tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7549269438897602992024-03-12T19:56:17.384-07:00Swheat Farm Lifeswheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.comBlogger324125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-22192401153708064942024-02-04T08:00:00.000-08:002024-02-04T08:00:00.135-08:00God Kiss Series - Ethopia & Love<p> xxx</p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPTNk8Oy1nFh-SdhxDiUl4jM9xoNmzVh6o2vr-TdbA5jjFrl53bqq5NWtBR9LcEX8oe2b5MiWHaHS7IsUr5WdmjnBZrQy8KdI1swHCiPToiywsrvSQhggCc4G8S-UzXIcRlHtjPmi-8VNH8qF_q1ivqmIkDpSzv-5WJJNtrFSInKQRNF2Nr_SpFPkJCXOs/s1280/Our%20family%20in%20Ethiopia%20with%20our%20%20honorary%20son%20who%20has%20been%20a%20part%20of%20our%20program%20since%20he%20was%209.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPTNk8Oy1nFh-SdhxDiUl4jM9xoNmzVh6o2vr-TdbA5jjFrl53bqq5NWtBR9LcEX8oe2b5MiWHaHS7IsUr5WdmjnBZrQy8KdI1swHCiPToiywsrvSQhggCc4G8S-UzXIcRlHtjPmi-8VNH8qF_q1ivqmIkDpSzv-5WJJNtrFSInKQRNF2Nr_SpFPkJCXOs/w640-h360/Our%20family%20in%20Ethiopia%20with%20our%20%20honorary%20son%20who%20has%20been%20a%20part%20of%20our%20program%20since%20he%20was%209.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our family in Ethiopia with our honorary son</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px;">~ This story is featured in the Home & Harvest January/Feb 2024 magazine and I wanted to share it as well on my blog. g</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px;"><br /></span></span>
</p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Imagine yourself sitting down with a book. On the cover, it looks
ordinary, like hundreds of other books, but you buy it anyway. You open it up
and start reading….</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Boy meets girl and they become high school sweethearts. They
marry. They move to the Palouse so she can attend vet school. She
finishes school and they decide to start a family. But then … fertility
struggles. After a couple years of fighting the good fight of trying to have a baby,
they are finally blessed with Baby #1. But was that it, or did God have more in
store? They hoped for more children. </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">A fairly common scenario, except the part where infertility
leads to the part where they help hundreds of street people on a different
continent. Wait?! What?!… PLOT TWIST!!! And with that, let me introduce
you to, Josh & Jill Quaade, two regular people with a story like none
other. </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Like most people, you marry and usually the pitter patter of
little feet is the next step. For Josh & Jill, after a
bit of a struggle, the blessing of daughter #1 came along. But then came
the decision of what else would God have them to do. Should they maintain
with one child or add to their family through another avenue? After much
prayer and research, they were led to Ethiopia to adopt Baby #2. After
selecting an agency, they were sent regular updates on available children. One
day in the Spring of 2008, the weekly summary, complete with pictures of
various children available, spoke to Jill, she knew God had a daughter for
them. She handed the flyer to Josh and said, “do you see our
daughter”. Josh took one look and pointed out a picture of their future
little girl. They both knew instantly, independently yet together, the one God
had for them. They had decided that her name had to be connected with the
word “Joy”, for there was so much joy in those eyes that had seen so many
struggles in the few short months of her life. Adoption proceedings began
and after what seemed like a very long year of waiting, Josh and Jill learned
that the orphanage home to their daughter had to move the children to a
different location. Josh volunteered to assist with the move and flew to
Ethiopia. During the taxi ride to the orphanage, the driver began explaining to
Josh about his mission to help the street kids who lived without home or family
in the city. He gave detailed insight to the plight of these young people
and how every Wednesday he somehow eked out enough money from his $30 per month
wages to feed these hungry, impoverished youth as well as some women &
men. With hesitation in his voice Josh, called Jill that night and told
her of the taxi drivers’ tale and asked what she thought about helping. They
agreed to pray about it. After Josh returned home from his trip, it was clear
that God was asking them, “will you go”? Will you help my people?” The answer
was then “YES”. They would help this random taxi driver with his mission
of Wednesday food for the youth and whatever else God put before
them. </span><o:p></o:p></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEa2y3dwOyqCm41cp_P9hfuLFJLaM2TUenG9_OIkl6n6fYclNc0l4zBS3e9-S79AHt4F6KhJhHfY04-QD4qgS6TKZUibAle-GSNHw4WKeQ48oWd7pgGJGGJ1t1e7m0Zv_5Wkewjt8Q3cpJBYou8yuAE1_mIuu-7m45qVIUAihhiwgi-vcRochEzqZ4bXac/s761/Jill%20with%20graduate%20mama%20baby%20at%20the%20daycare.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="761" data-original-width="483" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEa2y3dwOyqCm41cp_P9hfuLFJLaM2TUenG9_OIkl6n6fYclNc0l4zBS3e9-S79AHt4F6KhJhHfY04-QD4qgS6TKZUibAle-GSNHw4WKeQ48oWd7pgGJGGJ1t1e7m0Zv_5Wkewjt8Q3cpJBYou8yuAE1_mIuu-7m45qVIUAihhiwgi-vcRochEzqZ4bXac/w406-h640/Jill%20with%20graduate%20mama%20baby%20at%20the%20daycare.jpg" width="406" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jill with a baby from the daycare program</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Together, Josh & Jill knew this was their calling – with a
“heart for Jesus”, they knew they had to help nourish the souls and bellies of
this vulnerable population. As Jill put it, “feeding the belly lasts one
day, but feeding the soul with Jesus lasts an eternity”. So in 2009 they
formed a 501c3 nonprofit corporation called “One Changed Life”. A board
of directors was assembled. Twelve kids were initially sponsored, wherein
it provided life necessities. The taxi driver and they, side by side, strove to
feed the body and the soul. Josh began traveling to Ethiopia regularly
and witnessed how great a work God was doing not only with the sponsorship
kids, but also in continuation with the street ministry. </span><o:p></o:p></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdqJ4HBlwwSXM9uM4BjZENkuuCvmaptjepO6qg6kjSZfBBwr4UrcO-iDHWLKbW5-6KhXyrzA-8E1_jjXA0VN8clzTdwVyivFTvw6hRvTURJuCT0vvAQc08gvqwdElyfHD9dUIwdh6ObzNicuIZY7j-F70DuDmnZwg1VxvzFMZl72boeUtkwRYp2S3MoEjh/s1024/Street%20boys%20prayer%20time..jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="768" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdqJ4HBlwwSXM9uM4BjZENkuuCvmaptjepO6qg6kjSZfBBwr4UrcO-iDHWLKbW5-6KhXyrzA-8E1_jjXA0VN8clzTdwVyivFTvw6hRvTURJuCT0vvAQc08gvqwdElyfHD9dUIwdh6ObzNicuIZY7j-F70DuDmnZwg1VxvzFMZl72boeUtkwRYp2S3MoEjh/w480-h640/Street%20boys%20prayer%20time..jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Street boys prayer time</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">At first churches would allow the use of their building for the
weekly food sessions that drew about 75 kids and adults. But as time went on
the churches raised their rent forcing the program to move and regular meetings
became a struggle. After 8 years of doing this, Josh & Jill knew they
needed some kind of permanent compound. The Ethiopian government began to crack
down on the need to separate humanitarian work from evangelical work. One
Changed Life worked with a “humanitarian license ” to feed the kids” but to
formally teach the gospel, they needed their own area where they could house a
second licensed entity with an evangelical license.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">With a clear vision, a sister organization, under the umbrella of
One Changed Life was formed. A donor stepped forward and donated 3 months of
rent. After discussion with their board, a decision was made to go
forward when and if they could raise rent for 80% of a year. They
started praying, and within 3 weeks, donations to provide enough rent for one
year were donated. An entire compound was rented and the work to move
forward to again provide food and gospel teachings side by side was
blessed. The ministry began feeding about 280 people 5 days a week and
the sponsorship program blossomed. At the new compound, through
donations and much fundraising in the states, staff was hired and programs were
established to help , sponsorship now serving 109 kids, widows with job
training to help them be self-sufficient, feeding and teaching the Gospel to
35-75 kids per day with ages ranging from 3- 18 years of age, and feeding,
teaching and counseling about 180 men and women from the street. All who come
into the street ministry get a meal and a short biblical message daily.
The facility also has allowed them to host annual programs for the sponsorship
kids such as putting on biblical musical productions to bring joy, singing, and
music to enhance day to day life and vacation bible school programs.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk5yVi-jSlsROM1XLrRe54qPZKtgQbMK7p21NGD2QE71OT7V9NOuVUk3DS6GzmoNhsLFY_0HCfOcMwprVzT7yVkUVwr4pzufqff_UWl8VO5k9nE-Wyyj-lVHCWj1k9QyImxcHfhoavlXMwkRMyZReKSy8RL60h57pm6MECye6pPpbXXm02kviVpXzANtk_/s1280/Traditionally%20dressed%20mamas%20at%20our%20%20home..jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk5yVi-jSlsROM1XLrRe54qPZKtgQbMK7p21NGD2QE71OT7V9NOuVUk3DS6GzmoNhsLFY_0HCfOcMwprVzT7yVkUVwr4pzufqff_UWl8VO5k9nE-Wyyj-lVHCWj1k9QyImxcHfhoavlXMwkRMyZReKSy8RL60h57pm6MECye6pPpbXXm02kviVpXzANtk_/w640-h480/Traditionally%20dressed%20mamas%20at%20our%20%20home..jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mommas in traditional dress<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">And life continued on for Josh & Jill in America as
well. While all this was going on, they adopted frozen embryos and
were blessed in welcoming their twin “snow babies”, Baby #3 & Baby #4. Time
continues to march on and Josh & Jill now home school their 4 children
which allows them the ability to typically spend 3-5 months a year in
Ethiopia. Josh is self-employed. His employees keep the business
afloat while he is away. Jill works part-time and says she has the best
employer ever, who allows her all the time away she needs.</span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">With the increasing time Josh & Jill have spent in Ethiopia,
it became obvious God was calling them to do more. Homeless mamas and babies
would make their way to the compound, as they had no place to call home.
After much prayer and discussion with their board, it was decided to open
another compound as well, where the mamas and babies could go live, learn the
essentials of life and faith, along with the tools to make it on their
own. And once again the funds came in. In 2021, the Women’s & Infants
Transition Home was opened. With another full home of Ethiopian
staff, 10 single moms with nowhere else to go are able to live at the women’s
home. Over the course of a year, they receive training in basic
life skills, parenting, and the Gospel along with skills training on how to
make items to sell. Item they make include bracelets, soaps, cards and
scrubs. They are taught the basics of business and sell their items
both in Ethiopia and to friends of OCL in the U.S.A, all with the
goal of being self-sufficient. All these funds are saved for their
transition into life out of the home. They are also given training in
trade schools lasting 3-4 months for learning how to become a cook,
housekeeper, seamstress or childcare (being a nanny). Each mama is
provided 3 months of rent upon securing a job and moving from the Women’s
Home. </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">And it has just kept going. Just after the Women’s home was
opened, a boy’s home was opened just down the street. In this home, boys
from the street who wanted a fresh start could live and grow in the home, go to
school, and learn how to be a productive citizen. Now, the boys who live
in the home help out voluntarily with the feeding program and Vacation Bible
Schools that minister to other street boys who are still stuck in the street
life. Always seeking ways to make the most of Gods provision and to make
the most of the space, the basement of that home, by God’s
provision, was converted into a daycare and was opened to provide care
for the babies of the graduate moms during the day as standard daycare is
overwhelmingly expensive. </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Still, God had more, a discipleship program was started,
typically, with about 75 men signing per session. Unfortunately, the
dropout rate is high and usually 12 men graduate. The men who stay
received job training, help do outreach to other street men, and often help
donate money back into the program as they are eternally grateful for being
shown a new way to live, skills to help them be stable but most importantly
living a Christian lifestyle. </span><o:p></o:p></p><p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieBlPF4CVTLlKzRNbyo_9QUZ3d-3L7BjTPNQ4iEEoYQQ1xXiHKwi1Q6QDWdLLcTR8xLXpxxJgYJRwsjYMR6K7btIzePA-yxmosC8QNfORCdCOc7asXkAQL9HhdWihqHSDxo5HHh9x4DP44os2nMnOiti8d1jppIQAROo2VlNvgwFHg7ju-GLn8TPWxqnOc/s1280/Street%20mens%20breakfast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieBlPF4CVTLlKzRNbyo_9QUZ3d-3L7BjTPNQ4iEEoYQQ1xXiHKwi1Q6QDWdLLcTR8xLXpxxJgYJRwsjYMR6K7btIzePA-yxmosC8QNfORCdCOc7asXkAQL9HhdWihqHSDxo5HHh9x4DP44os2nMnOiti8d1jppIQAROo2VlNvgwFHg7ju-GLn8TPWxqnOc/w640-h480/Street%20mens%20breakfast.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Street men's breakfast</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">All this is accomplished by 18 full-time staff members: two
feeding programs, a discipleship program, a women’s and infants transition
home, a boys home, women’s empowerment training and 109 sponsorship
kids. Affectionately Josh and Jill relayed the story of one of their
first sponsorship children, Ephrem, who was sponsored since he was 9 years
old. He is now a 24 year old young man and an active part of the staff
ministering to the boys from the street and helping with translation.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">The excitement and joy of their life work for Josh & Jill was
evident as they were telling me their amazing story. Both feel beyond blessed
in working to make all the things that most of us take for granted such as a
roof over our head, clothes on our backs, enough food to eat and the
opportunity to be self-sufficient, not to mention knowing basic life skills.
Today these children, men, and women have found a soft landing with Christian
love that has forever changed their lives for the better. Josh and
Jill are grateful to God to help them see the need and be instruments in
lessening human suffering.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">When I asked if the taxi driver was still driving his taxi, Josh
proudly the man, with the help of an investor, opened several businesses and
employees 90 people, many of whom he has hired after graduating from the job
training programs. His heart still joyful in serving the God who gave His
all for him and happily giving so much of his personal time and resources to
the ministry.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Then Jill happily said the next program that they hope to focus on
is a coffee shop that will be a gift shop wherein the women from their
home can sell their crafts, work, make a good living and be
self-sustaining. Once again, they give it to God in
prayer. </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">As we finished the interview, I was seeing firsthand the beauty
and faith of two ordinary, but beautiful God filled people doing exactly what
the Bible has taught us. I swear images of Mother Theresa were flashing in my
mind as I was talking to them. When I inquired if they were affiliated with a
church, they replied no. They were just filled with a Jesus loving heart and
doing what God had led them to do. And then as we sat, taking in the moment
that this amazing journey all began because of infertility issues. And in
reflecting at each occurrence along the way with just the right person entering
into the story at just the right time, coincidence? Nope, I personally do not
believe in coincidences, however, I do believe in serendipity by God’s hand.
All you have to do is have the eyes to see it.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Sometimes words aren’t enough to describe the wonderous beauty of
seeing in real life what it looks like for two people to take a leap of faith
to help their fellow mankind and walking a Christian life. To find out
more about their organization, their website is </span><a href="http://www.onechangedlife.org/"><span style="color: #0563c1; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">www.onechangedlife.org</span></a><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">, email
is info@onechangedlife.org.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .65pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">And as the promise of the new year awaits for each one of us, what
kind of story will you be living? Where does your heart lead you? May we
all find the faith and courage to live our best life in 2024 and beyond.
All my best, Gayle</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 13.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="margin: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: .7pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 13.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><br /><p></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-91058119791937493932023-12-23T06:36:00.000-08:002023-12-23T17:32:40.091-08:00Christmas Letter 2023<p> <br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEOPaQ2dkPUTqGYqiWXeONlYxd4x9OabesOGWQjD7rS2OKcb78wuNRybf1c5Aek27xiEO3OcL7wad9I61WybfWRu7_FarQWnyC9Bn3LILAdpDEnaJYpRW097qKUcx4LzxPAgDipVuFnGshNdEsc37VxjhZgSpVBpnbfFIonuWStcytTqnQ9KeN_citpfkG/s2048/beach%20church.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1155" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEOPaQ2dkPUTqGYqiWXeONlYxd4x9OabesOGWQjD7rS2OKcb78wuNRybf1c5Aek27xiEO3OcL7wad9I61WybfWRu7_FarQWnyC9Bn3LILAdpDEnaJYpRW097qKUcx4LzxPAgDipVuFnGshNdEsc37VxjhZgSpVBpnbfFIonuWStcytTqnQ9KeN_citpfkG/w360-h640/beach%20church.JPG" width="360" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A picture of this beautiful church taken this past summer</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">Christmas 2023</span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">In the early morning hours, words started swirling about to
write a Christmas letter. As I crept
down the stairs the house is quiet, a good time to reflect on this past year. With a freshly brewed cup of coffee, a cozy spot by the fire, I wish each and every
one of you a very blessed Christmas. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">If you have ever watched the movie “<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1441912/" target="_blank">The Way</a>” (which I recommend
wholeheartedly) it’s about a man walking a path towards a very specific journey's
end. And I realized that everyone’s life
is a lot like that movie. In that each of
us is walking on their own path with the end goal to a specific destination. We walk along with others, some for a time,
sometimes alone. The people we meet
along the way help shape us in ways that teach us lessons about life, love and
hope. Sometimes the lessons are brutal
and harsh and sometimes they are pure beauty. For me, it’s fair to say that overall,
the most significant experiences were the hard ones, but that they resulted in
learning about faith, hope and love. I
don’t know about you, but my pathway on my personal journey has been filled
with many people, many lessons to be learned (usually the hard way), but
nonetheless, each has had an impact on me that helped shape who I am and where
I am going. My end goal is eternal life
with God. I am filled with the knowledge that our God is a great one. This year for the first time, I’ve been reading
a chapter a day in the book of Luke. As I
go about my days in this Advent season, it’s so easy to get side-tracked by all
the hustle and bustle and forget the “Reason for the Season” the birth of Jesus. Maybe you are like me getting so busy that all I see are the "to do lists"....and then in the quiet
hours of early dawn, I realize what a magnificent gift has been bestowed to each
and every one of us. All we have to do
is accept that gift of God’s love. It’s free.
