~ Invoking Granddaddy ~



 Southern Appalachian Mts. near Murphy, N.C.

I just got back from N.C., Georgia & Tennessee two nights ago.  Experiencing the South was one of those "wish list" items I've wanted to do for a long time.  And so, Rick and I flew into Atlanta, Ga., rented a car, and drove..............a lot!!!!  Six days to be exact.

We're searching for the "perfect" area for retirement.  I've always been fascinated with the Appalachians mountians, so we picked a spot in N.C. and headed out.  We are working with a realtor, born and raised in Savannah, GA., who now resides in Murphy, N.C.  With our list of homes and properties in hand, we head into his office Friday morning. The realtor has sworn to dedicate two days to us for the hunt, he fulfills that promise beyond measure, he's a super cool guy.  Holler (hollow), after holler we drive.........Rick and I are in complete awe of our surroundings, I've never seen anything more beautiful than these Appalachians.



Beaver Creek House in Andrews, N.C.  Stunning creek-front home.

After two full days with our realtor, we release our realtor to resume' his job.  We obtain a map from the Chamber, figure out our base camp on the map, and pursue looking on our own for the next three days.  Let me just say, this is an exhausting and emotional task we've set ourselves upon.  The Beaver Creek house was a huge let down for me, I can't hardly shake the gloominess.  This home sits on a raging creek, Beaver Creek.  The land the home sits on has historical history, it's a place the Cherokee indians travelled to annually for pow-wows.  The creek is full of trout.  The outside of the home is darling, built in 1900.  The inside..........a "tear down" Rick informs me............I'm in tears!  It's the end of a long day, I'm ready to go back to our cabin, I'm tired and drained.

The next morning, my spirits are lifted, I'm ready to start the search once again, our time is running out.  I step out onto the deck of the cabin we've rented in pre-dawn hours, with my mug a joe.  I take a deep breath, center myself, and call upon my granddaddy for help.  I ask him to guide me on this search, to let me know when I'm "home."  I ask him to show me a sign, send his beloved energy to me.......then the two of us head out.......Rick's arms around my shoulder, he knows my hearts been heavy.

We travel South of town, down near the GA. state line, about 10 miles S. of Murphy.  We drive up a holler called Marrestop, then we veer to our left into another holler called Sourwood.  I'm asking Rick, "where are we going?" His answer, "just driving, checkin' it out."  As we head further into this holler, we see a 4-sale sign on the road, the road heads up a ways, it's called Whittler's Mountain.  We locate the piece of property for sale, it's up on a knoll.  After parking the car in a semi-gravelled driveway, we get out.............I begin to cry........... I can't shake it, I feel something very strong.  I know in my heart that I've been led here by my granddaddy.  I've invoked his guidance, his help, and he's shown me the very spot, I'm home.  The property has million dollar views of the Appalachians,   It's been somewhat cleared so that only the majestic oaks, maples,  white pines and dogwood remain, it's very, very private.  I look over at Rick and one look tells me, he knows what I'm thinking and he feels the same way. 

Sourwood Holler

 





Whittler's Mountain, Murphy, N.C.

We call our realtor the next day, we put in an offer on the land.  As it stands now, we're in the stage of buying that everyone dreads, the countering of price.  What I do know is this, I invoked help from my granddaddy and he's led us here.  My grandfather, he was a whittler, a good one too.  Our family history traces us back to N.C. long ago.  Although we hadn't really thought about building a home in the Southern Appalachians, the excitement of doing so, makes our heart sing!!  The sale will go through, I know this in my heart.

Martin Houses at John C. Campbell Folk School

The Johnsonville Farm House across from Hothouse Creek.
A 100 year old farmhouse we looked at.

Our soul is touched, we leave with a renewed spirit.



~ Seeking Self-Reliance~

Organic veggies from our garden

My focus homeward began when I was young.  I really shifted my desire  in high school, attempting to drag as many friends as I could into "working a farm" with me.  Long before the CSA was a popular, locally-sustainable way to eat good, organic food I was trying to recruit friends, to no avail.  At that time, my family owned a 40 acre farm, it was to be left to myself and two siblings by my grandfather, who wanted the farm to stay in the family.  I had every intention of farming on that farm, but greed can do bad things to people, and so, off I went in search of another place that I could live self-reliantly. 

