Neighbors and Friends

One of the nice things of being a homesteader is being able to 'visit' with friends.  It seems to me, that when I lived in the city, that I did not even know my neighbor's name, much less where they worked. 

I remember when my husband and I moved to the country how our neighbors would just stop by and leave "welcome gifts".  Often, when we arrived home from work, there would be a note on our front door with a package of food on the steps.  The note always said how they were disappointed that they missed us and how they hoped that we would meet soon.  And often we did meet them soon!

Then there was the fact that we had no mailbox.  So our neighbor behind us stuck a 2 x 1 in the ground that was about five feet tall.  He cut a 'slit' in the wood and placed a note in the slit.  That became our 'mailbox' for about a year!

I remember coming home from work one day to find that another neighbor had pulled a complete fence line for us!  That was over 20 years ago and that fence still stands today!  I often think of him...he moved a couple of states away...and I wonder how he and his wife are doing.  Does he know that we still remember him fondly and smile every time we think of him?

The pace in the country is slower.  It is nice.  It is nice to be able to 'give' back.  Last year when a friend was giving birth to her fifth child, I was called to watch the other four children.  The call came at 5:00 am.  I met her husband for the first time around noon when he came home.  It was neat because neither of us cared that we 'looked' less than presentable.  What was important at 5:00 am was the fact that I arrived to their home safely and they made it to the hospital safely too.  The fog was BAD that morning!

And today...my son and I visited with another friend.  She is due to have a baby any day now.  My son made the baby a beautiful blanket that he wove on his loom.  I'll post pictures of it next week.  Trust me, it is BEAUTIFUL!  It was very nice to be able to go and just visit with her today.  We made bread and just talked.  Her life will be changing soon.  She will have diapers to change, toys to pick up and spit up to clean up.  But today, we just sat back and talked and relaxed.  It's just country to slow down.  And I'm thankful that I make that opportunity to slow down...and smell the roses....