“I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, with lowliness and meekness, and long-suffering, forbearing one another in love. Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism. One God and Father and all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.” Ephesians 4:1-6
The day started out beautifully clear, but now, the clouds seem to be taking over, the wind picked up, and it is chilly. But it is October, you know, even in the second half already, so …
Anyway, yesterday was so very nice. I had tons of laundry. Well, that’s a stretch. But I had lots. I got it done and even mowed the yard.
I wonder, was it the last time for the season? Mowing the yard, not the laundry. I even did laundry again today just because it was so nice and because I could. I didn’t have to leave at noon because Hubby wasn’t feeling good, so he didn’t go to work.
Last week was so rainy, it was hard to get laundry done and dried. That is why I had so much yesterday.
Our daughter Cynthia and Freeman Miller and family of Dale came to Arthur on Thursday evening. Their daughter Mary Lorene and Mikel Yutzy of Medina, N.Y., came, too.
Freeman picked them up at the train station in Mattoon. They all came for Freeman’s nephew’s wedding Friday.
We women had planned to go shopping Friday afternoon. Due to the fact that I didn’t make myself clear that women going shopping need more than a couple of hours, our driver took a second call and didn’t leave us enough time.
Doesn’t “women shopping” automatically mean several hours? Yeah, I thought so. So, anyway, we were without a taxi. No sweat. We enjoyed our time Friday afternoon anyway.
You know, last week, I didn’t exactly have all my ducks in a row. Therefore, the toys from Sunday didn’t get put away until Thursday afternoon when I cleaned up the house.
So yeah, house cleaned, everything in its place — what was visible to the naked eye, anyway.
I knew grandson Brian was going to be at our house Friday. I, of course, had to go to my cleaning job Friday morning. When I came home, “what to my wondering eye did appear”? Scattered toys! And Brian, relaxed and reading.
I asked if Amy and Aaron Joel were here. Or was Brian playing with the toys? He is, after all, 14!
No, it wasn’t Brian, but indeed, Amy, Aaron, Joel and little New Yorker Alex. I was so sorry I had missed them. They had all stopped in before going to the wedding. But they came back in the afternoon. I tried cuddling little Cheyanne, but she wouldn’t have it. Sigh.
We all went to daughter Jane and Milton Yoder’s for supper. A few of the grandchildren were missing, but my mom was there, making five generations present. It was a precious time to all be together. Because who knows when the Mikels can come again. It’s a long way between here and New York, plus Mikel is a dairy farmer. And we all know how hard it is to leave when you milk cows.
We had the privilege of seeing a bald eagle the other day at a very unlikely place for that bird to be. It was in a tree over by the County Line Road close to F.D. Miller Feed. I wonder what brought it to such a place. But I am glad I got to see it.
So now that I am about to wrap up writing this epistle, I’ll go out and see if the garden is tillable. Hubby thought I planted ground cover. It is ground cover all right. I just didn’t plant it or want it. It is plain and simply weeds!
And our yard, it is discouraging. The ground ivy and clover are taking over. There’s barely any grass in some places. It may be the wrong time of the year, but I do believe I’ll go out and spray that stuff. I just hope I won’t kill my roses. Either way, they are probably in jeopardy.
In closing, this is the day to become the person you dreamed of being.
Now that the evenings seem to be getting chilly (and shorter, sigh …), maybe you want some potato soup.
Hearty potato soup
Servings: 8 to 10 (21/2 quarts)
6 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced
2 carrots, chopped
6 celery ribs, chopped
8 cups water
1 onion, chopped
6 tablespoons butter, cubed
6 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
11/2 cups milk
In a dutch oven, cook the potatoes, carrots and celery in water until tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Drain, reserving liquid and setting vegetables aside.
In the same pan, saute onion in butter until tender. Stir in flour, salt and pepper; gradually add milk. Bring to a boil, cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.
Gently stir in cooked vegetables. Add 1 cup or more of reserved cooking liquid until soup is desired consistency.
