Do you think Joseph and Mary had their entire lives planned? Do you think they talked about their wedding day, where they would live, how many children they would have, what they would name them? Then God showed up and everything changed. Do you think Mary wanted to be Mary? During the New Testament time Nazareth was a small, rather…
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The Beauty of Kindness
My family is in the last season of Mom’s life. She’s slipping away, day by day, sometimes minute by minute. Memories are confused with the present and it can be a struggle to keep up, to be in her present, at times, years past. It can be a frantic dance, between then and now, a hasty search in my…
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Surviving with Farms on my Bookshelves
I can’t breath. It’s HOT and the humdidity is wet. All my family is in WV and I’m sitting on the farm in the air conditioning, waiting for Autumn I mean December. Early in the morning, I’m in the barn, feeding horses and cats and that’s after feeding dogs and the porch cats, then dragging myself to the house to…
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Need Some Encouragement?
~ back porch sitting with homemade strawberry lemonade ~ “To begin, begin.” Peter Nivio Zarlenga “Your time is limited so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.” Steve Jobs “Information is pretty thin stuff, unless mixed with experience.” Clarence Day “The total history of almost anyone, would shock almost everyone.” Mignon McLaughlin “We stand on…
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Ten Lessons I’ve Learned
Celebrating my birthday today by doing the usual…tending to animals, perhaps going to town to post packages, relishing in the beauty God has urrounded me with and pondering the many, many blessings He has given me. I’ve learned a bit and am still working on a few but the most important are these: *God forgives sin. There is no sin…
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Goodbye City Life, Hello Country Life!
Recently, I read where 40% of city folk surveyed were interested in moving to the country. I can’t blame them; I moved from Richmond more than 25 years ago and have never regretted it. Strictly speaking, I wasn’t new at the country lifestyle as I come from generations of homesteaders and spent every possible moment on the farms of my…
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AgTourism – Ways to Increase Farm Income
Long time readers know this blog was started in May 2005 but before then Thistle Cove Farm was being used as an AgriTourism venue. There are two types of tourism: capture and destination. Capture is when there are other tourism activities in the area and you tag along with them. Destination is something like Dollywood, Kings Dominion, etc. I branded…
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When Things Go Wrong…
Today was Spring. Not spring like but Spring and at 64 degrees F (18C) with sun shine and a feeling all’s right with the world. Don’t you like the Elvis quote? Just a reminder trials and tests happen and it’s life happens daily. Although, as Daddy told me earlier today, “Sunday is going to be a whopper (and he doesn’t…
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Yes, aren’t we all?
“I wake expectant, hoping to see a new thing.” ~ Annie Dillard ~ It’s been said when people critize, it is more telling of their own insecurities, inadequacies and issues than, perhaps, they’d want known. I know this to be true in my own life situations and circumstances. When I’m the most insecure, discouraged and depressed, I’m the most critical….
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Almost Year End 2021 (YAY)
The most recent months s have been fraught with problems. I refuse to use the word “issue” as it always makes me think of the New Testament woman with the “issue of blood” who touched the hem of Jesus’ robe. First the Honda’s complete and total exhaust system needed to be replaced. Yes, that’s correct, from stem to stern the…
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