Places in the Heart, the Heart in Places

Today I am grateful for safe travels, wonderful weather, and precious time with loved ones this weekend. 

My husband Darcy and I visited my family in NE Iowa. I sure appreciated the siblings, in-laws, nieces, and others we got to visit with. We were outside a lot, and keenly aware of how the COVID pandemic has changed things.  

I did a porch visit with my mom too, and it was good to be near her. I can't speak for her, but I felt peace sitting there with her, plastic and screen and all. It seemed to me that she was having a peaceful day too. That is what I pray for when I pray for Mom--her peace and comfort. 

The weather and the scenery were spectacular! I love the farm in the fall. I love the rolling hills of home year-round, but especially now. Here is a picture I captured on Saturday morning: 

This was a new view for me, with both shed doors open and the colorful hillside in the distance. This place is special in my heart, and this new perspective helped me feel that in different ways. The tractor pictured is a John Deere 4020.  No longer in working order, it carries a lot of history. 

It is nearly as old as I am, and we got it new or near-new. I can still picture my dad driving this across the fields. It is the tractor my brother Artie was driving in August of 2010 when he had an accident that left him with a concussion and some other minor injuries. It could have been so much worse.

And it is the tractor that my son Sam took a special liking to from his first visits to the farm. Artie taught him to drive it. Sam did a 4-H project about it. This tractor has a special place in my heart and in my son's heart. 

The view through the wide-open shed doors was one I embraced that morning. The farm is a place in my heart, leaving many heartprints over the years.