasonal temperatures we expect. Which means the bugs should be dying off. Except they are not. Persistent.

I suppose I need to back track a little. Mornings are entirely too early here on “Itsnotta” farm. The youngest now has to be up and ready for the school bus by 7:10 AM. For us, that’s an early wake up call. And, the baby of the house is like her momma… mornings are not our best time of day.

Photo by Acharaporn Kamornboonyarush on Pexels.com

I’m trying. We set our alarm early enough to snooze a little before crawling out from the warmth in order to get the last teenager surviving up in time to catch the bus. Who decided high school should start at 8:15 anyway??!

I tried gentle parenting with no lights on and warm thoughts and kind words. It didn’t work. The hubby now gets up, flicks on every light in the house and we both do a lot of shouting. We pack everything the night before but the kid still manages to not eat breakfast. In fact, she’s barely dressed as we haul her out, shoes in hand, so as not to miss the bus.

All of this to tell you of my encounter with the lady bug. After the chaos of the morning routine, I have been sitting staring out the front window, still in jammies, warm coffee in hand, tucked under some sort of covering, thankful another day has started and wishing the sun to rise. Depending on the amount of shouting and, shall we say, non-gentle parenting that has happened, this quiet moment of solitude plummets me down into a deep hole of thoughts – sometimes good, sometimes not so good.

As I watched the ladybug, I flashed back to the day they invaded. Swarms of them. I hear they are not true ladybugs but some invasive species of Asian beetle who have these seasons of literally taking over. They were everywhere! All along the front porch outside, on every door frame and crawling up the ceiling in a mass swarm of orangey red waves. Bleck! Trusty Google told us not to squish ’em as they emit some sort of nasty stink, so we vacuumed them up in our ancient vacuum – which also emits a nasty stink – so not sure we were one ahead of the game anyway. At least the bugs were gone from inside the house. Except for these few persistent ones.

The houseflies are still here too. I can’t seem to get them under control, either. Occasionally, on a warmer day, a lone wasp still pays us a visit on the sunny porch. My spiders are no where to be seen. Luckily for the hubby, neither are the mosquitoes. Here I am panicking that the rabbits are warm enough and the blessed bugs are still surviving! Persistence.

So, as I muse about the eternally present insects, I think about persistence. Perseverance. The tenacity and determination to keep moving forward. To stay alive, even, when all other circumstances say you should give up – and just die off. Many of us have heard stories of the athlete or business entrepreneur who musters up enough gumption to continue to survive rejection after rejection. I think there are certainly those extreme cases of climbing the mountain to the top, but it seems like most of us ride the wave of persistence daily. At least I do.

We start out every early morning with big plans to be consistent, pray continually, seek grace and gratitude. Be thankful and look for kingdom opportunities. Often we manage to do all those things… for awhile. Then one too many early mornings take hold of us and we are too tired to fight. Or cutting words from someone else makes it super hard to treat them with grace and honour. It’s hard to be grateful when doubt and worry weasel their way into our thoughts as we balance the cheque book, or make another visit to the clinic or counsellor.

Ephesians 6 is one of my favourite chapters in the sense that it reminds us that spiritual growth is a journey of continually getting ready and getting dressed for battle. It reminds us to be persistent in our prayers. To stand your ground in battle and have an attitude of obedience. The apostle Paul knew the battle was difficult, but like my little ladybug he continued to climb heavenward even in the face of death. He knew the battle was worth it.

Photo by Dastan Khdir on Pexels.com

To be honest, I struggle with it. I pray, I write, I read, I study. Yet, circumstances and my own stubborn attitude prevents me from being the gracious daughter of the King He’s asked me to be. Some days I physically don’t have it in me. No one said the journey would be roses and rainbows. In fact, Ephesians 6 reminds us it’s a BATTLE. Oh beloveds, be encouraged that battles are not fought all alone. It takes an army. And each one of us have to put on our suits of armor and stand our ground. Shall we march heavenward together? I’ll see you next week!

The Bunny Brigade

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Welcome back, my beloveds, to another adventure happening here at my little corner of the internet. The days are getting cooler, the nights are getting cooler for sure, and early mornings are still hard. We packed up our pool today for the season. Slowly, slowly getting ready for the cold Canadian winter that may set in any day. Admittedly, we have been delaying it because the days are still way above freezing. Whatever. One can not predict the weather, I suppose.

