Tag Archives: life

Just Sitting Around…

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Welcome back, beloveds! It’s been a spell… and a lot has been and is going on, but I’m still in that “writing funk”. Lots to say, but no clear direction. Ha! Maybe that’s the way it is in life. Always something, isn’t it? And no clear direction as to where it’s going… but here we are at the writing table again and somehow we’ll get through it and something will come out on the other side.

So, where to begin? Well, working on a few projects here at #Itsnottafarm. Last winters ice storm caused several of our cedar hedges to bend over, leaving overhanging branches across our driveway… so I have decided that I am country girl enough I can handle the branch cutter… yup, chopped down several trees. Until a rather large trunk killed off the trimmer! (No worries, Hubby fixed it again, I think!) Nonetheless… processed quite a few in the time allotted. Enough, in fact, to create a “rustic” cedar arbor for my flowering vine. Well. I have the start of one. I have a plan. I have several saved Pinterest pins. The logs currently are sitting on my lawn.

The beginnings of my arbor!

What else has been going on? Oh yes, my beloved father in law turns 95 this month! Which sparked a giant family reunion and a party with the gathering ‘outlaws’. And all my kids arriving home. It lasted for a full 4 days and several large meals later. So the pantry was raided, leftovers created, and a giant stack of bedding to launder. My septic isn’t sure it can handle it all… so the laundry is sitting there in a pile too.

Ninety five years young! What a legacy! Dementia has robbed his mind from enjoying the celebration, but the rest of us enjoyed the company and catching up. Family is good. Quirks, of course. Moments, of course. Yet a godly heritage is priceless. My introverted self needed a day to recoup, though, so I spent a day just sitting around after the chaos.

Then there’s the floor. We decided to rip out the old, stinky carpet in our family room. Okay, we paid somebody to do it. That was an adventure: loading all the boxes into our van only to discover we ordered the wrong colour. Luckily, we checked before we left. We then proceeded to unload, return and purchase and load the new pile of vinyl flooring into said van. The van’s power steering died on the way home. And so, although we have a new and beautiful floor, our dead van is sitting on the lot of our mechanic waiting to receive it’s fate.

My new chick birds are growing and exploring more and more! I found them foraging out on our driveway yesterday! They still haven’t fully integrated with my older girls (the big girls chase them off) but they are getting braver. They will start laying eggs in a couple of months. I am hoping they will use the nest boxes, because recently the older girls are only using them intermittently. I have to get the curtains up. Maybe the nest box pads need changing. I don’t know how to encourage the girls to nest at home 100% of the time, because currently there is a pile of eggs just sitting “somewhere” on our property going to waste.

It’s been really hot these days, so there has been a lot of sitting on our porch where the breeze is beautiful. Or by the pool, where it’s still hot but near the water… and the action of everyone else who chooses to swim. You should see our grand baby! Dunking under like a little duckling without a care in the world! Ooo. I want a couple ducklings. And a goat or two. So I sit and scroll on my phone dreaming and planning but second guessing myself as I probably should not add to the creatures we already have. Or should I?

So. There’s been a lot of “sitting” in the last couple of weeks. Active sitting. Is that a thing? Active sitting? Yes, I believe it is. I’m sure you’ve heard about sitting and “waiting on the Lord”. Lots of references in the Bible direct us to sit, or “wait” upon God’s perfect timing for something. It is not passive idleness. Yes, often it involves rest, but that rest is often necessary to fully see your next steps clearly. Like recouping after family reunions.

Sometimes the sit is not easy. Sometimes it comes face to face with hurts, doubts and realizing that the best options aren’t the ones God has designed for us. When I do find that pile of wayward eggs, I am sure a few would have been eaten by wildlife. The rest will certainly be rotten after sitting several weeks in this heat wave. Gross. Life lessons via the coop. Always interesting.

Sometimes the sit is full of planning, anticipation and a building up of courage. Realistically, I probably spend more “enjoyable” moments planning projects and dreaming about them than I do in actually engaging in the project itself. Cedar arbor case in point. Baby ducklings online are way cuter than the ones pooping in my yard someday. Sometimes that sit before the Lord strengthens your faith, renews your prayer life, and in reality is often more peaceful than the journey ahead. Especially if that journey is letting go. Like our dying van who carries so many memories in its seats.

So, yeah, it seems as though I’ve been “sitting around” a lot lately. In a writing lull. In a seemingly non productive moment of catching up but never accomplishing anything mode. Although maybe, just maybe, like this post, just “sitting around” seemed to write itself. In a direction that God wanted it to go. And that makes it all good. Updates on my arbor soon, friends, I promise!

How Do You Describe Yourself in 10 Words?

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Welcome back. I’m a bit behind in my post this week, but have had a little bit of writer’s block. Nothing has been hard pressed on my mind. Not that I haven’t been thinking of things, of course, but what to share… anyway, I did what any good writer does: Check a few writing prompts to get the juices flowing (thanks wordpress.com). Nothing really grabbed my eye there either except one. Here was the posing question: How would you describe yourself to someone who can’t see you?

Describe yourself in 10 words or less…

Okay, so the obvious. Physical features? Body type? Hair colour, eye colour, skin tone? All irrelevant, really. Does it matter? Does it cause instant judgement if you are a curvy girl? Dark skinned or almond eyed? Do you have an accent? I think about these things when I send out resumes. Or random emails. Do you wonder what I really look like physically when you read this public blog post? Does it matter to the words I print? Realistically, it does. Our views are tainted by the subliminal signals given off in our physical appearances. You’d be less likely to listen to my conservative, religious world views if I was a middle-aged, white American male with blue eyes and silver hair.

