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Hi Everyone,

                        Last week started with a frustrating game of “Seek and Find.”  The week before we had ran out of chicken feed and no one knew when our new shipment would even be sent. That Thursday we managed to find 14 bags of our normal, organic, corn-free and soy-free feed at a feed store in Jacksonville—but we used the last of it Monday morning. We needed more feed—and the feed stores that carried our feed were waiting for their new shipments also. Monday morning was spent talking back and forth with the mill in Virginia where we get our feed. At first they had no idea when we would get our shipment, then Mom took over the phone calls and actually managed to talk with someone who knew something: our two one ton totes of chicken feed were ready to be shipped—but the 8 bags of turkey feed was waiting to be made. We couldn’t believe it—our whole shipment was being held up because of 8 bags. The mill had a problem with the turkey feed production the week before, and therefore had to reprocess the batches. We made the quickest and easiest decision we could: “Forget those 8 bags of turkey feed and send us the rest of our feed—for we are 100% out of feed with close to a 1000 birds on the ground!” I told Mom to call them back and to replace those 8 turkey bags with 8 more bags of chick starter. They said that they would get our feed wrapped and our pallets of feed would be the first ones on the truck that day. Whew! We could breathe a little easier now. In the meantime, Mom mowed and Papa worked on the roof of his new shade structure. Someone had to listen for the phone, so instead of heading to the garden like I had planned, I stayed inside and started taking down and packing up the summer décor and bringing down and putting up the fall décor. After lunch Mom helped me take the glass off the table so that we could change the tablecloths. Around 3:30 cabin fever set in and I bolted for the garden. It was Monday and it was time to trim the sweet potato vines back. We never got around to doing it the week before, so I had two weeks of growth to cut back. I got back inside around 5:00—just in time to cook dinner. After dinner we worked a little more on the fall décor and then Mom and I were fixing to head for a shower when I remembered that we had let the turkeys out to roam for the first time that morning—it was now after dark and no one had remembered to lock them up. Papa was on his way in from locking up the chickens so we hollered at him to come up to the house and pick us up so that we could all go out and round up the turkeys. Thankfully the turkeys were bedded down just right outside their pen—so it really wasn’t hard to shoo them to bed. Then we realized that the hot wire wasn’t hot—so we had to drive around looking for the culprit. Thankfully that didn’t take too long, for Papa found that the wire that connects one fence to another had burnt through. He was able to make a new hook and we were headed back to the house in no time.

                        The rest of the week was spent shopping for fall décor, mowing, pruning (I tried to prune the Ponderosa lemon tree of all its dead branches so that we didn’t have to hire someone to come in and prune it—but after much stressing of the muscles and pokes and scratches from the lemon tree thorns I had to admit defeat when I couldn’t get my pruners into the middle of the tree to cut the center dead branches), weeding, mulching and planting more seeds for the fall garden. My first planting had mixed results: some things sprouted and somethings didn’t. Those that sprouted were doing really well and were ready to be potted out or planted up—but then the worms found them and finished them off. Those that didn’t sprout I replanted (but not according to the moon). They sprouted—but that is all they did. Usually the lettuce is ready to plant out three weeks after I sow the seeds—but they are still just two little leaves. So, when the moon phase flipped to above ground I took one of the rows in the east garden tunnel and divided it into ten two foot sections. Then I made three little rows in each section and filled them with seeds. My goal is to let them sprout and grow a little there, and then I will pluck them up and transplant them to their own beds.

                        Saturday was a bit different for us though. Normally we get to sleep in until 7:00 on a Saturday morning, but we had to be at a little old country church at 11:00 that morning. Therefore we had to get up earlier so that we could get the cows milked and the chores done and the Gainesville order all packed before we had to leave at 10:30. Four weeks ago we made the twenty minute trek to this little old country church in a quaint little town in the middle of nowhere to attend my piano students wedding. Carrie is number eight of nine siblings, and it is because of her family that I am a Piano teacher. Twenty-five years ago when the third born daughter was 6 years old their mother asked me to teach her children how to play the piano. The idea was scary, and exciting at the same time. There were only five children when I started teaching piano lessons, but as the years went by four more children were born into the family. I started teaching the three oldest children, and over the last 25 years I have taught all but one of the nine children. I am currently teaching the youngest—and she only has a few more years to go. Some just learned beginner piano, some learned how to play the piano well, and a few have greatly surpassed my skill level. I have been a part of their weekly life for a long time and it was a great privilege to attend Carrie’s wedding a month ago. Her whole family was there, even though they are scattered from Florida to Connecticut to Alaska—everyone was there except her father who died twelve years ago when she was just a little girl. The sad part is that Carrie’s wedding would be the last time all the siblings would ever be together, for last Tuesday when we were delivering some goods to another farmer for them to deliver to one of our customers in Tampa we heard the devastating news that the oldest son had died unexpectedly the night before. He was a long distance truck driver and was having some trouble breathing. He called 911, and on the way to the hospital he died. So quick! So unexpected! So alone! Daniel was in Kentucky between deliveries. Therefore, one month after the wedding, the family was having a Memorial service in the same church. “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:55 -57) Death is a guaranteed part of life. There is no way to escape it. It is a known fact of life that we will all one day die, but it is a truth that people do not like to deal with. Hebrews 9:27 says, “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” Death is not the end and this is probably why death is so feared--there is an eternity awaiting us after we die. When we believe that death is the end and that there is no God we can live our lives however we want—for if there is no God and no after life then we will not be held accountable for the way we live. Yet, when we acknowledge that God is real and that we will have to answer for the way we have lived our life it creates a fear—because we all know that we have done things that God would not approve of. Romans 3:23 tells us that, “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God,” and Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death;” but the good news is that it also says that “the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” You see, over 2000 years ago God sent His only Son, Jesus Christ to die for our sins according to the scriptures; and he was buried, and he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). According to John 3:15, the blessing is: “That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.” Daniel was only 35; he was in the prime of his life, yet God called him home when he was least expecting it. We are not guaranteed tomorrow—we are not even guaranteed another minute of our life. Seek the Lord while it is today—for Today is the day of salvation!

Serving you with Gladness,

Tiare