Peace...and Quiet

Hello Friend -

I'm still here...still living in my small cabin on ten acres, waiting for winter to set in. 

In the meantime, I have the chickadees landing on my fingers when I call to them, trusting me for their treats. 

Life is simple - my "Berean Bush Living". 

I'll check in more soon, Lord willing, and fill you in on the stories that are piling up.

Until then, be blessed.

Sherry

 

Simply Sled Dogs

This past week, with August upon us, I shuffled around some dog equipment to get ready for Fall Training.  While hauling an armload of old harnesses to wash up to sell, I hoped none of the remaining six dogs would notice as I tip-toed past the dog yard.  Anyone who has had a sled dog, or a dog for that matter, knows how just a “jingle” of a leash will send a dog into a frenzy of excitement.  It’s that way with sled dogs.  Even the sight of a harness will stir them into action. 

I, too, get excited this time of year, especially when a full moon approaches.  (Hello to my full-moon musher friend Shannon…J) 

It is nearly 9 years ago that Iditarod/Yukon Quest “Mega” Champion Lance Mackey (from the incredible Mackey family of mushers) was here for a full-moon weekend, giving his testimony about all things dog.  His presence still lingers, and I hope someday it would be possible for him to return.  Lord willing.  {Lance is truly one of a kind, as is his record in both the Iditarod and Yukon Quest.}

Once I sorted through the maze of harnesses, I ended up with working harnesses for four.  (Two of our dogs are going on 16 years of age - their pulling days past.)  I took the semi-clean harnesses out back to my cabin in the woods and hung them by the front door, under the protection of the porch.  There…  My cabin was complete.  My hickory rocking chair sat in the opposite corner, across from the harnesses that brought plenty of memories.  Inside the cabin is the bunk I now sleep on - the same bunk Lance Mackey slept on when he visited for 3 nights.  Some nights I lay in the darkness and hear my sled dog Skunk let out a sigh of contentment from her comfy dog bed near the front door.  I wonder if her dreams are like my dreams…of the incredible life of sled dogs and folks like Lance Mackey, who fill our hearts with an amazement and awe of a lifestyle like no other.  Once you have experienced it, it’s hard to let go…but you still have the memories.

Memories like this…

Waking at 5, I beat the rooster’s demands.  I attempt to shake the hold of a good night’s sleep, as I scheme a plan to stay warm.  After deciding there is little I can do from my vantage point, I leave the comfort of warm flannel sheets and heavy comforters.  Scooting off the end of the bed, I take one step to begin my early morning decent down the sturdy cabin ladder.  Knowing each rung results in a five degree temperature dip, I grit my teeth and make a hasty departure from the loft. 

Once in the heart of our small cabin, I scramble to throw on my morning clothes.  I hold each article of clothing next to the open door of the wood stove, hoping the smoldering embers will provide some heat to my chilly wardrobe.  Again, I grit my teeth as I decide this process is getting me nowhere and I should just get dressed, sans fanfare.  Layer, layer, layer, cotton kills, cotton kills, cotton kills runs through my head as I hastily dress for the cold winter morning. 

After fidgeting with the woodstove, I’ve managed to create a good fire.  Two fat and aged lab-mix dogs are happy with the results as they settle closer to the woodstove and uncurl.  Not being a coffee drinker, I have to rely on rote skills to get me started in my sequence of chores.  Breakfast will wait.  The rule in this house is…animals eat first.  I grab my headlamp from the hook by the cabin door, fit it over my fur hat and begin to venture out into the dark snowy morning. 

I stop to fill two five-gallon water buckets at the spigot on the cabin porch.  It’s a relief to hear water surge up through the pipe.  My city-turned-country 15 year-old cat greets me by raising her head from her porch bed. 

Once outside, I’m amazed at the snow received the night before.  My warm bunny boots are silent, but clumsy, walking on the fresh powder.  The only sound is the small plastic red sled, floating behind me in a serpentine fashion as I glide over the wind-sculptured snow, carrying two buckets of sloshing water.  The quiet is interrupted by the first howl of greeting as I exit the woods and approach the dog yard in the clearing. 

The dogs knew I was coming, before I even put my foot on the last rung of the cabin ladder.  Astro, our blue-eyed Alaskan “gate keeper” can peer the 100’ from his sentry by the dog yard gate.  He sees through the naked deciduous trees and into our main cabin window.  Once he sees light and movement in the cabin, he announces my arrival to the others.  {We put Astro by the front gate so he could overcome his shyness.  It worked.} 

Now the dogs can hardly contain their exuberance as I fight with snow to gain entry into the front gate, knowing the snow would be too deep at the feed room door.  Once inside, I can scan the 30 dogs in the dog yard, and make a light beam contact with each pair of eyes.  10, 20, 29…where’s the 30^th dog?  Oh yes…one pair of eyes fail to beam back.  Our current blind dog, Buddy Jr.  However I can still see his excitement of being “shined upon” nonetheless.  (We have 14 more dogs…they are up in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, running the trails, with Russ riding the runners - training for possible future races.)

