Flavors of Fall

Seasons!

Brrr! I'm posting from my screened porch this morning, where it's a chilly 59 degrees, and the breeze is making a roaring, rushing sound as it passes through the treetops. The grass is looking like the lawns in southern California, a mixture of greens and browns (of course, we don't water it here; God takes care of that) and the daily rain showers stopped a few weeks ago. During my twice-weekly drives to Seneca, there are an increasing number of fields that have been harvested, as the farmers "get their crops in" and begin preparing for winter Currently, the trees are just as leafy, although the leaves are beginning to turn yellow and red. The forests are still thick, hiding animals, creeks, ravines, and other mysteries in their depths. A friend told me that in the Winter, there are just bare trees everywhere, that winter here isn't a pretty season. However, I think it will be satisfying, as I often wonder what the fairytale forests are hiding And I'm sure that there will be the anticipation of all the new life that will come in the spring.

Learning about nearby towns

Recently, I found an excuse to drive into Honea Path, a nearby community. My go-to activity while driving is to take note of the names of the streets that branch off of the two-lane highways (see earlier posts for explanations of the quirky names). Here are two of the photos I took in Honea Path, of the historical downtown area, and of a house that I thought was particularly appealing. Here is a list of some of the street names that made me smile: Due West (which I later learned is also the name of a town), Nabors (well, goll-ee!), Tribble Road (was that a Star Trek or a Twilight Zone reference?), Higgins Garment, Henry Thomas Road (wasn't that the name of the boy from ET?), Transylvania, Butterick (perhaps a seamstress was the first resident), Lickville (yuck), Tripe (yuck again), Cannon Bottom, and Chucka Luck Drive. I have also driven past the entrance to Harris Psychiatric Hospital several times. It's away from the city, and buildings are not visible from the two-lane highway, obscured by the forest. From the Facebook group, "Life After Califoria," I learned to leave behind every unneccesary item that could, so I am slowly replacing things through Facebook Marketplace. This entails driving all over the local cities and towns, and I absolutely love it. Driving here is a feast for my eyes, drinking in all of the colors of trees, fields and waterways. My only regret is that I can't take pictures while I'm driving.

I love living on the lake!

This is what I'm talking about! When I drive anywhere near my house, this is how close I am to the lakes. I cannot get over how blessed I am to live here, and I hope that I ever take it for granted. Just as I hope that I will never get used to the blessing of being able to walk without pain (which I have not yet acomplished, but I'm hopeful that within the year, I will be back to walking easily), things that we do or see daily often cease to astonish us. Being abe to see these huge lakes every day, even if I can't swim in them daily, does my soul good.

New animal friends

At our little house in Anaheim, the neighborhood wildlife consisted of sparrows, pigeons, and the occasional seagull or opossum. When we moved to Orange, we added hawks, coyotes, and bats. Now, we have deer, muskrats, vultures, eagles... spiders, lizards...

And now, back to our regularly scheduled program...

The delights of a screened porch! This has very quickly become Meredith's and my favorite spot. There's a ceiling fan out there for the warmest days, although the screened porch is shady most of the day. It's a wonderful place to be when it's raining (although we haven't had and really good thunderstorms yet) and a peaceful place to watch the wildlife. My neighbor has told me that there's a group of 5 or 6 deer that frequent the woods around our little culdesac, and I've seen them numerous times.

The iPhone hasn't sent pictures to Google photos in a few weeks, so you'll need to be patient regarding decent pictures of the resident ruminants. Abigail and her friend Alana worked really hard at unloading the 8 x 8 pod that brought our stuff from the west coast, hauling box after box into the coolness of the air-conditioned house. My sister Judy and I worked in the house, unpacking and putting things away as fast as we could. That first week or so was fairly warm and humid, so we inflated the paddleboard and a couple of inner tubes.

All too soon, it was time for Alana to fly home, and Frances to arrive in SC to help Abigail move in to the dorm at Anderson University. My daughters shopped for the few essentials that Abigail hadn't yet acquired (she had met her roommate on AU's social media site, and had gone shopping with her prior to Frances' arrival) and I was so grateful for Frances' help on move-in day, as I was feeling quite under the weather. Fun fact: it is no longer legal to sell ipecac syrup in the United States. Frances and Abigail loaded my van with Ab's dorm room belongings and they drove to the rear entrance of Gaston Hall (are you singing in your head yet? "No one's quick as Gaston, no one's slick as Gaston, no one's neck's as incredibly thick as Gaston..." Oops! I stand corrected; the emphasis is on the FIRST syllable, GAS-ton.)

Everything had to be labeled with Abigail's name and room number, because she didn't get out of the car! A team of students (many of whom were the football players) emptied the car and took everything to Abigail's dorm room, while she and Frances drove the car to the athletic center parking lot and took the shuttle back to the dorm.

Her roommate's parents and older brother were there as well, and helped Abigail to get her bed "lofted," etc. Once the room was all arranged, my girls came home, and now that I was feeling better, I accompanied them back to campus for the "Archway Walk." This is the way that Anderson University commemorates the beginning and end of a student's time at AU. The incoming freshmen gather at an appointed location on campus, then they walk to the front of campus, entering through the arch that says "Anderson University." When they graduate, following the ceremony on the huge green lawn, the grads exit the campus by walking out through the same arch.

More clarification....

Been ruminating all day about the new name and my explanation. Please don't misunderstand me; I do not in any way mean to imply God's gifts are cheap! He paid the ultimate price, He died in my place, paid the penalty for my selfish, stupid choices so that I can spend eternity with Him. I'm simply saying that it's all in how you look at things. Looking at my life through the lens of scripture, staying focused on the blessings instead of the challenges, I am able to see the beauty and the glory and all of the many blessings He has given me. Each new day is a wonderful gift. This way of living may not be for everyone, and some people may even accuse me of being in denial about the not-so-fun parts of my life. But I would rather be Cleopatra (Queen of Denial) than dwell on things that I cannot change, and hey - I am SO glad that you've made the choice to check in on my goofy, silly, happy, wonderful life!