He shows up for us. Each day is a
new one to get up and try our humanly best to live it in ways that honor our
Savior. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">On a personal note, this year has been filled with so many blessings. Rod & I did a commitment ceremony with
his good friend and pastor performing the ceremony and attended by our immediate
family. For us it represents our
commitment to each other before God.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">This past year has been filled with
many wonderful family gatherings and adventures, some close to home and some afar. And regardless of where we were location
wise, it was all about being connected to each other. We laughed, ate, drank
and yes sometimes cried together - bonds formed of what makes up a family. Is our life perfect? No, but each day we get
to try to be the best we can… for me that is where “grace” is either given or
received when I stumble and falter. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">I find as the years go by, filling
my days with quality people that include family and friends, is where a person
sees true beauty in life. We have also found a wonderful <a href="https://www.ourventure.church/palouse" target="_blank">church </a>and are forming
a lovely church family there. Words sometimes
fail to convey the beauty of connectedness. But it’s real and I can say both Rod & I
feel it.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">And with that, I wish for each and
every one of you that as you walk down the path of your personal journey, that
you find those good people who make your life beautiful, the ones who help hold
you up when life knocks you down. And I hope you will take a moment to reflect
on all the blessings in your life and give credit to God. My hope is that as
you walk on this road that we call life, that one of your goals is to ask God
to be your walking partner as we go up & down the hills towards our final
journey’s end. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">Merry Christmas,<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">Gayle<o:p></o:p></p></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0V8akJmYhoAy8f45NigULi7EL350ovLcAhWTlE7xMJr2qLpmXoAnt7UXAXZgGriNLlF5UA2FuGlpYBxz7jFeeGAircmbeU5v1R3o4WuMvEl4m3Ii6qgQ3OBKI-bkJXicKXKvQWI9IQsbKooxqzGHQbxqgyHUd_e5BrryXcjBYHj1ynmoEhwNd7d5toD7y/s3978/We%20Are%20Family%203%20IMG_0931.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2973" data-original-width="3978" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0V8akJmYhoAy8f45NigULi7EL350ovLcAhWTlE7xMJr2qLpmXoAnt7UXAXZgGriNLlF5UA2FuGlpYBxz7jFeeGAircmbeU5v1R3o4WuMvEl4m3Ii6qgQ3OBKI-bkJXicKXKvQWI9IQsbKooxqzGHQbxqgyHUd_e5BrryXcjBYHj1ynmoEhwNd7d5toD7y/w640-h478/We%20Are%20Family%203%20IMG_0931.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our family....not a blended family... A BLESSED FAMILY </td></tr></tbody></table></div><br /><p></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-34654839176390245662023-11-05T07:27:00.059-08:002023-11-05T07:27:00.156-08:00GOD Kiss Series - Earth Angels<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTKhXODaGGXVADZL1OHnpRhyphenhyphenNRy0_fPh1WYsDaN_kLG6CCGP02wMo_K66TAqLyV5OGx8s2nIbLNiyEqq1yXpIb-zM7Zl6VLCXas0ExMfcXqaXeGGl9YPKgcRdL2IErycjr3y6hrzEnCjQ3YZcF_XnZKCenNnKXOs71dfmIIaeEDBQjA4wiCCdiTIssrk10/s3280/Bethany.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3280" data-original-width="2464" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTKhXODaGGXVADZL1OHnpRhyphenhyphenNRy0_fPh1WYsDaN_kLG6CCGP02wMo_K66TAqLyV5OGx8s2nIbLNiyEqq1yXpIb-zM7Zl6VLCXas0ExMfcXqaXeGGl9YPKgcRdL2IErycjr3y6hrzEnCjQ3YZcF_XnZKCenNnKXOs71dfmIIaeEDBQjA4wiCCdiTIssrk10/w480-h640/Bethany.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We all have our “life stories” the ones that got us to where
we are now. The roads we have had to
travel, whether chosen or not, we walked that path and learned so many lessons
along the way. Sometimes the lessons
inflicted were brutal that no one should ever have to experience. And then by the grace of God, we met beautiful
souls who were nothing short of being “earth angels” sent to shape us and
provide gentle guidance to help us step into what we were destined to be. Once again, I am privileged to hear and share
the incredible story of Bethany Bertsch. A courageous, beautiful young woman
who is the living testimony of being the recipient of the beauty of God’s love
and how simple acts of kindness helped shape a tender young girl. And as you read her story, you may find as I did that she has so many
similar components to Tara Westover who wrote about her life titled,
“Educated”.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">When I first met Bethany, it was over coffee after she had
extended the invite based on the contact card I had filled out after attending
the Venture Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had emailed her my
God Kiss blog posts and one day she asked if she could share her story with me.
And so…..<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I arrived, pen & paper in hand and had no idea of what a
journey she has been on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sitting in Bethany’s
comfortable home and seeing the young kiddos energetically popping in and out
of the kitchen, it was a normal setting that could be anywhere in any town of a
young mom with little kids. It was a home filled with a little bit of chaos and
a whole lot of love.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Bethany begins by telling me that no one would have
recognized her when she was an 18-year-old. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was beyond withdrawn and scared of the
world at large.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, at the legal
age of emancipation, she gathered up courage and moved out to live on her
own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bethany explains that when her
parents married, they had 6 children between them from their first marriages,
and then they had 4 of their own, of which Bethany was the oldest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her childhood was filled with neglect and
abuse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She & her family lived rurally
in Northeast Oregon with no running water and no conveniences. She explained
that her mother suffered from severe mental illness to the extent she burned
down a historical school building. Her workaholic father was a conspiracist political
activist who was rarely home. If trauma had a recipe, this would be it.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0LSc9MlDfUiGss1_D_gZzAiEsyXcaeBTc94D_u2zUOEq-bfeZ1Jcv_6j0FTIhozJ6W05xqkUIBMYM4R0FB3T7m7FlaBr3Woy51E7OMJidg9NHDFRkYe83Xve_JEDRL6AX7zhciV9ZxThN6cTMDjglN6SLy0WQM4JRaDFPvtZIYvi8Pj0yS34jo1Fw9d8G/s599/bethany,%20young.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="525" data-original-width="599" height="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0LSc9MlDfUiGss1_D_gZzAiEsyXcaeBTc94D_u2zUOEq-bfeZ1Jcv_6j0FTIhozJ6W05xqkUIBMYM4R0FB3T7m7FlaBr3Woy51E7OMJidg9NHDFRkYe83Xve_JEDRL6AX7zhciV9ZxThN6cTMDjglN6SLy0WQM4JRaDFPvtZIYvi8Pj0yS34jo1Fw9d8G/w400-h350/bethany,%20young.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: start;">The only picture that shows my entire family, taken in 1997. I'm in the front in pink. </span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP2A216iG90-QMohGZHsYtl0c9Rg1hgvsg5yNJ29wAWAd6SKsF1X1qLVmJXhAALVgz2xgLOa0VgKEmPz1Zln0Sc3A7BxvnXaXXU_ozZ8bNflhHgpWXhzwle_JovTDIsCZ21DQQiIAQwcqqqNlSlozOYjU26B4oAFM6KqDtv_aJ7aOq6C8DvSyob3TtyJgt/s622/bethany-generator.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="622" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP2A216iG90-QMohGZHsYtl0c9Rg1hgvsg5yNJ29wAWAd6SKsF1X1qLVmJXhAALVgz2xgLOa0VgKEmPz1Zln0Sc3A7BxvnXaXXU_ozZ8bNflhHgpWXhzwle_JovTDIsCZ21DQQiIAQwcqqqNlSlozOYjU26B4oAFM6KqDtv_aJ7aOq6C8DvSyob3TtyJgt/w400-h305/bethany-generator.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: start;">Me on a truck in Promise. You can see the generator to the right. We turned on the generator a couple of times a week to do laundry and watch a show on TV. We got 3 or 4 channels with a big antenna.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj6gkQfRj2VV0yxeUGE1uykCVxRkAg6_N17l71FQMdbbySUSEy8lm0-3XHP54KRSKu8nnYpUrhzKx49eEQLbxQmT2MGP1JWv5DUCrxA6q7Alqcy3z3BcXldAeKi_52WJxqn2yjRG2WOXuukwjU7ArIV_tu84-0gFKLUpPNDcAiLPbzR6CxhnlN7-oJkuPN/s692/bethany-potatoe.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="488" data-original-width="692" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj6gkQfRj2VV0yxeUGE1uykCVxRkAg6_N17l71FQMdbbySUSEy8lm0-3XHP54KRSKu8nnYpUrhzKx49eEQLbxQmT2MGP1JWv5DUCrxA6q7Alqcy3z3BcXldAeKi_52WJxqn2yjRG2WOXuukwjU7ArIV_tu84-0gFKLUpPNDcAiLPbzR6CxhnlN7-oJkuPN/w400-h283/bethany-potatoe.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: start;">My brother Nathan and I washing potatoes in Promise. There were times when potatoes were all we had to eat. Guess I was destined to be an Idaho girl.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p class="MsoNormal">Bethany and her siblings were all home schooled after finishing
6<sup>th</sup> grade. Her father felt that anything after that level of
education in the public educational system was ripe for poisoning the minds of
the children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her dad had tried to
convince her that her role was to stay home and take care of him. However, when
she turned 18, she left to try to navigate the scary world her father had
warned her about. Being on her own, certain people began to show up in her life
to become her “earth angels” to give her the guidance she so desperately needed.
The first earth angel was the woman who gave Bethany a job as a dishwasher in a
small café, and gave her a place to live above the café.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bethany said her coworkers thought she was a
“mute” as she was painfully shy, rarely speaking to anyone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She says she often confused the manager and
assistant manager with each other as they both wore similar shoes, noting she
was unable to make eye contact with anyone.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyEea68wA6iCAYpOJMN6OMf-xX74saYUnKF5zIz3DqS6geKa_I7TbTahYGEEvVIYDTCRpJHPIVftlARyyGiBHxj5Y7yovxDRc4BrjgDNmXbUcptn5euqtq6wd8oXU_4np2vSP2BtHQo-pRC26X9jqHWZxz1ECxJNrFOO13zZZ-eFAK3xOJWQnTxBzlTIp-/s757/bethany-friends.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="757" data-original-width="556" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyEea68wA6iCAYpOJMN6OMf-xX74saYUnKF5zIz3DqS6geKa_I7TbTahYGEEvVIYDTCRpJHPIVftlARyyGiBHxj5Y7yovxDRc4BrjgDNmXbUcptn5euqtq6wd8oXU_4np2vSP2BtHQo-pRC26X9jqHWZxz1ECxJNrFOO13zZZ-eFAK3xOJWQnTxBzlTIp-/w294-h400/bethany-friends.png" width="294" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: start;">-The Zollman girls, my sister, and me. Brenda Zollman is at the bottom. Charity Zollman, my dishwasher buddy, is above me.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p class="MsoNormal">Life might have gone on like that
for months, maybe years…. but little did she know that God had a plan for
Bethany’s life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The second earth angel
was the chatty young female dishwasher who was hired to work alongside of Bethany.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was through their discussion that they
learned they were distantly related as cousins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And then the cousin took Bethany home and it was there that she was
taken in by this Christian family who began showing her what a normal family
life entailed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They lavished love and
wisdom on her and taught her basic common-sense things such as how to dress,
how to relate to others and in this nurturing environment, Bethany flourished.
While attending church services with them, the church prayed over her to
release her demons and to help her heal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Bethany recalls it was a turning point wherein she realized how
horrendous her childhood had been. When I asked Bethany if she wanted to give
an example, she opened up that life had been filled with emotional & sexual
abuse from her older sadistic brother.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He was removed from the home, and it was then Bethany finally found the
courage to come forward with the abuse to her mom. However even though her mom
acknowledged that she had suspected it, that she failed to protect Bethany and
allowed the brother to come home for visits.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Bethany brought her brokenness to God to heal her, and it
was where she committed her life to Our Savior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>One night Bethany had a vision. Even though as she puts it, she was a
baby Christian, she knew God was speaking to her and that in her vision she saw
a roadmap with streets and pathways on it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And as it unfolded, the map showed roads crisscrossing each other and
that the pathway was highlighted denoting where she had been and where she was going.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">With the newfound faith along with the warmth of her
cousin’s family, Bethany began to see the world in a new light and began to
branch out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At work she became a line
cook followed by being a manager.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
owner of the café eventually shut down the business and the building was sold.
That meant that Bethany was now out of a job and a place to live.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, her former boss offered her a place
to live in her basement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When she went
to look for a job with the unemployment office, she took a job placement test
and it was there the third earth angel, a staff member said to her, “you are
really intelligent, you should go to college!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>College had never entered Bethany’s mind as an option; however, this
wonderful staff member helped her apply to 2 colleges, one in Central Oregon
and the other was the University of Idaho.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Bethany chose the UI based on the financial grants offered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She recalls arriving in Moscow with no money,
no support and yet she felt she was exactly where she was meant to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not long after, Bethany connected with Chi
Alpha, the Christian student group on campus. It was there she met Clark, who
later became her husband.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGNfF5P8jMWuDJo7BlWfBxU2gvb6yOy4r23gg5XEl9pjhVe0iuZFLlgYikg1Sw9TjR8O2_GfvYo8clIMUgbfJ9RUNvbVb_SVkFS2jHHSYcy7RFMJy0iZoOmHyvsdNchXsRHjtix0VOiZU4lo52_pjG7F1rgv9OSHNM9ghOidznpwoo_IE3xra1n-0LCexX/s4160/bethany-college%20advisor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3120" data-original-width="4160" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGNfF5P8jMWuDJo7BlWfBxU2gvb6yOy4r23gg5XEl9pjhVe0iuZFLlgYikg1Sw9TjR8O2_GfvYo8clIMUgbfJ9RUNvbVb_SVkFS2jHHSYcy7RFMJy0iZoOmHyvsdNchXsRHjtix0VOiZU4lo52_pjG7F1rgv9OSHNM9ghOidznpwoo_IE3xra1n-0LCexX/w400-h300/bethany-college%20advisor.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr></tbody></table></p><div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Showing off my name on the outstanding senior board in the JAMM Department at UI with my major professor Becky Tallent and admin assistant friend Diane McGarry. I was accepted to UI on a provisional status because of my SAT score and lack of educational records. But I loved college and did well there.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="yj6qo ajU" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; cursor: pointer; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; margin: 2px 0px 0px; outline: none; padding: 10px 0px; text-align: start; width: 22px;"></div></td></tr></tbody></table><p class="MsoNormal">One day while attending the Palousafest, she collected
church literature of area churches and chose the one that was close to
campus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Currently it was called Christan
Life Center on Jackson Street and she attended while working on her degree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fast forward, Bethany graduated from the UI
in Public Relations, married Clark and blissfully settled into a life that she
never imagined was available to her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In 2014, Pastor Scott Underwood took over as paster for the
Christan Life Center which then turned into Venture Church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During this time Clark and Bethany gave birth
in 2017 to their son and she recalls his parents had gifted them with an
expensive flannel craft biblical children’s story board for the baby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And one day Pastor Scott asked if they would
lead the children’s ministry when a vacancy occurred, of which they said
yes!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all they had this amazing
story board and were excited to serve.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Not long after that Bethany took the lead and has been in charge of
overseeing the care and education of the youth in Venture Church ever since. Last
year Bethany stepped up to serve in a paid role as the Connections Pastor along
with her duties in the Children’s ministry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Today, Bethany says she feels like she is living in a “Hallmark movie”
where life is full, joyful and beautiful. And Bethany feels blessed to be
living a God-centered life with a wonderful husband and their three precious
children. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a bonus, Clark’s mom came
to live with them a year ago, and again, a blessing to have her sweet
mother-in-law’s presence and help. And even with great strides, love and
support Bethany confided that she occasionally suffers from PTSD and that
certain things will trigger childhood memories that she has to work through.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">When I asked Bethany if she had any other visions, the
answer was yes. Bethany recalls that she was in God’s Throne room and
desperately wanting to go in, but she knew she couldn’t as she wasn’t clean.
She was sobbing and then she noticed drops of wetness on her from above. She
says it was the blood of Jesus dripping on her and everywhere it landed, she
became clean.<o:p></o:p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhujQZTwfbECTlyZ0AVzl-C3fmWnASoaWwPiHkukxEDLGvkS3tQ-f7wqbmFFft7eWL0Fj2vGk25CZQWIy17iyu9dBw7amGYULpm8T75cE2r_WPzlLg2fgWLdyd_rURDR6mLoKs-YDSyx2CmA8mRabNgbQOZUp7l9s-lZQuuv7Q7xpCQHy8jAB2-IOdw-Po8/s4032/bethany,%20husband.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhujQZTwfbECTlyZ0AVzl-C3fmWnASoaWwPiHkukxEDLGvkS3tQ-f7wqbmFFft7eWL0Fj2vGk25CZQWIy17iyu9dBw7amGYULpm8T75cE2r_WPzlLg2fgWLdyd_rURDR6mLoKs-YDSyx2CmA8mRabNgbQOZUp7l9s-lZQuuv7Q7xpCQHy8jAB2-IOdw-Po8/w480-h640/bethany,%20husband.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: start;">There's a recent one of Clark and me and the kids. </span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p class="MsoNormal">In hearing the story of this brave young woman’s story of
survival and faith. I was awestruck by all the events that occurred to change
the trajectory of this tender soul. So many things went right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just the right person at the right time to be
a lifeline, a safe haven and a guide post. Each person doing their own little
part that came together to make a truly beautiful story of success.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And unfortunately, not everyone is as lucky
or blessed. “Child sexual abuse can have lifetime impacts on
survivors—especially without support. It can impact educational outcomes, lead
to heightened symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder, higher suicidality,
drug abuse, higher likelihood of teen pregnancy and chronic health issues.” (as
reported by <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="https://www.ywca.org/wp-content/uploads/WWV-CSA-Fact-Sheet-Final.pdf">YWCA</a>)</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It’s hard to understand the evil in the world, however, we
all have free will and the ability to make choices.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bethany could have chosen to not accept the
help of the earth angels sent to help her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And thankfully she did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The road
Bethany had to travel as a young child was beyond horrific, however sometimes
you have to know the story of where a person came from to understand how far a
person has moved forward.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bethany is a
living witness to the greatness of Jesus who helped her overcome hurt &
sorrow and become a cornerstone of what a beautiful life can be when you are a Child
of God. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Look to the lord and his strength; seek his face always. 1
Chronicles 16:11 NIV<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-89918005184782549022023-10-01T07:10:00.004-07:002023-10-01T14:22:40.782-07:00GOD KISS SERIES - SILVER LININGS<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYt4CvkrIyRHG819PBtDEmg_2t5fnvOQSdf7Ck6gLb7it8WcuG3VUOI1Y6nKlp8PZJBfU_Ceb77Ca9onKE2-bahb7UAUjZ08z5r6WeIFjo4RHmGpXf94_LkxSboV6y1cjhyfsSs-pT7D5UU_PH2qtaQSSaMXT7zHpv6fLXcEjdSFrK65UBsYczw7rqIl7O/s3088/IMG_0363.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2056" data-original-width="3088" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYt4CvkrIyRHG819PBtDEmg_2t5fnvOQSdf7Ck6gLb7it8WcuG3VUOI1Y6nKlp8PZJBfU_Ceb77Ca9onKE2-bahb7UAUjZ08z5r6WeIFjo4RHmGpXf94_LkxSboV6y1cjhyfsSs-pT7D5UU_PH2qtaQSSaMXT7zHpv6fLXcEjdSFrK65UBsYczw7rqIl7O/w640-h426/IMG_0363.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal">Have you ever been somewhere in public and noticed someone
who radiates pure joy? And you wonder
what the source of that wonderous attitude is?
For the past several Sundays, I began noticing the happy joyful group of
college age students in <a href="https://www.ourventure.church/palouse">church</a>. And one
young man always stood out to me, and I enjoyed his devout energy that he had
during the music portion of the service.
In pondering who to write about for October, I was drawn to this young
man, Luke Hoover. And one Sunday before services started, I walked up and asked
for the interview and Luke graciously agreed.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Luke began his story saying he had the classic Christian
upbringing as his family was active in their church in Alaska. His mom is a nurse practitioner, and his dad
is a pilot. Luke recalls as a young lad
that he accepted Jesus one day while sitting on the sofa with his dad. And his life has centered around being a child
of God ever since.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Luke describes himself as being a people pleaser and says he
would often be described as having biggest heart. And as a child, he didn’t
understand the phrase of having a big heart, this just came naturally for him
as he deeply cared for people. Ironically,
Luke did have a heart condition and had to undergo treatment. Around 7<sup>th</sup>
or 8<sup>th</sup> grade his parents divorced. And his first thought was, “how
can I be of help to my family?” Luke
admits he never thought about himself, his focus was outward working to be a
support to his siblings and parents. And
that is where he describes Satan as coming into his life to work against him.
Luke found himself trying to being what the other person wanted or needed him
to be. He would be one way for one person and another way for someone
else. He was trying to be the person
that everyone wanted him to be. And this
began a downward spiral as he couldn’t say no and Satan pounced on that and ran
with it. Luke was in emotional deep pain
but couldn’t share it with anyone. He kept it hidden as best he could. Luke
relied partially on God and like many of us, we ask for help, however we never
fully give those burdens to God. Instead, we step in and try to figure our life
on our own. I’ve done this multiple times
and maybe you have too, and Luke fell into that same trap. And finally, when his heart and soul were
depleted and he couldn’t give anymore, he shut down emotionally. He stopped caring about others as he was
trying to deal with his own emotions and problems. However, his outward actions
continued on as to appear as the caring kind of person. No one knew his
personal struggles. Having an analytical mindset, Luke studied psychology in
high school to try to understand emotions and their effect on the human body
& soul.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">In Luke’s freshman year of college, a female friend made the
observation that made him stop and re-examine himself. The young woman said “Luke, your emotions are
too perfect!” She said “emotions are
hard, messy and imperfect. You have to feel your emotions, good or bad!” This got him to thinking about that and a
shift began. God was there, waiting to
help. And not long after that, when he
was reading a scripture, it hit him and realized his friend was right. And Luke
didn’t know where to start to begin the healing process for his own heart and
soul. And that is when a message from God said, “don’t worry, I’m going to get
you where you need to be”.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Shortly after that Luke began attending the Christan group
on the University of Idaho’s campus called Chi Alpha. Its name means “Christ
Ambassador”. Luke describes himself as
being an all or nothing kind of guy, so he jumped in with both feet. Besides attending the meetings, he began
taking a discipleship class to become a Facilitator after getting a nudge from
God. Gradually he began caring for
others and found a true loving community.
