I love where I live.  Northeastern Pennsylvania is a truly beautiful place to live and work.  The people here are hard workers, dedicated to their communities and very accepting of outsiders, considering the reputation of "Yankees" being somewhat...snooty?  We definitely have the reputation of being rude, unfriendly and quick to judge.  I don't really find this to be the case, but I think that this is my opinion because I've lived in either New York or Pennsylvania all my life.  Living in a culture definitely makes you less sensitive to it's idiosyncrasies. 

The picture above is the field right next to our home.  Its a beautiful time of year and while my oldest suffers from "hayfever," watching the bright green John Deere "poop" out the big, round bales and then being present for the process to begin all over again really allows you to understand who the people of Pennsylvania are.

They are dedicated.  They are patient.  They are content.

It takes an awful lot of patience, dedication and contentedness to mow these fields three to four times a year in the blazing hot sun, then teach your children to not only do the job well, but love it and want to remain where they grew up. 

Depending on how you interpret the data, Pennsylvania is experiencing a slow growth.  I was reading my issue of Penn Lines magazine that comes to the house every month and Kathy Hackelman wrote a eye-opening article about the population of rural PA in contrast to the rest of the rural United States.  Hackelman has concluded that Pennsylvania is a snapshot of the United States as a whole; PA reflects the U.S.'s rural population ratio.

Cool fact:  There is a thirty-eight minute difference from when the sun rises on the eastern side of Pennsylvania compared to the western side.

I thought that was interesting!  Having lived on both sides of PA, I never noticed the difference.  I bet no one else has either.

This is a picure of our home here in rural northeast PA.  We have a chocolate labrador, a ranch home with a walk-out basement and a minivan in our driveway.  Does it get much more "American" than this?  Why yes, yes it does!  This is one of the truly amazing aspects of being an American.  There is no "one way" to be American.  We all hear the sterotypes of baseball and apple pie, but chop suey, gyros, and naan are just as "American."  We are diverse and I, for one, revel in that diversity.  Truly.  I mean, I hear people say that they love it that there are all different types of people in the U.S., but boy-oh-boy, when it comes to illegal aliens being taken care of by our tax dollars, phew, the real opinions begin to fly! 

Now, I'm not saying that the people here illegally shouldn't be dealt with, but how can we do it in a way that is kind and helpful?  Deporting them just so they turn around and come back might not be the most helpful thing either.  I don't know the enswer, but I do know that they are people.  Human beings that have souls and matter to God and therefore, must matter to me too.

I have so many many thoughts floating around in my head today.

Pintrest ideas, packing, laundry, what will I make for supper tonight, who will I vote for this November, selling this house and purchasing another...so many thoughts.

Anyway, on to packing and laundry because those are the two easiest today.  Have a great day and I'll be posting again soon, I'm sure.

 

Our children learn decorum at the WWII Monument in Washington, D.C.

Today is Memorial Day!  I love Memorial Day for many reasons.  Who doesn't love a good cookout, parade, promise of or the advent of Summer?  Of course, I am thankful for my freedom.   We all are!  Without freedom here in the United States, I would not be able to speak of God in the ways that I do.  I really have no frame of reference for accepting persecution.  Do you?  Have you ever been persecuted (and I mean truly "harassed or punished in a manner designed to injure, grieve, or afflict") or abandoned for the sake of the Gospel?  I have not.  This does exist in today's world.  In fact, Voice of the Maryrs is an organization dedicated to the persecuted followers of Jesus Christ around the world.

The organization exists so to raise awareness of the plight of the persecuted Church.  I am so thankful for organizations like this because they help believers take the actions necessary to help in the ways that are possible.  They connect Priviledge with Reality.

This Memorial Day, be sure to say thank you to the service men and women that cross your paths.  Say thank you because they are not only sacrificing time with their family and friends to serve our country, but they are laying their lives on the line so that we can remain FREE to observe the Bill of Rights and say the things we want to say, behave the way we see fit and interact with other people however we want.  They live for you to have an opportunity to experience freedom.

If, by chance, there is someone in your life that you know who has been persecuted for their religious beliefs, take a moment to pray, thank God for their heart and the courage to stand up for the Purpose of the Gospel.   Give God the glory for their life because they stood and allowed themselves to be used to our Ultimate Purpose: To Give God Glory!  May it ever be so with us.

"It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived." -- General George Patton 

Happy Memorial Day!

From the Beginning of the End

What does it mean to "begin at the beginning?"  Some things have no beginning and therefore, have no end.  Ahh, I would put it to you that there is a beginning to all things here in this world, bound by the Universe and therefore, bound by time.

Are there any among my readers who enjoy Science Fiction?  We are a family in love with SciFi.  We love Star Trek, Star Wars (which, really, is a Western set in Space), FireFly, and many many more movies which would take the rest of the page to list. 

(THEY ARE MAKING Ender's Game into a movie!?) 

I tell you this because there will most likely be many references to Science Fiction shows and movies within this blog.  Now, that is not all that I will offer you here; however, I feel advance warning is appropriate and necessary because here in our home, we are known to speak to one another in what we call, "Movie Language."  This means that we talk to one another using quotes from our favorite movies.  I have been known to look up a movie quote just to get a point across to my husband (whom you will meet later).  If I (and I mean "we") happen to be speaking two different languages one day and are both failing to connect, we break out the "Movie Language."  This usually lightens things up enough that we can laugh at ourselves and begin to understand what it is that we are trying to communicate.

Laughter is key in marriage and friendships.  Which, in essence, is what this blog will be about.  I had another name picked out for this place, (Leighf, Love and the Hot Pursuit) but "Ab Origine Ad Finem" is much more appropriate because it allows me to think openly about life, love and pursuing...well, whatever it is that I want. 

What is it that you want from life?  What is it that drives you to begin something?  Hobbies, relationships, the reading of books, the writing of books, certain tasks, and so on?  Each post of this blog will have a different flavor, a different theme.  It will simply be a reflection of myself and our family as we grow.  There will be quite a bit in here about God, because He is the Creator and I would be remiss if I did not give Him his place as the true "Beginning." 

And yes, there will be a video of me from time to time.  I am open to ideas and questions as well!  So ask away!

I am so excited to start. 

"We come to beginnings only at the end." William Throsby Bridges