More on Proverbs 31

What a full and rewarding day it was here today! About 11:30 this morning we went to the fairgrounds in Centreville to hear our kids and some of their friends play praise and worship for the Christian festival that was held there today. They have practiced so hard for a long time. Their band is called "With Abandon." They were the opening band and it was a beautiful day for those who came out to join in the fun. We had so many other things to do that we left shortly after they were done playing, but enjoyed hearing them and seeing a few friends that were there. I thought they were great, but I'm a bit prejudiced as a mom!

When I got home I decided to ride my bike over to a friends house about 1/2 mile away to attend her garage sale. Business was a bit slow so we had a nice little visit before I rode on home. That gave me a little extra exercise as the wind was against me all the way to her house. Real good workout. I had walked for about 1/2 hour this morning and so coupled together that was good exercise.

When I arrived back home I quickly set to work papering Mom's west kitchen wall. Rhiannon had recently painted it bright, true red on the bottom. I bought a fine print blue and white paper for the upper part @ $1/roll!!!! Yes, it was a bargain. I put that up in just a few hours. It went together really nicely though the print was so tiny it was a little tricky to match. What a beautiful, fresh look it gives the kitchen and so far the whole project, even counting materials I decided not to use, is about $30. I had bought a paper border for $1/roll as well, but we decided to put up chair rail instead. That's the only part left to finish. Mom's kitchen has white cupboards with a tiny beading stripe in them. We have decorated the room with accessories of a farm kitchen. Some antiques, mostly in the primary colors, sit above her cupboards. There are bowls, tin signs, wicker chickens, plates, milk bottles, and old pie plates. All in all, it's one of my favorite rooms in the house. The decor could be described as "1930-40's farm kitchen." Mom was able to secure an old enamel top table several years ago with two matching red chairs that are now in mint condition after a friend touched them up and recoverd the chairs. The table has a red design. It completes the whole look. I intend to put some blue and white dishes on the newly papered wall along with the feed sacks that were already hanging there. Her red-checked curtains on the window were a nice accent.

As soon as I got done, a knock came on Mom's door and old friends we hadn't seen in a long, long time had come to visit. The daughter is my age and we hadn't seen each other in over a year, maybe longer. If she's reading this, she can comment and make herself known if she wants!!! We walked out to the English garden and sat in the center and visited. It was a lovely day for garden sitting! We had the nicest long visit and it was truly a highlight of my day! As we sat there, numerous hummingbirds flitted by visiting the many flowers, coral bells being their current favorite. Many were the ruby throated varieties. They look like jewels floating in the air. Wonderful!

After our friends left we grilled chicken on the deck and I made a "kabob" out of onions, peppers, and tomatoes. It was yummy with a sauce I concocted out of stuff in the fridge. Rhiannon did up the dishes and I went out to do some little garden chores. I used a poison ivy killer on some of that weed that had come up between my flowers. I hope this will do the trick without killing the flowers. It had come up between the leaves of echinacea and a liatris. I really am trying to get both those flowers going in profusion and don't want to lose them. I was trying to be really careful. After that I sprayed the last of my insecticidal soap on my potatoes and hollyhocks. It's expensive stuff, but totally organic and harmless. It seemed to control potato bugs in other years and so it was worth the price.

What's new in the garden? The peonies opened yesterday as well as a little miniature rose. I picked a quart of strawberries today--the first ones!! Wow, that seems early. They are certainly tasty and the bed is loaded with berries. I noticed some of the flower seeds I planted are coming up; morning glories, nicotania, bachelor's buttons.

Just a little side note. For those of you who have read "The Fields of May," I have a few little tidbits in there leading up to some events that occur in the sequel. Did any of you pick up on that when reading the book? I'm curious. If so, let me know. Since I'm working diligently on the sequel and the third book, I'm wondering if anyone had ideas about how the story might continue to unfold while they were reading the first book. I am dedicated, though to not giving out too much detail on the contents of the next one, so you'll have to read it to connect the two stories!

A few more thoughts on Proverbs 31. Clint's grandma, Sally, an avid gardener, once told me something I'll never forget. She joked about how she often thought of verse 14 of that chapter every time she went out to her vegetable garden to pick the crops. Her garden seemed a long way from her back door. She said she thought of the phrase, "she brings her food from afar," while she was hauling all those beans, corn, tomatoes, etc., in to the kitchen. I think of that often when I'm in the garden. I suppose it was really ringing true all winter as I trudged out to the chicken coop to gather eggs in sub-zero weather. It seemed like it was "afar" for sure! Well, we should be able to apply the tiniest phrases of the Bible to our lives, shouldn't we?

How about a few thoughts from verse 23--"Her husband is known in the gates, when he sits among the elders of the land." This woman's diligence, wisdom, and virtue even helps the rest of the family. It almost sounds like her good qualities help to elevate her husband in the eyes of others. After all, what would it be like for a man of high character to have a wife whose life was characterized by foolishness and lack of discernement? It would certainly reflect negatively on him. This challenges me to be mindful of how I behave because it reflects on my husband and my family. A good wife is a blessing to a man. I am working on being a blessing.

Verse 25 reads, "strength and honor are her clothing; she shall rejoice in time to come." I want to be clothed in strength and honor, don't you? I want to know there is a time of rejoicing coming for me. Living in wisdom clothes you in a very profound way. Even though the rewards of right living may not be immediate, there is coming a time when the righteous will flourish and our God will set right all the wrongs. His people will receive their reward and things will be run the way God intended. This is a day we can all look forward to with joy. Let's ponder the wonderful reward of being a child of God who can look forward to many future blessings as well as the glories of a wonderful day like today! Blessings, LORI