Year-end Letter 2022

 The winds of change still blow through history's pages,

Each day reveals a world that's not the same.

Thrones and powers rise and fall.

Bondage reigns... then freedom calls,

But for every generation, Calvary still remains!

This song by Garment of Praise came to my mind as I thought over the past year.

So many things change. People. Events. Positions. Weather. But God! He remains a constant. His Word is a guide for our lives. So faithful. It always feels like a breath of fresh air when I sit down to read The Word! 

Thomas and I celebrated our 27th anniversary this year. We finally took a long-desired outing to celebrate. 

These gray-haired old folks are looked at a bit questioningly when there's a 3-year-old in tow. Yours? Or a grandchild? 

Thomas remains busy with all the hats he wears. The door business slowed down a bit in the month of December so some projects got done around home here. A water line and electric lines were buried out to the barn. A small shelter was added to the small barn where they milk the cow so that the cow and her hay can have a little place to be out of the weather. 

The big kitchen has been worked on some more. I'm looking forward to the day when it will be completed! A four-and-a-half-day power outage gave the guys some time to get some painting done. Thankfully a paintbrush needs no electricity. We're getting a room ready for Diana so she can move out of our room. It's high time!!

My life is filled with girls where it once was filled with boys. My sister Doris's four girls come on Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday weekly. Between lessons, food, laundry, cleaning, and all the 101 things a mom does, I keep ever busy. Kilmeny Stoltzfus helps me on Wednesday and Friday and that is a huge help! I couldn't do it alone, that's for sure. Gwen spent some time in TX this fall and then Maxie did. That lightened the load to have only 3 of them at a time. 

Stephen and MaryBeth are busy in their own home. He works for Hillside Structures, painting their buildings. He has little side gigs, one of which is roasting coffee. MaryBeth worked for The Bakery Barn for part of the year. She does well at keeping her home, ministering to others, and steadying her husband. The big news at their house is... a baby is on the way! 

Austin (23) is in his second year at Allegany Boy's Camp in MD. He is really not far away from us! He is able to come home on some of his off days. Or the guys from here will run up there for an evening of basketball with him. He was able to spend a little more time with us over Thanksgiving and Christmas. 

Matthew spent a lot of time this year studying and taking training to be a firefighter. He passed a number of tests to obtain his Firefighter One status. When they had the company supper this month, those who had answered 100 calls received a prize. He had just run his 100th call that morning. He recently purchased his first car. He turned 21 in November. It's hard to believe that the 3rd one is that age already. He is taking over part of the door business. 

Melvin (18) is a steady, dependable guy. He does the majority of the gardening and orchard work around here while still doing his part in the door business. He and Matthew work together as a team to install doors. Melvin also does a lot of woodworking and faithfully keeps us supplied with kombucha. He is Diana's favorite brother (although Matthew is a close second) and he will often care for her when Thomas and I need to leave. 

Christopher (17) is still a kind of floater around here. Sometimes he's here at home helping with the heavy work around here. Sometimes he's out on the job with Thomas and sometimes with his brothers. He is a writer and spends a lot of time working on his books. The last year or two have been a time of extreme physical growth for him. Now there are many giants moving around in our house.

 

Diana continues to grow in stature and knowledge. She has a unique life, living around adults. Of course, there are the few days she gets to spend with her cousins. She has learned a lot about sharing and playing nicely with other children. She and Meg are 3 months apart in age and are rivals-best friends-worst enemies. I recently started a kindergarten curriculum with her and she's just drinking up the learning. Reading a book to her is a sure way to win her heart. She uses quotes from books in her daily speech. And then, she's still just a 3-year-old and has temper tantrums and stubborn streaks. She also has a huge imagination as she plays with a whole family of dolls and teddys that she has named. I don't know where she gets the names but she remembers each of them by their strange names. Artema, Exa, Oxa and Pada, to name a few.

And so we're moving into a new year, which is really just one new day at a time. The beauty and light we are able to walk in, as we fill ourselves with light from The Word and stay connected to the Vine, are incomprehensible. How are we, as lowly worms of the dust, allowed to fellowship with the King?

Go with Jesus!