To my dear family and friends from the upstairs office just over the hilltop. The sun is a beautiful sight today: for the last week or so we have had cold, dreary, and rainy days. I even relented and turned up the heat for a couple of days to take the dampness out of the house.
Last week I posted a picture of a recent sunset over the hilltop and this week is of a winter’s sunrise (I haven’t been able to get a new one). This month the blackboards near the front and kitchen doors have the phrase “sunrise, sunset, swiftly flow the days.” This is my greeting song for company and guests. I realize that song refers to little ones growing up all too quickly, but days flow swiftly at any age. I find myself enjoying the sunsets and sunrises more and more, which can also include the ups and downs of life.
I am happy but not satisfied with the feeling that comes with accomplishment
One of the downs of my life became the realization of my not seemingly producing as I had in the past. Don’t take me wrong. I love my life and my home, but something seemed to be missing. Lo and behold, it was the feeling of satisfaction. I am happy but not satisfied with the feeling that comes with accomplishment. That leads me to the continuing saga of “life with Sharon.”
More dreams
We are making plans and working toward me opening up the old schoolhouse again. We have had it painted and repaired, sold the camper and storage van, moved the blue counter back in, and are doing research. My thinking right now is baked goods, convenience items, a soda fountain, and local crafts. It would be open Easter to Christmas, just three or four days a week, and minimal hours (10-5, except maybe those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer!). We are contemplating a name and beginning the process of all the paperwork, inside changes, etc. Time frame? The middle of August to beginning of September. Certainly would appreciate any prayers and inspirations.
Dick has been sorting and arranging the garage and new shed. It looks amazing. Actually, the garage is starting to look more like a garage and workshop! We attended the St. Lawrence County Bed and Breakfast meeting last week in Ogdensburg and met several innkeepers. Everyone was welcoming and quite helpful. We were the youngest, having been open just four months, and the oldest has been open for twenty-two years. It was a great group with various experiences and insights. In September we are hosting the next meeting and giving “a tour” of the Rose of Sharon.
Old shows
I’ve been thinking ……… about a special that I stumbled on one evening where the MC made a statement that the show “Leave it to Beaver” and “Father Knows Best” were not how people really lived but were shows based on a desired or perceived way of life. I did not watch the special so my response may be disregarded, but I beg to differ. I lived that time period and Norman Rockwell got it right and so did those old shows. Now there may have been a difference from country living to city living and that’s fine. But please don’t throw out my growing up experience because it might not have been yours (the producers or writers of the show).
they were seen as a team yoked together for our good
My mom was a stay-at-home mom, put up my dad’s lunch everyday, fixed him breakfast each morning, and we sat around the dining table talking each evening. We played badminton, rode our bicycles to the swimming hole under the covered bridge, slept outdoors in our backyards without tents, and climbed trees and built forts along the river bank with the neighborhood kids. We saw our father as wise (though we might not always have liked what he said) and our mom as his extended hand, both of mercy and of diligence. In other words, if Dad instructed us to get a particular job done in a day, Mom would make sure we didn’t dilly-dally around and waste time. They were seen as a team yoked together for our good. So, I say that to say this. The old shows portrayed life as it was – at least many places, if not all – and not as a reality show that is anything but real. Well, that’s my thinking for today and I’m grateful for having grown up like the Cleavers!
Whatever your world is like and wherever you may live. may your home be a peaceful, pleasant, and happy place to be. Love, Sharon