In Times of Trouble..... We Go To Our Knees In Prayer...For Others

"He who sees the calamity of other people finds his own calamity light."
Arabian Proverb

and it rained.......and it rained.............and then it hailed!  Enough already!  Mother Nature has been relentless this Spring.  Harmony Acres has a water retention problem that only Sunshine and Time can fix.  But first it has to stop raining.  Good Grief!  I can't do laundry (won't drain), I can't run the dishwasher (won't drain) and I say a little prayer every time I flush the toilet (a little bit of whining going on here).

My problems are insignificant compared to what's going on in the rest of Oklahoma.  Tahlequah is flooding.  People are having to leave their homes and some businesses have shut down.  Many county roads no longer exist in Green Country (another name for this part of the state)!  Either you can't get home or you can't get out!  Normal everyday life has come to a standstill. Waiting...............for the rain to stop........the rivers to crest......the damage to be assessed.  Just waiting...................

Our neighboring states of Arkansas and Missouri are suffering as well.  Levee breached in Missouri (massive flooding), tornadoes in Arkansas (loved ones gone forever in a moment frozen in time) and widespread destruction.  They don't need  an official government statement.  They know it's a diaster zone.  Moment by moment......tear by tear......loss compounded by loss.  Our prayers for them are desperately needed.

Joyce, my big sister, has no road left.  The rains have washed away their bridges (if you think my house is isolated, you should try to find hers) and they have no way out!  Incarcerated with her husband, Bill!  This can't be good even for a solid marriage of many years.   Don't get me wrong.  I love Bill.  It's much easier to love someone you don't have to live with.  This is the gospel truth.   

The sound quality on this video is dreadful but this is Warner, OK.

Other refuge have I none

Other refuge have I none;
Hangs my helpless soul on Thee:
Leave, ah! leave me not alone,
Still support and comfort me.
All my trust on Thee is stayed,
All my help from Thee I bring;
Cover my defenseless head
With the shadow of Thy wing! Amen.

Simple Living is all about caring for others. We always pray for them first and us last. That is Country Ways 101.  We are all connected in the big scheme of things. By touching one life, we touch many.  By helping one person, we help many.  It's the ripple effect.  Think about that today.

Bless My Bloomers!

Forever:  Time it takes to brew the first pot of coffee in the morning. 

              Author Unknown

A typical day starts here at Harmony Acres with Becky getting up at 5:30 a.m. to do a few chores and getting ready for work.  My day starts at 6:30 a.m. when I stagger to the bathroom (good thing it's small or I would be sitting in the floor) and then feel my way to the coffee pot.  Pouring a cup of coffee (half in the cup, half in the floor), I then grab a cigarette and stumble to the front porch to meditate.  This is best done with Pushka wrapped around one ankle and Gracie the other.

Bless my bloomers! Pushka left me a gift on the porch! The first thing I see this morning is a dead snake!

6:50 a.m.-Becky leaves for work and I feed the outside cats.  Then it's time to load up the lawn mower cart and feed Gypsy and her pups.  Then it's time to go to the house, make another pot of coffee and let Maggie outside.  Let Maggie inside.  Let the wieners outside, (they can't go at the same time as Mags because they play too rough) let the wieners inside.  Drink more coffee, smoke another cigarette and meditate on which project to work on today.

Today, I will work on the thicket on the northwest side of the house.  First, the greenhouse has to be moved and then I can begin this daunting task.  Just looking at the unruly mass of vines, scrub brush and Lord only knows what else (snakes?), gives me a spooky feeling.  Pulling out my brand new push mower that I purchased at TrueValue Hardware in Warner (and brought home in the car, really need a truck), I begin.

Two hours later, scrapped, scratched and bloodied, I surrender for the day.  The push mower and I are both going putt, putt, cough, cough.  I have easily donated a pint of blood to the wild rose bushes growing in the thicket and need to go to the house, remove thorns from my aching body and take a bath in alcohol.  Once I do this, I will be able to "shake it off" and continue on with my other chores after another cup of coffee and another cigarette and more meditation (watching puppies play) or perhaps in this case medication (my back you know).

The thicket holds a hidden delight!

Last weekend, Becky reclaimed this lovely view for us.  The trees she cut down (with a bow saw, she's afraid of knives so a chainsaw is out) were so big I had to drag them with a rope tied to the lawn mower.

"A small green frog
On a big brown log;
A black and yellow bee
In a little green tree;
A red and yellow snake
By a blue-green lake,
All sat and listened
To red bird sing,
"Wake up, everybody,
It's spring! It's spring!"

 

"Bless My Bloomers" and "that just dills my pickles" are just a few Funny Southern Expressions.  If you need a smile for the day, just click on the link.

Our day ends with loading the water tank on the cart and watering our new peach, plum and what ever that other tree is Becky planted (we're in a drought you know).  Then it's time to fasten up the pups for the night to help Gypsy keep them safe.  Finally, it's time to feed the inside dogs again and if there is time; have a bite to eat ourselves.  With all of our energy almost depleted, a nice bath is the perfect way to end a long day.  Simple Living provides lots of little moments of pleasure and lots of hard work.  It ain't easy being me.  Have a wonderful day and may God bless you in all things.

Small Town, U.S.A.

Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn't learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn't learn a little, at least we didn't get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die; so, let us all be thankful.  ~Buddha

My Deep Thought For The Day:

I view each day of my life as a mystery, a secret if you will, waiting to be revealed.  Some days the answers reveal themselves and some days I have to search to make sense of it all.  But no matter what the day brings, it is a precious day of my life to be spent wisely.

This afternoon, I have to go into town.  Not Muskogee town but Warner town.  Huge difference!  Instead of being filled with dread (because it always takes me at least four hours to get all my stuff done in Muskogee), I can anticipate an enjoyable trip to Warner.  A quaint small town atmosphere permeates every inch of this lovely community.  There are no stop lights in town, everyone knows everyone and friendliness is the key ingredient in everyday life.  It is the home of Connors State College (a two year college full of eager and not so eager students). 

My first stop will be Cross Telephone Company.  Before online bill paying came along, it could be a little confusing to pay utility bills in my neck of the woods.  The water comes from Muskogee, the electric from Okmulgee, Oklahoma Natural Gas from who knows where and, as I said, the telephone from Warner (I have no choice here).  When I want to dig in the yard, I have to call OKIE first to mark any existing lines.  It can get complicated.

These are some of the places I stop when I go to Warner, Oklahoma:

This is a real hot spot in town.



This is the only grocery store in town.

The local hardware store is the real heart of the community.  If you need anything and can't find it, the great people who work there can take you to it and tell you how to use it.  Many times when I go into the store, they will ask, "What are you trying to do?' (most of the time I don't really know) and then offer great advice on how to do it.  They are #1 in my book for customer service.




They have just about anything you would need.



 Now it's time to visit my favorite place in any community.  If the hardware store is the heart of this community, then the library is the soul.  The wonderful people who work there are so friendly and helpful.  I just heave a big sigh of contentment when I walk into this oasis in the middle of the chaos of the world.

Love, love, love the library.  The small size of this building belies the content.

And last but not least is the Warner Post Office.  I still have a P.O. box there because I haven't had time to change my address with all the junk mail companies (killers of trees).

The Warner, Oklahoma Post Office is located next door to the library.

And so my day went much too quickly.  I am now home with my reusable Eco bag full of books from the library.  I am one happy girl.  Living Simply is just my style and small town (eight miles away) living suits me just fine, thank you very much!