It's Coming

The seasons are changing more rapidly everyday now. The temperatures have been steadily getting colder, the trees are beginning to show some of their fall color, and the animals are on the move.

When the season changes, we see more and more dead animals on the road ~ which is common in all places. The animals sense the coming of winter and are moving to where they will hunker down. Some animals gather food to last them through the lean times, and animals like the bear will gorge themselves and gain enough weight so they can literally live off their fat while the sleep the winter away.

Last night when I was taking Bear out for his last run, I heard the oddest noise up on the mountain behind the cabin. Bear automatically picked up on it and started this deep growlie-bark thing that he does. I tapped on the door to get Honey's attention and he came out onto the porch with us, (after he grabbed the gun). We heard it again a couple of times. It sounded like it was on the move. With the dense 100 acre forest up on the mountain, there was no chance of seeing what made the noise. Honey insists it was a bear, possibly calling a cub. After 8 years here, that was a new experience for me. Anyway, Honey covered us while Bear (dog) and I slid down off the porch for him to do his doggie business. The dog and I then tried to see which one of us was going to scramble back up onto the porch first. I use a cane ... so I won.

I was reading this morning that we have a frost advisory for tonight. My first thought was 'Great! Now that the bees have finally warmed up enough to do their job, and I finally have tomatoes & squash in the garden, now it's going to freeze.' I say this every year, and every year the threat of frost will tease me into a frinzy and I will inevitably pull all the tomatoes to ripen in the house and we'll get a few days of warm beautiful weather. This has been an ongoing battle. Since I have sections of gardens all over the property, covering the plants could prove to be a bit challenging. But then ... we have a king-size bed. I wonder if Honey would be willing to donate the sheets for a worthy cause? They wouldn't cover everything, but then again ...

I have a love - hate relationship with my gardens each year. I keep telling myself that I could save myself so much grief and backaches by just running to the store. But, every chance I get ... I'm at it again. It's not just that the food tastes better, or that it's healthier than the produce in the store that was picked green; I think the main attraction for me is that I love the smell of fresh turned soil, and I am amazed at God's creation when I see a tiny seed grow to a beautiful plant that was designed to provide food/life. In Genesis 1:11 the Scriptures talk of the miracle of the seed ~ the creation of the genetic code, saying: "And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so." To me it is so amazing to watch the Scripture come to life year after year.

I hear people talk about how there is no God. Nothing can be further from the truth. All I have to do is plant a seed and watch God's Word come to life. To me, that's His promise that He will provide and sustain us.

May the Lord bless you.