In Luke’s own words, “he genuinely loves these people”. Today he and the other Facilitators hold
bible studies as well as mentor others. While
helping others Luke realized he still had a long way to go to begin his healing
journey and first, God showed him his gracious and all consuming love, the God’s
lesson was developing “Trust”. Trusting himself, trusting others. He began
opening up to others about his pain and in his vulnerability true acceptance came
from others. And it has helped Luke in his inward journey to get 100% healed
emotionally.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">The next lesson from God has Luke working on learning about
“Hope”. Hope in Luke’s words is a by-product of trust. Hope is the fruit from trusting in God. Luke
discovered true joy during Chi Alpha’s worship nights. And one evening while
talking to a friend about denial of feelings, they read a scripture from the <i>book
of Luke</i> and it hit home. Living
joyfully, loving, caring and bonding with others is one of God’s blessings for
us humans. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Luke went on to describe other activities that Chi Alpha
does. A few were the Fall Breakaway Camp, Winter Camp wherein the chapters in
the NW come together for worship, studies & game; and the Spring Break
Outreach to other campuses without chapters of Chi Alpha. As a facilitator, Luke meets/mentors others
and this has led to a focus on a career pathway. Luke did an intern as a Christinan Biblical
Counselor and experienced ways a trained professional can help guide a
Christian through their problems.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">When I asked Luke what his future looked like after college,
he wants to complete his Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) certification. The <span style="background: white; color: #4d5156; font-family: Roboto; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 107%;">purpose of the </span><span face=""Tahoma",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 107%;">of the (CMA) “m</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #444444; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 107%;">edical
assistants work alongside physicians, mainly in outpatient or ambulatory care
facilities, such as medical offices and clinics.”</span><span face=""Tahoma",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 107%;"> Luke felt this would benefit him when he takes his MCAT to
pursue his dream of becoming a MD with the final goal of becoming a physiatrist.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Tahoma",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 107%;">After listening to Luke’s
story, once again I was in wonderous awe of God’s perfect plan for this dynamic
young man. And I can envision how Luke’s past experiences with emotional
burnout and his recovery following Our Creator’s guidance and lessons would one
day help his fellow man kind, medically as well as spiritually. Hallelujah! I call that silver linings.. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Tahoma",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 107%;">P.S. soooo happy you stopped by to read the blogpost. And if this inspires you or maybe you know someone who may benefit from reading this. Wishing you a blessed day. Gayle</span></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Tahoma",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #333333; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-12844455620624323302023-09-03T14:35:00.004-07:002023-09-03T14:35:51.694-07:00GOD Series Blogpost - Sunday School<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_s6JsCUClkQUEogmiArhhv7Q9CtmVK4b_PWlFDTgS8A7dpNznGZczhoRRJClPyeaELGBKm-nsCmPlH4XVlfGW1QrTwmVwxTFyRDpGQwhyzshryrU-X_Gw-VlI1IhmFKCdJ3bGyXRbIkn1ZyH561-XGeQYt4PyCe-PpH4XttJS--02s-9Hw0j8y4I-JFou/s188/cross%20and%20hands.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="125" data-original-width="188" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_s6JsCUClkQUEogmiArhhv7Q9CtmVK4b_PWlFDTgS8A7dpNznGZczhoRRJClPyeaELGBKm-nsCmPlH4XVlfGW1QrTwmVwxTFyRDpGQwhyzshryrU-X_Gw-VlI1IhmFKCdJ3bGyXRbIkn1ZyH561-XGeQYt4PyCe-PpH4XttJS--02s-9Hw0j8y4I-JFou/w640-h426/cross%20and%20hands.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">I had been pondering on who to interview for the God Kiss
blog series.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I gave the search to God,
and he answered- go reconnect with your old friend, Karen. For you see, we had
been neighbors and became good friends back in the mid-1970s & 80s. And life
happened and we both moved and lost touch with each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And low and behold, I remembered her old land
line number… which is amazing since I can hardly remember anyone’s phone number
let alone an ancient land line number from over 30 years ago! I called and got
ahold of her with my request to be able to share her story about how she became
a Christian.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We quickly met for lunch to
reconnect and then set a time for me to come out to do the interview. And it
was like were never apart for all those years, the friendship was still strong.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Karen recalls growing up in a suburb of Los Angles and while
her parents didn’t attend church, they were the ones who showed up for others
in times of need.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their moral compass
was always set up for compassion, grace and love of their fellow man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Karen recalls the story of her mom raising
her two siblings after the death of her own mom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her grandfather remarried a woman who
basically used church as a weapon against her mom and siblings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So even though attending church wasn’t a high
priority of her parents, Karen’s mom and dad were the kind of people you would
want in your world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At around age 7 or
8 Karen asked her mom if she could attend Sunday school with her friend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The answer was yes, and Karen and her friend
would put on a dress every Sunday morning and then Karen’s mom would drive them
to church and drop them off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There Karen
embraced the stories told by an amazing teacher.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-size: medium;">And then they attended the worship services
and embraced the scripture. It was where she learned the scripture John 3:16 “For
God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever
believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Fast forward to the teen years, and like many of us at that
age, religion was set aside and put on the back burner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Life revolved around friends, social life
which included partying and falling under the influence of our current
world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During the summers, Karen visited
Idaho where her older sister lived.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
after high school and a few semesters of junior college, Karen packed her bags
and drove to Mud Lake, Idaho to live near her sister & brother-in-law.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Karen landed a job as a legal secretary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One night she attended a rodeo dance, and her
brother in-law introduced her to Rick, a cowboy who was on the rodeo
circuit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Karen recalls that was a rough
lifestyle which included a lot of drinking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They married and Rick decided to leave the rodeo circuit and finish his
degree at the University of Idaho.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They bought
a home just outside of Moscow which happened to be a house next door to yours
truly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Besides being neighbors, we
became good friends. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One day Rick came home
with some biblical brochures he had been given.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Rick felt the calling to return to his structured Christian upbringing and
recommitted his life to God. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I recall
Karen telling me that Rick had become a Christian and we pondered what life
would look like since neither of us were walking the Christian pathway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Karen said for about 6 months that Rick would
daily share his concern about her soul going to hell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Karen was angry and just wanted her old
husband back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Finally Rick gave the situation
to God, who also had plans for Karen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Karen
eventually committed her life to Christ and there they began their new life as
Christians.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They had two daughters and
settled into life as parents along with joining a legalistic centered church as
Rick was raised in a stricter traditional setting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For Karen as a new Christian, she struggled
and questioned the church’s mandates/lists of rules that she felt were being
placed on her to obtain God’s love. Often it felt that the rules were oppressive
and unattainable to appease God. Some of the church practices required women to
wear tunics/dresses, have their hair in buns and bake whole wheat bread. That
along with submissiveness made Karen question these practices. It often felt
that members were simply going through the motions while not living the
gospel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rick was a faithful, kind,
loving husband and father and together he and Karen continued their search for
a church that would be a good fit for their family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Karen began reading a book by Charles
Stanley and there she finally felt free, that she embraced and understood how
God valued her with or without her hair in a bun, wearing a dress and other
lists of rules to adhere to in order to be a good Christian.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She experienced
and continues to experience His grace and mercy and feels His presence moving
in her life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When her mother was dying
in the hospital, Karen and her dad were there 24/7 taking shifts until the
end.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was shortly after that Karen was
approached by a nurse who had witnessed Karen’s behavior along with that of
anther Christian nurse and commented “that she wanted whatever they had in
their lives” as she saw God’s grace in action.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Today their children are adults, married and leading
productive Christian lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rick and
Karen are enjoying their lives and love the current church they are attending. As
the church’s focus is <span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%;">committed </span>to “preaching the
Good News of Jesus Christ. We want all to be fed by God’s wonderful Word,
and be fruitful in Him.”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: #F5EFED; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin-bottom: 3.75pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 3.75pt; mso-line-height-alt: 10.5pt; orphans: 2; text-align: justify; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-color-alt: windowtext; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background: #F5EFED; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; margin: 0in; mso-line-height-alt: 10.5pt; orphans: 2; text-align: justify; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-color-alt: windowtext; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">
“Taste and see that the LORD is good;
blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.” <i>Psalm 34:8”</i></span><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And as always, it is an honor for me to get to hear and
share the life stories of others. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>May God’s
will be your guiding light in all you do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Gayle<o:p></o:p></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-12924729685230122922023-08-06T08:00:00.090-07:002023-08-06T08:00:00.136-07:00God Kiss Blog Series - The Handprint<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4kPHD1SqRbjNkUw-kxBCx2CY1vP_c5fE447XRZxoB-tZ5_wc9n57ZUM8EdAvumjF4U1FdqAk-vY2ozlaQIs0vx0yzRYWdpQp4bWLamTfCpFHYiQb75hYWlfewT2r73JM2d9sFGEqi3CbSzXKKq7CnYPx1_LvuSo8YRcKeFGSUDDFzYQPx4ktkx3b9gW2U/s960/Sharon%20beach.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><br /></a><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibD1W7FIRbMbJdYnt1qKozg-hadxM9MxO0N0P74olc_mC7b_DHiwwSA_Ii9JE6rEIbwxepSmCSPRsF0ILvwVP9UhssoeuTzBW1dyzr1jCxgQ80NosWF3LTy3xxF5EuRfxsYcxLLJGYrfaHy8H1x27Vp3Tf4LJFM7NF1NUqtGPoXHK87D0YLXc3t58hOQNv/s960/Sharon%20beach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibD1W7FIRbMbJdYnt1qKozg-hadxM9MxO0N0P74olc_mC7b_DHiwwSA_Ii9JE6rEIbwxepSmCSPRsF0ILvwVP9UhssoeuTzBW1dyzr1jCxgQ80NosWF3LTy3xxF5EuRfxsYcxLLJGYrfaHy8H1x27Vp3Tf4LJFM7NF1NUqtGPoXHK87D0YLXc3t58hOQNv/w640-h640/Sharon%20beach.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;">When I sat down to write this story, I could still feel the
positive energy radiating in my heart and soul after the interview. The quote by Bob Marley that kept circling in
my mind were, “ You never realize how strong you are, until being strong is the
only choice you have”. And sometimes
when others learn what you have endured, they will say to you, I don’t know if
I could have survived that. And while no
one chooses to experience brutal life lessons, they happen. I think it’s fair
to say we have all had our own hard times and how we survive and move on is the
key. For the story that I am about to
share, her Texas roots show how she is living life in a “hell ya” kind of gusto
& grit manner as well as her reverence for life. With that, I’m honored to
share Sharon Fuller’s story. </div><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Before the interview began, Sharon outlined 4 life truths in
this order:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->First and foremost, being a Christian, noting
that she has a very personal and private relationship with God.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Family - her sister Lezah, her children &
special people who are like family.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Her love for America. For the freedom we get to
live by and for our 2<sup>nd</sup> amendment rights. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Her support system from friends & community
members.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sharon spent her early life in Texas before her family of 6
moved to Genesee, Idaho. Sharon said
school and the encouragement of her teachers were her refuge from a troubled
home life. Being in a small rural town, true friendships form not only with
your friends, but often with their entire family. This was the case for Sharon. Her best friend from high school is still her
best friend today. Together she and her
friend helped campaign for her friends’ father who became a State
representative and went on to later be the Speaker of the House. This foray into politics gave Sharon a deep
appreciation for understanding how government works as well as the rights of
people.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">After graduating from high school. Life was looming in a big
and beautiful way with so many possibilities stretching out. One evening Sharon
and her friend were talking about life and then they pondered what would the
worst thing each could imagine that could impact their lives? The friend said rape and Sharon said living
life in a wheelchair. The two moved to
Lewiston, got a 2 bedroom apartment and both got jobs in a local nursing home
before they started their career paths, which was flight attendant training for
Sharon and college for her friend. <o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicR6ORgFlsYOlXF85Wq5vToHEuSQCudR6pER-RjzJzK-_D8rSEEfSlI3NLKS3-XuBZj3wGBqjNQu1ZvFrRYwktNLnR-Z3HJT7XeMhEfQJw6B9PbyebMaxpfpgiQIMuqgJQcSdNVg99pn2ifJS_Vaa29ocTYgsGNXsg87VVPm1RzI0I-I9AVk753JBL8B_E/s2048/sharon%20horse.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1957" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicR6ORgFlsYOlXF85Wq5vToHEuSQCudR6pER-RjzJzK-_D8rSEEfSlI3NLKS3-XuBZj3wGBqjNQu1ZvFrRYwktNLnR-Z3HJT7XeMhEfQJw6B9PbyebMaxpfpgiQIMuqgJQcSdNVg99pn2ifJS_Vaa29ocTYgsGNXsg87VVPm1RzI0I-I9AVk753JBL8B_E/w383-h400/sharon%20horse.png" width="383" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sharon & her horse</td></tr></tbody></table><p class="MsoNormal">Sharon recalls waking up and hearing a man’s voice in the
early morning hours of July 4, 1977. The man had broken into their apartment
and sexually assaulted both young women. He was later arrested and sentenced to
a lengthy prison term. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">On June 30, 1978, Sharon was a newlywed and had been married
for 12 days. She and her new husband,
Rick were scheduled to go to Walla Walla for business. But Sharon had a premonition that she
shouldn’t go. Feeling uneasy, she called her sister who said the same thing,
that there was this gut feeling that she shouldn’t go on this trip. However, Sharon needed to sign some
paperwork, so she put her feelings aside, climbed into their truck and was
sitting on the bench seat in the middle, with no seatbelts. Just outside of Pomeroy a drunk driver hit
them, the pickup rolled several times landing upside down. Upon impact, Sharon was thrown through the
windshield and landed several feet from the truck. Sharon was transported to the hospital
wherein it confirmed, she was now a paraplegic as her spine was broken in 3
places. This required her to have a
special brace inserted. In the hospital
her best friend came to visit her and during one of their talks, she looked at
Sharon and quietly said, “you know, the
worst things we could ever imagine have now come to pass”. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sharon was sent to a Seattle trauma hospital for rehab and
how to learn to live life in a wheelchair.
The first of many acts of kindness were about to unfold. The Sheriff’s
office flew her in their plane to Seattle as she couldn’t sit up. When the hospital learned of her newlywed
status and that her husband was staying with her, they replaced the hospital
bed with a new queen size mattress for the couple. After 8 weeks, the couple
came home and started their new life. A
few months later, Sharon became pregnant. Many doctors were unwilling to take a
pregnant paralyzed patient, until one brand new doctor fresh out of med school
agreed. And Sharon and Rick became
parents of a beautiful son, named Brandon.
Marriage, new parenthood coupled with the stress of being a paraplegic
were too much for the couple to navigate and they divorced when Brandon was 2
years old. Looking back Sharon recalls
being grateful to Rick for standing by her and acknowledges she was mourning the loss of
her legs and that she let her insecurities and fear end the marriage. All along she had thought she would wake up
one day and walk and didn’t take her paralysis seriously. Nor her health. Pressure sores developed and she was
hospitalized. There, she sought help from a psychiatrist who guided her to the
realization that she could live a full life, plus she now had a 2 ½ year old
son to take care of. It was a new
beginning on so many levels.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For 12 years it was just Sharon and Brandon. During this time, Sharon had a laptop and was
tinkering around on it. This was access to the world. There she discovered social media in their
very early stages. She learned about “My
Space” followed by “Facebook”. Sharon
had also started working for a local business whose focus was to assist anyone
with a disability. Sharon realized the
power of social media and thus the beginning of a social media coordinator
career began.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It was there at work, that she met Ted, who ran the
accessible public transit for the disabled patients. The romance turned serious, and they moved in
together. With Ted, they had one
daughter, Brittany and a year later Sharon became pregnant with fraternal
twins, giving birth to a daughter and son, named Cheyanne & Teddy.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The pregnancy with the twins caused many physical
difficulties and Sharon was sent to Seattle to have the hardware in her spine
removed, which took 19 hours of surgery.
After the surgery, Sharon also ended up with staph infection. She says quit counting the number of
surgeries after 100. Her health
deteriorated; she weighed 87 pounds.
During this time her sister, Lezah, Ted’s parents, and the Genesee
community rallied around Ted and the kids. However, all the surgeries and pain
were fertile ground for depression and hopelessness set in. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; line-height: 107%;">As Sharon lay in the hospital bed,
she heard her doctor ask her pastor who had come for a visit to please pray for
her. Later, alone in her room, Sharon
looked at the crucifix on the wall and prayed to God to help her. She knew she
could throw in the towel and let life slip away from her. As Sharon is recounting the story, tears well
up and she continues, noting that in her hospital room, there was a large
window, and not long after her prayer, the cleaning lady came in. As Sharon watched her begin wiping down the
windowsill, the lady went to spray the window and just then Sharon noticed that
a small handprint appeared. This was from a recent visit from one of her young
kiddos who had been standing on the windowsill.
At that moment Sharon yelled to the cleaning lady to stop and leave that
small handprint visible. She felt that
tiny handprint was a message from God telling her that he wasn’t going to let
her die and that she had children to take care of. Plus, He had a plan for her life.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Fast forward, Sharon came home and was able to resume her
position at work. With a renewed passion for God and life and helping others,
Sharon began attending several national conferences about centers for
independent living. In her professional
work environment, Sharon and her colleagues were involved with helping to see the
passage of Idaho laws pertaining to people with disabilities as well as the
most fulfilling achievement, the “American with Disabilities Act”. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Today, Sharon holds the position as a Social Media
Coordinator, a job that she loves and has been a part of for the last 30 years
in the community.<o:p></o:p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBcMfKA0CE3d9F7RAHlL4lEsc60pSNTl0pTTKflJ3ihWJPaLLgTKcvYB5_fg7u_lcgS3qUTJpr3PZ3EU__57sK665n_7aAxfXZOwUbD1CNtQ0aC33G7qOOymJRbl3UKdp3Vmi8_jkzl1M75XSITFmMF99x54mfwSmwOwurB8_TUEuMfTXySn70KJoSXw5S/s960/sharon%20wedding.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="960" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBcMfKA0CE3d9F7RAHlL4lEsc60pSNTl0pTTKflJ3ihWJPaLLgTKcvYB5_fg7u_lcgS3qUTJpr3PZ3EU__57sK665n_7aAxfXZOwUbD1CNtQ0aC33G7qOOymJRbl3UKdp3Vmi8_jkzl1M75XSITFmMF99x54mfwSmwOwurB8_TUEuMfTXySn70KJoSXw5S/w400-h266/sharon%20wedding.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sharon with her kids<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb1sVU7ousKWNzzs1Nh84D5HL2grHJrJa_HnqAjeWPu11PiCDMyLUWVsLpLNRmv-Q1Mj7C4oCiLpCJ_-vPYsLwAaifehw-R_WC5H9ZsgpKcdbCeMeAKemKu5TSqgBdeEq73-MNVXionXby2KSM3lsrfLvmx-hAZjchbcFxe8_KK1e2Vo4OtWFEbycCIwAW/s2688/sharon%20race.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2688" data-original-width="1242" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb1sVU7ousKWNzzs1Nh84D5HL2grHJrJa_HnqAjeWPu11PiCDMyLUWVsLpLNRmv-Q1Mj7C4oCiLpCJ_-vPYsLwAaifehw-R_WC5H9ZsgpKcdbCeMeAKemKu5TSqgBdeEq73-MNVXionXby2KSM3lsrfLvmx-hAZjchbcFxe8_KK1e2Vo4OtWFEbycCIwAW/w296-h640/sharon%20race.png" width="296" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sharon participating in a race<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU23DgmqVCacZp9mxgadC_iEAlDMcqXmvKYFej7c1NniqFVXtmYHPWs3h6pPEK1ec5cNL4vw1e6TLOKkFYjDx6n8qNMKRlE6x2pZnZHLwrm7eZHTVIQYLuv_vW0qIrlXo8yCSh5xIsmo5kD6zg2_HmChawrsUBilfW1WQECybGdO9HHneuLnSUFUi_1F73/s1536/Sharon%20-bridge.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="1242" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU23DgmqVCacZp9mxgadC_iEAlDMcqXmvKYFej7c1NniqFVXtmYHPWs3h6pPEK1ec5cNL4vw1e6TLOKkFYjDx6n8qNMKRlE6x2pZnZHLwrm7eZHTVIQYLuv_vW0qIrlXo8yCSh5xIsmo5kD6zg2_HmChawrsUBilfW1WQECybGdO9HHneuLnSUFUi_1F73/w518-h640/Sharon%20-bridge.png" width="518" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sharon living life large!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p class="MsoNormal">In conclusion Sharon is beyond grateful for all the acts of
kindness and help she’s received throughout the years. And each June 30, the day of the accident,
Sharon celebrates it as a “I am here day!”