So, then we perhaps look at education, or religious beliefs or job description. Age, maybe? Life and world experience? In this world of social media and instant information, a quick Google search will give you the basics on almost anyone. The recent passing of Ozzy Ozbourne flooded tonnes of posts. Each with their own twist. Was he a loving husband and father, or a crazed, bat-head biting lunatic promoting the devils’s music? A talented rock musician who shaped a generation, or an unintelligible drug addict? I’m glad I am not famous. Too many people judge you when you are famous. It doesn’t matter what you do, either. Peace keeper or Terrorist. I suppose it depends on what side you are on.

Recently saw this post: Ozzy on Sesame Street: Do we judge?

I am purposefully not going to answer the prompt question outright. I am going to leave it there for your own musing and thought. What I will say, is that I would love to be in God’s unfathomable brain when He creates people. He knows our little blip of existence in the great line of time. He knows who we will meet and why. He paints those skin tones and eye colours on purpose. He knows how we will feel about this or that and what drives our passions and goals. He knows our deepest darkest secrets and still loves us. Yet, He gives us a free will to choose our own destiny. Like I said, I’d love to be there when He’s mixing it all up. By the looks of some of you, He has a sense of humour, too. Just teasing.

So. There. Four hundred and seventy six words later, and a blog post is on the page. It’s a little shorter than normal, but then, so am I. A little rounder too. Hopefully, the words sparked a little musing for you this week. How would you describe yourself? Why? How did you come up with those initial thoughts? How do you describe your spouse? Your kids? Do we judge? Me? I’m a uniquely designed daughter of the King of Kings who created a fuller version of a slightly crazy chicken loving girl who shares my thoughts out here on the internet once and awhile to encourage strangers to think a bit about what they might think of themselves and others. May you go forward and be prompted by your own thoughts on the subject!

God’s Heart for People: Insights from a Montreal Visit

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Greetings from Montreal, Quebec, Canada! The hubby and I have escaped for a few days and are staying at a really cute little place in the heart of Montreal… country folks back in the city. Admittedly, I don’t miss it. It’s a nice place to visit, but I wouldn’t wanna live here. Too many cars, too much traffic of said cars (okay Montreal-ers are crazy drivers, I know) and the people are everywhere. And the only chickens we saw were the ones deep fried in a bucket to go. Nonetheless, it was worth the sore feet to tour through old Montreal and enjoy the hustle and bustle for a change. Street vendors, your pick of food, (including two giant farmers markets with European meats and cheeses!) and the sights and smells of city life. Montreal has some great churches, building rich in history and beautiful to look at. It was good to see a collection of diverse faces and the sounds of many languages and cultures for a change.

Like the story of the country mouse and the city mouse, each place has its pros and cons, but as the mice discover, home is always best. Yet, the visit had me thinking about cities. Big, diverse, bustling cities. Of course, I grew up in the “city” and should be used to the chaos. I learned how to drive with traffic in winter. I do miss the conveniences of city life: a shop on every corner for quick pick up of milk and coffee. Don’t like this selection of shoes? You can find another store just around the bend. No car? The transit system in most cities will get you to where you want to go. And the culture of a city. Yup, people. People from every walk of life and every level of education.

Perhaps a little taste of heaven? Every colour skin and language, all praising God in the way they know best. I’m sure it will be cool when we get there! Not that I’m ready to go just yet, but it will be cool when we do get there… I hope God lets us all cook our favourite foods in Heaven. Can you imagine Pho noodles or an authentic Italian pasta in Heaven ?! Fabulous!

Anyway, I digress. I was thinking about “cities” in Bible times. Unlike now, people rarely traveled out of their own space, and if they did, it wasn’t far. Yet, big cities would have similar characteristics: people of diversity with busy businesses and a way of life reflecting that city culture. Paul talks about it. He traveled enough to see the sights. Ships similar to the current means of transport that we saw on the great St. Lawrence in the old port in Montreal. Okay, maybe not shipping containers littered with graffiti, but I’m sure there were trunks and wooden containers piled high with the same stench of rotting fish as we experienced.

Still, above all the sights and sounds comes the target of God’s heart: the people. At one point on our one-too-many tours, I sat resting my ever aching feet and marveled at all the people. Tourists, like us, wondering around the streets. I wondered about how many knew that God loved them. How many people sitting in the great cathedrals of Montreal knew that God didn’t need their lit candles and silent prayers in gold lined alters. He wanted their hearts and a relationship with them. I wondered if the families sharing breakfast with us knew that God watched over their travels as He did ours. Or the young girls who served us were aware that God sees their devotion and cares about their work. Or the homeless folks sleeping on park benches knew that He cares about them, too.

My mind is reminded about people when I go to the cities. I think about it, but rarely does my heart follow the thoughts long enough to actually do something about it. Admittedly, my faith is weak in this. I don’t have a heart for people as some do. I don’t cry out for justice for the homeless or care for the poor in the ways I should. Jesus stood at the footholds of Jerusalem and wept for its people. He cried over the hearts of the people who were so lost in their sin, and the “ways of the world” that are so rampant in our cities still. May He soften my heart for them, too. May a vacation to “the big city” change my heart for not only all the people in the crowds there, but for the few in my circle here at home too.