A fledgling country girl

Today was another one of those "I wish I could find a giant frame and frame this whole day" kind of days. Tonight after dinner the kids and I started driving and listening to music. We decided to take a drive, which we like to do, down some back country roads looking for deer and picking out each of our favorite houses and lots. We listened to the music loud at times singing at the top or our lungs and dancing away. Then at one point we turned the music off, stopped the car with the windows down and listened. We heard nothing but silence. Beautiful silence. We ended up spotting 6 deer, 3 bunnies and countless cows (which Bella was so excited about. Odd child she is!). As we drove through the country, I began thinking back to where I was a year ago. So very much has changed. I have changed. I moved all of 15 minutes away, and it seems as though into a whole different world. First I moved to a smaller place which forced me to cut back on all that I owned. It forced me to simplify. Beyond that, I have learned to be content and even happy with the small simple things. I am taken aback by the beauty of the country on a daily basis. I cannot help but smile as I look out over the golden wheat field. Even driving into work I grin. How can you not enjoy spending each day surrounded by gardens and quiet and simple beauty? I joke about turning into a country girl, but in all reality, I enjoy the change I see in myself. Now don't get me wrong, I still love my shoes and you would be hard pressed to ever find me without painted toenails, but I would just assume kick off the heels and walk barefoot through the grass wet with dew. I still enjoy manicures (not that I get them much anymore), but I can get down on my knees and dig in the dirt in my garden (my "farm fertilized" garden I might add). I used to have these ideas of my dream house being large suited perfectly for entertaining large crowds and a kitchen that a chef would desire. I have learned that true entertaining means opening your home, regardless of how big or small it is and serving whatever you may have. It's more about being hospitable than being a perfect hostess. My desire now is to someday have a house that can be a home in every sense of the word. A sanctuary. Not just for my family, but for friends and those in need. I have always had a strong desire to have a home that someone can feel comfortable stopping by on a whim, but the way I view that now has changed. It doesn't mean that I keep my house perfect (although this week I do believe a tornado hit my house. That is the only logical explanation for it's condition!), but that it is real. My landlord has been a shining example of this. She once told me that "around here" you never know how many people you may have for dinner so you always have extra on hand. One of the biggest ways I saw this was when I was still working in Cleveland. Each day I would come home exhausted. Spending 4 hours a day just driving to and from work took it's toll on me. Wednesdays were especially rough. By the time we got home we had maybe an hour to make and eat dinner, do homework and get out the door again to church. We would get home late, go to bed late and then I would be dealing with exceptionally crabby kids Thursday morning when I had to wake them up at 5:00 or 5:15 am. One particularly rough Wednesday I had no sooner walked into my apartment than my phone rang. It was my landlord and she wanted to know if I had started dinner. I told her that I hadn't had a chance and she said she would be right up. She walked up to my apartment and handed me a plate with hot ham and cheese sandwiches and homemade potato salad. Such a simple gesture. This was not a 6 course dinner with all the frills, but the kindness, the thought, just about brought me to tears. That, my friends, is what hospitality is all about. I still enjoy making the fancy cheesecakes and the large meals, but that has it's time and place. Come to my house and I will offer whatever I may have, whether that be ribs or spaghetti-Os. There is a tranquility, a peacefulness about being simple. That I treasure. That is one of the biggest things I have learned. I may never be the kind of country girl that cleans fish or knows how to make a live feathered chicken into dinner, but I hope that I continue this journey of learning how to be a little more country everyday.