Lifelong Benefits

I have been so scattered and unfocused recently, to the point where it was causing me almost physical discomfort and stress. I was pretty sure that part of the reason was that I haven’t sewn much other than some hexies for about 10 days. I like to shop for fabric, but at a certain point, the joy of shopping for fabric morphs into frustration that I can’t make something with all this beautiful fabric I have acquired. Frustration and I are not friends.

After finally being able to sew for a bit yesterday, I did feel better, which rather confirmed my suspicions about what was going on. I also didn’t like that the stress was spilling over to my piano playing, which made me stress out about the concert scheduled for last evening. I gave myself a stern talking-to on the way to the church in town. And then the kids came in and started warming up their instruments, and I looked at all the parents sitting out in the pews and felt their excitement, and by the time we started the first song, it was clear that it was going to be a magical evening. For all the years that I have been playing, I am still amazed at the synergy that happens when a group of individuals comes together—even novice string players like these kids, who had only played together twice—to create music. Unexpected things happen and then other unexpected things happen. The director, a retired music teacher herself, even said to me afterward, with some amazement, “Did you notice how the kids realized they got ahead of you in that one spot and stopped and waited to come in again?”

It’s a cliché at this point, but truly, music and other creative pursuits confer so many positive, lifelong benefits. Even if those kids never pick up their instruments after high school, they will have learned discipline, teamwork, and the joy that comes with adding something beautiful to the world. I am grateful to all the music teachers I had over the years, and of course, to my parents for getting me to piano lessons and being forced to listen to the rousing strains of “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” every morning before breakfast. LOL.

Clara, the music teacher whose students performed last night, sent me a lovely e-mail and asked if the three of us—Clara, Anna (the retired music teacher) and I—could continue working together. We shall see what happens next. And I woke up this morning feeling like I could attack my day with my usual laser focus.

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Speaking of creative pursuits, I was delighted to discover that DD#2 has taken up cross-stitch. Both of my kids know how to knit, and DD#1 has her Cricut machine and a piano, but DD#2 didn’t seem to have any relaxing hobbies. She said she watched a couple of YouTube videos, bought some supplies, and just started stitching. I bought her a book of patterns while I was there and told her she could raid my embarrassingly-large stash of embroidery thread while she is home. (At some point, I will switch from hexies back to embroidery in the evenings.)

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I don’t have much homesteading news to report. The chickens were unhappy with the snow that we got last week, but we’ve been breaking temperature records this week and now it feels like spring out there. (The temperature was 60 degrees when I got to the church last night for the concert.) The pigs have filled out nicely. We still have three up for sale—either whole or in halves—for late December delivery. I am about to put together some fruit tree orders for next spring. I want to try a few more varieties of peaches in a better spot on the property. I found out, when I was in Cleveland, that the variety that my grandfather grew was called Hale Haven. I think they will grow here. A variety called Reliance is also supposed to be very cold hardy.

We need a picture, and this one seems appropriate. This is a beautiful cross-stitch piece made by my friend, Pat, that was on display in the foyer of our church.