“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.“
~ Isaiah 55:10-11
Things that made me happy in April:
Dogwood
Getting barbeque with Brian & Taylor, watching a wild storm blow in
Morning sun falling across the quilt Ann made
High winds and Chai tea and a walk through a campus
Jared’s coin Pepsi bottle of savings
The Pasta Grille downtown and the little park with the fountains
Checking the hives, getting in the swing of plying the lids off and sliding the frames out
Mowing to The Arcadian Wild
Walking back behind the local school, where there was a raised-bed garden for the children, pine trees, and a radiant sunset
Setting up the TV on the back porch to watch The Glenn Miller movie
A surprise drive on a Saturday morning up to Mount Magazine and a hike to our favorite rock; eating sandwiches with our feet hanging off into the valley, which was a patchwork of spring greens
Stopping by a flowing creek
Wind-burned faces, red shoulders, dirty feet
Walking with Jared to the King Opera House to see the Glenn Miller Orchestra, wearing a button skirt on a lovely evening
Big band clashing to Chatanooga Choo Choo, String of Pearls, & Moonlight Serenade
The clock downtown gonging 9 o’clock and a stroll by the lit fountains before leaving
First-thing-in-the-morning hugs and a half cup of coffee
Scooping up Chloe
The drawing Violet made of Jared during business meeting
The way the bees groaned and the dandelions closed during the solar eclipse; how sunlight governs so much of God’s creation; how the dimming of it is startling and strange
The picture mom sent of Mema in her eclipse glasses
The little disc golf set Mark & Tina bought for me
A long, hard afternoon conversation in the car until the sun set over Lake Alma; driving home weary but at rest in the God who is always teaching me, shepherding me, holding me fast
Teaching about seeds and gardening and beekeeping to the kids on Wednesday nights, and how they swooned over the wax on the frames and took turns trying on the bee veil
“Overalls Thursday,” on which I and the children wear our best (or only) overalls
Staining the old floors of Joel’s house
Getting my dress steamed, setting tables, and hanging lights the day before Becca’s wedding
Morning coffee run with Susie on behalf of the bridesmaids (10 drinks and 2 very capable baristas)
Becca’s dress—white with stitched flowers and lovely sleeves that reminded me of something from “The Sound of Music”
Dancing with Dad
All the little kids on the dance floor, hopping around and holding hands
Collecting the leftover baby’s breath from the wedding, cutting it for bouquets, taking some to Mrs. Kathy and Mema, pressing some
Sunday afternoon volleyball and the Aulgur’s big back room where they served hot dogs to everyone
Starting trays full of zinnia, sunflower, and marigold seeds in the sun
Hanging my sweater on a peg to work in the greenhouse
A girl with a book on her trampoline
The neighbor whom David Grayson described in The Countryman’s Year, who sat up in bed in the morning to study the songs of the meadowlarks: “I have a vision of him sitting there, propped, up, with his pitch pipe at his lips and his notebook on his knee, setting down his records.”
Meatball sandwiches and a walk at the riverfront with Janaya and Mom
Dress shopping (and spikeball and Mexican food) with Sammy
Johnny’s lesson on the refuge of the Ark and the security of our salvation in Christ
Brewing tea for kombucha
Sitting on the front stoop at dusk with Bennett, talking about the weight and bigness of God
An evening tramp with all four kids down the railroad tracks to the old stone tunnel, where we played in the creek as kids, and where Elsie and the boys pretended to be the Boxcar Children
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