(She donned her apron in the early morning hours just before dawn....)
Sounds like the beginning of a book? How about a living book?
What if we simply decided to live life with purpose, intention and happiness. To make a change in our household, to bring a fresh change, something simple, peaceful and interesting. We do have that control since it is our domain.
(It was time to fill the vessels with water before she started her morning routine...)
It is our home that we live, we can set the mood for the entire household.
( Sarah loves her little cottage on the hill, there is much to do today, gather eggs from the hen house, stew will be for dinner, harvest herbs for tea, clean the floors.)
The morning could be lovely for those that awaken after us if we were all like Sarah, could we truly set the tone for the household?
Life is too short to go around moody and filled with dread every time we see something that needs our care. We can be happy in our home because we can put order in the things that are out of order. We can put brightness in things that are dull. We can make ourselves more presentable than remaining in rags most of the day and we could choose to put aside those things that distract us from what we really should be doing.
( After filling the vessels she lit the fat lighter in the stove. This morning there will be eggs and biscuits since the hens are laying so well.)
We can let dust settle on our household items because they will stand and wait for us to tend them but our children need proper care, they need nourishment, clean clothes and our attention. They need teaching and our responsibility has not changed through time.
( Sarah went to the pantry and gathered flour, salt and lard.)
If we live alone or have a growing family we still have the same needs of food, water, shelter and clothing just lesser or more. Our home has different needs but also very important because it will decay if left unattended.
(The sun was starting to rise and she thought what a lovely morning as she lifted the bucket from the well that held the soured milk for the biscuits. Sarah inhaled the cool morning air and took in the beauty of the fog that lay low over the field.)
I have been asked many times by visitors to my blog how do you do it? How do you do all the things that need to be done? I don't always get it done each day. I do what I can each day.
I feel that as time has continued on there has become a lot of selfishness and being selfish can bring us to laziness. To keep a home we have to work in our home or else hire it done because the stove is not going to magically cook our supper. Our washer is not going run through the house and collect our clothes.
Please listen closely, when we challenge ourselves, change things around to have better purpose and experiment with doing things more old fashioned we can get a sense of excitement in what we are doing. Something that feels right.
It takes effort to rise before the sun but quite rewarding as Sarah described.
Many times times when I am out at the clothesline at pre-dawn and I am alone with the quiet and listening to the sounds, the cardinals silently fly in and perch quietly on the limbs as they wait for the sun to break over the horizon before they make their familiar sounds.
Those coming after the sun is just peeking the horizon announce their presence since the morning sun is about to fill the sky. It is only darkness that the cardinals are quiet. They come early because they need to find food to feed babies after a long night. The birds do not have distractions as we do, we can learn a lot from them how to care for their home and babies.
I feel that I have witnessed Gods intentions when I am one with nature.
It is about attitude and love and selflessness. Those are the things that teach volumes without any words. Grandma Donna
