So Much...

So much happens in our lives and we loose track of time, things, people, ideas, and dreams.  Since my last post, I have doubled the size of my goat herd, nearly doubled the size of our cattle fold, and aged.

I have made quick judgments that had to be adjusted.  I've made new networking contacts.  I've gotten older.  I've come to realize that stuff is not nearly as important as living life now. 
This is a hard lesson for someone who enjoys solitude.  Somewhere along the way, I have accumulated so much stuff.  I no longer have a desire for stuff.  (I do want more goats though.)  People are important but not things.  It doesn't matter how much stuff you have if you have no one with you.  Money comes, money goes.  Vanity.  God is important.

So much...

So much to learn.  So much to do.  So much to share.  Missing Dad so much.  Wanting God so much more.  Overwhelmed by the thought of so much more God.  So much loosing out on the blessing because I'm distracted.  So much busy-ness.

So much...

So much sweetness in a grandchild's hug.  So much joy in his laugh.  So much pain in a wounded heart.  So much sadness in the loss of a friend.  So much mercy in given forgiveness.  So much grace in God's salvation. 

So much...

Growing Up "In The Country"

As a youngster, I grew up "in the country." Grandma's 40 acres was our playground.  We had dogs and a few random cats along the way.  Occasionally, there might be a flock of chickens around doing bug patrol.  BUT, there were no goats, cows, ducks, geese, turkeys, hogs, horses, alpacas, or donkeys.
So, who would have guessed that my midlife crisis would consist of me bailing out of the city and away from the technology industry to a homestead?

Yes, Mom and Dad always had a garden.  Dad was a beekeeper.  Mom canned a lot of our food and sewed a lot of our clothes.  Extreme southeast Oklahoma didn't have a booming economy.  My folks made do.  It was a simple life for me.  I had everything I needed and a lot of the things I just wanted.  Life was good.

I grew up.  I had to get away from that backwoods place.  I was going to be so much more and so much better than (you fill in the blank).  So, I went to college.  Then I joined the military.  Got married.  Had a couple of kids.  Went back to college.  Ended up with a job in Information Technology at a University.  Life was good.

Life wasn't good.  Got divorced.  Dad died.  Mom got cancer - twice. Lost the job. Yet, life was good.  Got remarried.  Found a place "in the country" to live.  Started a garden the first year.  Got chickens too.  Then, my midlife crisis/change began in full.  I started reading about the simple life.  Milking my own cow.  Keeping bees.  Building a root cellar.  Life was good.

Today, I am middle-aged and growing up "in the country" on our homestead.  I have come to realize that stuff is just stuff.  Life is where it's at!