Or maybe they're green slippers!
All I know for sure is that we haven't found our farm home yet. Our yellow brick road has been lined with flying monkey farms.
And its been painful. Our hopes, plans, and even some of our dreams have been plucked out of our hearts like the straw from inside a scarecrow, leaving us to realize a few things. We've survived and what we have left - more patience and growing peace - are things no one can take away from us.
Over the past nearly six months we've made offers on five farms. Five attempts that failed for various reasons. After all that failure it's hard to be optimistic and its normal to feel just a little depressed. Especially after we DID make an offer on the farm I was sure we could get (the 'perfect' farm I mentioned in my last blog entry).
That offer was accepted and at a good price, too. But, the house miserably failed the home inspection. In fact, there were so many problems (despite its impeccable appearance) that the owners - who were stunned to hear about them - were too overwhelmed to even consider selling. They refused to agree to the repairs and took the farm off the market.
Thank goodness I only wrote the room dimensions down on plain paper and not in my new farm house decorating planner.
Then the farm across the street from the 'perfect' farm came down in price and looked pretty good, too. But those folks wanted $50,000 more for half the acreage and a good number of poorly maintained outbuildings - and they wouldn't go lower. It was a disappointment, but one we got over faster than the rest of our rejections.
And I never even measured those rooms.
Either I am becoming more patient and peaceful, or I'm a scarecrow wearing armor. I'm opting for the former. Mostly because I refuse to believe that the bad and difficult things that challenge us are meaningless. If they were then my whole life would be a waste and that is just not acceptable. All this practice farm-purchasing is creating something wonderful inside me. Inside both of us.
For one thing it is helping us meld what was his dream more firmly into what is becoming our dream. It is teaching us what we want and what we don't want in a farm and in our lives. We are growing wiser together.
Most likely we needed that.
This kind of move, from one type of life to another is going to be a challenge once it finally takes place. We're going to make mistakes and we're going to need the benefit of all the wisdom, patience and peace we can muster to make it work.
Maybe being impatient and overly anxious wasn't the best way to start this journey.
Maybe Someone bigger knew this better than we did.
Maybe we should be grateful for all the delays and rejections.
Maybe we don't have the 'perfect' farm, but maybe this is the 'perfect' reason at the perfect season to thank the One who is guiding us.
And, maybe it is time to learn to breathe again and let Him bring about His plan in His time.
Besides I was only wistfully wishing for ruby farm-bound slippers to whisk me away to the place where I'm supposed to put down roots - literally. Let's face it, we all know those don't come wide enough for my feet.
All of us here are wishing you and all yours a Merry Christmas. We hope the peace of God that passes all understanding will bless your home.
