Don’t let the peaceful chirping of birds on an early Vermont morning fool you. It has been nothing but chaos here at Olde Stone Well Farm. Filming for its next episode is delayed a bit more. I won’t go into details, but there have been major glitches and delays with the old roof. And to top it off, one of my chickens got hit by a car Saturday night. She is alive, but something happened to one of her feet and it is tucked in underneath her and she is hopping around. She is eating and drinking, though, and seems perky and alert. Lord, in your mercy. Once filming resumes of Olde Stone Well Farm, there will be plenty to share with you!!!
Okay, I’m being a bit dramatic here. But after waiting 14 years, the cheap metal roof that was on my 18th-century home is FINALLY going away.
Ever since I purchased “the oldest house in Rupert,” as the locals have always called it, I have wanted to replace the roof. It just wasn’t in keeping with the house’s pre-Revolutionary War history. Ideally, I wanted cedar shakes, but that was costly — and wasn’t very practical with our Vermont winters. I didn’t even dare to entertain a thatched roof. (Only joking!)
Sigh.
I looked into fake cedar shakes, but I wasn’t quite sure how they would hold up. I finally decided on a composite slate in a gray color. Fingers crossed that it will look as good as I am envisioning it to look. I did have to make one compromise. My husband who is a fan of standing seam metal roofs (I am trying hard to refrain how I feel about them…let’s just say, I am an 18th century purist, metal roofs did not exist then!), insisted that metal would be better suited for the low pitch of the porch roof. I have seen other homes in the area where slate and metal coexist nicely. And so, I gave in to the idea of metal on the porch roof. Admittedly, it does make sense as the snow can slide off nicely in the winter.
A drawing of the slate roof with standing seam metal on the porch. I am not thrilled, but I think my husband is right to worry about the weight of the snow on the porch roof.
As the workers began their work I was in shock to see that beneath the ugly cheap metal roof (can you tell that I really HATE that roof), are brown asphalt shingles that look like wooden shakes. I am drooling. Already, the house looks 100% better. Now I am rethinking my decision to go with a gray slate…perhaps I should have just gone with a brown shingle. Oh the decisions!
Whatever the outcome, I am just filled with joy that finally that ugly metal roof will be history, and my little home will once again exude with Colonial charm, not only on the inside, but now on the outside.
And this note is to alway say, the roof work has delayed a new episode of Olde Stone Well Farm. I am just too excited to focus on filming…and anyway, you wouldn’t be able to hear a word I say with all the banging going on — and barking. Fritz is not handling the ruckus very well.
Blessings!
The house is already looking more like it is from the 1700s! I’ve always disliked that metal roof!
Well, we didn’t have a total eclipse of the sun here at Olde Stone Well Farm, but at least the sun was out! It’s been a week of rain, sleet and heavy snow…so much so, that I found myself not wanting to do anything. I had no energy and was also feeling a tad bit overwhelmed as life just threw so much my way. In this season of Easter, I found myself like the disciples right after the resurrection, huddling in an upper room in fear and despair. The good news is that I also remembered no matter how hard we try, nothing can keep Jesus from reaching us and urging us on to new life. With some much needed sunshine, I began to find joy again and felt the little seed of hope starting to take root. I also got to work at starting my garden by planting seeds indoors for now. The ground is still too cold to work! Where are you finding signs of joy, new life, hope in your life? And remember, if you just happen to be struggling with finding joy, like I was, reach out and let me know. It is always good to remember that we are not alone and prayers are always there to be lifted up! Blessings to you all! One of the greatest joys is having you all join me at my 18th century home. Like, share, comment!
Friends, let me be the first to wish you all a blessed Easter! Christ the Lord is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!
That is my favorite way to usher in this season of new life and hope and resurrection. I come to you with a shorter video than usual as things are a bit chaotic at Olde Stone Well Farm. (The dog — and husband — are both acting up!)
But I wanted to spend time together on this special day and share with you the importance of adding more alleulias to our life — and why singing them everyday can indeed turn our sorrows to joys. I’ll also share with you a little tidbit on what is probably the most popular Easter hymn, “Christ the Lord is Risen Today” — written by Charles Wesley in the 18th century. (I keep saying John, his brother, in the video…my apologies. Did I mention things are a bit chaotic here today?)
So welcome to Easter at Olde Stone Well Farm. Let’s gather in the old kitchen, enjoy some colored eggs and lift our thanks to God for the promise of this new day.
Invite a friend to join us! There’s always room around the table! And let me know, how are you are greeting this Easter day!
These days leading up to Easter — Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday — can be powerful if we take time from preparing for our Sunday celebrations and remember to walk more slowly and be more mindful of what these days mean. They can shape us and give us new insights — especially as we recall the amazing love that was shown for us on the cross.
Yes, new life, new beginnings, second chances, whatever you want to call them, they can be ours all because of God’s love and Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross to save us.
As you might have already noticed, Holy Week is one of my most special times. I do step away from the modern world and try my best to carve out a more prayerful, quiet space. And this year, I invite you to join me as I slip on my kirtle (a dress inspired by the middle ages) and light a lamp popular in Colonial times that was inspired by ancient designs and make a German seven green soup that the faithful would eat on Maundy Thursday.
