A Rainy Day and A Tree

 

It's a wonderful rainy day here; just what the doctor ordered.  We were delighted this morning to have puddles.  Millie and I splashed right through them and enjoyed every minute of it.  

And, just in case the rain should decide to change over to snow (which it's not going to do at 55 degrees), Santa Claus will be bringing me new Muck boots this Christmas.  They will be calf high so there shouldn't be a problem with snow going over their tops like there was last winter.  You may remember when we had our BIG snow, I had to turn around and go back home because the snow was deeper than my boots were tall.  Besides that, it was SO cold.  

We aren't doing much decorating for Christmas this year, other than for a couple of very slim Alpine trees ~ one in the front room and one in the sewing room.   

            

We have used an old set of rustic western village pieces this year, which seem to fit the alpine theme just fine.

                

I wouldn't mind living in one of these old homesteads, as long as I had a roaring warm fire when the cold winds are blowing.

Salt-glazed pottery and rustic stick houses may not seem a good match, but here on this little tree they seem to be happy together.  I bought these balls from a lady at a crafts fair many years ago. They are all hand painted with a different design.  She reminded me to be extra careful with them for they would break easily.  We have lost only one of them, but we never put them on the tree when the children and grandchildren were small.  

Wishing you all the simple joys of an old-fashioned Christmas.  Take care.

Mary

An Old Christmas Shepherd and a String of Sunset Planets...

Photo taken by me of the inside of a very old box that is in my possession.

One of my favorite books that I read with the kiddos in my classes was Mountain Born by Elizabeth Yates, in which Benj, the old shephard, imparted to the boy so many of life's lessons.  Lying on their backs watching over the sheep on steep hillsides at night with thousands of twinkling stars in the heavens above were times the boy wouldn't be forgetting as old Benj muttered his thoughts aloud.  "A man must have a care to what he puts in his mind, for when he's alone on a hillside and draws it out he'll want treasures to be his company, not regrets."   And, every day ended with one simple prayer, "Thank you Lord for another day."  

I created this cloth and clay figure intending it should be a Santa figure, but he's no Santa Claus.  He's a shepherd, abiding his flock.  Can't you see it too?  

"And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night."  Luke 2:8

Just last night, I began reading Thomas Hardy's Far From The Madding Crowd, 1874.  After the first page, I knew I was hooked on this one.  (The 2015 movie is a favorite of mine, too.)  Here it was again, the story of a shepherd watching his flocks by night.  

"Suddenly an unexpected series of sounds began to be heard in this place up against the sky.  They had a clearness which was to be found nowhere in the wind, and a sequence which was to be found nowhere in nature.  They were the notes of Farmer Oak's flute...

...Being a man not without a frequent consciousness that there was some charm in this life he led, he stood still after looking at the sky as a useful instrument, and regarded it in an appreciative spirit, as a work of art superlatively beautiful.  For a moment he seemed impressed with the speaking loneliness of the scene, or rather with the complete abstraction from all its compass of the sights and sounds of man.  Human shapes, interferences, troubles, and joys were all as if they were not, and there seemed to be on the shaded hemisphere of the globe no sentient being save himself, he could fancy them all gone round to the sunny side."  

You may be remembering at this time last year when many of us were watching the Great Conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn forming what became popularly known as the 2020 Christmas Star.  Many believe that it was such a conjunction of planets that shepherds followed on the night of Christ's birth ~ the first Christmas Star.  

For those of you who enjoy watching the sky, there's a lot going on out there this evening and through the 9th.  The Moon, Jupiter, Saturn, and Venus (which is very bright now) will be lining up just after sunset for a spectacular view.   Undoubtedly, many shepherds will be watching.  

It Was Quite a Party...

 

How can it be that this glorious month is almost over?  The colors of fall have been sensational from its beginning to its end.  It really has been quite a party.    

 The going along woodland' trails is a noisy affair these days as layers of leaves rustle beneath our feet.   Why, any critter for miles around undoubtedly knows when Millie and I go tramping up and down these old leaf-covered hillsides.  And, there's no way to know what might lay beneath all those leaves, rock or stick that might trip one up, so I lift my feet high and stick to the well-worn cattle trails.  

And, what a month for beautiful sunsets it has been.  My camera was filled with them, so that I had trouble choosing my favorites.

I have been jokingly telling my family that I will be hibernating for six-weeks after Christmas ~ a kind of Sabbatical I have been calling it.  I looked that word up and found a definition that suited my use of the word.  

Sabbatical ~ (1)A period of time during which someone does not work at his or her regular job and is able to rest, travel, do research, etc.  (2) A break or change from a normal routine.

Yes, that is exactly what I have in mind ~ just doing what to heck I please for six long weeks.

If you are familiar with The J. Peterman Company's catalog, you will know that there are some catchy little narratives describing the clothing and other items that are sold by the company.  The one below caught my eye.  

An 18th-century stone manor house.  Somewhere in Ireland.  For an entire month.  You promised yourself someday you'd do it.  Someday is now.  You did it.  It's yours.  Your own green fields.  Your own horses.  Your own bedroom windows looking down on the crashing seas.  Your own peat-burning fireplace.  Your own ancient Land Rover (which even occasionally works).  Your own live-in cook (with a few ideas of her own).