Nor can one predict the behaviour of a woman who scrolls selling sights. Facebook marketplace and Kijiji are my new best friends. Mostly I scroll. It really is a crazy world out there. I muse: Hmmn. What could I do with several five gallon buckets of black walnuts? I did start a conversation about elderberries. I gave away some fabric. I am trying to sell off some other craft stuff. We visited a friend recently who had a fabulous century home and I am now inspired to seek out antique pieces to decorate. On a budget, of course. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Rescue, right?

Why do I blather on about such things? To justify my impulse buy. I should not have done it. I should have planned better. I know this. My hubby reminds me of this all the time. My family knows me and my thrifting habits all too well… and try and deter me. Often. Too late. Enter in the chat about very reasonably priced rabbits. Hutch and accessories included. Short drive on a Sunday afternoon. Oh, My husband loves me. Yeah, yeah, rescued them from a busy mom who didn’t have time to clean them up all the time. “Stole” them from a devastated seven year old who had been warned one too many times they were her responsibility.

And so, “Pepper” “Pickles” and “Pineapple” have joined the zoo. They came with their names, so don’t judge… devastated seven year old, remember? There was supposed to have been a forth, but she went AWOL just before we arrived. We searched the surrounding bushes and tried negotiating deals and follow ups — but we now own 2 very pretty girls and one very handsome boy bunny. My mother is questioning my sanity.

Now, I know what you are thinking. Rabbits. Boy and girl rabbits. That may lead to many many little rabbits. Not to worry, we have separated the two girls from the boy. Which brings me to my lesson of the week. Since the bunnies have come, I have been reading and researching and trying my best to house and care for the new additions – as any good pet owner should. I’ve never had bunnies before and we are housing them outdoors, because, well, bunnies are stinky. They eat a lot. And what goes in, must come out. My garden area is well composted for the spring. Let me tell you!

The Girls: Pepper and Pickles

Since we are about to hit winter, I am fretting. How will they do out in the cold? They must be kept out of the harsh winds, given extra food. Their housing must be warm, dry and draft free. I’ve learned about hay versus straw. Bedding and enrichment. And rabbit temperament. “Pepper” is a shy girl. She can be pushed to her limits though, and will protest the end of her limit with a large sounding back foot “thump”. “Pineapple” is the boy and curious. I think he likes people, but hasn’t totally warmed up yet. “Pickles” is the instigator. She arrived with a few scars that were healing and now we know why. She picks the fights. She certainly does not like the boy’s advances, so no worries there. We have maintained the peace and kept the bloodshed (and flying fur!) at a minimum. Funny creatures they are!

Pineapple, our handsome boy bunny!

Thus, I muse: if three tiny rabbits can bring such diversity and worry to my little world, how much more does the Creator of the Universe fret over us? Can you even imagine trying to make sense out of the world’s population of personalities, cultures, religions, traditions, temperaments and prayers?! Now, I know He’s God and my finite mind cannot even begin to comprehend what He can handle, but I know He feels our fears and is disappointed with our behaviours. Recent worldly events remind me that we, too, are instigators. We puff out our chests and let the fur fly when we don’t like something. Sometimes we are more reserved and it takes a little longer before we stomp our feet in protest. Other times, we throw caution to the wind and we indulge in one too many of the carrots dangling before us — and end up making a stinky mess. Or our sins breed wild, like, well, like rabbits, until we are over run and can’t keep up.

Our ancient scriptures tell us endless stories of people just like us who have messed up, but under grace, God continues to take us back. Continues to love and feed us. Continues to keep us out of the cold and safe. He knows we fight. And unlike me, our addition was not an impulse. We were planned and wanted and a perfect home was prepared for our arrival. It was us who screwed it up. We come with our scars, and a few of us go AWOL, but He’s there still to load us up and take us home. Forever.

Don’t tell the crew, but I hope to have a whole bunny brigade someday. A mix of colours, breeds and personalities. I will continue to learn rabbit husbandry. And be reminded how my heavenly Father accepts us all with grace and love. Do you feel it, my friend? Do you see it in something around you, like I see it in my new bunny brigade? What makes you see it? Share with me !