And looking back over her life, she says she doesn’t think she would
change the outcome of what happened the day of the accident. Those events gave her a strong Christian
faith and the eyes to see all the goodness bestowed by her family, friends, and
community. In Sharon’s own words, “it inspired me to live my life the best that
I can!~ </p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Her personal motto is: “Life’s journey is not to arrive at
the grave safely in a well-preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, totally
worn out, shouting holy cow what a ride!”<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">P.S. Next God Kiss post with be the first Sunday in September. Feel free to share the blog with others. Leave a comment if this inspired you. xoxo Gayle</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p></div>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-47596285477070105422023-07-02T18:53:00.001-07:002023-07-02T18:53:58.431-07:00God Kiss - A New Journey<p> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0e8eHu7fCZlFkWCWrItWD5R9tG-FWwvw4WrG8Iej4e3lbGYGqmKTt223La9HDyL_90SRM__40Zf3dP4q-wXggvV8wei-drIo7W9esGMgBGqb9_1D8XhHTCJaUBCUDYqaD_CqqMv6nHOYBjmQeci707dj5IdMaYuRUPLzl3VNKlX4VDdR_uMqjegdT5fgt/s1743/double%20cross.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1678" data-original-width="1743" height="616" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0e8eHu7fCZlFkWCWrItWD5R9tG-FWwvw4WrG8Iej4e3lbGYGqmKTt223La9HDyL_90SRM__40Zf3dP4q-wXggvV8wei-drIo7W9esGMgBGqb9_1D8XhHTCJaUBCUDYqaD_CqqMv6nHOYBjmQeci707dj5IdMaYuRUPLzl3VNKlX4VDdR_uMqjegdT5fgt/w640-h616/double%20cross.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Road site crosses along a highway in Montana</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 335.9pt;">In the quiet stillness of the
predawn hours, I awoke with a clear message.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I call it a God Kiss.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For a while
now, I’ve been feeling the gentle but insistent prodding from God to do more since
I’ve been committed to deepening my relationship with Our Lord.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 335.9pt;">But I didn’t know what it was until I read
Isaiah 6:<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">8 “</span><i><span style="color: #040c28; font-family: Roboto;">I heard the voice of the Lord, saying,
Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?</span></i><span style="background: white; color: #202124; font-family: Roboto; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; float: none; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"> </span></span><i><span style="color: #040c28; font-family: Roboto;">Then said I, Here am I; send me.”</span></i><span style="color: #040c28; font-family: Roboto; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> I </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>felt like it was a calling, I must answer. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I knew that God wanted me to use my words
and passion for writing and telling stories.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 335.9pt;">After interviewing and writing stories
about others for the magazine Home & Harvest for a few years now, I gained a true love of
interviewing people. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt privileged
that they allowed me into their life and hear their story and then have the
honor of putting it in words.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I loved it
so much that as I await my next writing assignment for a different segment for
the magazine, that I knew that I wanted to continue to write about people. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 107%;">That I would seek out people to share their stories about how God works
in their lives. There are so many blogs out there on how to do this or that and
I can only hope that this finds its way to those who need to hear it. All I
know is that I’ll do my part and Jesus will do the rest. It’s that simple.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="tab-stops: 335.9pt;">And as I begin this journey of
writing about being blessed by Our Savior, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>it’s only fair to first start out with a
little about me as I dip my toes in the holy water of writing about how God
works in people’s lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">On a recent trip to the 406 (Montana) it’s common to see
little white crosses along the highways. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve seen them all my life and it was just
part of the landscape, and I never gave them a second thought.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, this time the significance of the
marker registered that this was not just a cross, but it represented an actual
person whose last day on earth was documented at the exact spot that their life
ended on that fatal day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And as we came
upon each one, I wondered what that person was like, what were their
hopes/dreams and did they have a good life? And if they knew that this was
their final day here on earth, would they have wished they had lived a better
life? Would they know that their pathway after death would be to go to the
eternal kingdom? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As for me, growing up we weren’t a religious family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My dad was raised as a Seventh Day Adventist
and seemed to have little regard for that religion as an adult. My mom didn’t
have a strong religious life either. But they were good hard-working people
trying to raise us right the best they could. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They baptized all of us kids as infants, but
that was the extent of our religious guidance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>However, I had a longing even as a child to be a “Child of God”. One of
my first memories as a young child was riding in a car with a woman who was
taking me to Sunday School.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I must have
loved it and talked about it a lot. However, my parents didn’t want the Mormon
influence of this woman to impact their daughter, so they didn’t allow her to
take me to church anymore.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was envious
of my Montana cousins as they regularly went to Sunday School and church with
their parents. However, that was not the case in our household, our life was chaotic
as we moved around so much, and we never had a permanence in anything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By the time I had reached 7<sup>th</sup>
grade I had been in 9 different schools in different towns as moved all over
Montana and the Dakotas. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Fast forward to my teen and early adult years ….by then the
world had gotten ahold of me and I didn’t pursue becoming a Christian.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt I was spiritual, but God definitely
took a back burner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I made good
decisions most of the time, but I did make mistakes, truth be told…. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>lots of them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I used God as a 911 call and then I’d let him step into my life while I
was in a crisis. And slowly when life was better, I’d put him back on the shelf
and go it alone until the next major crisis. For this I’m ashamed. Would my
life have been better? Different choices made?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Most definitely. I can remember at least 2 separate times that I was bound
and determined to take a wrong path… and God quite definitely steered me away
and down the pathway he wanted. Whew!! Praise be to God!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However,
I was and still am not perfect and I still will make less than stellar choices.
Those <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>tough life lessons learned have
helped give me insight and strength to help others. When you weather a storm,
you understand and hopefully can help someone else get through a difficult
time. Silver linings by the grace of God.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In my mid-20 and being a divorced mom of a 2 yoa, my mom had
remarried and she and my beloved step-dad had invited me to attend a church
they had started going to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was the
most beautiful little country white church located in Genesee..<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My daughter and I lived in Moscow but drove every
Sunday to this picturesque church with its charming congregation that consisted
of members mostly my parents or grandparents’ age. About a year later, a young
man suddenly started coming and he sat behind me. He had come home to farm with
his dad. Long story short, we married about 1 ½ later. A couple years later we had
a daughter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We raised the girls in this close-knit
farming community, farmed, attended church and life busy & full. It was a
beautiful part of our lives & I will forever treasure it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While I loved the church community, it wasn’t
fulfilling my spiritual needs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt
closest to God on my walks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In 2012, after
28 years of marriage, tragedy struck with deaths of 2 close family members and
my marriage ended all within a couple weeks of each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a brutally hard time for all of us. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I stopped attending our church. However, I
continued my talks and felt God in my long walks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He urged me to blog about healing, forgiveness
and moving forward, which I did. I look back during those dark days and know
Our Savior was walking along side me and giving me the strength to heal. Once
again I have seen, felt and know I’ve been blessed. Looking back, I can see how
God put certain people in my life for a reason, some to help, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>some to learn lessons from which would serve
to help me in the future.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has a plan
for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plus by his grace he put the
perfect man for me in my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rod is truly
is my earthly rock and haven and soul-mate. We each have a deep faith and absolutely
love the <a href="https://ourventure.church/palouse">Venture Church</a> that we
have started attending. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Each morning I read my life application study bible ( it is
the best – as it explains what I am actually reading) and it’s so helpful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And somewhere in my journey, I noticed a shift
in myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s hard to explain, and the
best way to describe it is that <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I feel
blessed beyond measure and have a contentment knowing that God is with me every
step of the way. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Seriously, it’s the
best feeling ever!<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For the first time in my adult life, I look forward to going
to church, it feeds my soul and I make it a priority. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wake up thinking about Jesus and try to see
all the beautiful little miracles each day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And best of all, I know he will still love me when I make mistakes.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith- and
this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.” Ephesians 2:8<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I will say of the LORD,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>he is my refuge and fortress: my God. In him I will trust. Psalms 91:2<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As always, thank you for stopping by. I urge you to share
this blog in hopes that it will brighten someone’s day knowing that we all live
an imperfect sinful life and that life can be so much better if we give
ourselves to Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And come on back as I
share stories about others and I’ll title them “God Kiss Series ” as I get to share
their story about their lives and how they have have been touched by God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Wishing God’s best for you,<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Gayle<o:p></o:p></p><br /><p></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-78519273281139045902023-04-09T17:02:00.066-07:002023-04-10T06:02:43.374-07:00Easter and Beauty in Faith<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHR2K0fN3W8-YtgTXg39JWBvd2NyZsE8nvsrCoxleiiKnuDIPwkGlj4-X8Cc2BGdrF6KF2V7RilIKaYNVIYUG_cSv5rg5Eypi12u6nGDp2K2-CJeF91jc-hM_-s6014rZ8yUwYCQUfkskBzSQM0vB5CHKwO8iiTTQ0jj52XadqbWB5a9f0XGNAtjA_nA/s2048/cross.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHR2K0fN3W8-YtgTXg39JWBvd2NyZsE8nvsrCoxleiiKnuDIPwkGlj4-X8Cc2BGdrF6KF2V7RilIKaYNVIYUG_cSv5rg5Eypi12u6nGDp2K2-CJeF91jc-hM_-s6014rZ8yUwYCQUfkskBzSQM0vB5CHKwO8iiTTQ0jj52XadqbWB5a9f0XGNAtjA_nA/w480-h640/cross.JPG" width="480" /></a> </div><br /><p>It's been a minute since I last wrote. The words have quietly been stirring. And on Easter Sunday that quiet little voice says it's time to write. </p><p>Sometime last year I noticed a shift on what appealed to me, from everything that I watched to what I wanted to read or listen to was geared to kindness, hope and the gospel. And I would get a small quiet nudge here and there about the need to deepen my relationship with Christ. I ordered myself a study application bible and started reading it from the beginning. I'm ashamed to say I have never read the entire bible. This particular one explains what was written and it's so helpful. I knew I needed <i>and wanted</i> to strengthen my Christian faith and relationship with our Lord. Truth be told, I've been a lukewarm Christian most of my life. </p><p>Rod and I were going to church shop when he moved down, then Covid happened and life as we all knew it stopped. And as we emerged back into life, we started church shopping last December and attended several different ones. None really felt like we synced until the morning we attended the Venture Church. I had looked them up and liked what they had written about welcoming new members. For the first time, I was excited, really excited to attend. And true to their word, it was and is a welcoming place. Pastor Scott's sermons are amazing. He talks about life today, the bible and delivers a message that resonates in ways to be a better Christian. Rod is equally impressed and we both have found our new church family. It was time. </p><p>As I read the bible, and as we attend the services, I can sense there is a purpose and plan that will unfold. I'm not exactly sure what is in store, but it will be beautiful. Maybe it's just going to be my stories and that my writing that will touch someone somewhere. All I know is I am a child of God who has received his mercy and grace when I certainly didn't deserve it. Let me share a personal encounter. Remember the movie "Ghost"? One afternoon, I was driving, alone in my car when the song Unchained Melodies came on the radio. And I remember thinking back to the movie and wondering if the evil black shapes that took bad souls to hell were real and was there really a beautiful white light to go to heaven? And then the most peaceful beautiful feeling overcame me and I knew... I KNEW I was in the presence of our Creator. I can't describe the feeling, but it was the most awe inspiring feeling I have ever known. And I kept that amazing moment to myself, cherished it and rarely shared it. It was so beautiful that I wanted to keep it to myself. Weird. So today, I am sharing. Our Creator is real. God wants a personal relationship with you and me. I've felt his guiding hand helping me along this road we call life. And as my faith deepens, it colors my world in ways that resonate in this girl's heart and soul. </p><p>If you are reading this and need a church home, please consider the Venture Church or begin searching for the Church that makes you feel like you are home. Order a study application bible, trust me it's the best and begin your journey towards a closer relationship with our Lord.</p><p>Wishing you a blessed Easter. </p><p><span color="rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.95)" style="background-color: white; font-family: FrankRuhlLibre, Helvetica, serif; font-size: 24px; font-weight: 700;">1 Peter 1:3 </span><span color="rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.95)" face="Lato, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 18px;">Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.</span></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-55729675468711801242022-03-11T09:30:00.004-08:002022-03-11T09:49:46.094-08:00A Journey to the Good Part of Life<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhTMxo-o_JjxlIyXbYlYrZRIXcJ0Q02Kcg9_saBh6IM9oC5WFm6QgfSBujQn4HE4O0tJM0DnRzMEi3dhXGONK6Oqw9afKNboyshfCwP6RhhcRTbEEaS5Jfk_PWftrw5BxFijHlrGrsxJ9emK2m7N6DlJ-LLdO9TkELb9qy5odyt_PxmJvTQPpHlxgrqlQ=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhTMxo-o_JjxlIyXbYlYrZRIXcJ0Q02Kcg9_saBh6IM9oC5WFm6QgfSBujQn4HE4O0tJM0DnRzMEi3dhXGONK6Oqw9afKNboyshfCwP6RhhcRTbEEaS5Jfk_PWftrw5BxFijHlrGrsxJ9emK2m7N6DlJ-LLdO9TkELb9qy5odyt_PxmJvTQPpHlxgrqlQ=w480-h640" width="480" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal">Driving to the airport on Tuesday at 3:45am to take my sweet
girl, Kaitlyn to the airport, I couldn’t help but remember the last time we had
flown out together for an early morning flight.
It was December 24, 2012, it was a white-knuckle drive through a
blizzard to get to the airport where we were headed to Hawaii to avoid
Christmas. Just a few short weeks before, both of us had suddenly found ourselves single, Kaitlyn as a widow and
me with an unexpected divorce. Those dark days are now way behind us and we
both have stepped into the light. For
Kaitlyn, she found love again, got married 2 ½ years ago and is a happy
mom-to-be just finishing her second trimester. For me, I moved to Moscow, after buying the
most perfect place five years ago (today) and then found love too. From
where we came from to where we are now, we both know we have been blessed
beyond measure. Sometimes it’s good to look
back and see where you came from to know how far you have come. Simply put, life is beyond good and we know
it.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">During Kaitlyn’s visit, we held a baby shower, gathered
family and close friends to celebrate this beautiful time in her life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All the pregnant mom wanted was a balloon
arch, crème puffs and chocolate drizzled bacon on a stick… lol.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have to say, her cousin, Sarah planned out
a splendid theme, I added a few more food items and my barn was created into a
very magical place by her sister, Jen and cousins – Sarah & Bridgette.
