Mon.-Walked with Alli. Susan is on a jogging routine to prepare her for long distance running. Ollie met Alli and I at the bottom of the hill on our way back home. Ollie would run behind Alli to catch up with her. It was a little creepy, to hear his footsteps behind us as we walked. Susan and I finished up some odd jobs. We're trying to get ready for the school year. I finished the housecoat I started on Sat. It's a little too big so I am taking it in here and there. The WildBlue computer guy came to set us up with faster internet and Lucy was all over him. Ollie came up and pecked his feet as he was working. Startled him at first. Tony Schrock came home with Phil to spend the night. He is working with them for several days in Richmond. Susan and I took Philip out to Appomattox to get his car. The coyotes were very loud tonight when we got home. Troubling Eerie Echoes. Judy Blue Eyes has Lyme's Disease. She has a rash and a lot of the aching/exhaustion symptoms. Doesn't make me happy. I am praying for a cold winter to get rid of these nasty critters. I don't want them anywhere near my family and friends.
Tues-I was having my quiet time early this morning and Ollie saw me through the window. He got as close as he could to me and then flew straight up my window and landed on the roof. He was still there when I went out later. The white dove came again. It hasn't been here since the day we baptized a friend in our river. Susan and I went out to Lynchburg for the day to go shopping. Let me see if you get as tired as I did. First we went to Piersons to pick up a Bobcat sensor. Then to Rugged Warehouse, TJMax, Cici's, and Bloop's where Michael met us and told us some happy news. Also, he had been helping Sweet Tea, a friend his age, set up housekeeping, and ST told him,"I want to be just like you when I grow up." Michael gave Susan and I several hugs as he said good bye. We miss him. But we know he is right where he belongs. Went from there to the mall where we shopped for several hours. Then to Best Buy where we got a router. Then to Dicks and Pet Smart, where we got a pink bedazzled bone dog tag engraved with Lucy's name. Then to target to get Susan a new bedspread-black and white zebra striped with hot pink sheets. Then to Ross, and another shoe store where we found her basketball shoes, and to another yogurt place. At last we got to Sam's club where we loaded up on good food. One of our pizza's spilled on the parking lot. I thought we should clean it up but Susan said, "Keep walking. This is why they have employees." She fed me chicken salad on crackers on the way home and we ate mangoes and got home just before the guys did. They helped us carry everything in and by the time we got it put away, it was 8:45. Susan hooked up the router, talking to Michael all the while. "Michael, where are you, I miss you, etc." Michael is usually the one who hooks things up around here. Almost finished reading DDF's manuscript. It ranks up there with the Peretti books.
Wed.-Next time we spend a day shopping like that, I have to figure in a day to recover. We're both exhausted but Susan is also achy and is running a slight fever. Started her on the homeopathic flu meds and after two doses, she wanted to be able to go to church tonight. She did go and seemed better afterwards. I finished reading DDF's manuscript early this morning. Can't believe I didn't have any scary dreams last night. Maybe it's because I know the author. The white dove is here today. She flew across the front lawn and landed on a piece of farm equipment. I am sure she is the same one that was here last year. It's presence on our property is a peaceful benediction.
Lucy is now big enough to put in the outside pen after she wakes in the morning. She was barking incessantly and here Ollie was prancing back and forth in front of her cage as if visiting a friend in jail. Did some wash today and some paper work. Alli came over to use the computer and 'caught' Susan and I watching Monk mid afternoon. We are both too tired to get much done. Made BLT's for supper. Philip bought more pigs on the way home from work. I finally got last weeks blog written while Phil went to pick up Susan from church. Ron M. dropped off some rye seed (2,200 pounds-80 bushels) tonight that he had picked up for Phil. It came from Canada and he will use it to plant a cover crop to add wealth to the soil for other planting. He's out there with him now, which is giving me opportunity to catch up on this weeks blog.