Ha! Ha!  Now how about that for a sabbatical?  (Of course, J. Peterman thinks one should take along their English Hunting Jacket.  100 per cent Shetland tweed from a 183-year old mill in northern England.  Price $298.

This was the view from my window late this morning.  It will do me just fine.  Besides, the thoughts of crashing seas frighten me. (Note those blue, blue skies.  It was another gorgeous day!  And 75 degrees!)

If you would care to take a look, Maggie Rose is modeling her new dress over at Linnie Butts & Company.  Just click on the old sewing machine at the top of the page.

Celebrating the Leaf...

 

"Every leaf looks like it is celebrating."  That's a quote taken from one of my young students back in the day.  I never forgot it.  

There comes a day when one knows that the time is right for Celebrating the Leaf.  Yesterday was the day.  It was definitely not a day to stay inside, lingering in some dark corner while there was a wild riot of color exploding all over the great outdoors.  So out the door we flew ~ Millie and Me ~ and this is what we found.  

I was proudest of the shot of the oh-so-gorgeous red-tailed hawk.  If I had taken my time and not been so careless, I think I could have gotten another of him in flight.  But, I now know where he is hunting, so I will go back another day.

We gathered soggy leaves from streams of water to roll into bundles for eco-printed cloth like we have done in previous years.   

Down by the creek, we found some very nice black walnuts that had already fallen to the ground.  I am needing some dye, and perhaps some ink, for projects I have in mind.  

~Mary

Wash Day...

Ever since I can remember, I have always loved Wash Day, which preferably is on a Monday, depending on the weather, of course.  And, it is even better if that day is sunny with a fair wind blowing.  Today was one of those days.  And, just as I do every Wash Day, I thought of my mother.  

There were five children in our family, so Momma needed any help she could get.  Even before I started school, I have memories of helping her on that  day.  By the time I was old enough to remember, she had a new-fangled electric wringer washing machine, which was a great improvement over wringing out clothes by hand.  She would stand on one side of the washer feeding clothes through the rollers, while I stood on the other side catching and gently tugging each piece to keep it from rolling back around the rollers.  On occasions, when that happened, a lever was released so the tangled piece could be removed.  I do remember her cautioning me not to get my fingers caught between the rollers.  Thankfully, they never did.

Mom had lots of clothes line space which was usually filled up, often more than once before we had finished doing the wash.  She was awfully particular about the way the shirts and dresses were hung, but not so much about the towels and washcloths which she let me hang (or peg as some of you say).  When they were dry it was my job to take them inside to fold and put away.  I liked doing it, and still remember how fresh and clean they smelled. 

Mom always said a lot could be told about a family by the wash, as she called it, hanging on a clothes line.  Why, one could almost count the children and guess at their ages by observing the clothes.  However,  I always liked best seeing beautiful patchwork quilts flapping in the wind. 

As I said before, the weather was perfect today for drying clothes outdoors.  Our linen sheets, which are now back on the bed, hardly had a wrinkle having been whipped about all morning in a brisk wind.  It is quite obvious, if you should have driven past our house today, that there are no small children living here as there used to be.  I miss those days when there were size 2 and size 3 jeans and a few pretty little dresses dancing in the wind.  But, that's enough of that.  I suppose the clothes hanging on the line here today can tell their own story ~ a story of He and I pottering about the place, thankful for another day and a lot of happy memories.

                                                                  

"We are burning daylight."

 

 I am still denying to myself that winter is right upon us here.  I am a sunshine kind of gal and like to feel its warmth on my face.  I have Millie's persistence to thank for keeping me going up and down these old trails every single day.  Here she is staring through my bedroom window while I make my bed.  She is impatient to get going.  I can almost read her thoughts, "Come on Mary.  We are burning daylight."  (That's an old John Wayne quote that I repeat often.)  I almost laughed this morning when I saw both her ears standing erect.  That happens only in winter's cold, so  here we go!  

The wax begonia in the picture above has been taken inside for the winter.  It is like the ones my mother and grandmother used to grow, so it's quite special.  It has had a good summer living in an old pot on the east side of the porch and has bloomed its heart out.  

My birthday on the first day of November has come and gone.  It was a great day with lots of phone calls and texts from special people.  My sister also surprised me with a visit.  It had been almost two years since I had seen her, so you can imagine all the catching up we had to do.  

After Sis left, Millie and I trekked over the hill to the place where the muscadines grow to see if we might be able to shake a few down from high in the trees where the vines have climbed.  Much to my delight a few were still hanging on.  With the first jerk of the vine, several grapes came peppering down around me.  I quickly snatched them up and quicker than a cat can wink his eye, I sucked the sweet juice out of those marvels of delight and then right down my throat they went.  I hope I will remember that taste all winter long.  Happy Birthday to me!  

Baby Calf is growing up.  Our granddaughter enjoys coming to feed him and gives him lots of love.  He is doing well and has grown quite a bit since this picture was made a couple of weeks ago.    

I will end this post with another of our "Working Late" photos.  We had just finished vaccinating calves when I noticed how beautifully the clouds had formed in the east.