The Farm

I love seeing the farm through someone else's eyes.

Yesterday during Monday morning house cleaning, a visitor stopped by.  He's a family friend and someone with whom Marty occasionally does business.  He drops by the farm about twice a year to drop off literature, pick up orders and catch up on family news.  I met him at the door yesterday with dust rag in hand, and he seemed delighted that I was cleaning.  In fact, he waxed eloquent for the next three minutes about how lovely the farm is, the beauty of the gardens, how neat and tidy and clean and well-decorated our home is.  He told me that he loves coming here.

After our visit, I started looking around with increased attention to see what he saw.  Bright and full porch flowers, long tidy rows of sweet corn, a newly-weeded-and-mulched flower bed, a freshly cleaned living room and kitchen - with the smell of almond-scented wood cleaner in the air and the gentle background sounds of the dryer running and the radio playing.  No wonder he was delighted.  And, once again, I saw this place through the eyes of another.  And I, too, was captivated all over again.

I think I can honestly say that not a day goes by that I don't thank the Lord for this beautiful place in which we live.  It has been a haven for our family, as well as friends and strangers alike.  It's a place of beauty, quiet and rest that I never get tired of.  And I take great delight in the delight that others take in it.

Years ago, a then-new friend, upon seeing the farm and farmhouse for the first time, exclaimed that she didn't know people still lived like this!  She now proclaims it her favorite place and a smidgen of Heaven on earth.  Every spring, my sister's friend humbly requests a visit to the farm - she loves to come to see it in its spring finery and share a cup of tea.  She says that she feels like she's visiting Little House on the Prairie when she comes.  Another friend of our's who has since moved West, often told us that Autumn wasn't Autumn until he had come for supper at the farm when the leaves were changing and the scent of woodsmoke hung in the air.  My brother-in-law told my sister that some of his best memories are connected with our farm - a Winter's afternoon of flying over the fields on a snowmobile and an Autumn's night of stargazing beside a bonfire.   

I treasure these comments and find it a genuine honor and privilege that God has allowed us caretakers of this lovely place where He has ministered to and encouraged so many with His beauty.  What joy it is to have a little part in other's joy.

Once again, Abba, thank You for this place, for this life.  Your beauty and ways are beyond good. 

(Photo credit to Eli Druck Photography)