Why Should He Care?

"O Lord, our Lord,

how majestic is your name in all the earth!

When I look at your heavens,

the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars,

which you have set in place,

what is man that you are mindful of him,

and the son of man that you care for him?"

~ Psalm 8:1, 3-4

In the whole scheme of eternal importance, there is very little that actually matters.  Very little.  In fact, Jesus told Mary, as recorded in Luke 10, that there was only one thing needful - that which Mary had chosen, Himself.  (L.10:42)  But, we serve a God who has exalted man to be a little lower than angels and has given him dominion over creation,  (Ps.8) and our God, our Father, is interested in the smallest details of our lives; for indeed He wrought us and made us who we are to be - right down to our DNA.  

So, why is it that I should marvel that He has returned to me things that don't matter in the eternal scheme of things, but do matter to my heart and soul?  After years of being horse-less, he brought back one of my horses that I'd sold 11 years ago - one of our family favorites, in fact. And he brought back our pony, right along with a beautiful cart and harness.  Just because.  Our Father loves his children, and gives them good gifts - blessings in many forms.  And it all comes back to what really matters, for His goodness to me causes praise to pour from my lips to the glory of His name.  "O Lord, our Lord,  how majestic is your name in all the earth!"

Patrick Turns One!

On August 31st, our dear baby Patrick turned one year old.  While some of us marveled at how an infant grows and prospers in one year's time, others just had fun at the party!

And what better way to party on a hot, sticky August afternoon than with wading pools, slip'n'slides, and trampolines?

Though Uncle Justin and Auntie K. have outgrown kiddie pools, they enjoyed themselves nevertheless.         Patrick is wowed by all the cool toys he was given!Elizabeth shows Patrick how to hold a football while Gilbert gives the xylophone a test drive.No, the cage is not for naughty children while the others get to eat, it is a miniature petting zoo with a bunny and a kitten.It's a little overwhelming when everyone gathers round to look at you and sing to you!However, it's easy to know how to handle the cake situation!            Happy birthday, dear Patrick; we love you!

Look What the Fog Brought In

"The fog comes

on little cat feet.

It sits looking

over harbor and city

on silent haunches

and then moves on."   ~ Carl Sandburg

Two mornings ago, we awoke to a dense fog.  All was quiet, white, and wet when I went outside to take care of the morning chores at the barn.  After taking Mira down to the front field, I turned to go retrieve Lance to bring him down, too and as usual, cast my eye on the dog runs to check on things.  But, this time there was a sight which caused me to look, and look again, and look a third time - not believing my own eyes!  There in the large run with two boarder dogs, was a tiny orange kitten, just walking about with the dogs!

Though there was no distress on the kitten's part, I ran in quickly to scoop him up and found him to be dirty, thin, and full of burrs.  The remaining blue in his eyes told me he was still quite young, and he was also rather weak.  I gave him a meal of canned cat food and milk and he ate heartily which greatly encouraged my concerns for his welfare.  

Our dogs were very interested in this new little creature, and Chloe even showed signs of wanting to protect him, but her great, huge size was a little dangerous for the tiny guy.  So, what to do with the baby? Spying Jack the rabbit's lawn pen, I wondered if Jack might be a comfort to this young kitten and if indeed Jack might even enjoy having a companion - so, we decided to go for it and put the kitten in with Jack.Sure enough, they took very well to each other, and the now-fed and tired kitten spent most of the afternoon sleeping in the grass cuddled next to his new friend.  Since then, while the kitten - now named "Carly" in honor of the poet - prefers the company of humans, Jack has proven to be an acceptable kitty-sitter and we are vastly enjoying watching their interactions.