Back home in Pennsylvania, I couldn't stop drinking in all the beauty and lushness of the countryside--
like a famished soul taking in great gulps of fresh water, or fresh air. Just gulps and gulps of scenes like this one, at my brother Elon's front door with this lovely hanging basket.
Bushes and trees and flowers galore along the road at his house, with a garden there with lettuce and dill already ready to pick, and a grape arbor alongside the clotheslines. (We won't mention the two huge vines of poison ivy that I almost stuck my face into!)
Honey suckle bush growing probably 15 or 20 feet high, like the lilacs about 20 feet tall, too.
This is the place where Elon's family was finally able to move after their home burned and they were living with Anita's parents temporarily.
At Fain's and Regina's place, there were these lovely yellow irises.
I'll backtrack a bit to the first night of our trip, when we got into my mom and dad's place in Missouri. I was very disappointed that it was so late, due to backed up traffic once in a heavy rainstorm and then at rush hour through Kansas City and Jefferson City.
But at least we got to see them! I shared some of the roses I'd been given at a baby shower we hosted two days earlier.
Rose and Timmy showing Grandpa and ma what they've been learning on their mandolin and guitar.
My mom is always so interested in the girls' knitting creations--like these socks Rosie is knitting.
I was glad to see that my mom and dad seemed to be doing fairly well. It seems that someone in our family has been able to stop in to see them several times recently. Ben and Dorcas's family drove in to spend Memorial Day with them, helping by mowing the whole yard, repairing some issues on Dad's vehicle, finishing roofing the woodshed.
I had thought my mom's hair had been so gray, but look at how much brown is still there even though she is 78 years old!
And now we're back to pictures in PA. Here is Rose with cousin Amaris's horse that just had a brand new colt a few days ago!
And it wasn't just beautiful flowers and trees and green and streams that actually have water and lush grass and Mennonite horses and buggies clip-clopping along,
it was also the beautiful people and the beautiful music. There is no end to beautiful music, and my music-starved soul just drank that in. Here my youngest sister Kezia, who had driven in from Illinois for a week, is accompanying Fain's Natasha for a prelude Sunday morning.
A special song that morning was sung by the ones from the church who had participated in the Lyrica Sacra concert, and this hymn arrangement was one they had sung down in Lancaster county. Tom Burkholder is directing from the side.
This concert series is performed by a conglomeration of conservative
folk who aren't into the idea that you can't use instruments or sing in
four-part harmony! They sing and play majestic and glorious music
arrangements!
Sunday afternoon the cousins sang and played their instruments together for a good long time.
I was so thankful for a chance for my children to get to sing and play together with other young people.
Elon joined in on his autoharp.
There was a hymn sing that evening at church, and the young people sang a song they had practiced that afternoon.
Ezra, Elon's oldest son, was to give the Bible study that evening as a college assignment from Penn View where he is attending.
Before he did that, he and the young men from the church sang an arrangement of "I Will Serve Thee Because I Love Thee."
Ezra sharing from I Corinthians 13, the love chapter.
At the end of service, Tom Burkholder directed the whole congregation in singing "The Hallelujah Chorus" which several of them had sung in a recent Lyrica Sacra concert. The rest of us got to sing along the best we could, and we had a lot of fun. I was so appreciative of the soprano voices around me, hitting notes I couldn't manage. I guess I'm doing better sticking with alto now. We had to stop a couple times and start over at a difficult place, but it was soooo fun singing with people who not only knew how to sing but could read notes and and AND were actually willing and wanted to do this! Willing to try something difficult, willing to start over, willing to laugh at ourselves, willing to do something hard and different for the glory of God!
After service we went to Fain's house for fellowship. Here comes Natasha with an armload of bedding! I don't know how many people ended up sleeping overnight at their place!
Fain and/or Samuel had popped a HUGE batch of popcorn, enough to fill three of these porcelain bowls they'd found at--you guessed it, yard sales. And don't forget to notice these gorgeous flowers that just grow in huge, wild batches along the road in the woods and fields.
Kezia's Elizabeth (age 7) and Joella's Laura found a spot at a tiny table to eat their popcorn!
Natasha helping feed Kezia's youngest boy, Josiah. Kezia has two girls and two boys now.
Monday, Memorial Day, was Penn View's commencement. Crystal and I went. It was so good to see our old friend Bro. Tim Cooley again, still academic dean as he was when I attended Penn View 30 years ago!
The principal of the academy, Brent Lenhart, was just a little boy 30 years ago, and by now he has married my sister-in-law Regina's niece, and is now principal of the school, handing out the diploma to the valedictorian, Regina Hoffman, granddaughter of old friends, Roy and Doris Hoffman, and daughter of Doug and Kim, whom we have known for years.
Crystal was eager to congratulate her former classmates who were graduating today. This young lady had been in an accident a couple months ago and her foot was crushed. So close to graduation, the school worked it out that she could keep studying by calling in to attend class over the phone or however, and even though she came down the aisle on crutches, she graduated! We clapped and cheered!
This was the hooding ceremony for Jeffrey McDowell, who graduated from the missionary nursing division. His mother is a nurse, and he is following her footsteps, spending time in a Honduran clinic for one place.
After visiting with friends and graduates after the commencement, I dropped Crystal at Elon's and hurried over to see my sister Joella's home. They just moved back to PA in December, having found this house available that they had rented several years ago.
The first unique sight to me was the quilt and pants in graduated sizes on the clothesline!
Little Jonathan wanted to show me their banty hen with her chicks in the old corn crib!
Fond memories of dear old corn cribs!
The boys told me they had a "pet pigeon." And here it is, hanging out with three ducks!
Ethan has six guinea hens which he said they are keeping to rid the place of snakes. One of the guineas had killed a black snake just a couple days earlier.
I loved these huge purple maples! There was a robin nest in one of them. Ohhh, memories of robins and maples! I miss them so!
Here is a scene of the place from down the road. I believe they help the landlord with taking care of the herd of cows.
Little Jonathan was my little shadow there, showing me all around the place, including upstairs to all the bedrooms and the attic!
Then he helped me mix raspberry lemonade from concentrates I'd brought for the Morley picnic, and I made a big fresh salsa. We made quite a mess, but never fear, we cleaned up after ourselves! It is so much more important to value, care about, and include little children in our activities than to tell them to go away so we can keep a nice clean counter.
Kids need lots of love and attention, and I just love watching how children beam and glow and open their hearts to you when you pay attention to them and go look at all the things they want to show you, and when you let them "help" you.
That salsa was so pretty in Joella's blue and white porcelain bowl.
One small sign that it was Memorial Day!
We sang a few patriotic songs before starting to eat.
Craig helps the young people try to play volleyball, which didn't go really great, so they ended up playing Capture the Flag.
Loved watching "Uncle" Fain down beside wee Josiah Jackman (Kezia's darling little boy) watching a rabbit and kitty over at the edge of the park.
Six of us Morleys were there that weekend (Anna, Elon, Fain, Gabriel, Joella and Kezia). That was so very special to me
Here several of us are playing volleyball with one of the friends who joined us that evening.
As usual, my brothers carried on, especially Fain who continually MISSED the ball in very obvious, crazy and clumsy ways, and kept growling, "THAT was embarrassing!"
Poor Craig! He is a good player, and so is Elizabeth, but playing with Morleys is hopeless.
I spent most of my time laughing so hard! I actually hit the ball several times, though.
Let me repeat--I actually hit the ball several times!!!!!!! This picture is possible proof??
"I am terrible at playing volleyball," I said, "But I am really good at having fun!"
Sooo--we had fun!
