Christmas Cheer

I hover on the edge of Christmas Joy with the house cleaned and made ready. The new heifer Biscuit lies next to Ferd the old bull waiting for breakfast hay. The sun shines on the far mountain tops this morning and I begin my Christmas Litany of joy and thanksgiving.
I am grateful for children and grandchildren who come home to the farm all year long, not just at Christmas. My mother’s presence at the farm has given my grandchildren the opportunity to know their great-grandmother, to hear her stories, to know her name and her person and I give thanks for family tradition embodied.
Other families have come to the farm and we will gather for Christmas Eve service in the new old high barn that Michael has been working so hard on. The Moravian Star hangs at the barn’s eve and the Christmas tree, decorated with Gary’s old multi-colored lights, shines in the distance like a stained glass window. Built in 1950, the old barn nearly collapsed but with the help of our talented friend Jim who loves old barns, it stands tall and proud once again, ready for a new life. The sight of the barn at the top of our hill is one of our picture postcard sights on the farm. I celebrate and give thanks for all who have worked long and hard to make it ready for Christmas.
My heart sings and my soul rejoices when I remember worship at Calvary Presbyterian last Sunday. After being snowed out the Sunday before, our community took twice as long to pass the peace. Miss Louise hugged me every time we passed each other as we circled the sanctuary. I love the old ladies in our church. They ground us and keep our backbones starched and in place. Ashley, a middle schooler, danced as LaJuana sang “Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming” from the balcony. The ladies choir sang even though we had only had two practices. We sounded good.
But the topper, the Magnificat for the morning was Alexis’ solo. Alexis and Diamond, cousins, caught me during the passing of the peace and asked if they could sing a song for me. During the sermon we went downstairs and I listened to this beautiful little African American girl sing a song she had written... Thank you Lord for standing by me. Her voice was clear and she sang beautifully. I took them upstairs and Alexis sang for the offertory with her cousin Diamond sitting on the step beside her. She sang it twice, small of voice but poised and happy. Next time she sings I will see to it that we have a mike for her. My heart bubbled over with joy.
I will continue to sing praises and give thanks this week as I dance my way to the manger. There is much to celebrate and even more to say grace over. Christmas Cheer to you all and may your hearts be made light with laughter. May our souls sing grace and thanksgiving to the One who came as one of us so that we might know God In Us. Great is thy faithfulness, oh God our father (and mother, Mary Lynn) the old hymn says. It is so...joy from sorrow, peace from discord, silence from clamor, healing from hurt and hope for bright tomorrows. Thanks be to God.

Biscuits and Gravy

There is a new girl on the farm...Biscuits and Gravy. She looks like Grandma’s biscuits smothered in sausage gravy, white with brown and black spots. Her eyes are rimmed with black eyeliner. She is a beauty and knows it.
The first time Gary brought her over to our cows, she found an open space in the fencing and nearly beat him back home. This time we locked her down in Dixie’s stall for three days to give her time to separate from her mama and her herd. Every day I fed and watered her, gave her treats and worked to gentle her. When she gets aggravated, she shakes her head like a bull and claims her space. I got too close for her comfort one morning and she rushed me only to meet my boot on her nose. We have come to a mutual understanding.
Last night I let her out of the stall. She came out full steam ahead and began eating the hay I had laid out. The pecking order began with Junie B moving to Biscuit’s pile of hay to claim it. Biscuit moved but not for long. I watched the wheels turn in her bovine mind and she came rushing back to her pile, swinging her head, pushing Junie B who is twice her size, away.
Dixie, the alpha horse, tried next and received the same treatment. Whatever Biscuit wants, Biscuit gets. There is a new leader of the pack and she is the smallest one of all. After filling her belly she ran the fence line while I walked behind watching. She kept looking for a break, a place to go through and when she didn’t find one, began to run and buck.
She will spend a week or so in the horse pasture learning the ropes and settling in. Then we will move her down to be with the other cows and watch the games begin there. I can’t wait to see how Tilly Crowned with Horns handles this little upstart.
Personhood in cows and people is a wondrous gift. We each come wrapped as a Christmas gift to the world full of our own unique selves. Some of us are spitfires like Biscuit and others of us are more like Ferdinand the Gentle Bull. The mystery of our presence in the world is echoed in the paradox of our uniqueness and our sameness. We are all alike and we are all different.
My birth and your birth were incarnations of a loving God who takes delight in our being. Jesus was a more complete reflection of this Love but we too can be God’s children on earth. It has taken me a lifetime to begin to know and love myself, to appreciate the gifts I have been given and to forgive myself for my failures. During this mysterious holy time of new beginnings, I pray for a Biscuit spirit to rise up in me so that I might follow where I am led by Love. There is too little time left to dilly dally. Today I will sing the old spiritual “Rise Up Children and Follow” then get my head swinging as I move on down the road towards Bethlehem.