  "Today we choose to grow our own food because we prefer quality, and we recognize the tie between good food and good health.  It's hard to buy that kind of quality." ~Harvey Ussery.   I personally just wanted to get my hands in the dirt and raise my own, healthy food.  And so, a big garden went in, I purchased four sheep, brought my chickens with me......and the rest is history. 

I love this life, but one of the biggest misconceptions people have about homesteading & homemaking is that it's tidy, and that every homestead is picture perfect.  The truth is it's a messy, exhausting way to live.  There are always things to do, and you must learn to live with the feeling of not having accomplished all you wanted to on any given day.  For example: today is butter making day, tinctures are brewed and ready to bottle, barn & hen house need cleaning, garden beds still need further amending, wood from the tree limbs need to be stacked..........oh yeah, laundry is piling up and bread needs to be made........will I get to all of them, certainly not, but I'll mark off what I can for today and be satisfied that I did a lot for this one day!  It's a dance, an ebb and flow.

Many people confuse self-reliance with self-sufficiency.  True self-sufficient living is impossible (unless you're Amish maybe).  I can't grow all of my own grain to feed my sheep,  However, I do believe that we can and should, build a community with like-minded people and continuously work toward self-reliance, the ability to make and do things.  Because a self-reliant community builds resilience through networks of shared skills and goods with the goal of sustainable living.

My motto: produce more than I consume.  There are myraid ways to do this, for instance, I play music rather than download it, I knit rather than go to the movies, I grow food rather than buy it from a grocery store, I cook rather than go out to eat.  I love producing for my well-being, it makes my life more interesting, further, I just don't have time to waste money!

  Maybe "progress" means taking a giant step "backward."  The world has become so enarmored with technological solutions that many people don't recognize the efficiency of natural ways.  We need to follow a more cyclical model: Things are produced, they die, and then they are recomposed through natural processes.  In nature, there is no waste.

"Self-sufficient living allows us to experience magic daily, and it's wonderful: the magic of germination, decomposition, the cycling year, the relationship between soil and plants, the diversity of birds and insects, and how they do this great wheeling, complex dance."  Natural processes transform in magical ways.

Start up fees can be exuberant depending on what you desire, but it doesn't have to be.  You can start with a garden and chickens, whatever works for you.  There is a great turning going on in our country, this world.  People are hopeful and being part of a hopeful movement truly is exhilarating.  If you have the dream, desire and work ethic, I say.........FOLLOW THAT DREAM! 

~ My Christmas Spirit in A Junk Yard ~

    
     The ranch has had snow on the ground for 3 weeks now........lot's of snow,  which is why I had to go out this morning, and shovel out the back of the pick-up truck so I could drive it to the junk yard. 

   This particular junk yard is East of Snowflake.  It starts on the side of the county highway and meanders back on acreage.  Mike owns it, he and his wife.  Mike makes treasures out of others junk, and it's always worth stopping to take a look around.

   After wandering around for awhile (in mud I might add), I found a piece I liked.  Unfortunately, no one was home.  I walked over to the Country store next door, asked to use the phone, and called Mike on his cell.  He was ecstatic that someone was at the junk yard inquiring about one of his pieces.  He was almost to town with his wife, but he said he'd turn around and scoot back to meet up with me.  He did so promptly I might add.

   We settled on a price and shook hands.  Something I have always done when a deal has been struck or when conducting business with people.  Mike took off somewhere in the junk yard to locate a dolly to load this "piece" in my pick-up truck.  I wandered around a bit longer looking at things.  Out of no where a young man walked up to Mike's wife, he told her he'd run out of gas down the road, he wondered if she had a used gas can he could borrow.  She located one for him, loaned it to him, and off he went to the country store to fill it with gas. A few minutes later, he took off on foot to fill his tank.  Another older gentleman pulled up in his dilapidated truck, got out with a big ol' grin and said "hi" to both of us.  Mike's wife obviously knew him.  They chit-chatted while I continued to wander. 

   While I wandered around, I couldn't help but tune into their conversation...................the man was having problems locating and obtaining parts for his old truck. He evidently lived many miles off the highway on a county road. Without blinking an eye, Mike's wife told him she would get the parts he needed while she was down in Payson this week, not to worry.  Mike then walked out from the back with his dolly and noticed their friend.  He smiled and shook his hand, it was then that Mike told their friend that he and his wife would be feeding people again at Christmas this year.  Mike told him it would be similar to the meal they hosted at Thanksgiving......anybody and everybody could show up for food, companionship, warmth.  Mike said he didn't want anybody to go without at Christmas.  His friend told him he wouldn't miss it for the world, cuz the meal they made everyone at Thanksgiving was wonderful! 

