Hope is Golden

~ rabbitpatchdiary.com

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There are few things as pleasant as waking when you please, to a choir of songbirds.  Add to that, an open window, with a soft breeze blowing, causing the pines to whisper . . .and a faithful dog sleeping by you. 

Duty always calls at the rabbitpatch, and today is no different.  I started several tasks yesterday, that need to be finished, not only the garden fire, but I also started on another deep cleaning in a room. . .I hope to finish today.  There is just something about the liberty of doing things, when you see fit. 

 When “the spirit moved me”, I pulled the bed in the bedroom, that I was cleaning, to the center of the room.  You would have thought, this had never been done before, for it was beyond dusty.  All of this was cleaned before Christmas, when Kyle was on a “leave of absence”!  He came back just a few months ago and couldn’t possibly have accomplished this mess!  I declare, I could have grown potatoes right there in that corner,   the bed stands in!  

Oh how wonderful I felt, when a few hours later, the room fairly sparkled and smelled so clean.  clean cotton and orange may be my favorite housekeeping scent.  I smelled clean, too, for I sloshed a good deal from the bucket, on myself- and I am sure there were cobwebs in my hair.  There are two rooms left, for the next time, “the spirit moves me”.

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At noon, I still had some gumption, so  I decided to finally clean up a corner of the rabbitpatch, which I had been dreading for months.  Everything not nailed down through the winter, was in that corner.  The leaves were a foot deep and odd shaped things poked out in places.  Only God knew what lurked in the heap, so I hit the pile, with a broom,  and made some racket.  This alerted the boxer, who came bounding to protect me from . . just some trash and branches.  I admired his gallant effort, anyway.  

I had dumped three wheelbarrows, when the rain came.  Big droplets fell hard and quite suddenly.  There were at least a dozen more loads left, but at least I had started.  

I was cooking a quick lunch, when the rain stopped.  It took some convincing, but I willed myself to  go back out and pick up where I left off.  I was already dirty and so it made sense to work til another shower fell.  I could not burn, but I could haul.  Truthfully, I was never going to be in the mood to do this task.  . .my track record was proof of that.

I do not know how many trips, I made to the garden-more than the dozen, I had guessed.  At one point, I seemed to be in a mechanical trance.  I would dump the load, smell the cherry blossoms and trudge back to the shrinking heap of now, muddy leaves.   Oddly, I do not remember thinking about anything as I worked, except being too cool, from the raindrops and willing myself to go on. I kept waiting for rain, so I could stop without feeling guilty.  It never rained again.  The temperature dropped, the wind picked up, but not a drop fell and so I finished  . . .and I was glad.

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Now you can believe, that I slept soundly that night.  I knew Monday was coming . . .and that always changes everything.

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This Monday, was a work day for teachers.  I usually take those days off, to stroll by the “laughing river” with Lyla or bake cookies.  Sadly, Will lost his grandmother, a few days ago.  The funeral was this weekend in a town southwest of Wilmington-about three hours away. This is Wills’ third significant loss, since Christmas.  “Miss Mildred” was so dear to him.  I admired Will, for all the times he visited her, even at that distance.  Will has lost his mother, grandmother and his oldest friend in  just a few months.  What a series of tragedies, for this young man.  Such seasons are life altering and I intend to comfort Will, as best I can.  I consider Will my fifth son, after all.

When I drove up to the rabbitpatch, after work, I immediately saw that the pile of wood and shingles had been put away.  These things were left over from a previous repair.  They had set there, for months, ruining the look of the place.  I almost cried, I was so happy.  Kyle and Christian, spurred on, by my work yesterday, had moved them to a proper location, in the barn.  Clean up after the winter, on a property this size, is not for the faint of heart.  . . and we are not finished, by any means, but I have hope now- and Dear Diary,  hope is so very golden. 

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On the drive home, I had noticed the fields of winter wheat.  This is my favorite crop to watch grow, though when the cotton blossoms, that is lovely too.  Just now the tender wheat is an emerald green.  In the shade, it almost looks blue.  In a few months, the wheat will turn golden .  No matter, the stage of the cycle of wheat, it is bound to make you want to kneel right there. 

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Daddy has an appointment  today.  The forecast was for  a  cold rain and a lot of wind to follow.  The mountains got snow, and so I thought of my friend “Sweet Anne”. 