Thurs.-Philip's new big pig was out this morning. Angel herded her back towards the barn but when Susan offered her garbage, she became a bit hostile so Susan decided to play it safe and wait until Philip got home. When he did, they went tracking. They tracked her up into the hill of laurel and there she disappeared. Phil and Philip went out on the gator and after awhile, they found her amidst the cows. Philip will work on getting the fence in order before he leaves again.
Ollie thinks he's a puppy instead of a turkey. He walks and hops beside Angel, jumping up to peck her face. She averts her face and keeps walking. Ollie streaks in front of her. Angel slows her pace patiently so she doesn't run Ollie over. It is so interesting to watch the process of imprinting. Angel's imprint is on Ollie and he thinks he's a dog, I'm sure. I pray to God that nothing ever happens to Ollie. May he live forever.
Angel, (our German Shepherd), is more godly than the rest of us. She is patient and kind. She lays down her life for us. She protects and shepherds whatever needs protecting and shepherding. She loves us even when it seems like we have forgotten her. She worships her Master. She loves and obeys. And she is faithful. I want to be more like Angel. Teach me, dear dog, how to be more like God.
Today, I caught up with some paperwork that's been mounding up in the receipt basket. It feels good to have everything entered into my cash book. I made a big vegetable supper. Roasted veggies, red beets, and salad. Susan mowed a bit and cleaned her room. She is still under the weather. I think it's allergies. Phil and the boys left at 4 this morning to do a job at Fort something or other, setting trusses. It took them as long to drive as it did to do the work.
Made a cake tonight for a friend's birthday. Applesauce cake. Instead of crushed pineapple, I put in crushed bananas. Walnuts and raisins were folded in. I love the smell of allspice, cloves, and cinnamon wafting through the house.
Finalized some visiting plans for our Pa. trip coming up. I wonder what it will be like to have a family party and not see my mother there. Makes me cry just thinking about it. I love you, Mother Dear. I'm so glad you are not here. Free from worry, free from fear. How we miss you, Mother Dear.
Fri.-Hos. 10:12-"Sow for yourselves righteousness; Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the LORD, Till He comes and rains righteousness on you." Fallow ground is land left uncultivated. Sometimes, when a land has been overused, one should allow it to rest. It becomes fallow for a purpose. Perhaps you have worked too hard and you are getting a chance to rest. Allow yourself to allow your land to become intentionally fallow. You will know when it is time to break up the soil and plant seed again. Everything brings forth fruit in its season. It does not bear fruit all of the time. But you can still stay close to Jesus, even as your land takes a rest. The things that grow up will add nutrients to the soil when it is time to plow it up again. I feel this way about writing. I took a deliberate break. And now it is time to plow it up again. And the things I read and learned during this break will just add to the soil and help the seed grow better. To every thing there is a season and a purpose for everything under heaven. A time to plant and a time to harvest and a time to allow the land to rest.
Cleaned the house, packed, hosted Cleansing Stream group. We ate cake first. The teaching was on sowing words of life. So good.
Sat.-Michael came home last night so he could spend some time with us before we left for Pa. Last night, Philip went to the Lapp's for a guys night and Michael hung out with some of his guy friends too. This morning, we caught up with the guys and Phil was in and out, trying to get his crop of rye and radishes planted in spite of the rain. Found out later that he succeeded. It rained in Va. all day. Susan and I left around 8:10 and had a great trip. When we were about 40 min. into our trip, Phil's mother called us and told us that Uncle Milford Mast passed away last night. When I talked with Phil later, he told me that Uncle Milford had talked to him on Thursday and was reminiscing about how he invited Phil to the Full Gospel Meeting 'that' night. Milford was supposed to sit at the head table that night but instead, he stayed with Phil, and later in the eve., led him in a prayer that restored him to God. Uncle Milford went on to say really nice things about me and how much I meant to him and how thankful he was that God had brought Phil and I together. Then he mentioned his son, Dennis, and talked about the friendship Dennis and Phil had growing up. Later that eve., I found Dennis on face book and arranged with him for a visit with Phil on Sunday. After finding out that Uncle Milford had passed away, Phil said, 'I'm so happy for him, but I could cry.' And then he said, 'I need to be more aware of when I am hearing a person's swan song.' A swan song is what somebody shares with you before they die. But I don't think that we usually realize a swan song until afterwards, because we would be too sad to pay attention to their words.