   After Mike loaded my piece, he walked over to the store to make change for me, but before he did, he asked me if I was thirsty, would I like something to drink?  I declined but thanked him anyway.  While Mike was off getting my change, his wife and the man came over with a rope and tied my "piece" down in the truck, although I think it would have been fine without the tie down, it was a very kind gesture.  It was something they didn't even think twice about doing for me. 

   After saying my good-byes, and slowly pulling out of the mud hole of a parking lot onto the county road, I reflected on those few precious moments.  In fact, I was so moved by these three people, that tears welled in my eyes.  To look at these three people, a person could/would certainly assume they were very poor, lacking the basic material goods we all take for granted.  Yet the spirit with which these three people moved in, in their daily lives, was so much richer and gentler than anything I have ever witnessed.  The compassion, concern, and care they showed to perfect strangers was almost surreal.

   And it wasn't because of the "holiday" spirit.  No, this is something much bigger, I feel it in my gut...........these people move in this gentle spirit daily. This is who they are! 

   This experience will stay with me for along time, this was a wonderful gift I received.


Proverbs 22:9 "A generous man will himself be blessed, for he shares his food with the poor." 
  
  

~ Walking Amongst Her ~

     I'm very much "in love" with nature!  It is when I'm standing in her grace & beauty, that I most feel at home.  Personal problems either large or small, become very insignificant when you stand among her.........she is healing.

    Nature affords me the chance to follow my interests and reduces pressures, fears, introjects and social expectations.  The natural world affects my values and aspirations..........mostly my intrinsic aspirations. When I spend time in nature, I place a higher value on community/connectedness values and a lower value on self-oriented values.  Full contact with nature has humanizing effects on me.

   For me, a call to understand that nature is not inert, passive or limited in intelligence, lends creedence to the fact that we humans are not more intelligent than nature and vice-versa.  There is nothing that happens outside, which is not inside us. Nature is spiritual, we are spiritual beings......the two go hand in hand.

    And so..........I reach for that intrinsic connectedness, for that smell of life, for that beauty, for peace.........for my life!
  

  
   

~ On Any Given Day......~



Our granddaughter Kiley, and her girlfriend at a Fall concert.



Two of my childhood girlfriends attending a BBQ at the ranch.



Rick (aka Bampa), helping Brady load a pumpkin at the Willis Farm

On any given day, I could be:
1. Pickin' pumpkins with my grandkids at a local farm.
2. Hosting a big party or gathering.
3. Dressing up and driving 20 miles to attend a grandchilds concert.
4. Hangin' in my favorite jeans to attend a grand childs soccer, baseball, or softball game.
5. Making a  healthy lunch, and taking it to the elementary school my daughter teaches at, so we can have a lil' mother/daughter time.
6. Booking a flight to Washington state in June with my daughter, to spend a few days with good friends touring wineries.





A lone coyote hunting in the field outside my kitchen window.





Canning heirloom & organic food from our garden annually.





Watching a lambs curiosity when it sneaks away from it's mother, only to find the grass IS greener on the otherside of the fence.

7.  Tending to a sick animal, losing sleep over it, until it's nursed back to health.
8. Creating a large, organic garden annually, so that we might partake of the finest in vegetables.
9. Seeing wildlife around our ranch, ( lil' feral cats seeking warmth and respite in our barns on a cold winter day, raccoons, deer, elk, antelope, coyotes, owls, hawks, eagles, ducks & trumpeter swans.....and snakes).



My beloved spinning wheel.



A #300 pound hog, heading to locker.  Certainly not for everyone, and by far, not easy.





My artisan yarns, sold in boutiques here in the White Mountains.

10.  Fiber art.
11.  Raising animals on our ranch, all with dignity and respect, then taking that life so that it may nourish us.
12.  The meditative art of spinning & knitting.







Attending all day BBQ's hosted by friends.





Having to say "good-bye" to a beloved pet.





Time spent with friends.

13.  Blessings for the many good friends we have.
14. Sharing years with a pet, loving them unconditionally, then making a heart-wrenching decision.
15. Good food, raised well.









The simple joy of watching our lambs.



Annual wood-cutting.





Sunrises & Sunsets

This month, when so many have "blessings" in the forefront of their minds, I can tell you, I have many.  I'm thankful for the life my mother gave me, thankful for my family & friends, thankful for the dream I aspired to reach and obtained, I'm thankful for so many daily things that it would bog the mind.  Take heed to the smallest of things in your life, sometimes they're all you need, the very essence that keeps the heart loving and pumping.