I also invite you to join me for a Tenebrae service. While a shortened version of one that would be held in a church, this service was introduced in the 7th century. Tenebrae is Latin for “shadows” and it is time to reflect on Jesus’ passion.
And so, welcome to Holy Week at the farm! Your time to get away from it all and step back in time with me to pray and ponder.
After watching, let me know what you enjoyed the most!
As we approach the holiest of days leading to Easter —Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday — I invite you to take time out from your Easter preparations and to experience some ancient Holy Week traditions from a German seven green soup to a service of Tenebrae (shadows). I also invite you to think about what insights, understandings — dare I say, revelations — came to you during your 40-day Lenten journey to Holy Week. Video will be airing March 28, 7 p.m. EST.
March is going out like a lion, roaring in Vermont with a snowstorm that left us with two feet of snow. What a way to head toward Easter! I prefer this time of year to be filled with spring flowers, not icicles. But this is the day the Lord has made, and I will find a way to rejoice in it. Since it is Palm Sunday, the start of Holy Week, I discovered a new tradition called a Palm Bouquet or Palm Stick. Popular in Germany, the bouquet featured seven natural materials (think of Jesus’ seven last words from the cross). The bouquets features material like boxwood and pussy willows. The faithful would bring them to the church on the Saturday before Palm Sunday to have the bouquets blessed. I took mine to Sofie’s Hill — and I close our time at the farm with a Palm Sunday blessing (watch till the end!). But as I trudged in the snow, I was reminded of how hard it is making a new path in it. And that got me thinking how hard it is sometimes to make a new path forward in our lives. And so, on this snowy start to Holy Week, I invite you to discover a new tradition with me and to really reach deep inside to find the strength to move forward in life — and not be afraid of doing the hard work of making a new path. So bundle up! It’s cold out there! Blessings!
Shepherding Lessons from the Shepherd Saint Himself — St. Patrick
Welcome my friends to a special edition of Olde Stone Well Farm! What’s the occasion? It’s St. Patrick’s Day! They say everyone is Irish on March 17.
This year, though, I found myself thinking about St. Patrick’s early life as a shepherd. I often forget about his humble start. But it was the very vocation of shepherding that enabled Patrick to hear God’s voice and, thus, hear God’s call in his life to serve and proclaim the good news of Christ.
Shepherding is a solitude job and it can be quite harsh. But it is in such wilderness that we can see and hear the Divine.
As a shepherd, I am sure Patrick found himself anointing many a sheep’s head, too. I’ll explain more about that act of pouring oil on a sheep and the powerful meaning of it has for us today.
I also invite you to join me in one of my favorite Lenten activities — making pretzels, which have so many meanings and legends attached to them. I also share with you how beaver — yes, beaver — was once a Lenten delicacy!
And so, welcome!!
Pull up a chair, pour some tea or coffee, and join me at the old farm table — where there is always room for you and your friends.
I’m curious to hear from you as to what shepherding can teach you in your walk of faith today?
And the burning question is this: Do you like corned beef and cabbage? (My husband dislikes this St. Patrick’s day dinner. So I will need a place to a takeout order for my celebration!)
Drop me a note. I love hearing from you. Blessings!
What a week I’ve had. I hope yours was better than mine!
First, thank you for the chicken soup recipes many of you sent to me when I was feeling under the weather. It really meant a lot to me, and I tried several of your delicious recipes. I am back now, feeling a bit better — just a wee bit congested still.
But while I was struggling with the sniffles, I had so much work still to do. Writing assignments were due, I was slated to guest preach at a midweek Lenten service and I was also a guest preacher at an adorable Vermont church where dogs are welcomed. It was so cute to see one little fur ball sitting in the pew.
As the week progressed, I began feeling better. Yes, your chicken soup helped, as did the warmth of the sun and signs of spring that I began to see all around.
Just as hope was truly blooming, I got a surprise — four inches of snow the other night. Ugh. I am so ready for spring. But I vowed not to let things beyond my control impact my mood. So I found a way to turn the snow day into a day of joy.
So come and join me as I share the many signs of hope and new life all around and how I even try to see that hope when things just don’t go the way I want them to!
Tell me about your week…and where you are seeing new life, hope and signs of spring where you are!
Time Doesn’t Heal Hurts, It Teaches You to Live With Them
It is great to be back. After a week away from the chatter of social media, I feel refreshed. But this time off was about more than just the need to unplug, it was a time to acknowledge an important anniversary and to honor the heaviness in my heart.
And I came to realize that time doesn’t heal the heart; rather, time teaches you how to live with the losses and how to keep moving forward.
My time of reflection also came at the start of the Lenten season — those 40 days that the faithful are invited to enter into the wilderness and walk with Jesus to the cross of Good Friday, where on the other side of death, waits new life. I couldn’t think of a better time of year to think about death and life, and everything in between.
So thank you my friends for patiently waiting for a new video. And thank you for being part of Olde Stone Well Farm!
How are you observing the season of Lent? What anniversaries make you move more slowly and make you remember a time gone by? I would love to hear from you.
accidental country pastor 