Thought I’d share some precious pictures . </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEivhghu-D4UOyMviRpjvyqrQjTJGNWZZP8A-UId3P0E4Lzx4vtavkxmw22CQgGGHFACXq2XF-nLHo28wESeQQB4fbxM1hiaPkCmIa-RzzR6JhgJEEhA1RNykSX_JDdaEtu7JJEDtUq73pQ8-eaYpdbDDsSXzdVU-5zWqh4Jw0dlveXu2k_q0ZhwC1WAJQ=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEivhghu-D4UOyMviRpjvyqrQjTJGNWZZP8A-UId3P0E4Lzx4vtavkxmw22CQgGGHFACXq2XF-nLHo28wESeQQB4fbxM1hiaPkCmIa-RzzR6JhgJEEhA1RNykSX_JDdaEtu7JJEDtUq73pQ8-eaYpdbDDsSXzdVU-5zWqh4Jw0dlveXu2k_q0ZhwC1WAJQ=w400-h300" width="400" /></a></div><br /><br /><o:p></o:p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi9yZo-mBQwk1zcAvGMQkAwg6sX9L2ySi7HsjBuJKff3numl5jc4TAdA04Z0SAZqSuFOonqLOIQ2wxueMI53y_NFHJF7KqHBd6BDrzP4-vHr3WZVcKEl7BGhCWMcDLqb5eBiSsv6R2OfjIe0pRrvhopbMrqHNbILSm00QxQ8VD73Xixu8mw0ZEAf90eBw=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi9yZo-mBQwk1zcAvGMQkAwg6sX9L2ySi7HsjBuJKff3numl5jc4TAdA04Z0SAZqSuFOonqLOIQ2wxueMI53y_NFHJF7KqHBd6BDrzP4-vHr3WZVcKEl7BGhCWMcDLqb5eBiSsv6R2OfjIe0pRrvhopbMrqHNbILSm00QxQ8VD73Xixu8mw0ZEAf90eBw=w480-h640" width="480" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiUdWVZwCPLchoZ0lBchFZTutn0Hi9BEx-SSd1pOXfppWHxT6HAfkI0VxNmsh-pYpOAIIkrXaJ82PAbHcByypaStNplTNgyVFuHF7UjiCM0M5NJCg7yPhSTucGA-D4vt7D69ndJme7PpQqj-nK8Vq8kBuiKLF97mAa5r8ZAknET_dc5MhV-y8Bz7pj6Xg=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiUdWVZwCPLchoZ0lBchFZTutn0Hi9BEx-SSd1pOXfppWHxT6HAfkI0VxNmsh-pYpOAIIkrXaJ82PAbHcByypaStNplTNgyVFuHF7UjiCM0M5NJCg7yPhSTucGA-D4vt7D69ndJme7PpQqj-nK8Vq8kBuiKLF97mAa5r8ZAknET_dc5MhV-y8Bz7pj6Xg=s320" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh2O5BZUYBlBsrnKID-0T3JUgR3xdXVYfzsBl6cjIoLx8yFy1dM1o6mf5J7th-ZsQdWLh9RyrLfmPpyxufc_REtLD31dsXN0uyFaVB6PIO3px0sujZrhuSb6PrgLE23GpnSnA2MP77I6-eDdqVYWzSnSwOHBkU2Zior4j_CbVCYyymZ1X2dIURQZoCk5g=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh2O5BZUYBlBsrnKID-0T3JUgR3xdXVYfzsBl6cjIoLx8yFy1dM1o6mf5J7th-ZsQdWLh9RyrLfmPpyxufc_REtLD31dsXN0uyFaVB6PIO3px0sujZrhuSb6PrgLE23GpnSnA2MP77I6-eDdqVYWzSnSwOHBkU2Zior4j_CbVCYyymZ1X2dIURQZoCk5g=s320" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhO3q7VaREiqN9llr80mwU7EewmWiSPz8rmmG65Yqg_SNy575aGDpo2Y9WMVIOZOYeJy_q-p2oegvh2qs8EfenEvsZxz82Tszg_IMazjNUFxoQ7TpvvpXqVI7eIisHmj2epTOfaZgp8mIe8FykK5SjU6kGAlzzsNAqi8uj79AdRAW_hmuGlswcYzdn_LA=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhO3q7VaREiqN9llr80mwU7EewmWiSPz8rmmG65Yqg_SNy575aGDpo2Y9WMVIOZOYeJy_q-p2oegvh2qs8EfenEvsZxz82Tszg_IMazjNUFxoQ7TpvvpXqVI7eIisHmj2epTOfaZgp8mIe8FykK5SjU6kGAlzzsNAqi8uj79AdRAW_hmuGlswcYzdn_LA=s320" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhnY1Sv6kAac28SGuVREmFAOia3glShvBHNqqguI6BEKWqC62fkIwJw1aJaszKR_5uDST4--heg2BH8xeaf3ynD27-AU7-NluFmPJUHiyCh8Kt6qLlHbjCdLKFVVKGdIlh3m2Q3XB2DgAagN8Nnh3qD3IZLZkFRV9hhcIs_uJY4n0bj8gB25u34R_BAYA=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhnY1Sv6kAac28SGuVREmFAOia3glShvBHNqqguI6BEKWqC62fkIwJw1aJaszKR_5uDST4--heg2BH8xeaf3ynD27-AU7-NluFmPJUHiyCh8Kt6qLlHbjCdLKFVVKGdIlh3m2Q3XB2DgAagN8Nnh3qD3IZLZkFRV9hhcIs_uJY4n0bj8gB25u34R_BAYA=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi5xZBroCurNpEX5bdd--HAkazXuOQ1qvNxA5CUNtnJREaQahzEV9WS_Hmlx62jtEQXTSYArUpldJMBnP-NsuhXYMJZe6gU4LDLYqfceborqJ7B3jkvkSVlTj8zYfsCUbNSGgnbxTpqtOiAm6VW1SpGadg8Vmpxr30RhVZ760p34TKxp9AttbvyBKZ49g=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi5xZBroCurNpEX5bdd--HAkazXuOQ1qvNxA5CUNtnJREaQahzEV9WS_Hmlx62jtEQXTSYArUpldJMBnP-NsuhXYMJZe6gU4LDLYqfceborqJ7B3jkvkSVlTj8zYfsCUbNSGgnbxTpqtOiAm6VW1SpGadg8Vmpxr30RhVZ760p34TKxp9AttbvyBKZ49g=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjROsfXecyKkDvzq2UR05tD1KsBsDqOdtSLV8ayafA-TJ7nzm-k7x9FixgCahgV-jD1Q_aTJ0IM1SLooRWnPl5oHR8jcKCVOloiPAYycBcowref_QkShggJ8FIJOLfRSREk2ZHzznPX3xdDtqzQLvWkLY4uzarvkCnM2-5SmgsQspNv_Jl2MWEUxgPNvQ=s4032" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjROsfXecyKkDvzq2UR05tD1KsBsDqOdtSLV8ayafA-TJ7nzm-k7x9FixgCahgV-jD1Q_aTJ0IM1SLooRWnPl5oHR8jcKCVOloiPAYycBcowref_QkShggJ8FIJOLfRSREk2ZHzznPX3xdDtqzQLvWkLY4uzarvkCnM2-5SmgsQspNv_Jl2MWEUxgPNvQ=s320" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>After getting Kaitlyn safely checked in, and
seeing her off, I once again felt like I was leaving a piece of my heart watching
her walk into airport security headed to the other side of the country. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All day I felt lost & blue…. I think the combination of that remembrance glance at the past along with putting your daughter on a plane was a gentle reminder that yes there will be dark days, but there will also be good days too. After the darkness there is light. That you should be gentle with yourself as with others who are or were on a rocky pathway. The journey to light is hard, but so worth the effort and that our Creator walks with you every step of the way. It's character building 101 and sometimes we just need a little reminder of just how far we have come and to appreciate it. One of my favorite quotes, <b style="font-style: italic;">"<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe you have to know the darkness before you can appreciate the light.” – Madeline L’Engle" . </b> And both of our lives are filled with light. We were given a second chance. There was hope for us and I know there is hope for anyone else going through a difficult time, you just have to give your burdens to God and ask him to help you.<p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As always, thanks for stopping.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wish all the best for you and that peace,
love and comfort are yours.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All my best,
Gayle<o:p></o:p></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-16867099127487095572021-12-26T08:22:00.005-08:002021-12-26T09:07:20.347-08:00Saying Yes to Living Life Large<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhfg5EJEx01vqfGg8YfKVibl807giK4f0zcWxEINpVAqB9A6uVF5HZ5He95Z1tTf7uQZNRK6lqgbLWd4ZzE_ZQF06p2gEKbSN_0Z7Xotb89YOTt2hEJbsOSQypBPHiORw5vyEBL3hwU5SGAeDIxXXPD6RmvgHRdve4K2mtQ4TWQ5sOrNd5oIHWTOVoSwg=s3088" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2320" data-original-width="3088" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhfg5EJEx01vqfGg8YfKVibl807giK4f0zcWxEINpVAqB9A6uVF5HZ5He95Z1tTf7uQZNRK6lqgbLWd4ZzE_ZQF06p2gEKbSN_0Z7Xotb89YOTt2hEJbsOSQypBPHiORw5vyEBL3hwU5SGAeDIxXXPD6RmvgHRdve4K2mtQ4TWQ5sOrNd5oIHWTOVoSwg=w640-h480" width="640" /></a></div><br /></div><br /><p></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: large;">And he says yes</span><span style="font-size: medium;">…</span>. to adventures, to projects, to my whims,
to the requests made by the inherited grandkids to do things and mostly to
<i><b>living life large</b></i>. That’s my sweet man, Rod who I usually refer to as “Mr. Right”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who knew five years ago when I accepted a
date with this guy that we would end up enjoying life together, embracing each
other’s kids, family members and friends?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the guy who doesn’t
complain when the garbage disposal switch went out on Christmas Eve morning. He
just went to town to get the part and fix it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This is the same guy who has never told me no to any project that I
think up… nope, he just figures out how to do it. With that thought in mind,
what does he ask for Christmas? More power tools for projects, so that is what
I gave him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Yesterday on Christmas morning as Rod’s kids weren’t here
with us, we invaded Jen & her girls to watch them open gifts and have
breakfast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the girls made seating
placements for everyone, and where do they put Rod (a/k/a “Pops”)?..... well he
was the only one invited to sit at the kid’s table.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And when they asked Pops to take them skiing today,
he said yes, so off to the slopes is where he, Jen and the girls will enjoy the
snow. That makes my heart so happy.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I have to admit, I’m not really a very smart person and often
get tunnel vision on life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The good
thing is that I am a committed life learner and I absorb so much from others on
how they enjoy life. Plus, for an added benefit, I truly feel God knew he had
to give me some earthly human help and placed Mr. Right in my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For that I know I am blessed beyond
measure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Funny thing is - that Rod says
he is the one who is lucky.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Either way,
life is good, we are grateful for all that we have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And yes, we both know we are far from perfect
and when we drive each other crazy… well we take a step back and yep…. You guessed
it – we look at what is “right in our lives” and that rebalances us.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And what did I get for Christmas from Mr. Right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a “mystery history tour adventure” scheduled
for next month.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All I have to do is pack
for cold weather, bring books and be prepared to enjoy the fun he has planned.
Seriously, is that not the best thing ever?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The recipe for living life large brought to me by this very special man
of mine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And as 2022 will be ushered in within the next few days, once
again I’ll try my best to saying <b><u>yes</u></b> more often to the unexpected opportunities
for fun and playing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’ve both worked
so much of our lives, that now is the time to seize the moments of joy and see
life just like a 5 year old does.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> It's about seeing more good and what is "right" in life, in people and in our everyday surroundings. </span>How
about you? What are your goals and hopes?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Hugs, blessings and love to all, Gayle</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj46EIDyRYa1bOM5uVNYKlqGPSVOHuV-h8RxWpvM-W2VR8iuAu0kH5iOlwr0KwZMiRTpcat68IV6DSPYaxNKz3idq2evt4l-FPgw1b29x3-qV3h3JyjQHQfI50HSoT_q3nqV-J1SuA0Kbrk0IESfN8OV3LSs_g-HGGSMHvgXkVj_QEp_GhMvSVIKVVONQ=s4032" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj46EIDyRYa1bOM5uVNYKlqGPSVOHuV-h8RxWpvM-W2VR8iuAu0kH5iOlwr0KwZMiRTpcat68IV6DSPYaxNKz3idq2evt4l-FPgw1b29x3-qV3h3JyjQHQfI50HSoT_q3nqV-J1SuA0Kbrk0IESfN8OV3LSs_g-HGGSMHvgXkVj_QEp_GhMvSVIKVVONQ=w400-h300" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><br /><p></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-3743769644223319382021-12-15T06:46:00.001-08:002021-12-15T06:46:11.213-08:00<p> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgutEU2Px2GIOFY3vXnmI2fD5SI2XUoWPeGL8faSSwsIDFOTApgGWqnnugqvssPorlx_fbo5ZVrcgz-vND78TVpARlA6hqukCAr7-XRsP-9QbC6y0e6x0rny86w4dAIXIo5WoJ_KA7GGX_mKYKx5i48ruLQDL1QQR2gfDbYslsZl6qnFtc_T5dQyczSSA=s4032" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgutEU2Px2GIOFY3vXnmI2fD5SI2XUoWPeGL8faSSwsIDFOTApgGWqnnugqvssPorlx_fbo5ZVrcgz-vND78TVpARlA6hqukCAr7-XRsP-9QbC6y0e6x0rny86w4dAIXIo5WoJ_KA7GGX_mKYKx5i48ruLQDL1QQR2gfDbYslsZl6qnFtc_T5dQyczSSA=w300-h400" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A fun trip to Longwood Gardens in PA</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Christmas 2021 </span></p><p><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">Greetings!</span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-95faabc5-7fff-d5a9-e635-b577109af96c"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As I am writing this letter in the evening hours of December 13, it is with a thankful heart. I’m warm & cozy sitting by the fire sipping a glass of wine and alternating writing and watching the snow fall outside the window. Rod and all three spoiled pooches are (snoozing) and close by. This is my kind of bliss. After 2020 and now days away from the end of 2021, the small everyday events that were once taken for granted and given little thought have now been elevated to an awareness of sincere appreciation. Who knew little things like going to get coffee at a local shop, having the ability to travel, interacting with people in person and so many more everyday actions would be celebrations of the return to normal? Normal is a good thing and at the end of the day I marvel at the ordinary pace of life. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Other blessings in my life are that I retired on my birthday and retirement is beyond wonderful. I could ramble on for paragraphs, but trust me on this, I relish this stage of life. I started a custom baking business and days spent in the kitchen are simply fun. The best part of this is that I don’t have to make a living and slave away, a post retirement career is where I get to simply enjoy the passion of the adventure and work when I want to</span><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. (Rod says), I too retired and agree with Gayle, I have yet found that I or we have little time on our hands! And that’s a good thing. My first project of getting Dad's courting car completely redone and the old farm sleigh is the newest project. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As for the rest of life, so far so good – healthy, happy and content. We usually don’t know what day it is, except I do make a point to know when it is garbage day…but other than that, life is basically 6 Saturdays and a Sunday. Can it get any better? The highlights are that Rod and I have traveled to Louisiana as a birthday/retirement celebration, always fun to go and even better to go home. We traveled to Seattle to visit Rod’s daughter, Chelsea over July 4</span><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: 0.6em; vertical-align: super;">th</span></span><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> holiday and then were able to spend Thanksgiving with Kaitlyn and her family in Maryland. We also enjoy getting to see family who live around here and are hoping that Rod’s son, Zach, who is now a senior at the UI will stay in the area after graduation. Oh!! and I beat my mom at Scrabble (once) so I’m gloating as most times, I get regularly beat by the feisty 85 yoa matriarch. </span><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Rod says), and another great trip to the San Juans where I masterfully pulled 13 crabs in one set! We love taking the boat to the Canadian Gulf Islands, but Canada was closed by boat at the time, so we stuck to the Juans. There just so many places to go in the islands. Additionally, I can’t believe she left out our Montana trip! Our first night in Phillipsburg was grand. I booked a hotel in Phillipsburg months earlier…Phillipsburg Kansas that is and didn’t realize it until about 7 p.m. While I was on the phone trying to get a room, Gayle was busy making friends in the bar which led to us getting a spectacular room in a beautiful old 1889 hotel! It figures. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We’re getting ready to host Christmas here on the farmette and look forward to seeing even more of the extended family who now bring with them these sweet new little babies to hug on. </span><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Rod says), and I love my inherited grandkids too, they are special!</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As for goals for 2022, well…. it will definitely be devoted to embracing more quality time with family and friends. That is hands down the spice of life. It is gathering together and making memories to cherish. I’ll continue to look for those small little everyday miracles that make you realize you just received a “God Kiss”. </span><span style="color: #c00000; font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Rod says), My goals are to keep Gayle from working too hard, I think I’ll sprinkle some more trips in there.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In closing, may you enjoy your version of a normal and beautiful life in 2022. And that you continue to enjoy the wonderment of life’s blessings. And in the wise words of Albert Einstein – “</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle” </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #c00000; font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ditto!</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love and hugs, </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.295; margin-bottom: 8pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Gayle </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #c00000; font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and Rod</span></p><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #c00000; font-family: "Bookman Old Style", serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-80143175457802387222021-09-23T11:34:00.005-07:002021-10-15T19:52:52.135-07:00Custom Baking<p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XSw3mzqazJs/YUzDlEnHCTI/AAAAAAAAGbI/2xQJq7vui207kQQV1gM7bSNjSZLFB4pbgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/peanutbutter%2Bcake.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XSw3mzqazJs/YUzDlEnHCTI/AAAAAAAAGbI/2xQJq7vui207kQQV1gM7bSNjSZLFB4pbgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/peanutbutter%2Bcake.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peanut Butter Pound cake</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><span style="font-size: large;">Peanut Butter Pound Cake anyone? </span> If you know me well, you know that I love to bake. I bake when I'm happy, I stress bake when I'm not-so-happy and if it's a rainy/snowy day.... then I really bake up a storm. <span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p><b>And I'm excited to announce that retirement has made it possible to start a new part-time adventure to offer "made from scratch desserts from this girl's kitchen". </b> With my cottage license, I can offer non-refrigerated baked goods, jams/jellys etc. And let me tell you, I have some tasty jams/jellies hand picked from my orchard and garden and canned just for you. As for the baked goods, I plan to have a special of the day, and I will take specialty orders. Just check out what I offer so far at <b><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="http://www.swheatfarmlife.net/p/desserts-to-order.html" target="_blank">Desserts to Order.</a> </span></b> Have food allergies? You are in luck..... as I also make gluten free/dairy free items. My brother Barry is allergic to wheat, corn, dairy and soy.... so he is my test subject and happy to consume goodies as I have perfected recipes to satisfy his sweet tooth.</p><p>You can place your order online or shoot me an email me at swheatfarmlife@gmail.com. </p><p>As always, thanks for stopping by and hope to hear from you soon. All my best, Gayle</p><p> </p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-35796832679383205392021-08-29T08:41:00.006-07:002021-08-29T08:47:58.210-07:00Harvesting Faith and Good<p></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-baQiIBmzvJ4/YSuosIAyTsI/AAAAAAAAGZc/SoWxtR9kPNoH3imatjZZ4VPE1hquguk6gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/montana%252Csky.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-baQiIBmzvJ4/YSuosIAyTsI/AAAAAAAAGZc/SoWxtR9kPNoH3imatjZZ4VPE1hquguk6gCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/montana%252Csky.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Soul restoring Montana style</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">The one thing that I learned from being on the farm for so
many years, is that despite your best efforts, sometimes things don’t go as
planned. And perseverance and faith are your best friend, along with a good dose of hope. That
learned life skillset has served me well and as I continue to learn new lessons
from less than desirable circumstances, there are blessings and silver linings
to be found.</p><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And the reason I am sharing this is because of a setback on
a goal of mine. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Without getting into the
weeds too much, my application to host other events at my barn was denied by
the Planning & Zoning Committee.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All
the events Rod & I had dreamed about hosting were now in ashes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The application hearing & process as a
whole was basically awful and I was unprepared for mudslinging at me by one distant
neighbor. (I now have even greater empathy for politicians who endure name
calling). Anyway, after the dust settled and a recent soul restoring trip to my
beloved Montana, a new dream is in the making.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Let me share my story on the magic of when things don’t go
quite as planned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After the P&Z
hearing, I was feeling a bit off balance and said to my “Mr. Right” that “this
girl’s soul needs Montana”. His response was, let’s go! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As Rod described a leisurely trip up Lolo pass
and on over to Philipsburg (P-burg), I could hardly wait.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bless that sweet man of mine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anyway, we arrived in Montana late afternoon and
hungry. We were beyond disappointed that our favorite brew pub diner was closed…
on a Wednesday of all things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So after a
quick bite at another place that wasn’t all that great, we discover that our
hotel reservations were for Philipsburg, Kansas…. Not Montana.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ugh. No hotel room was available in this cute
little tourist town.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was trying to not be glum as this evening
was turning out not as I envisioned… so we decided to console ourselves by
getting a beer at our other fav brew pub.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There the magic began, as we were sipping our adult beverage and getting
a game plan, we struck up a conversation with another couple who didn’t live in
P-burg, but spent a fair amount of time there. This couple were nothing short
of being fascinating (she was an appellate judge in Ohio & he was a
contractor building a small cabin here in Montana) and we felt like instant
friends. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We head over to a different bar
so the other couple could grab a bite to eat and (only in small towns) is a
hoola-hooping contest in progress.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Out
of the blue, a woman walks up to me and hands me the hoola-hoop, so I give it a
try and win the contest. I guess I impressed Rod with my new found skill and
got high 5’s from all the patrons…. Lol. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Basking in my new fame, in walks the mayor
& owner of the beautiful historic hotel to find us as our new friends had
called him after learning of our hotel situation. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has a drink with us and says he has one
room available with a king bed. Glory be! We follow him and the hotel is spectacular,
the great room has comfy chairs, a wood stove and books that made you want to
stay all winter and read your way through the room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All the rooms were themed and we had a rustic
style room decorated with skis and sleds and a divine plaid Eddie Bauer down comforter
that you melted into on the chilly rainy evening. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The universe was putting just the right people
in our paths and let me tell you, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt
blessed beyond measure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The next day we
headed over to see my cousin Ginny & Scott with plans to see their fav
Western themed dinner show in Jackson Hole, WY. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Family, music, good food… heavenly! On our way
home, Rod & I do a day trip through Yellowstone and opt to spend the night
in Virginia City, again another historic hotel and good conversation with the
manager. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Getting to soak up the magic of
Montana, spend quality time with beloved family…. this girl’s soul was filled
up and I was ready to move forward as I felt there was just something better
out there for me to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qqb2nO_IY68/YSupUxlxGEI/AAAAAAAAGZk/EP0r-WDo4RMfH2wLEs3isowHmqyDGRwHQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2323/Montana.4ofus.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1045" data-original-width="2323" height="288" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qqb2nO_IY68/YSupUxlxGEI/AAAAAAAAGZk/EP0r-WDo4RMfH2wLEs3isowHmqyDGRwHQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h288/Montana.4ofus.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Picture perfect in Jackson, WY</td></tr></tbody></table><br /> <o:p></o:p><p></p>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ju808ffnG_0/YSup-_a_qkI/AAAAAAAAGZ4/9dfGiWPiMTEgsmZtPmWP3oF0lorfL1YxACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/montanabarnofdreams.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ju808ffnG_0/YSup-_a_qkI/AAAAAAAAGZ4/9dfGiWPiMTEgsmZtPmWP3oF0lorfL1YxACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/montanabarnofdreams.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Barn envy</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4jIEcpwsZnM/YSuqChCEzpI/AAAAAAAAGZ8/T4X0_bVkTgwrbnJYJ1JPJIufBG47RSR7wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Montana2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4jIEcpwsZnM/YSuqChCEzpI/AAAAAAAAGZ8/T4X0_bVkTgwrbnJYJ1JPJIufBG47RSR7wCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/Montana2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yellowstone and Old Faithful, be still my heart</td></tr></tbody></table><p class="MsoNormal">Once home, I connected with a lovely woman named Sara who sought
me out and asked if I wanted to partner with her and do an antique show as this
was also a dream of hers. We plotted,
planned and found a venue at the fairgrounds and now have two dates, the first
will be a Spring event, April 2, 2022 and the second will be a Holiday sale November
12, 2022. We’re starting to attract
other cool vendors and I’m beyond excited!!!!</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In the matter of a 3 weeks, I got my soul restored and a new
events partner by trusting in a higher power and that Our CREATOR had something
better in store for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The power of
good people put in the right spot in the right time and seeing the magic of silver
linings in situations that you didn’t plan for.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Again, those lessons learned from my time in Agriculture, this
is an industry unlike no other. Besides feeding the world, I got to see
firsthand how hardworking farmers/ranches paychecks depend on circumstances beyond
their control – weather and the market.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
creates in you the power of faith and hope in all situations. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So no matter what speed bumps come up, I’m
