Day 281. Thankfulness Challenge, Day 7.

I was crabby on this day.  Do you just have those days when you're irritable, and you don't even know exactly why?  It could be a thousand little things, just getting on your nerves.  Maybe a lack of sleep?  Bad hair day?  Nah... I don't really care about those so much anymore.  Either way, I was irritable. 

Without going into a long, drawn out story... the end of my day was much better than the beginning.  And my thing to be thankful for, I decided, was SIMPLICITY.

My husband works with this sweet lady who lives out on farmland in Illinois.  She asked if we could come out her way and have me do a senior photo session with her daughter.  What a delightful time we had.

It is no mystery that I am a city girl, wholeheartedly.  My mom grew up in North St. Louis.  My dad grew up in South St. Louis.  I grew up, right in between.  As an adult, I enjoy living within a 5 minute drive to the nearest grocery store.  I'm GLAD to know that my nearest neighbor is closer than a soybean field away!

But I am no stranger to a more "rustic" way of living.  My dad may have grown up in the city, but his roots were as country as you get.  :)  All of my growing up, we visited my grandpa in a tiny, rural town in Missouri.  I had a great uncle who lived on a farm, and we would be just elated to go visit and hang out with our cousins who actually owned their OWN horses.  Yes, this born-and-bred-city-girl has actually ridden a horse a time or two... on my own... but I was young, and I didn't really recognize a true meaning of fear at the time.

My husband grew up in a similar, rural town.  I've told the stories of taking my boys to the lake to skip rocks, or to their uncle's house to play out on all of their land (next door to soybean fields, I might add).  I suppose the thread will continue to weave its way through our family's history.

When I am reminded of such a way of life, I am always completely breathtaken by the beauty of it.  The young girl I had the session with, drove me around on her four-wheeler (which my husband thoroughly enjoyed chuckling at) and took me on a tour of their family farm.  My boys jumped around on hay bales to pass the time, and took walks with my husband and "Miss Stephanie" as she showed them fun things like COWS.  :)  After I finished the session, she brought us back to the house and FED us!  Oh, did she feed us!  :)  Mmmm... :)  Homemade blackberry cobbler.  Need I say more?

The experience was JUST what I needed... a reminder to step back and take joy in the simple things:  God's creation.  Little boys' laughter.  The sweet, adventurous spirit of a teenage girl.  :)  DIRT!  :)  ...even cows.  (Who doesn't enjoy a steak once in awhile???)  I am thankful for God's gentle reminders.