1 Thessalonians 4:11-12   And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you; That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing.

The driveway climbing up to our house needs clearing. The first rains of autumn have fallen and with it, small branches, leaves, and abandoned nests, cluttering up the skinny road snaking through the evergreens and maples. I send my teenaged son out to do it. I hear him make his way down the hill, slowly blowing all of the debris back into the woods. Suddenly, I feel old. Like too old to do the job myself, like I’ve become one of those folks who need to call on the young’uns to do the physical labor now. When he returns, I tell him so. He reminds me I am–after all–about to become a grandmother, so it figures. Well, maybe it does.

I remember carrying him in my womb, and how at the end of the pregnancy I rode in the passenger seat of our low Honda Civic while my husband flew down the hilly gravel road. Back and forth, daily, for ultrasound stress tests to negotiate one more day to wait past our due date. Despite all of the rattling of the roads, that boy managed to stay right where he was for another eighteen days.

And that was the time I wrote my first blog post.
And now this is the time I write my last one.

It has long been time for me to work more quietly, perhaps obviously so as my efforts to continue here have been limp at best. My blog has become that yellowed taped up box in the corner of the attic; important enough to keep, but neglected enough to testify to its true importance in this season of my life. So I am hauling it out of the dark, brushing it off, blessing it for the companionship its given me over the years, and letting it go.

To do what? I’m not altogether sure I have anything in particular to do, other than what I’ve already been doing: spending time with Tom, raising children, homemaking, gardening, feeding my family and homeschooling. I am still insatiably curious: I’ve been writing poetry, art journaling, painting, horse riding, and weaving. I’m still studying my Bible, and taking a multitude of online classes. I even wrote a book (four years ago!) and maybe…maybe…someday it will get to market. Or not. All I know is that today, the sky cleared up enough for me to send the boy out to clear the road. I don’t borrow trouble from tomorrow.

I don’t know what happens technically from here. If I take the blog down, does the podcast disappear? Does it matter? I don’t know. All I know is that I just needed to write one more post with a decent goodbye attached instead of disappearing into “I wonder whatever happened to”.

If you’d like to stay in touch, you can follow me on Instagram; I’m currently there mostly for the creative outlet. If you’ve followed me long enough, you know how I dip into and out of projects; I’m not promising I’ll stay there forever or that I’ll never start another blog again.

Seasons come and seasons go. I just wanted to thank you all so very much for your kind readership over the years, and for encouraging me in the faith. I am still keeping my eyes on Jesus, and I pray that you, too, will find your peace and deepest joy in doing the same.

Many blessings,