Lockdown April 2020
By now most of us have been ‘sheltered in’ for more than a couple weeks and it sounds as if we are going to stay here for some more time.
Is it hard? For some it’s driving them crazy, and for others it’s just another day in paradise. If you live in rural America and are able to walk outside and listen to the birds chirping, watch the sun rise and maybe, in the distance, hear a vehicle driving down the highway.
Yes, we live in such a place. Back in the timber, and on any given day we can see turkeys, deer, hawks, raccoons, opossums, bald eagles soaring above and once in a while, a lone tractor drives down our gravel road.
Maybe, all of this time, we have been prepared for such a time, to be more isolated from the world. Maybe it was a choice we made a long time ago or just recently. No matter the timing, we are here and truly understand the values of living a more simplistic style of life.
Many gardens were not just a past time or hobby, but rather a source. Cutting wood was not only for exercise, but to gather an additional heat source for the family. They say if you have 5 acres of timber, that you should be able to heat home for four people for the year with just the dead trees that our on it.
The availability of wildlife on your land, the most natural food source, that has been provided by our Lord, to utilize for the sustenance of your family. It’s getting that time, when we enter the woods in search of two of the spring’s offerings. The morel mushroom treasure hunt and our designated spring turkey season. We also have fresh wild onions, that normally come up in certain areas, as well as wild asparagus. So just in your little slice of heaven there are many offerings to help you enjoy the sheltered quarantined situation.
At the end of this pandemic, I promise we will be a better nation under God. We are hopeful that for those who have had everything handed to them, that they got a trophy no matter what they did, win lose of just participated, never had to work or learn and/or appreciate the values of not having, that this may be, at the end of a day, a good thing to experience.
Our hearts and souls go out to all those who are battling on the front lines, giving of themselves and families. All those who already are in the positive cycle of this bad virus, and those who will be soon!
This is not laughing matter and if we abide by those who know more than all of us, listen to the experts and follow the rules we will overcome! We will prosper and become a stronger Nation at the end of this tunnel. God bless you and your families, the first responders and all our unselfish medical personnel who are on the front line. May God watch over you and your families and bless you in ways no one could ever imagine.