Susan and I stopped at BB's to look for dog food for Lucy. We saw Twila and Gustavo there with three of their girls. I still feel so motherly towards him. (He played Jesus and I played Mother Mary in the Easter musical-'You Were the Joy.')They are pastoring a church in Reading. When we got to the farm, Mom and Dad were with Aunt Ruth so we got our things in and visited with Debra and the boys and Karen and Jonathan. He's a busy boy at 20 months. Acted like he sees us every day. Lucy is adapting to the farm. She's sleeping outside in her cage. This could get interesting in the morning when the boys get up to milk. Mom served a wonderful supper of homemade canned beef and gravy, baked potatoes, garden peas, tomatoes, chunky applesauce and fig newtons. We showed them some movies of Ollie and Phil and I read them my writing about Ollie and the Samaritan Leper. Dad went to prayer meeting, Susan went next door to be with her cousins, and Mom and I chatted. It is so good to be with them and we plan to come up more often. Mom told me what they did on July 24 this summer. They went to a Thai restaurant to remember Johnny. Evie had told them about it. When it was time to leave, they told her that she had already paid for their meal. It is true that there are crazy people in this world. But there is more goodness than evil. I am thankful for people like Evie and I am thankful, that today, when we pulled into the rest stop and the power steering quit working just as I was pulling into a parking space, that there were people who helped us right away. Two of which were a father and son mechanic team, with 40 years of experience between them. And another couple said that they'd pray that we'd have a nice journey. Which we did. I had power steering fluid in the trunk and the little container under the hood, had a definite need to be filled. And after I turned the steering wheel to the left, to the right, to the left, to the right again, there was no air left in the tubing, and we were good to go. I am sitting on a homemade quilt that Mom made. The fan is blowing over me, and the farm air is coming right along with it. They must have spread manure today.
Sun.-It was great to go to church at Hopewell today. Hopped in the car and was there in two minutes. How wonderful to see old friends. The church was full, worship was sweet, and John brought forth a good word. He is preaching through the book of Acts and focused on Paul's first missionary journey where he encountered opposition, abandonment, verbal abuse, deportation, threats, and attempted murder. Paul persevered. What helped him? He knew before he started following Christ that it would not be easy. He expected to suffer for the name of Christ. Unrealistic expectations can cause us to give up. Idealism can hurt how we ran the race. Jesus said, "In this world you will have tribulation..." Grace helped him. Every single day God gave Paul a fresh infusion of grace. Grace is like IV fluid. It always adjusts to what we need. He mediates grace through His people. The power of a word of encouragement gives others grace to persevere. And Paul focused on the triumphs, the wins, rather than the loses. Strength flows from what we focus on. Paul said, "I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race."
After church, the Hertzlers got together for a nice big meal of hot dogs, hamburgers and toppings, chili beans, cole slaw, salad, baked corn, watermelon, tapioca, and I'm probably missing something. Sang some after the meal and visited with each other. Really nice time. Then Susan and I went to my sister's for the eve. where we had a picnic with my side of the family. Hot dogs, potato salad, macaroni salad, baked beans, watermelon, chips, salsa, crackers, pretzels, peach pie, banana cake, ice cream...etc. We had a great time too. Abie and Karen came in his 79? convertible. Annika and Stew and Katrina were there too and it's always fun to catch up with them. We talked about Mother and Daddy at different times. A wonderful day. Another big day tomorrow.
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