grateful to have gotten through them, I’ve prevailed and come out strong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As for the barn, well we are blessed to have a
large family and it will be the central point for our family gatherings, and
that is <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>always a good thing.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Wishing you a very blessed Sunday. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here is a special blessing I came across and
want to share.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“May you always have enough
happiness to keep you sweet; enough trials to keep you strong; enough success
keep you eager; enough faith to give you courage and enough determination to
make each day a good day”. All my best, Gayle </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><br /><p></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-42362706755037389232021-05-13T21:23:00.005-07:002021-08-25T06:59:32.048-07:00Life as a new Retiree<p> Life in the slow lane....</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8XTC9_hw1Gg/YJ3uWLMM0HI/AAAAAAAAGQs/BmDvnGpcFkkoh6h--RGiiaJSfzFl_gLDQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/swheat%2Bfarm%2Btruck2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8XTC9_hw1Gg/YJ3uWLMM0HI/AAAAAAAAGQs/BmDvnGpcFkkoh6h--RGiiaJSfzFl_gLDQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/swheat%2Bfarm%2Btruck2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>It’s a gloriously beautiful Spring evening and I can’t remember
what day this is, which isn’t Alzheimer… no it’s called retirement. I’ve had roughly about a little over a month
of it to know that I love it. I’ve poured
a second glass of wine, lit the mosquito candle (as I discovered 5 areas of
attack on my body from yesterday… ugh), grabbed a shawl and parked myself on my patio with the laptop. I call it pure bliss. <span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4RJzPoBXGEY/YJ3vcDooL2I/AAAAAAAAGQ0/QAi7ZVIzyswVvuOImqRI_jp2H0b_l90ugCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/patio.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4RJzPoBXGEY/YJ3vcDooL2I/AAAAAAAAGQ0/QAi7ZVIzyswVvuOImqRI_jp2H0b_l90ugCLcBGAsYHQ/w480-h640/patio.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is where I am writing from tonight.... it's my new fav spot</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">For once in my life, I am really committed to enjoying the art
of simple down-time. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have to remind myself
that the ” hurry mode” lodged in my brain will take time to realize I don't have to rush. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But in truth it’s a constant struggle to pace
myself and know <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>that I don’t have to go
full force at breakneck speed to get everything done over the weekend. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How successful am I?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, let’s just say it will be a work in
progress and I delegated the task of work/life balance<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>to my “Mr.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Right” (Rod) to sternly remind me that I don’t have to accomplish 50 tasks
<i>today!</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a tall order for him,
but he has bravely accepted the challenge. <span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">Here's a few pictures of what puttering looks like....</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-m-yXrGBPZNU/YJ3v0Pi7HuI/AAAAAAAAGRA/TbzwOCrvjtE1kdjWKFQzu_PzlZkY_VxpgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/fish%2Bbasket.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-m-yXrGBPZNU/YJ3v0Pi7HuI/AAAAAAAAGRA/TbzwOCrvjtE1kdjWKFQzu_PzlZkY_VxpgCLcBGAsYHQ/w480-h640/fish%2Bbasket.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>A fishing basket turned front door décor<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table>And I have to tell those of you who are already retired,
this is the bomb! Seriously.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In anticipation
of retirement, I signed myself up for a couple of online courses, as my goal is
to continue to learn new things and be a lifelong student of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the courses is on photography and the
other one I can’t remember what it is but I know it’s important (Lol )…. I haven’t started them yet, but they
are waiting and ready and I'm excited.<o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Nothing makes me happier than getting my little piece of
heaven all ‘gussied up”, here's a quick peek. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> <br /></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NcZOdPtdyVg/YJ3ze1WutwI/AAAAAAAAGRo/azrtoA1GvBgzn4Tz3Jg0LMGn7UJvilj3gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/front%2Bporch%252Cspring.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NcZOdPtdyVg/YJ3ze1WutwI/AAAAAAAAGRo/azrtoA1GvBgzn4Tz3Jg0LMGn7UJvilj3gCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/front%2Bporch%252Cspring.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Yr9JwcVK1fA/YJ3zaJCO41I/AAAAAAAAGRk/W248gUFV2ZMAdbOL5CRzhJblX7JtnSKxwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/flowers%2B.washbasin.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Yr9JwcVK1fA/YJ3zaJCO41I/AAAAAAAAGRk/W248gUFV2ZMAdbOL5CRzhJblX7JtnSKxwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/flowers%2B.washbasin.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qsNo8Vsul6I/YJ3xrAxSlmI/AAAAAAAAGRM/z94YX7SsHgU31K7Fx4xi6DMlxUsBS8ligCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/door.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qsNo8Vsul6I/YJ3xrAxSlmI/AAAAAAAAGRM/z94YX7SsHgU31K7Fx4xi6DMlxUsBS8ligCLcBGAsYHQ/w300-h400/door.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> And </span>it’s yard/estate sale season.....<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lord have mercy! I can't tell you how much I've toted home in anticipation for our barn sale. I have projects galore....Rod keeps saying no more shopping, as I've seriously run out of room. The shop is full, our garage is full and I have things stored at my mom's shop...it's insane - but fun. And bless his heart, he willingly goes to the sales with me to assist in hauling all those amazing treasures home. Gotta be true love.<p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-14AOLcbaJKA/YJ30JUi7SRI/AAAAAAAAGR8/GQlxwbyW1Yg4htsRNDIKx09WXwiF4rMOgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/birdhouse.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1152" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-14AOLcbaJKA/YJ30JUi7SRI/AAAAAAAAGR8/GQlxwbyW1Yg4htsRNDIKx09WXwiF4rMOgCLcBGAsYHQ/w360-h640/birdhouse.JPG" width="360" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Isn't this just the sweetest birdhouse ever?! I can't part with this beauty....Not sure where I'll hang it, but that is just a detail</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Anyway, that's all for now...just a few random thoughts and pictures. Hope your evening is wonderful and more to come. All my best, Gayle. Feel free to drop me a line at Swheatfarmlife@gmail.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br />swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-23260789437576106332021-02-16T18:59:00.011-08:002021-08-25T07:00:38.298-07:00Oh Happy Barn Construction Day!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UU31F1gu7p4/YCvZwSPKzPI/AAAAAAAAGME/FEZ7nGpdzPYgvqzJg0LpX03yUuVt60aAQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/clearwaterpower.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UU31F1gu7p4/YCvZwSPKzPI/AAAAAAAAGME/FEZ7nGpdzPYgvqzJg0LpX03yUuVt60aAQCLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h240/clearwaterpower.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Feb 9 the power pole is set</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ph6wBrWAbzg/YCyHePL84oI/AAAAAAAAGN0/5eWsXpaXHsoI72DmaZNZs-PwUv2jJmwGwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/barnday1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ph6wBrWAbzg/YCyHePL84oI/AAAAAAAAGN0/5eWsXpaXHsoI72DmaZNZs-PwUv2jJmwGwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/barnday1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day 1 February 10 </td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div></div><b><span style="font-size: large;">Oh happy day! </span></b>Excitement abounds in this girl's world, let me tell ya! Last Tuesday, Clearwater Power set the pole and on Wednesday C<a href="https://clevelandconstructionlewistonidaho.com/" target="_blank">leveland Construction</a> arrived. This was construction on Day 1.<p></p><p>I've had Cleveland Construction do some work for me before, but never to this extent. I have to tell you, when the owner, Brandon says he and his crew will be there, they are. These guys show up, they are fast, efficient and the amount of work they get done in a day is mind boggling.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-915mnJoS7BY/YCvb-TLgR2I/AAAAAAAAGMY/gdpo83PkjdcGFoTWm5YSaptpR1iaRYKRACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/barnprogress..jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-915mnJoS7BY/YCvb-TLgR2I/AAAAAAAAGMY/gdpo83PkjdcGFoTWm5YSaptpR1iaRYKRACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/barnprogress..jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Monday 2/15/21 - progress!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Here is what the barn looked like this Monday. The guys showed up in the midst of a snow globe <span><a name='more'></a></span>kind of day and it's taking shape! We had a delay on the trusses due to weather and not being able to be transported from Lewiston... I'm hoping Wednesday roads are decent and the trusses can be set.</div><div><br /></div><div>To ensure a happy crew, I make goodies for them everyday,... such as </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n8eniedqUzk/YCveEYBbfRI/AAAAAAAAGMk/QjPyrW6iypY8qIWzph1R5j7MSEmzkFFBQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/peanutbutter%2Bbars.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n8eniedqUzk/YCveEYBbfRI/AAAAAAAAGMk/QjPyrW6iypY8qIWzph1R5j7MSEmzkFFBQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/peanutbutter%2Bbars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Peanut Butter Chip Oat Bars<br /></b><p class="MsoNormal">Mix :<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">1 cup butter<br />
1 cup brown sugar<br />
1 cup white sugar<br />
1 cup peanut butter ( I use the crunchy kind)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Mix well, then add:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">2 eggs<br />
2 teas vanilla<br />
Mix and then add:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">2 tsp soda<br />
½ tsp salt<br />
2 cups flour<br />
1 cup regular oats<br />2 cups chocolate Chips (butterscotch chips are yummy too)<br /><br />Use a jelly roll pan which measures, 17x12 and spread out
the dough - (if you don’t have a jelly roll pan, I’d suggest using a 9x13 and
also a bread loaf pan). In a preheated
350 degree oven bake 25 minutes. A crowd pleaser for sure.</p><p class="MsoNormal">My Mr. Right and I are continuing to talk about uses for the barn and making plans. In the meantime, I am working on inventory and so is Rod - If these are the sweetest birdhouses ever...</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ajj7tHfzRwA/YCyBkhR1wwI/AAAAAAAAGM0/4368uySS6yocg8vfyAkP-nghHqMC6QECwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/birdhouse%2Bin%2Bprocess.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ajj7tHfzRwA/YCyBkhR1wwI/AAAAAAAAGM0/4368uySS6yocg8vfyAkP-nghHqMC6QECwCLcBGAsYHQ/w300-h400/birdhouse%2Bin%2Bprocess.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Birdhouse extraordinaire</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br />I'm finding all sorts of small pieces of furniture to refinish such as:<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-92SuCV0YlRY/YCyCheds-OI/AAAAAAAAGNE/RCdPHIwT_E4wSjPrbW8vHJyuQh5KRPPtACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/nightstand.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-92SuCV0YlRY/YCyCheds-OI/AAAAAAAAGNE/RCdPHIwT_E4wSjPrbW8vHJyuQh5KRPPtACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/nightstand.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K0nDNuikXZY/YCyCd9M0N-I/AAAAAAAAGNA/v7-k3UZBzXIto86z0MLOfcu5hsoOc55BgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/midcentury%2Bcoffeetable.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K0nDNuikXZY/YCyCd9M0N-I/AAAAAAAAGNA/v7-k3UZBzXIto86z0MLOfcu5hsoOc55BgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/midcentury%2Bcoffeetable.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal">More to come and I can hardly wait to share what is in the works! In the meantime, my retirement date is looming and I do love working from home with a relaxed schedule that allows a dog break snuggle. The dogs love it too...</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rqFMCJ12ttU/YCyDMfN7dsI/AAAAAAAAGNQ/9q8vwwTJtA4t-RtZKTNVO0TCfP-aqrCfQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/me%2Band%2BLouie.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rqFMCJ12ttU/YCyDMfN7dsI/AAAAAAAAGNQ/9q8vwwTJtA4t-RtZKTNVO0TCfP-aqrCfQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h360/me%2Band%2BLouie.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table>And that's all for now. Thanks for stopping by and I'll post updates periodically. As always love hearing from you so shoot me an email at swheatfarmlife@gmail.com. Wishing you all a safe, warm and cozy evening.<p></p><p class="MsoNormal">All my best, Gayle</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><b></b></div>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-51430244902692858702021-01-31T08:03:00.009-08:002021-02-16T19:19:16.670-08:00Gathering Treasures<p> Greetings from the farm</p><p>As I countdown the days to retirement, my excitement grows. Both Rod and I are beyond excited as we plan for upcoming barn events. </p><p>In preparation for either a late summer or early Fall Barn Vintage Treasure sale, I have begun repurposing my finds and increasing my inventory. <span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p>We have a shop which is my Mr. Right's domain and he is graciously sharing his space with me. Truth be told, he loves having me work down there with him (the crazy man!). Rod said to me the other day as we were driving home from my "latest find" and with treasure in tow, he said, I am so happy that you give me projects wherein I need to buy more shop tools to make stuff. (No sarcasm, he liked that he had a reason to buy power tools). </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ugI6_c0Fv3M/YBbSi2ghKYI/AAAAAAAAGK4/3fM4JTqx-DwXaMJmcPDdnansFF7TH9V9QCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Rod.Table.shop.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ugI6_c0Fv3M/YBbSi2ghKYI/AAAAAAAAGK4/3fM4JTqx-DwXaMJmcPDdnansFF7TH9V9QCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/Rod.Table.shop.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rod building tables out of salvaged barn wood from the old barn</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><p>So here is what my world looks like, I usually have two or more projects going on simultaneously between his shop and my home office, now converted into a work space (which drives Rod crazy - probably because I am exuberant, my word for messy, and possible damage to the wood floor). </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SvRdQhx_w1A/YBbS1dzxvII/AAAAAAAAGLA/c6GaB1eL22wKmo4Ev0SJi9DSU8BPPRpAACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/project.office.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SvRdQhx_w1A/YBbS1dzxvII/AAAAAAAAGLA/c6GaB1eL22wKmo4Ev0SJi9DSU8BPPRpAACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/project.office.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My home office now an impromptu work space</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iazT2kCa4w8/YBbTTm85YmI/AAAAAAAAGLI/UJ9XnMLkj_ssJDh4ee4Y1Zn3k8LolpeEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Marlin%2BBarn%2Btreasures.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iazT2kCa4w8/YBbTTm85YmI/AAAAAAAAGLI/UJ9XnMLkj_ssJDh4ee4Y1Zn3k8LolpeEQCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/Marlin%2BBarn%2Btreasures.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A successful day of treasure hunting</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p>The building site is prepped and in a couple of days, the building materials will arrive. My builder says the building should be completed by the end of February. I'm going to hide my <i>"let is snow"</i> pillow that I display on my bed during winter. I want good working weather so I'm being purely selfish here. 😃</p><p>That's all for today! Thank you for stopping by and I always love to hear from you, so leave a comment or email me at Swheatfarmlife@gmail.com. And I have a request for you, by all means, please please please share the blog site. That way you and your buddies can follow along on progress, get sneak peeks what is happening at the S-Wheat Farm and can plan on attending the events we have planned.</p><p>All my best, Gayle</p><p>PS my next blog post will be a "before and after".... and the one treasure Rod thought I should have burned. But I said have faith, it will turn out fine! More to come!</p><p><br /></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-38094286263478119992021-01-27T07:12:00.006-08:002021-01-31T08:04:39.562-08:00Faith and Retirement<p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qxp0lPI5deI/YBF-bvJblXI/AAAAAAAAGJQ/yVQGWBgr4D4EcnoKMhL-KNGdqeC_ckFVgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Starbucks.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qxp0lPI5deI/YBF-bvJblXI/AAAAAAAAGJQ/yVQGWBgr4D4EcnoKMhL-KNGdqeC_ckFVgCLcBGAsYHQ/w480-h640/Starbucks.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A PLAN FOR MY LIFE....inspiration and guidance that came to me one day</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Reading my daily devotionals, these were excerpts from 3
different books, all on the same day<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>- <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>they all spoke about “FAITH”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In them contained these phrases that jumped
out to me…. “faith is nothing without action”, “what fills you up so you can
share your gifts with the world?”,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“leaning
to live with faith is to take the next step <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and faith is a conscious decision that our
Creator has a plan in mind”<span></span></p><a name='more'></a><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">A couple of years ago, an ordinary event which in today’s
world is not ordinary (but with hopefulness that life will soon be returning to
normal) – I was sitting in Starbuck’s one Saturday morning sipping coffee and pondering
what the future would hold for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was
in a year long relationship with a wonderful man and it was proceeding well. What
was starting to stir up in my soul was needing a creative outlet. I seriously
had no idea where it would lead, but there was a tiny seed that had started. I had
some thoughts, no paper on hand, so I grabbed the wrapper in front of me and
started writing down things that made no sense to me, but were swirling around
in this crazy brain of mine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the
order the words that were drifting up from deep inside me were:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Faith-based<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Creativity<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Passion<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Good works<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Balance (life/work)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Food<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Being the best version of you<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Adventure<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I kept that wrapper and have now framed it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have faith this is what my retirement looks
like and this was our Creator’s “Master Plan” for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He provided a true help mate (Rod) , who I
have dubbed as my “Mr. Right”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This man
truly is the <i>wind beneath my wings</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Together we are having a new barn built with enough open space
for events, of which we are brain storming.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I can tell you that I will be holding a farm antique sale periodically
throughout the year and have started working on “inventory”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So
more to come! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> <br /></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-46ojoc9QMzU/YBGANkbv3bI/AAAAAAAAGJs/b7xDdsIq6tsGr63gs1YATGrK_F3J51yCQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/barn.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-46ojoc9QMzU/YBGANkbv3bI/AAAAAAAAGJs/b7xDdsIq6tsGr63gs1YATGrK_F3J51yCQCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/barn.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The iconic barn which was in bad shape</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WyEGB-eQigg/YBGAmdmmBbI/AAAAAAAAGJ0/2LQgRusE6CkONIOo8cgWf1bwCwabSWQEgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/barn%2Bburn.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WyEGB-eQigg/YBGAmdmmBbI/AAAAAAAAGJ0/2LQgRusE6CkONIOo8cgWf1bwCwabSWQEgCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/barn%2Bburn.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We tore the barn down, burned the scraps and the new barn will soon be underway!</td></tr></tbody></table></span><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">While I understand and think I know what some of this means
for me, some I am unsure about - so I guess the plan will be revealed at the
right time and I’ll move in that direction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7fXGeomup6Y/YBGBWuQP7iI/AAAAAAAAGJ8/cZxu2QchcrEyQ0mAg24ADxyLR6hhgH_YwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/barnsale%2Btable%2Bproject.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7fXGeomup6Y/YBGBWuQP7iI/AAAAAAAAGJ8/cZxu2QchcrEyQ0mAg24ADxyLR6hhgH_YwCLcBGAsYHQ/w300-h400/barnsale%2Btable%2Bproject.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A sneak peak on "treasures" that I am finding and refurbishing for the barn sale!</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br />
</span><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And with each step, I’ll share with you what we are doing,
progress and of course hope that you will come join us in the events here on
the “Swheat farm.” Here's to new adventures! I will be providing some tutorials along the way too as well as plan to hold some classes.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As always, thanks for stopping by, feel free to email me at <a href="mailto:swheatfarmlife@gmail.com">swheatfarmlife@gmail.com</a> if you have
comments or questions<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>or just leave a
comment on the blog.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All my best, Gayle<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-78387086654686785982020-12-20T21:36:00.002-08:002021-01-31T08:13:23.297-08:00Sweet Stuff<p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9jxY9uMIl5Q/X-Awfsyow9I/AAAAAAAAGGw/6STaLxcxBGASmdrfWVTT9NPRirXHVe6RwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/christmascookie.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9jxY9uMIl5Q/X-Awfsyow9I/AAAAAAAAGGw/6STaLxcxBGASmdrfWVTT9NPRirXHVe6RwCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/christmascookie.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>The day was sort of a cloudy dreary day, but the mood inside this gal's farmhouse was just the opposite. The grand-angels, their momma and her honey spent the afternoon in a cookie making marathon. <span><a name='more'></a></span> The copious amounts of sprinkles, cookie cutters and everything else were put to good use. This is what memories are made of. Times with family. With me, it's all about creating good times and good things in the kitchen and the kiddos know just where to head when they want to bake and have fun.</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VdfD9Fpaq_A/X-AyYcTm-aI/AAAAAAAAGHY/Cb7II7VSVwAZmVCCbiqMfMrwylLdYrBbgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/christmascookies3.jen.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VdfD9Fpaq_A/X-AyYcTm-aI/AAAAAAAAGHY/Cb7II7VSVwAZmVCCbiqMfMrwylLdYrBbgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/christmascookies3.jen.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>When they arrived, I step outside to greet them and a wisp of wood smoke from the pellet stove wafts by. This makes me remember Montana and the rural homestead of my beloved grandparents. It smells like comfort to me. I wonder if the kiddos will associate the smell of wood smoke with happy times coming out to grandma's country farmhouse after they are all grown up? Will they think of all the times together we measured flour, sugar and the other ingredients that go into making something delicious? I hope so. It's funny what a person remembers and what smells bring back thoughts of happy times.</div><div><p>After a very busy day of making cookies and sweetbreads, my daughter said with this being such a crazy year, no Christmas parties and basically everyday life has been paused - that the girls needed a little normal in the holiday tradition. And that normal meant coming out to my house to spend the day. It was heavenly from a grandma's perspective even amid the kitchen chaos of flour strewn counters and gooey frosting everywhere. The kiddos are growing up and I miss the days when I could scoop then up and hold them in my lap. But this is still a fav place to be and I'll take all the days like this that I can. </p></div><div><br /></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x_hNs8J_6kE/X-AyAsI76TI/AAAAAAAAGHQ/mnCRV48HYiAd1mR8EW_njs9QbL5bvdAiACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/christascookie3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x_hNs8J_6kE/X-AyAsI76TI/AAAAAAAAGHQ/mnCRV48HYiAd1mR8EW_njs9QbL5bvdAiACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/christascookie3.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The men helped by staying out of the way and being the taste testers</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uUbCii9_Kv0/X-AxMGFZI_I/AAAAAAAAGHA/99tSCre0Zp4KVrXSK4jnZxRG-ZD9lWFEACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/christmasookie4.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uUbCii9_Kv0/X-AxMGFZI_I/AAAAAAAAGHA/99tSCre0Zp4KVrXSK4jnZxRG-ZD9lWFEACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/christmasookie4.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The finished product </td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><div><br /></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kNw0MlAo9H4/X-AwkKsGvJI/AAAAAAAAGG0/MK9_D_un728F6OB32oP7Itsib54F7EYZgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/christmascookies2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kNw0MlAo9H4/X-AwkKsGvJI/AAAAAAAAGG0/MK9_D_un728F6OB32oP7Itsib54F7EYZgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h480/christmascookies2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sweet creations</td></tr></tbody></table><p>A sweet way as we get towards the end of 2020. And with that I wish you a safe and wonderful Christmas. xoxo Gayle</p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-50300883694613897462020-11-08T09:28:00.020-08:002020-11-08T10:45:43.139-08:00I Love America and My Freedom, How about You?<p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SZZBoeOHqiY/X6gmyMB_ZnI/AAAAAAAAGEw/JXsFOGQn9t43O-PFeQD3mXmyxFakcuscACLcBGAsYHQ/s275/BE%2Bthe%2Bchange.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="275" data-original-width="183" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SZZBoeOHqiY/X6gmyMB_ZnI/AAAAAAAAGEw/JXsFOGQn9t43O-PFeQD3mXmyxFakcuscACLcBGAsYHQ/w213-h320/BE%2Bthe%2Bchange.png" width="213" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">So how are you?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
