“Maybe this year, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives not looking for flaws, but looking for potential.” ― Ellen Goodman 2022 was a year of delays and frustration, but also of abundance. We didn’t get the new outbuilding tackled as planned, because the crew pouring the concrete slab couldn’t get to…
A Homestead Night Before Christmas ‘Twas the night before Christmas, and nearby the house Small creatures were stirring, a red fox, a mouse; The duckies were tucked in their warm coop with care, And the chickens all perched on roosts high in the air. The flowers, snow covered, nestled snug in their beds; While ice…
“There is virtue in work and there is virtue in rest. Use both and overlook neither.” — Alan Cohen Confession – I haven’t baked a single Christmas cookie (or anything else holiday oriented), and we’ve only put up one small artificial tree. (The tree belonged to an old friend of the family, and it reminds…
“At this season of the year, darkness is a more insistent thing than cold. The days are short as any dream.” – E.B. White Goodness, the days seem to fly by quickly as the year winds down to its end. With the sunrise after 7am, and the sunset barely past 4pm, I am grateful for…
“Sometimes,’ said Pooh, ‘the smallest things take up the most room in your heart.” – A. A. Milne When I was in my early teens back on the family farm, one winter morning mom came in with a tiny chick, covered in manure. One of our free range hens had decided to make herself a…
“Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and for a talk beside the fire: it is time for home.” – Edith Sitwell As we head towards the darkest days of the year, I find myself drawn to quiet contemplation, reviewing the year that’s almost…
“Reflect upon your present blessings—of which every man has many—not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.” —Charles Dickens Over the years, I have heard the phrase, “It must be nice” many times – with regard to owning our own homestead, or being able to work from home with my family, or…
“Our lives are but specks of dust falling through the fingers of time. Like sands of the hourglass, so are the days of our lives.” – Socrates (I still hear the Days of Our Lives soap opera theme in my head when I read the second sentence, even though I haven’t watched it for decades.)…
“A single sunbeam is enough to drive away many shadows.” – Francis of Assisi This week started so dreary – gale force winds, temps well below average, clouds, rain, snow, freezing drizzle -ugh. I wanted to settle into hibernation mode for the winter. Low and behold, the end of the week ushered in above average…
“Working with our hands is part of what makes us human.” I have a friend with small children who regularly shares their shenanigans. It’s a much needed breath of fresh air, especially since we got hit with illness, and cold and dreary weather this month. The kids think it’s awesome that there’s been snow already….