Luke's parents have opened their hearts and family up to not just me but to my children, as well, treating them as if they were their own flesh and blood. Just as my fella has, his homestead and family have left an indelible mark on my soul that I will forever be grateful for. I am constantly reminded of how much God loves me when I am there and with all of them. The two younger children have similarly been affected by them and that beautiful place and we each long to be there and with them when we are away. Luke says that, when he crosses that county line, he breathes a sigh of relief and feels the weight of the world lift off of his shoulders. It's impossible not to see why. The place is simplistic in its beauty. There aren't majestic mountains to ogle at, or a roaring ocean to be heard. But the air is scented with tall Georgia pines that fill one's soul with instant serenity. Hawks, in solitude, perched among their branches. Every once in a while, a vehement dive into a field for another meal, with impressive speed and wingspan. Blue birds and cardinals hop along the bases of pecan trees, pecking at the ground, in the back yard every morning. A herd of deer graze in the cornfield just past those pecan trees as the calves make their way to the best spots of dewy grass just across the way. I especially like the one whose face is half black and half white. He stands out amongst the small herd of black-faced calves. I sip my coffee, in silent reverie, while observing the morning's grand gesture of scenic offerings. I can't believe that I'm this blessed and I thank God for it, over and over.
From the front porch, the afternoon sky offers a backdrop of fat fluffy clouds that look as though they were painted above the perfectly kept field that houses a pond that his granddaddy built for his grandmother who loved to fish. That pond was filled with catfish many years ago, and has become a favorite spot for Ella and Jacob. Luke's daddy told them that he once fished in that pond using boiled peanuts for bait...and it worked. I count every shared story, like that one, such a blessing. These are things they also appreciate and will forever remember about this family we've been blessed with. In that same field, hay has been compacted into several fat round bales that are lined neatly in a row. My babies love to climb on top of those bales and watch the pond from there. Luke's father, who they lovingly refer to as "Pops" said, "They can play on top of those hay bales all they want to.", with the most genuine and loving smile on his face. From the front porch, where my fella was building a fire pit, I heard them chatting and laughing atop those very hay bales and I thought to myself, this is what they've needed for such a long time. This is what we all needed. God is good to us. We came from a place of trauma and were gifted with such a tremendous amount of love, peace, and family. We don't take any of it for granted, Thank you, Father.
These are photos that Ella, Jacob, and I took there recently.
The house with the red truck is my Luke's. His grandfather built that house in the 40's and his mother and aunt were raised there. It's been such a blessing for us to bring life back into that home, along with Luke. The house, just across the way, is his parents home where Luke and his sister were raised. His aunt lives next door to his house. I can't imagine what it must have been like for Luke to have been raised in close proximity to such a large family (there are more family members just a few miles away), but I know it's blessed us well to have them all in our lives in the short amount of time that we have known them.
This was my view walking back from his parents house to his house.
I've not yet created a post of our Christmas and New Year so I'll just lump that into this post. There are no rules to blogging, after all. The holidays were chaotic and involved a heap of driving. BUT, what a blessing to have so many loved ones to celebrate with.
Luke and his Daddy
My mama holding my grandbaby
My four babies with their cousin, Wesley.
My sister and baby grand
He makes me laugh on a daily.
My sister and her babies
Boyfriend's got jokes.
Even Roscoe was warn out from all that celebrating!
Christmas night; reflecting on the day's events, before heading to bed, found me observing this quiet scene with much gratitude and slight sadness that it came and went so very quickly.
Our church hosted a New Year's Eve talent show, 11:00 p.m. breakfast, fellowship and prayer before the big countdown, followed by a fireworks display. Such a blessing!
Last family photo of 2023!
First photo in 2024. As you can see, I survived the holiday chaos, that ensued, with my sanity almost completely somewhat intact. :)
I hope that you enjoyed your holiday season and have such a blessed new year! As always, I thoroughly enjoy getting emails from you guys and hope to hear about your adventures in this new year! Much love and blessings from our family to yours!
Relishing in His goodness...
Christy
IStndAmzd79@gmail.com
