31 Days of Green Acres - Day 5

It's a dark and stormy night in my little corner of the world.   Too bad I don't have anything really dramatic planned to share with you!  Ignoring the potential for drama, below are some insights into one of the practical exercises we participated in to assist us in our decision making.

You've probably encountered this before, but we took some time to identify all our assets.

Yes, we definitely had to consider financial assets, but we had more resources at our disposal than what was at hand in our bank account. Several times I've heard from one or some of you that you'd be so ready to make your dreams happen, but you feel constrained by your financial condition.  My hope is to remind you that making a vision happen requires more than money, and perhaps encourage you that you actually have more at your disposal than you realize.

And, before going any further, please do not ever let me come across as complaining about the dollars and cents of all this?  You'd message me wouldn't you to let me know my tone isn't appropriate?  I stand in awe at how there's always been just little more oil in the jar - money in the coffers - to keep the projects rolling.  We're not rolling in it, but there's been more than enough in this journey and we are abundantly blessed.

First, we home educate.  Although that is a substantial commitment it affords us some scheduling liberties.  We can, and sometimes do, educate all year round at a steady pace.  It's possible to take planned breaks from curriculum and school schedules for projects, field trips, and learning opportunities in addition to book work.  So, we had/have the freedom, (which we don't take lightly), to determine our own academic course in compliance with state authority.  What did this look like?  For many months several of us would do our academic work quite early in the day, make the drive from city to country, work on restoring the farmhouse, come home and get ready to do it all again the next day.

Second, we preserved Sunday as a day of rest.  No matter how busy the week got and how complicated a project might be, we had an established habit of spending time worshipping together, connecting as a family, and remaining separate from all that pulled us during the week.  This familiar practice was a lifeline since somewhere along the line I became a construction widow, the youngest of our children rarely saw their father, and Weekend Farmer Husband had to stand strong while by himself for long stretches of time.  Not only were we spiritually renewed at church by teaching of the Word and the fellowship of the saints, we always knew we would see one another and family and marital bonds would be restored with recreation and rest.

Third, we're handy.  And for the record, Weekend Farmer Husband is both handsome and handy. (Any Red Green fans out there?) This ability allowed us to provide much of the labor for our initial restoration and has continued to prove valuable as we seem to generate an unending number of projects for our to do list.

Next, we had and still have the support of our community.  Before we took the first steps of this plan, we met with friends we trust and respect, laid out our vision,  asked hard quesitons, solicited feedback, and asked for support.  Our friends have  prayed, worked, laughed, cleaned, and encouraged the whole way.  Now, almost in a sporting way, they regularly inquire what we plan to be up to next!

Although I can identify others, for now, the final key asset I'll share is Weekend Farmer Husband and I have a great deal of physical, emotional, and mental energy.  This makes us resilient, open to change, and we don't quickly give in to discouragement.  Problem solving is invigorating to us and we're not so invested in the partcularities of thefinal outcomes that we can't change course based on need or desire.

We sat around our dining table one summer evening and began to brainstorm and write down what we've been given and how our assets might be valuable in moving us to where we thought we should go.  I don't think I have those scraps of paper any more. I sort of wish I did.



31 Days of Green Acres - Day 1
31 Days of Green Acres - Day 2
31 Days of Green Acres - Day 3
31 Days of Green Acres - Day 4 (well, not really)

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