Sweet Anne is a hostess to somebody constantly .  She walks everyday at the crack of dawn, and watches her little neighbor, board the bus.  Otherwise, she is visiting waterfalls, dining out or listening to world renown  choirs.  

Now, the cold rain fell as predicted, all morning.  Thankfully,  Daddy got a good report.  It took everything in me, but I went to the grocery, afterwards.  I really tried to think of something I could cook tonight, but we were out of milk, which stopped the biscuits and the pancakes and the creamed potatoes.  I did not have tomato sauce, which meant no spaghetti and besides that, we needed dog food!  No matter what I could concoct for supper, it always came back to that dog food. There was no way out of it, I was going to the grocery. 

I drove back , past the winter wheat field, that I love, to the rabbitpatch where things are blooming and the yard needs mowing -where supper would soon be cooking -and the roof wasn’t leaking . . .where a warm love abides and takes the chill from a cold, April rain.

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23 thoughts on “Hope is Golden”

  1. Ma’am,
    Reading the post made me feel like I was reading “Anne of Green Gables” and how she described the lake and the fields and the cherry blossoms and everything that excited her.
    You mentioned ” Sweet Anne” too- another Anne for sure but her life is magical too.
    I am glad you are there to hold Will’s hands as he moves forward and cope.
    Glad also you got a lot of work done on the Rabbit Patch.
    Susie

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      1. I went there from your blog, Anne. You sent me to so many blogs that I have lost count of them. Have you visited with her and seen her Rabbit Patch yet?
        Susie

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    2. you have a sweet heart and it is so refreshing. Thank you for your very kind words. I was thrilled that you thought of Anne of Green Gables-What an honor for me!! and “Sweet Anne ” is sweet! thank you and blessings to you! love Michele

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  2. My goodness, you are industrious! I think you accomplish more in one day than I do in a week. I am sorry for Will’s many losses. The heart is heavy when one loved dies. But three? A large burden to bear.

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  3. Wow. I can’t even think about the yard messes right now and how satisfying that you were able to dispatch some of those projects! I love that even in the midst of hard things, you still seek and find little bits of beauty shining through! It’s what keeps me going, too.

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  5. Pingback: Hope is Golden – Timeless Wisdoms

  6. I love the rabbit pictures Michele. They are the perfect images for the mental pictures I was getting about your outdoor cleaning.
    I totally get the part about not thinking as you are doing a task. I kind of like that oblivion mode sometimes.
    I am so ready for those days in our area. My flower/weed garden needs to be totally redone and I am ready for that job this year!

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  7. Just beautiful thoughts as always and yes…the pictures are perfect.
    Bless Will’s heart. Someone leaving is never easy regardless of their age or ours but it is part of life….not a pleasent part but one we all have to endure. That is where our relation with God comes in. He promises he will always be there for us no matter what.. I have to remind myself of this promise often.
    We are expecting storms tomorrow and I’m glad my lettuce is growing in the hoop house and not out side to be blown to kingdom come. I haven’t really grown any thing much in the last few years but am trying to do better. The yard did get mowed last week and even though it is mostly weeds does look pretty good for a change. If I could manage to cut it earlier when the weed are before seed they would eventually go away…maybe…but I seem to be the only one around here that thinks that. For some reason my dear sons don’t want me using the brush mower so I wait for help and it usually comes after I’m knee deep in weeds. Even Babe has trouble finging a good place to be a dog in the back. Goodness..”.Be thankful for all things” does get hard sometimes.

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  8. I’m so sorry for Will! That’s a lot of loss to deal with in such a short amount of time. I know that you and the rest of the family will do your best to help him through it all. As for the Rabbit Patch, yes there is such a sense of accomplishment when we finally take those chores we hate off of our “to do” list. And you’re right, nothing is better than waking up on our own on a fine Spring day! Even if we do have some work to do on that very same day. Best wishes, Michele!

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  10. Cleaning house and yard and feeling a sense of accomplishment is a wonderful. rewarding feeling. Loved your post.

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  11. Thank you for letting me know you mentioned me. I don’t know how I missed this, because I ALWAYS look forward to your posts.

    I hoped a neighbor would speak of the snow that we missed while we were in New York. Maybe many other things were more important to them. You were the special neighbor who wrote about our snow!!! It was long gone by the time we got home, but I have the comfort of knowing it was commented on. Thank you.

    I think things are back to normal now, or as normal as things get. I was praying for you on our trip and am now back to thinking of you when we walk. Your friendship is so special to me.

    Love,

    Anne

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