Early Mornings, Long Days, Late Nights

RISE AND SHINE!!

Life in the hills typically passes a little slower. It's country life meets mountain life with a little farm and backwoods thrown in. There are cotton fields, hay fields and cows; a creek, big rocks, and fishing holes. It's a wonderful place to live. We have deer that come right up to the house and really don't move when you open the door to see them.

The part of this life that makes things difficult is the amount of driving it takes to go anywhere. And I know there are people that live in the midwest and further west states that have much longer commutes. But for someone who lives in what should be a much more densely populated area, driving an hour just get to work is still quite a drive.

This is the story for my wife and I. We each live an hour from where we work. The interesting thing is that we live an hour in opposite directions. When we leave out in the morning she goes east and I head west. It maybe wouldn't be so bad if it was just the two of us. It get interesting when you throw our kids in the mix. It adds about 30 minutes to my drive in the morning and my wife's in the afternoon. This can make for a very long day. Coupled with only getting to see children as they rise, albeit very sleepy, in the morning and now, after daylight savings time has ended, when it is very dark outside can make for some very frustrating parenting. This kind of schedule also does not allow for much community involvement. I am part of the local volunteer fire department. The downside is due to my schedule I can't attend any meetings and have not been able to respond to some calls because of how far I am away.

Don't get me wrong. My wife and I love where we work. The two places just happen to be two hours apart with our home in between.

The drive itself can be very interesting. There are always some very entertaining, sometimes frustrating, and even dangerous circumstances that you find yourself in. This picture for instance. I was run off the road by a log truck after I topped a blind hill on a very small country road.

There area a lot gravel trucks, slow cars, and even more log trucks that I have to negotiate each day.

My wife has more city traffic than I do. She had a wreck a while back which caused a lot of damage to our vehicle. She was ok, that was the important part. She does have one of the most unnerving thing she has to cross every day is a bridge that has been reduced to one lane of traffic each way and is lined with concrete barricades.

One of my favorite hindrances in trying to go anywhere from our home is farm equipment. I am not a farmer but I have learned just about every piece of equipment there is, when it's used and what it's used for.

All of these things are a part of everyday life. It's what we do everyday. We have learned to adapt to all of the things that could possibly get in our way or take even more time away from our family. It can be trying at times when nothing that you do seems to work.

This is our solace: Philippians 4:13 - I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. God will give you more than you can handle. We have learned that the hard way. The only way you can get through is to be completely dependent on Him.

Thanks for reading!!