Contentment

First order of the day, chase the chill away with a good fire in the wood stove, then make coffee, it in my favorite corner, read the Bible for a bit, sip Green Mountain Spiced Eggnog coffee that my sweet Melissa sent to me, and glance out the window from time to time, watching the birds at the feeder. My contentment, felt tangible. It seemed as if you could breathe in the solace of the moment. Hold it in my hands and cherish it, gain a warmth that went right to my soul.

This is what living without chaos is like, living simply, without being pulled in two directions like Taffy. My spinning wheel soon humming along as the soft Shetland wool slipped through my fingers and onto the spindle. A steady rhythm, making music of the morning. The sunshine dancing on the wall in morning shadows.

No noise from a television or radio...no traffic noise. Just this simple sound of the spinning wheel humming and the treadle clicking in a quiet sort of way.

The phone rings, I answer it with a smile, pretty sure of who it would be on the other end of the line. The wood man saying he was on his way with a cord of wood for us. Cold temps in the forecast, lots of wood will be burned to keep the house cozy. Our second load this season. We have plenty now. This load, well seasoned, but needing the expert touch of Emery with his new axe to split some of the bigger logs. This afternoon when the sun shines in its fullness I will stack some of it and enjoy the physical labor that clears your head and gives you time to think while the wind blows at my back and the birds sing all around me.

I read this morning a text in Psalm that I had underlined years ago..."Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart." Ps 37:4

I had underlined it when we were hoping and praying for more children, but it never happened the way we had hoped. Now, this morning as I read those words, I see that this verse, that I had claimed so many times, had come true. I have the desires of my heart. A loving husband, amazing children and now, grand-blessings. I get to live the life that was a dream even when I was a young girl of 14. It may not be in the log cabin I had envisioned, but it is the same kind of home I wanted. Simple, on land, with animals, with a wood stove, filled with love and contentment. The kind of home I clipped pictures from magazines so many decades ago. A room with a rocking chair, a braided rug, kerosene lamps, a wood stove, complete with that old fashioned feeling that warms you to your very core.

Ahhh, contentment is far greater than gold.