mean really?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I saw something recently
posted by a cousin on social media that had said “ It feels like Americans are
in divorce court and just waiting to see who gets custody of us”. It hit the
nail on the head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whatever side you were
hoping to win may have you now feeling elated or feeling just the opposite with
yesterday’s announcement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For the most part, I see as a nation that we
are weary from COVID, racial issues and a contentious presidential race.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our emotions are upfront and center and for
many, they are very vocal about where they stand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I get it. There are so many factors out of
our control but yet they affect us. I imagine there are many things in play
that we may and may not know about and I for one feel a bit over-whelmed with
so much emotion swirling all around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Either way, there were things I liked and didn’t like about
each of the presidential candidates and their respective parties.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve listened to conversations from some
that worry about American becoming the next “socialized nation” and I have to
admit that scares the you know what out of me and is there someplace else
better than America to live in?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I ponder
for a few minutes and think, no there isn’t anyplace else like the U.S.A.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love
my freedom and all that comes with this amazing <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>privilege that I think so many take for
granted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or at least I have.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It comes down to the fact that there isn’t
anywhere else I would rather live than in America.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am going to put my trust in something
bigger than who is our next president.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tonight,
as always, I will get down on my knees and spill my soul to our Creator and
then ask for divine guidance for you, me and all of America.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As I write this, it is basically a snow globe outside my
window and it beckons for comfort both physically and spiritually. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZptBYhS-b_Q/X6gsQDMgzEI/AAAAAAAAGFI/Re7Vk3fp4kIT1qjxnm8TINzOOZLU5mDhgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/winter%2Bsunrise.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZptBYhS-b_Q/X6gsQDMgzEI/AAAAAAAAGFI/Re7Vk3fp4kIT1qjxnm8TINzOOZLU5mDhgCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/winter%2Bsunrise.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sharing a beautiful winter sunrise from my farmette</td></tr></tbody></table><p class="MsoNormal">Today I will be do the things that help calm
my soul, for one – it helps me when I write to you, next I will bundle up and
take a long walk outside which is another place to talk to God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then later on I will be baking Oatmeal
Cranberry cookies that have been dipped in chocolate. Recipe is <a href="http://www.swheatfarmlife.net/p/omg-delicious-desserts.html" target="_blank">here</a>. I will
save a few for my Mr. Right when he gets off work, but the majority will be
taken to my fav law enforcement office with sincere thanks for all they
do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Giving helps me and it feeds my
soul.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And as you navigate through your day, I wish you well, truly
and sincerely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My hope for you, me and
the rest of America is to move forward as we work towards keeping our freedom
and realizing how fortunate we are. There will always be differences and I hope
we all realize we can’t change anyone but ourselves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can choose how to navigate our everyday
life and it is up to us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And my choice will be
to follow our Creator’s words of wisdom as best I can.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am human, I fail and then I get back up and
try again to do better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This quote says
it perfectly to me…..<br />
<br /></p><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>2 Chronicles 20.17</b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Wishing you and your family all the best.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As always, thank you for stopping by and
sharing part of your day with me. As always, feel free to post a comment and by
all means share the post if you so feel inclined.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All my best, Gayle<o:p></o:p></p><br /><p></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-63631264867720626942020-10-18T11:53:00.006-07:002020-11-08T09:40:29.476-08:00You, Me and Respect<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4T0EOia4uLE/X4yNJwAuC7I/AAAAAAAAGDc/XfeB0thWR-Yh2smgqVRJmvl4yKNpwU9ngCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Montanaboots.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4T0EOia4uLE/X4yNJwAuC7I/AAAAAAAAGDc/XfeB0thWR-Yh2smgqVRJmvl4yKNpwU9ngCLcBGAsYHQ/w480-h640/Montanaboots.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p>Greetings friends,<o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">On this splendidly glorious rainy Sunday, it’s a day to
cocoon, pull on a sweater and comfy jeans maybe read, nap, bake or enjoy some
comfort food. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I fully plan to do all
of the above, except I have some thoughts and the words that want to come out regarding
something that is bothering me.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">A couple days ago I had a childhood friend that I keep in
touch with send me a very long impassioned message about who was the best
candidate (in her opinion) to run the country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And I read the lengthy text, but what really bothered me was the last
sentence in which she said, regardless who wins the election she hoped we could
still be friends!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It took me by
surprise, literally! <span></span></p><a name='more'></a>And I wondered where did that came from???<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
seriously can’t ever recall me posting anything outright political, I may “like”
or “share” something on FB, but even that is rare if it is political in
nature.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, I ignored the political
stuff and simply said back, of course we would always be friends. And I meant
every word. I thought this would be a good topic to discuss openly <i>to all</i> since I have noticed an uptick in people being very vocal about their beliefs. I see it in my own family and thus felt I had to write and express what has been on my heart now for some time.<o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For months now, I have mostly have avoided TV news and limit
FB severely as it saddens my heart to see the crazy stuff going on and the
things people post and whatnot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me,
my views on politics and religion are private. I will listen to what others say
– but mostly I work really hard to stay out of the fray. <b><span style="font-size: medium;">How I vote and pray is
not anyone’s business but my own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How
you vote and practice religion is none of my business</span></b>. I have friends whose political
stance is known, and while I may not share their beliefs, I value their
friendship more – so I will watch and listen, but don’t engage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Believe what you want, respect others who
have their own opinions and maybe you will have to agree to disagree. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you like to debate issues, fine, but - be
respectful, kind and let it go if you don’t see eye to eye.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In four years, there will be another election
and choices to make, so would it be worth giving up on
cherished friends over politics?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not in this girl’s
book.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that is just my 2cents.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">So as we all move forward in these next weeks before
November elections, let us remember what we were taught in kindergarten, or
Sunday School or by our parents – play nice, be kind, keep your hands to yourself,
respect yourself and others, don’t hit and if you do something mean, say you
are sorry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just basic stuff, but it can
go a long way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Remember to be good to you </b>as these are stressful times
with COVID19, political unrest and having to navigate chaos in our daily
world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do what you have to do to keep
balance and positivity in your world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Take care and wishing everyone a warm, cozy Sunday. As always, I appreciate your comments, so feel free to post, or email me at swheatfarmlife@gmail.com and share the post if you feel inspired.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All my best, Gayle<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nqyv2-xwYbI/X4yNuuwPmSI/AAAAAAAAGDo/Y4PF5GPGrN4WA5kxTyv5p3fK8FbZL0f-ACLcBGAsYHQ/s225/product%2Bof%2Bcircumstances.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nqyv2-xwYbI/X4yNuuwPmSI/AAAAAAAAGDo/Y4PF5GPGrN4WA5kxTyv5p3fK8FbZL0f-ACLcBGAsYHQ/s0/product%2Bof%2Bcircumstances.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-83440364325189448402020-08-18T19:40:00.013-07:002020-10-18T12:25:07.663-07:00July/August Home and Harvest Article<p>Hi all, in case you missed the sell out version of the July/August 2020 edition of<a href="https://www.homeandharvestmagazine.com/"> Home and Harvest </a>Magazine, here is my article:</p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vql5axNTNhg/XzyPkExpwtI/AAAAAAAAGA0/9XWpGLGmnjwWlhr_c1WLvoZ2N_bdHXVigCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Barn.spring.flower.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vql5axNTNhg/XzyPkExpwtI/AAAAAAAAGA0/9XWpGLGmnjwWlhr_c1WLvoZ2N_bdHXVigCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Barn.spring.flower.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Greetings Friends. As I write the July/August issue in
mid-June, the world is in a bit of chaos and I’ve chosen to turn down the noise
of the media and take a breather. Instead of watching the news, I sit outside
sipping coffee in the early morning soaking up nature’s quiet soothing sounds.<span></span></p><a name='more'></a>
I find by greeting the day with a prayer and a desire to make my little world a
better place to live in any way that is within my power helps set the tone of
my day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a new normal emerges and we
are doing things we have never done before, our routine is different and
sometimes life can feel very surreal. For me, more than ever, the fragility of
life is in the forefront of my daily thoughts and actions. The day after I had
submitted my article for the May/June on-line edition, my beloved sis-in-law,
Denise passed away suddenly after a battle with cancer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it was another layer of grappling with a different
look to life for my brother and the rest of our family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you knew Denise, her life was filled with
helping others, both professionally and personally, she had a beautiful heart
& soul. And I dedicate this article to Nini, as we called her. A life well
lived – of: Joy. Perspectives. Volunteerism. Taking chances.<o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I remember one day when I was a kid, that it seemed so weird
to wake up in your bedroom (we lived in a mobile home) <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>where the surroundings looked the same but
looking outside, it was another new view.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We had moved yet again and my world didn’t look the same as it did the
day before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Kind of like now, don’t you
think?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then that optimistic
kick-start of looking for the silver lining gets a hold in my mind and off I
go. As a child, I’d go off to explore my new surroundings and get familiar with
my new normal in a different town.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Three
years ago, I moved from Genesee to Moscow and did the same thing, I explored my
new area, got familiar with the landscape and neighbors and settled in to enjoy
my new normal in a different town. And I feel like I’ve settled in quite nicely,
it’s home. This vintage beauty of a farm house that overlooks fields and
mountains fills this gal’s need for space, quiet, and a place to get dirt under
your fingernails. I found my little piece of heaven, then along came my Mr.
Right (Rod) who shares my love of simple rural living, family and embracing the
beauty of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Currently we are “combining
junk drawers “and he is in the process of moving to Moscow where he will join
me full time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We each have adult
children who are happy that we have each other to get into mischief and most
likely keeps us out of their hair.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>lol<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plus we have a blended dog family who can be
seen romping around the fields and or terrorizing the squirrels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rod also inherited my grand-angels and adores
the kiddos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And on one special week-end
camping trip in June, the kiddos officially made him their “inherited grandpa”,
of which they now refer to him as “Pops”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This new status came complete with a certificate and a list of
grandparent rules (i.e. always be fun, laugh at their jokes, they will laugh at
his bad jokes, take them for ice cream, etc).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>~ Joy~ </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aXon4tVHHo4/XzyQfboyzpI/AAAAAAAAGBE/PnFiZuh_RVoaUQeqhh-phPKtfGY6_fVMgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Rod.Pops1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aXon4tVHHo4/XzyQfboyzpI/AAAAAAAAGBE/PnFiZuh_RVoaUQeqhh-phPKtfGY6_fVMgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Rod.Pops1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6ABeWO2M25o/XzyQcR5nuVI/AAAAAAAAGBA/cfXeKze-cHwfM4PMW0xy4bTrl8JEjFW8gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Rod.Pops.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6ABeWO2M25o/XzyQcR5nuVI/AAAAAAAAGBA/cfXeKze-cHwfM4PMW0xy4bTrl8JEjFW8gCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Rod.Pops.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Today as I write this article, I’m perched on a hillside in
sturdy Adirondack chairs (best yard-sale finds ever!) <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rod had decided a week prior that we needed a
place to take in a new view.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What was
amazing to me, was that I long as I had lived here, that I had never stopped to
take in the sight from a top of my hillside. It took someone else’s vision to
make a change and see life from a new vantage point. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s now<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>become our fav place to sit and admire a familiar, yet different view
where coffee and sunrises or wine and sunsets are perfectly paired and savored.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it hit home that in life, sometimes when
I look at a situation, that changing the view of looking at things a certain
way leads to a better mindset. ~Perspectives~</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AFMGyCFpsBo/XzyQyHlgK_I/AAAAAAAAGBQ/vUqu5IvROgsSoaK6xSxOCDPV7LTTPzRCACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Rod.me.hillside.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="800" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AFMGyCFpsBo/XzyQyHlgK_I/AAAAAAAAGBQ/vUqu5IvROgsSoaK6xSxOCDPV7LTTPzRCACLcBGAsYHQ/w600-h800/Rod.me.hillside.jpg" width="600" /></a></div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sitting here watching the world come alive, I think back to
a time in my life when I was a young parent living in Genesee and how a school
meeting took me down a new pathway that firmly inserted me into the community.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember the school superintendent hosting
a meeting at the beginning of the school year and asked those present to help
the school get new playground equipment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That idea kept rolling around in my brain and after I started pestering
the school administrators about wanting to start the project, they held the
first meeting and suggested I take the lead.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was a win-win for them, they would get me out of their hair and
hopefully get a new playground.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had
never chaired anything in my life before, but I said I’d do it even though I
had absolutely no leadership skills or experience with fundraising.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being young, naïve and goal driven, the 10 or
so members of the dedicated group all had an end result of a new playground in
our mind’s eye.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We called ourselves “The Playground Committee”
as this was before there was a formal PTA was formed at our school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We rolled up our sleeves and formed a game
plan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was back in the 1990’s and we
needed to raise $15,000 to buy the structure, gave ourselves 5 months to raise
the money and 3 months to redo the playground.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This group which was made up of dedicated parents along with a first-grade
teacher trusted me and my crazy ideas of how to fundraise. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our moneymakers were a tacky prom (imagine the
gaudiest outfits …. Ever!), a plant sale, a community dinner theater, a massive
garage sale and the local farmer’s co-op donated pea seeds wherein the grade
school kids decorated seed packets to sell. It was non-stop projects. The work
was endless, as we all had day jobs, family, community/church obligations – yet
we were all committed. The inside joke in our group was that property values
next to my house were going down because no one wanted to live next to me, as I
was known for giving anyone I saw the “opportunity to help our cause”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Actually, it wasn’t that bad, but… ok maybe
it was.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Regardless, in the end, we
reached our financial goal, ordered the equipment and we worked every week-end
assembling the equipment to transform the tired and dangerous playground into a
safe and fun place for the kiddos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
day before school started an SOS went out as we still needed sod.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The beauty of living in a farm community was
that a local farmer donated his blue grass sod out of his field and multiple
people showed up to help and together we laid sod under the headlights of all
the trucks to finish the project the night before school started.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sweet, but exhausting success.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A few weeks later, the superintendent held a
ceremony to honor us and it was then we learned that we had accomplished
something that two other times this had been attempted but failed. As I looked
at this amazing group of parents and community members who banded together for
a common cause, worked countless hours, sought outside help for technical
skills beyond our skillset, and I understood the love for our kids, school and
community.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To me, that message was
powerful, step up when you saw a need to fix something and together people can make
it better and succeed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>~Volunteerism~ <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">~Taking Chances~</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As defined in the dictionary: To seize and make the most of
opportunities as they present themselves. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">If you think about it, this is something we do every single
day and opportunities present themselves in all sorts of forms such as people,
ideas, events and so on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It permeates
our daily life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I want to be creative
and try a new recipe, I’m hoping it’s a keeper and doesn’t end up in the
garbage as a failed experiment (yup… then you order pizza!).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or it can be in the form of seeing a new way
of doing things and taking the initiative to pitching an idea to my chairman. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whether
it be a new recipe, a new relationship, a new project, or a change of location or
job, it requires us to step outside of our comfort zone into new territory. It’s
about seizing those ordinary moments and seeing them in a different light and
acting on it. Being an agent of change.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
there is courage in being vulnerable and taking the risk. If you succeed, so
much the better, if you didn’t, then it should be viewed as an effort well
tried. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And my hope is that if I am open about my life and maybe
connect with you from the stories I tell from my own perfectly imperfect life,
that maybe you will not feel alone or overwhelmed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That maybe you will feel inspired to take
that chance and go for the gusto which hopefully includes, finding joy,
changing your perspective and make your world a little bit better through volunteerism.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me my greatest fear is reaching the end
of my life and having that regret for not taking that risk or showing up for my
life in a way that matters. And that my friend, is the catalyst for keeping me
moving forward following my moral compass in life and seeking a life well lived
as best I can. Plus, I sincerely feel together we can be a beautiful agent of
change wherein we show up for each other and our community. All my best,
Gayle<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Swheatfarmlife.net<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><br /><p></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-75888048138514844182020-08-09T16:24:00.004-07:002020-10-18T12:25:52.937-07:00Chapters 2 and 3, Life Stages<p class="MsoNormal">Week 2 and 3, August
9, 2020<o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QfpnXnFXvfc/XzCEFVIZKJI/AAAAAAAAF_k/UsxuDXZbGq4VuEbzLx431R9tKCNx-TXrgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/snake.river.1.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QfpnXnFXvfc/XzCEFVIZKJI/AAAAAAAAF_k/UsxuDXZbGq4VuEbzLx431R9tKCNx-TXrgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/snake.river.1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal">Greetings from the farmette.
From the last post on working on the chapters of “A Year for You” here’s
the progress report. Chapter Two’s focus was finding a place in your home that
is special, a place that invites cozy, comfort and security. <span></span></p><a name='more'></a>A place where it is your anchor. That was easy as my favorite place in my home is a chair in the sunroom where I
usually almost always choose to write. It’s next to the pellet stove on cold
days and on warmer days, I take in the view on my little piece of heaven. Although last week there was a bit of
exception as I was enjoying some much needed down time with Rod on the boat on
the Snake River, where cell service and people were in scare supply. I enjoyed chapter two and three lounging in
the sun. <p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fgi7s8HK6hU/XzCEigwVJPI/AAAAAAAAF_0/1zYWgIRXZEUGPZJ4diFScgW1af_6L0azACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/snake.river.rod.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fgi7s8HK6hU/XzCEigwVJPI/AAAAAAAAF_0/1zYWgIRXZEUGPZJ4diFScgW1af_6L0azACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/snake.river.rod.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KchDdiKgCWY/XzCEdIFK6YI/AAAAAAAAF_w/3Nyq3i5jAn8fQDdr51QVudiuo5NOTicZgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/snake.river.me.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KchDdiKgCWY/XzCEdIFK6YI/AAAAAAAAF_w/3Nyq3i5jAn8fQDdr51QVudiuo5NOTicZgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/snake.river.me.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Chapter Three had the analogy of life stages are a lot like planting
a flower garden, the first year the plants “sleep”, the second year they “creep” and third year they “leap”. And
then you had to decide with stage fit you.