Residing at the Helm...........Being Your Own Village

A shared posting from a website I subscribe to........enjoy:

Sometimes we need to be our own village and utilizing all of our skills and learning more.





Simple survival requires us to be in possession of many skills. The pursuit of dreams requires many more. Most individuals rely on the support of a village, whether peopled by relatives or community members, to effectively address the numerous ways we need assistance. This can mean anything from asking favors of acquaintances and leaning on loved ones for support to paying a skilled artisan to handle specialized tasks. However, each human being is born with the capacity to be their own village. We embody many roles throughout our lifetimes, all of which are representative of our capacity for self-sufficiency and self-determination. In different moments in our lives, we are our own counselor, janitor, caregiver, cook, healer, teacher, and student. Our willingness to joyfully take on these roles grants us the power to maintain control over the direction our life’s journey takes.



In times past, human beings learned all of the skills needed for survival. Today, the majority of people specialize in a single discipline, which they hone throughout their lives. Thus, many of us feel uncomfortable standing at the helm of our own existence. We question our ability to make decisions concerning our own health, happiness, and welfare, and are left feeling dependent and powerless. But the authority to take ultimate responsibility for our lives is simply a matter of believing that we have the necessary faith and intelligence to cope with any circumstance the universe chooses to place in our path. Proving that we can each be our own villages through action enables us to accept that we are strong enough to exist autonomously. Cooking, cultivating a garden of fruits and vegetables, undertaking minor home repair, or adopting a healthier lifestyle can help you reassert your will.



Being your own village does not mean embracing isolation, for a balanced life is built upon the dual foundations of the inner and the outer villages. Rather, being your own village is a celebration of your wondrous inner strength and resourcefulness, as well as an acknowledgment of your innate ability to capably steer the course of your life.

Peace to all of you, who find your inner and outer villages!







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~ Silly Boys...........Trucks are for Girls! ~

I'm not sure when my way of thinkin' about life shifted. I was once a young woman travelling around the countryside backpacking, and working for the Department of Natural Resources, now.....I'm a farm girl who knows how to "buck" hay, and birth lambs.

Outside this afternoon, stacking a cord of wood on the ol' woodpile, a hay truck drove by.  I looked up as it went by, just in time to observe the "quality" of the hay.  It was evident (to a trained eye), that this particular load of hay had gotten wet!  The dreaded curse of farmers..........a perfect day of cutting, then a random rain storm to drench it all.  At that point it becomes "cow" hay cuz only cows can eat it.  I also happened to note how many "squeezes" were on this truck...........that's when it dawned on me that I'm not your average girl!  I had to laugh at myself, because I'm not sure when this transformation happened.

Here's a lil,' "good to know" trivia I have in my head, y'll might want to pay attention to this bit of information...........HOW TO FIT 39 BALES OF HAY INTO A STANDARD SIZE PICK-UP TRUCK!

Bottom 1st Row

9 bales on their sides-4 on their sides on the bottom first row(running front to back direction of truck)

1 on its side between the tire wells(running side to side)

4 on their sides on the bottom last row (running front to back & near tail-gate)

Second Row

10 bales on their bottoms (running side to side)

Third Row

10 bales on their bottoms(one bale running front to back, two bales running side to side, then one bale running front to back again.  Then...two bales of hay running side to side to block in the first four bales.  Then repeat with one bale running front to back, two bales running side to side)

Fourth Row (Top)

10 bales on their bottoms (running side to side)

So now, y'll know how to stack 39 bales of hay on a pick-up truck.  Another lil' trivia:  If you're so lucky as to go into the farmers field and "buck" these yourself (for a much cheaper price) you won't have to "tip" the young man at the feed store.  Because that's another lil' bit of information for you............. it's etiquette to tip the young buck who's loading your hay into the pick-up for you.  Kinda like you would a waitress when she serves you food. 

Also keep in mind that any errand runnin' you might have to do that day (such as pedicures, manicures or beauty parlor), do it before you get your pick-up truck load of hay..........unless you're really good with those side mirrors ladies!  I happen to be one of those gals that's real good with those mirrors!

Somehow, somewhere along the way, my way of thinkin' and livin' has certainly SHIFTED!!

"As long as we are all here, it's pretty clear that the struggle is to share the planet, rather than divide it."