TO BE CONTINUED: 

Side Bar:  So many things have changed.  The two “cabin dogs” (Satch and Hootch) have long sinced passed.  Satch at 18 and Hootch nearly that.

The cabin kitty also. 

And on a brighter note…I now drink coffee – started late in life.  Wish I had started sooner….  I wish a lot of things.  But the memories linger...

Until next time, should the Lord tarry -

Sherry

 

My Daily Gift

 

It’s still early morning as I sit on my little cabin porch, enjoying my Amish-made hickory rocker.  Thinking back, it’s been 25 years or so since I first hauled this rocker from mid-Michigan to northern Michigan.  It has served me well over the years with comfort and memories.  (It bears the chew marks from my Border Collie pup, years past.).  But I digress…

I’ve been up for hours soaking in, and studying the Word of God.  John 1:1…”In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”  I fell asleep last night doing so, and began once again upon awakening.  I feel like I’m working on a Master’s Thesis.  And in a way, I am!  About the Divine Master, my Lord and Savior.  Actually, when I attended college, right after high school and then later on, I studied hard.  (Unlike high school…).  I even made the President’s list for a perfect grade with 12+ credits per semester.  In addition, I was asked, and joined, Phi Theta Kappa (a smarty girl’s honor club).  But that study was NOTHING compared to this.  I’m studying as if my life depended on it.  And it does! 

A friend of mine wrote these words: 

“The grace of God, and the leading of the Holy Spirit will always direct our lives to full obedience of the established principles of God’s word.  This is the true freedom in Christ.  Any other direction is tragedy indeed.”

So far, my Berean Bush Living is working out as planned.  A beautiful setting for God’s creatures and creation – and to study His precepts.  As I write this (by hand, later typed for your retrieval) my morning visitor lets me know it is breakfast time.  A chipmunk waits for his morning snack.  I started putting cereal, or walnuts on one of my logs on the wood pile.  Now it has become a ritual.  (I adore “chippy’s”.)

This morning a couple hours into my study I needed to stretch my legs.  Upon stepping off the porch I thought about retrieving my side arm.  I thought twice.  Naw…I’m just going to the clearing – no need.  I can sprint back to the cabin if necessary.  (Oh how our minds trick us…me sprint?? J)  So I headed out to the clearing, surrounded by nearly neck high green ferns.  I scan the vast area, looking for any sign of deer.  (One time, myself and my dear “cattle dog” Zip came into that same clearing and saw a buck’s antlered head “floating” on the ferns.  At least that is what it looked like.  The deformed antlers on one side added to the floating “creepy factor”!)  Today I only saw a cloudy, rainy sky to accompany the cold northern Michigan weather.  As I was about ready to return to the cabin, I saw to the east a large animal swiftly emerge from near the base of the ferns, cross the lane,  and enter the woods.  I had to blink twice.  I t looked to be the size of a wolverine, but the large (and I mean large) white stripe gave it away.  I stepped into the woods for a better look and watched as it headed in the direction of my deer blind area.  This summer, several skunks have found their way into a live trap, so it is time to get it reset.  (Skunks are notorious for devouring our baby bunnies.) 

Barely a day goes by when God doesn’t share one of His wonderful gifts with me.  Wildlife, or sign of such.  Raw beauty abounds in my wooded abode.  The nightly dance of the firefly brings awe.  Who can deny thy creator?  Not I…

I was getting to the point of asking God for a daily gift and I had to stop myself.  (Something along the lines of…”God…would you please send a deer through so I can see its beauty?”)  But He does it anyway!!  He knows how much it pleases me.  I can almost imagine His smile (we are told we are made in the likeness of Him) when my heart beats faster upon seeing a deer or smelling a possible bear while walking at the cabin at dusk.  All are gifts.  From Him.  Thank you Father.

But my greatest gift of all is His Word to me.  To YOU.  It’s contained in His God-inspired Word.  Dive in.  Read your Bible.  Start where you wish.  I don’t follow a routine, I go where I feel I need to that day.  I use King James Version (KJV) only.  I do not use a study Bible (one that has notes written on the page next to God’s Word, by people hired for their opinion.)  They are not God-inspired.  They are someone who needed a writing gig.  {Very dangerous to lean on a study Bible.}  Remember the serpent in the Garden…ssssssssssssssss…”Ye shall not surely die…SSSssssssss”

Your Bible is a gift – open it.  Read it.  Live it.  Some people say it is Basic Instruction Before Leaving Earth.  So true.  And if you desire information on how to order a nice, but not expensive, KJV Bible, contact me.   I can assist. 

I hope you enjoy your gifts today!  However small. 

I’ll check in soon, should the Lord tarry…

Sherry

P.S.  When reading the Bible…keep your ears and eyes open to His still small voice.  So that means…No TV, NO phone beeping interruptions, NO radio, NO distractions.  Only you…and GOD.  Blessings to you!