Anniversary

Six years ago today I gleefully moved from the yurt to the home John had built for us. The plumbers were worried about the threat of a hard frost. We needed to move in to keep the pipes from freezing. The walls were mostly naked drywall. The clapboards were not on--just typar. The floor was plywood. BUT, the toilet, bath, and shower worked. There was a BIG cook stove, and a little propane heater. There were rooms--even if the only one with a door was the bathroom.

Today I have oak flooring, a yodel heating stove, kitchen cabinets, and a door on my bedroom. Also some of the house has clapboards, and some of it is even painted!

Mostly I remember, from 6 years ago, waking up in a warm room. WARM! The upstairs of my well insulated house stays warm all night even if the fire goes out downstairs. Tears welled up in my eyes that morning as I enjoyed the comfort of slightly more modern life.

I resolve many times to not take it for granted. The I fail, and do take it for granted. But the running water, bathroom, and heat (or rather, insulation) are all such powerful gifts. My life was made less stressful in many ways by moving in. In other ways the stress was increased. With a water heater comes, eventually, a broken water heater. The stock pot on a wood stove never broke. With plumbing comes frozen pipes. The hand pump on the spring was thawed with the tea kettle every morning. I compromise, and give up some labor in exchange for ease and maybe a bit more worry. I'm still playing a balancing act between modern ease and good old fashioned dependability.

So I'll keep my computer AND my wood stove. My meat and egg ducks, AND my Yukon GMC. It's not either/or--but both/and. This is the cornerstone of my faith in Jesus. Suffering, and joy. Sin and redemption. Death and resurrection. Both. And.
With my faith I have good old fashioned dependability, and the ease and contentment that comes from knowing I am loved and valued.

John building this house for me is another example of how very loved and valued I am. Thank-you John. Thank-you Jesus.