The Wedding....

My daughter's wedding was on June the 14th.  I was away for a while because of it, and I thank you all, for your ever so sweet comments on my last post...

I've missed you but am still trying to catch my breath.....I will share some pictures with you though and hope to get back into real :) blogging soon....

                               

                                  the ceremony was held in the barn...

                                           the lace chandelier was made by the bride...

                    

                            the sanctuary...

the barn painted and ready...

the tent...

the beaming bride waiting...

                                  two of my girls...bride Brittany, maid of honour Katrina...

flowers and the ring holder

my girls and I...

                                             

                                                                   my gents..

                                                             the precious pair...

                             
                              some remains of the day...

                                                   another glimpse of the lace chandelier... 

So even though the wedding was coming for such a long time; and over far too fast.

Love does not end. Love goes on. It picks up and holds up.

It breathes out. 

Love embraces the journey.

So Long

I must leave for a while....

their is a wedding on the horizon...

                                           here....
                                              

                  on the farm...in aprox 2 months from now...(this photo is last year:)

               Josh and Brittany on the eve of their engagement...

the two country loving love birds...

 I will not forget you and may pop in to visit to help me relax:)
Making a wedding is very exhausting.   exciting!

  

Thank you for your wonderful friendship. It means so much and is something I cherish...
I hope to return and share with you the wonder of it all.

Until then may God be gracious unto you and give you peace.
                                       Warmly, Lucy.

    Have you had the privilege of planning a wedding? 
      If so, what is one thing you learned through it?

Free To Be

     
                                                                 please listen..

                                                           



                                     In spite of me , in spite of you
                                           In spite of all I can  not do.
                                      I reach beyond what is and isn't.
                                    I keep my heart here on the present.

                                                      In spite of courage waning fast,
                                                         In spite of living moments past.
                                                    In all my insecurities,
                                                        The real and false identities.

                                         In spite of hurt, in spite of guilt.
                                          In spite of every truth revealed.
                                          I dream, I think, I feel, I love,
                                        I pray, I laugh and look above.


                                

                                                 

Where would we be without grace? That gift that makes us able to relinquish our rights and simply be free to be who we are.
Though flawed and feeble I am loved. I rest in that amazing promise!

Give thanks to the Lord for He is good. His love endures forever...
             Psalm 107.
                                      my favorite Psalm 
                                                

The Accumulation Of Memories

                                                                    

She moved the other day, wrapping up almost twenty four years here beside us. She lived on an acre of land which originally belonged to  their farm. ( now ours) 
She had been given the name...  grandma beside us.
After seven years of widowhood, she moved to live with her only daughter and family.
A resignation of independence in  many ways and ready, but not ready.
 Are we ever really ready for those things that force us from our comfort zone?
Although still in great health, the unanimous decision by the family  was made that at 83, living alone poses some concerns. 

I ponder  the dynamics in our relationship. How they seemed to have  changed over the years.
How her interest in my(our) lives had at first felt invasive... but then somehow caring and thoughtful.
We were not your  typical daughter/mother in law. We shared an unspoken bond and common similarities sprinkled with vast differences but we accepted  each other, and understood one another in ways we never verbalised.

She lived far enough away that we had independent lives. She lived close enough to us to be an integral part of our lives. 
Now I drive by in the evening and I don't see her  at the table doing word search.
 The house is dark, deserted and lonely. An abode filled with memories. 
Mourning the woman who grew old in body; but whose mind and spirit remained youthful, knowing happiness is homemade and comes through serving others.

                                                         

(one of the numerous quilts she stitched)

I remember a conversation recently with my family when we were eating dinner out at a restaurant. My children asked  if I could rewind time; which time, (in their lives) would I choose?
Hmm, I remember the sweet days of their childhood. Oh the simplicity, innocence and wonder...the problems and hurts that could be solved with a kiss and a hug.


"no" I could not go back there. It is the present that is beautiful...  the NOW that isn't finished.
 A  piece of art; to be appreciated in the collection of memories.

                                                ( I took these cuttings from her plant named baby tears...)     

                                                                

                    


Recollection brings out  beauty. In my mind I see her, my mother in law in the window waving.  Every morning she would watch for the school bus and wave to my children and whoever noticed her there. A steadfast and moving portrayal of life.
A wave, the stages and our days; then we move on to the next phase. 
Each one  brief and bittersweet. 

I pick up her mail that has not yet changed address. She loved mail. I guess when you live alone and your days are long and lonely, mail is that bright spot...that needed diversion. I start a pile to take to her when we visit. Something that will no longer be spontaneous, but a conscious choice and an event.

                                              

I sit here and think about change, and it's constant rhythm, the continuous surrender that must be embraced if we expect to live lives brimming with joy.
I know my mother in law will adjust to her new surroundings, I know eventually it will feel like home...
I know my heart will cease to have pangs at her absence.
I know we will sort her left over belongings, and look forward to new neighbours.


                                            

                                                           I'll treasure this recent birthday card...

                      Spring will bring robins and flowers will begin a new circle of life.

                               Though much is taken; much abides. 
                                                               (Tennyson)