Monday

Driving up to Ohio I thought of the times we shared with Sean.

Working on mending fences. Chasing errant goats and cows. Weeding garden, shoveling manure, mulching corn, milking goats who were flamenco experts. We would sit around the table with coffee in the morning, planning our our day. Lunch would roll around and we would eat and discuss philosophy, movies and books.

Sean and my sister Terri saved Maggie's life one afternoon a few years ago, the afternoon I was in Charlottesville with Philip in the hospital and Maggie ran her arm through the glass in the front door. He was drenched in her blood as Terri and he clamped the arm together, waiting for the helicopter which would airlift our dear one to the hospital where they would operate and manage to save the hands that milk our goats and play the piano so sweetly.

Sean plays with our children, allowing them to chase him, climb on him, laugh with them. He humors them with exhibitions of his gymnastics skills.

All this because Sean wanted to spend some time working on the farm.

When he brought Julie into our life, we began to pray for them.

Sharing in their vows was a gift to me. Being able to witness such a precious moment in their life was a gift.

They are proof to me that young people are doing very well in this world today. Hope. They and others in our world, give me hope.

The bridesmaids' dresses were hand made and bought on Etsy. So were the groomsmen's bow ties. The flowers were from friends' gardens. The food was real. The music was real. I actually had meaningful conversations. Several of them.

Wow.

We love Sean and Julie. We bless them. We anticipate seeing their marriage flourish and bloom like a well-tended garden. I bet that garden will bear much fruit.

And speaking of gardens, I sure do hope our garden will bear fruit, but we certainly weren't able to plant anything today as it rained and rained and rained.

Not to worry. After the long drive, we were glad to have indoor chores to tend.

The drive was lovely. We took the long way home to enjoy driving along the Ohio River Valley scenic drive. It was worth the extra time. What a break after the interstate.

The green greeted our eyes this morning, green glowing through the rain. How could weeds grow so quickly in only two days??? At least all this rain will make the soil soft and it will be easier to tend to them in a couple of days.