I am definitely in the “leap” cycle.
These last 7 years in my single status, I have gone from the sleep stage
and as I healed and grew – it was like the creep stage where plants begin to grow and reach
out after getting a good grip on being acclimated. It feels good to be in the leap stage of
life. It's full of all sorts of good things, possibilities and the start of a
new beginning with Rod, here full time.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As for the new “we” chapter with having Rod move in with me,
the final move was easy. He mostly brought with him his clothes and personal
items, and some kitchen stuff. He
remarked just yesterday, that it feels like home to him. The week he had to be out of the Spokane house
was the same week his brother and sister-in-law were moving to a new home after
living out of a specialized camper wherein in they had traveled the world as
their retirement adventure. Now they were ready to settle back in the USA, had very
little furniture having sold almost everything when they embarked on their worldwide
3 year site-seeing trip. Rod and I felt like it was our Creator’s hand in the
perfect timing and we kept marveling at the perfectness of it. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S1pi0ZWGQ2o/XzCEyGFc-HI/AAAAAAAAF_8/ye29uJIai-QYex8fsjns24BZaiN2gpUCQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/snake.river.feet.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S1pi0ZWGQ2o/XzCEyGFc-HI/AAAAAAAAF_8/ye29uJIai-QYex8fsjns24BZaiN2gpUCQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/snake.river.feet.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /> <o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">So as I readjust from “me” to “we” status, it feels so
right. Having to brag on him a bit, it
is truly like having my own personal chef create dinner at night, as well as
having a gardener too.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-njJtTFS2c2A/XzCFDzzl8pI/AAAAAAAAGAM/kmHwzNub_hMYs8FQga23BkSphYffPUyrACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/snake.river.rod.cooking.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-njJtTFS2c2A/XzCFDzzl8pI/AAAAAAAAGAM/kmHwzNub_hMYs8FQga23BkSphYffPUyrACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/snake.river.rod.cooking.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p>I seriously sometimes
have to pinch myself to make sure I’m not dreaming. We both realize we each
have been graced with a second chance at happiness and know that we have been
blessed. So I’ll take his snoring and absentmindedness in stride, while he puts
up with my icy cold hands and feet along with other goofy things that I am sure
cause him to shake his head. Lol<o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And as you are reading this, if you are married or in a
relationship, I hope that you look at your person with love and gratitude for
being in your life. If you are single,
please don’t lose hope that the right one will come along if that is what you
desire. Most of all, relish and focus on the good things in life, commit to
working on the areas in life that need tending to. Life isn’t perfect, but it can be a
fulfuilling one if you step back and let our Creator be your guide. Trust me on
this. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jnH58LC2ATM/XzCFRPDr5TI/AAAAAAAAGAU/YwdIW3s4JXsPt_om6bdi38pSktKHj-EGgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/snake.river.sunset.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jnH58LC2ATM/XzCFRPDr5TI/AAAAAAAAGAU/YwdIW3s4JXsPt_om6bdi38pSktKHj-EGgCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/snake.river.sunset.jpg" /></a></div><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p>As always, thank you for stopping by, I appreciate your
time. If you have a comment or thoughts,
I’d love to hear from you. So leave me a comment or email at <a href="mailto:swheatfarmlife@gmail.com">swheatfarmlife@gmail.com</a>. I love to hear your stories on life, love and
learning. All my best, Gayle </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JW6aP9oSXkY/XzCCuVnvEtI/AAAAAAAAF_Q/6eyVmJqWaP0TSVOp2yUVfKVrpMdK67DTwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/snake.river.me.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px;"><br /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JW6aP9oSXkY/XzCCuVnvEtI/AAAAAAAAF_Q/6eyVmJqWaP0TSVOp2yUVfKVrpMdK67DTwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/snake.river.me.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px;"><br /></a></div><p></p>swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-50400365205853071002020-07-26T08:26:00.001-07:002020-10-18T12:26:14.381-07:00Week One, 5 Minutes to Focus on Slow<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F9GYJ6vgads/Xx2eaH7G_CI/AAAAAAAAF-M/pXzqJAC_xKcdtZHkq_7BzaJ4KWkCFFSjACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Morning.wheat.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F9GYJ6vgads/Xx2eaH7G_CI/AAAAAAAAF-M/pXzqJAC_xKcdtZHkq_7BzaJ4KWkCFFSjACLcBGAsYHQ/s640/Morning.wheat.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Loved the early morning sunlight on the wheat</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
I don’t know about you, but with staying home more, I have
started reading all the books that I’ve bought in the last few years, maybe started and then got set
aside due to life being a bit busy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m
a nut for inspirational books that talk about focusing on your goals, self-care
and such.<span><a name='more'></a></span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had 4 going over the past
3-4 years - quick to buy and start and slow to finish or actual put in the work that
they suggest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I just bought another
book on “A Year for You”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>by Stephanie
Bennett Vogt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Right off the bat, the
author talks about breaking down techniques each week for a year to help you to
focus on self-care, getting a handle on stress <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and reducing clutter in your life (which includes
your home). What spoke to my soul was that she had a term she called “tourism”,
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>wherein you buy the book, sort of read
it and never put in the work it takes and of course no results come of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ugh…. Spot on!! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love the concept of the book’s message, but
I fail to take the time and do the work it says to do<span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 107%;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I thought,
I’m going to make you my accountability partner, where at the end of each week,
I’ll give you a report on the week’s progress.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span>I have found that I am okay letting myself down and not keeping a
promise to myself, but I’d never<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>not
keep a promise to someone else. <o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So Week One’s lesson was taking the time all week to just
take an extra 5 minutes practicing slowing down…. like enjoying coffee for 5
more minutes. And being aware of how you are on auto-pilot as you run through the day and observe yourself. My conscious 5 minutes besides the coffee part (which was
pure bliss), was reading, sitting on the porch in the evening (resisting the
urge to go spray or pull weeds), play with the dogs, enjoy a glass of wine with
Mr. Right (Rod).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I found I had to keep re-reading the chapter during the week, as I was sort of successful being aware of my auto-pilot
state. It’s so easy to slip into.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
other thing that I had to do was write a letter to myself about my reality
today, how I feel and what motivated me to take on this challenge of a year for
you… and the 2<sup>nd</sup> part of the lesson was what my reality would be in
a year from now and the letter would be opened on week 50.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was an interesting exercise.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The other part of my week was merging households as Rod has
almost fully moved in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This meant
re-organizing how we work in the kitchen and the office/pantry room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here is what my life looked liked:<o:p></o:p></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GyOhdk6FlM4/Xx2eskovKsI/AAAAAAAAF-U/PeqwIbKm14k6ZPH9JN0GtuOWQ-JC6-oMQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/messy.office.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GyOhdk6FlM4/Xx2eskovKsI/AAAAAAAAF-U/PeqwIbKm14k6ZPH9JN0GtuOWQ-JC6-oMQCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/messy.office.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before! Chaos doesn't even describe it. Rod built more shelves in the armoire so I could re-organize and use the space efficiently. It was hard working in my home office during the day in this chaos </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OmXFleIJxXE/Xx2e0M5Rq3I/AAAAAAAAF-Y/0loZi0lfumkmDr9RRdHQKjtNTdKl1kc_gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/clean.office.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OmXFleIJxXE/Xx2e0M5Rq3I/AAAAAAAAF-Y/0loZi0lfumkmDr9RRdHQKjtNTdKl1kc_gCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/clean.office.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After... whew! I ended up having to do some reorganizing of the kitchen too- but worth the effort</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I slipped over last Friday night to have dinner with mom and play a game of Scrabble... which my almost 84 yoa mom still whopped my a**. 😳 All in all, a fairly successful week trying to be mindful
and slow down when the greenhouse is in full swing producing copious amounts of
cucumbers and lettuce that Rod planted. And
harvesting the huge bed of strawberries and all the rows of raspberries. I’ve canned some spicy green beans and
together Rod and I have made batches of strawberry jam and a few jars of
pickles. Just part of summer on the farmette.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As always, thank you for taking time to stop by, feel free to
leave a comment or email at <a href="mailto:swheatfarmlife@gmail.com">swheatfarmlife@gmail.com</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I always love to hear from you and if you
have any words of wisdom… send them my way on how you slow down and what your
extra 5 minutes to enjoy something is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>All my best, Gayle<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-74021946675368067832020-07-22T22:10:00.001-07:002020-10-18T12:26:29.390-07:00Optimism - Sharing My May/June Article From Home and Harvest MagazineHi Friends - After a good friend commented that she was missing my blog posts.... It occurred to me that I should begin sharing the articles that I write for <a href="https://www.homeandharvestmagazine.com/" target="_blank">Home and Harvest Magazine,</a> and thought I'd begin with the May/June edition. Having followers all over, it dawned on me that I should aquatint you to this wonderful local publication. 😀<span><a name='more'></a></span><br />
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I've had lots of thoughts rolling around this ole brain and just haven't given my self time to focus and write on the blog as much as I'd like to. And to help me accomplish getting a better handle on life.... I just started a program designed to help you reclaim you life and to focus on getting rid of the clutter in your life that keeps you from being your best. It's a one year project for 52 weeks.... so I thought I'd make you my accountability partner to keep my feet to the fire. 😉 So in-between sharing my articles from the magazine, I'll share each week what the lesson is, what I am trying to do and who knows, maybe it will be of help to you as well!<br />
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As always, thanks so much for taking time out of your day. I am hoping you are healthy, safe and doing well. Feel free to comment or shoot me an email at swheatfarmlife@gmail.com. All my best, Gayle<br />
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May/June, 2020<br />
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When you are a kid, or at least this was how I was, everyday
seemed like a Saturday. There was no urgency and days just melded one into
another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I write the May/June
edition, everyone is in the middle of the mandatory stay at home order and I
have to admit, everyday feels like a Saturday, minus the fact that I am
actually working from home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe
it’s the fact that the “commute” is just down one flight of stairs, through the
kitchen and into my office. Having never worked from home other than a day here
or there, my mind is fooled into thinking this is just a really long week-end. I
know I am one of the fortunate ones having a job and I take my time in front of
my work laptop seriously. But today, which is on a real Saturday, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I let my mind wander as I ponder what life
will look like as you are reading this early summer issue online, given the
fact that the printer who prints this magazine and almost all the vendors who
have magazine carts are closed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, I
imagine you, the reader taking a moment from your day and sitting down to
peruse this issue from your favorite spot, and hoping you are sitting at a
sidewalk café, sipping something delicious on a warm sunny day. And that life
is flowing back into a place where everyone can relish family, friends and
connections again. <o:p></o:p></div>
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And what keeps surfacing as I gaze outside this sunny but
cold April day, is the moment in my young life that I discovered I possessed
optimism.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First of all, I was not an
extraordinary child by any means, I was scrawny with a mop of naturally curly
dark brown hair that seemed to have a life of its own. I was bossy to my
younger brothers, but outside the family I was quiet, but fairly social. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So to sum it up, I was an ordinary kid and I
am still ordinary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Growing up, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was not any kind of genius - that title goes
to my youngest brother Barry and that is a whole other story of its own. Anyway,
I’ve had a couple of life lessons that registered in my young mind that I
recognized and actually felt the “aha moment” that have stuck with me and
served me well all through my life so far.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I was in 5<sup>th</sup> grade when my parents sat us kids
down and explained that we would probably be living in separate households.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were contemplating divorce. Back then I
knew only one girl who lived with her mom and she seemed sad all the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I was terrified of what life would look
like and how my world had changed completely overnight without my consent. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My folks told us that they loved us and that
it wasn’t our fault, but it was still a gut-wrenching time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then a few days later, after crying
myself to sleep every night, I awoke one morning and thought, this won’t be so
bad, we can have regular visits with dad and we will live with mom who always
was the one who nurtured us. She was (and still is) the “go to parent” and life
will go on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt our little world would
be okay, actually more than okay, it would be truly good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then it hit me, I was aware that this feeling
was something important and there was this shift and I recognized what <i>optimism
</i>felt like. Even though I was only around 10 or 11, I knew this was powerful
and it registered as a life truth in my young mind. The ability to realize that
you had the power to choose happy and accept that regardless of what was
happening - that you had the power to frame the circumstances.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
remember telling my brothers, it would be okay and actually feeling like it
would be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe they trusted me, maybe
they didn’t and tuned me out since I was the bossy sister, but I like to think
they took my words seriously.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anyway,
the split never happened, a comprise of my parents ensued and they stayed
together until I was twenty. But that life lesson of finding optimism has been
a corner stone of getting through many hard and difficult times throughout my
life.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I will admit I get more than annoyed with others who only
see the half-full glass side of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
wonder what made them choose to look at life in that way and it makes me feel
sad for them. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My life is probably a lot
like yours, in that we’ve all hit our fair share of speed bumps on the road of
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the difference is how you view
the obstacles that may have temporarily derailed you, what you learned, and
what you did to get back on your journey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I know personally when I hit a major speed bump seven years ago, that it
forever changed my pathway and <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>in turn took
me on a very different road. One that I most likely would not have chosen on my
own, but one with all of its twists and turns has shown me so much more than I
ever knew existed. I guess I would now call it my version of a happy ending to
a long journey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we before I ended up
in my present state, I had to face uncertainty, loneliness, heartache,
self-worth and all the other junk that sometimes gets heaped on when a major change
happens. But then you have the choice to sink deeper into that hole or stand up
and take one step at a time to move forward. Hope and a good dose of optimism
are essential items to keep in your back pocket. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I am here to tell you that today I have
never been happier and actually thankful for the bumpy road that has taught me
so much. </div>
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Being in the Ag industry for many years, having optimism is also a corner stone
in every single farm family’s lives. Year after year, they have faith and hope
every time they put in a crop that they will have a bountiful harvest and that
the market is kind to them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unknown
factors of weather and a picky market play a big factor in the end result of
the their efforts that is commonly called a paycheck. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you felt the toilet paper shortage, just
imagine for a terrifying moment what a food shortage would be like. But these
dedicated full-time farmers & ranchers go out every day and do what they do
best, grow our food for our bellies, cotton for the clothes on our backs and
give us a safe abundant food source.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God
bless them.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Now more than ever with the COVID-19 impact on our lives, I
have an even greater appreciation to the everyday heroes of the frontline. The obvious ones, such as the medical
workforce and the police/fireman/military have always been important to me,
especially since some of my family are or were in those professions. But now I
have even a deeper appreciation for them, along with the clerks in the stores,
the truck drivers, the warehouse workers who all faced the risk of being
infected every shift. I applaud the educators who on a moment’s notice had to
change their method of instruction. And the list of those keeping us afloat
goes on. And I pray every day for
them. My heart swells with joy when the
news stations report on ways Americans are bonding together and sharing the latest of the good deeds and acts that are being shown to
one another. <br />
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And the take-away as I reflect back to our forced stay home
order is that we all have the opportunity to do a “restart” on our lives and
redefine what is important in this journey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This has been a difficult time, for some more than others, but it has
affected all of us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How we rise up and
go forward is equally important and I hope that you as well as myself will
continue to seek out and nourish that inner optimism and let it help you which
in turn helps our community.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know for
me personally, as I wait for the “pause button on life” to be lifted, that I
will be redefining my new normal and reviewing what is truly important and what
can be tossed. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The headline of “<i>Let’s
be Wonderful Together”</i> from the Ruralite magazine hit the nail on the head.
It further quoted my all-time favorite movie from “It’s A Wonderful Life” when
Clarence the Angel says to George Bailey, “Strange isn’t it? Each man’s life
touches so many other lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When he
isn’t around, he leaves an awful hole, doesn’t he?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The article talked about volunteers and
difference-makers who affect the lives of others for the better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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And I do look forward to seeing the explosion of life once
again where we can gather together to share a meal and laugh at our stories of
our struggles and high fives on our triumphs. I eagerly await the time when we
all are celebrating the everyday sweetness of life, love, family and friends in
ways that have meaning to each of us. Mr. Right (Rod) commented that we need to
do some kind of weekly friend/family dinner parties! (I agree) And in the
coming months, I hope I continue seeing people out riding bikes or walking
together, and where home cooked meals are still eaten in leisure and savored
followed by snuggling in to watch a movie or play a game.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cherished times.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YWKt7s1V8Cw/Xxkfzv6TYdI/AAAAAAAAF9g/dOsnyBu6MksSP0rSwYIjPsA0Prg9f_wlwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/katy.family.goofy.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="960" height="360" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YWKt7s1V8Cw/Xxkfzv6TYdI/AAAAAAAAF9g/dOsnyBu6MksSP0rSwYIjPsA0Prg9f_wlwCLcBGAsYHQ/s640/katy.family.goofy.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of my fav family photos</td></tr>
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Now more than ever, I see that I am beyond blessed with the
special people in my life, some related, some not and it’s that personal
connection to others that truly is the spice of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So as you go about your new normal, remember
the good and the acts of random kindness that arose from our “pause on life”,
remember to not be in such a hurry to get things done and to savor those near
and dear to you and keep up the acts of kindness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All my best, Gayle <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(for more stories: www.swheatfarmlife.net)<o:p></o:p></div>
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swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-754926943889760299.post-12446636942539596472020-06-06T07:49:00.002-07:002020-10-18T12:26:59.899-07:00Living Color Blind<br />
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I don’t have to tell you how these last couple of months
have been chaotic and fraught with the fear of the unknown.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We all feel it and are living through it to the
best of our ability.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our world as we
know it isn’t the same and we wonder if it will ever return to the old
normal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> <span><a name='more'></a></span> </span>COVID 19 and now with racial
tensions over the unjust killings of two men has sparked protests and riots and
this seeps into every corner of our world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And if you notice that I didn’t refer to the two men who were killed as “black”,
that was on purpose, as any life lost is a tragedy, especially through brutality.
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>ALL LIVES MATTER and I don’t care what
color a person’s skin is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No
exceptions.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The American Farmer as with the police officers all feel disgust
and anger when one of their own does something wrong or goes rogue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unfortunately, then the media pounces on that
particular offender and the rest of the honorable, caring and hard-working
farmers and police force suffer and it feels like the public has “branded them”
as a whole.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know how it feels to be under the
microscope of doubt, as I have been in the Ag industry for over 30+ years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know first-hand how it feels when the
public thinks you are trying to poison them in the way we produce food.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s
no different when an attorney isn’t ethical and steals from a client.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or any profession when a person chooses to be
unethical.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 107%;">Those individual bad acts are of the person,</span> <span style="font-size: 20pt; line-height: 107%;">not the profession </span>and <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>those who are in that particular profession who
now have the burden of trying to stand tall and do their job to the best of
their ability.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All while every action is
being scrutinized by others who do not walk in their shoes day in and day out.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Ignorance and hatred are threats to our way of life and it
is unacceptable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have turned off the
TV and am limiting social media.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am
weary of chaos being reported, and while I abhor the crimes committed, those
responsible are being tried through our judicial system.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
choose to go about my day to focus on the kindness and the good in the world. I
choose to seek equality of all men and women regardless what color and each day
practice that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Am I naïve?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe. But living a life that matters in a decent,
respectable way, embracing differences of cultures and for lack of a better
term, “being color blind” to our fellow man-kind feels right in how I choose to
live my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>WE all matter, each of
us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was raised to appreciate life and
everyone in it. I invite you to as well. And please remember that acts of
violence or unethical ways of one person, does not reflect on the rest of that
race, or of that profession.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All I can
do is be accountable to myself, follow our Creator’s guidance and pray for
mankind. </div>
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As always, thank you for stopping by.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to share this post if it inspires
you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you do not agree, that is your
right and I ask that you please be respectful, as this is my opinion. All my
best, Gayle<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br />swheatfarmlifehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14373458148444681801noreply@blogger.com0