November 15, 2012

  • The Beautiful, Terrible Days

    They were Tyler and Betsy, off on a hike to find new parents because theirs had died.

    She wore her princess dress with polka dot pajama pants underneath it and her “cozy brown mocassins”. (i.e:  big sister’s boots that are 4 sizes too big for her)  In Betsy’s “packpack” were six apple slices, salt & vinegar chips, a marker, and 2 coats for good measure.  Tyler said he had Bryant’s Bible and snacks in his.  He was carrying a little bear that he found in the woods.  They pretended that they lived in a town with white grass because there’s still snow out there but they wanted it to be summer.  And to settle the dilemma of leafless trees he decided that “a million people came and chopped off all the leaves”.

    They hiked for quite a while and I cleaned up the kitchen.  When I went to tidy the bathroom this is what I saw.  They’d been using bubble bath to wash the play dishes.  And a very dirty motorcycle. And other things. {Please do not turn me over to the decor police.  WHEN I start to redo this house, this bathroom will be where I start.}

     

    These are the beautiful, terrible days.  The days of bad smells that I can’t find the source of in the suburban and 8 people to have pressed and ready for a wedding.  The days of flu making its rounds and smashed skittles in the carseat.  The days of finding a little diary to God written by someone who’s six.  “Dear God,  Your so good But sumtims Life dosent seam so entresting” and “Dear God, i Love you.  Your so good your so loveing your so kind and you make life faer and you love us all so you should have a treet and I’m so triying to do a treet and I’m going to tel you wat is is on the nekst paje.”  Next page: “Dear God your so good so I’m going to tel you wat the soapris is.  Ok hear it is.  I’m going to tri to do the best I kan do.  I’m going to try to be nic to evrebode els in the world. Love, Natalia.”  These are the days of rushing off to piano lessons and brushing 3 sets of teeth before bed at night.  They are the days where I cook huge pots of food and it’s gone before I have time to sit and enjoy my own plateful.

    I want to hold these days tight. Sometimes I can’t wait till they end.  These are the terrible, beautiful days.

    **********************************************************************************************

    We just had a family wedding in southern Alberta.  It’s a 12 hour drive south for us.  Down through the First Nations reserve near Valleyview, on to the bleak landscape by Whitecourt, on south through Alberta’s capital Edmonton, down to Calgary’s rolling landscape with mountains in the distance, and on still farther to booming Lethbridge and then the flat, treeless farmland near the little town of Raymond.  My parents and a sister live there, and the rest of the Peachey siblings (minus Carol in Virginia–and Kevin in heaven) met there for a brief and noisy weekend.

    We stayed the nights with our friends the Maldaners since Mom & Dad’s house was too full.  I didn’t get any pictures of our stay with these friends, but here’s a picture of their beautiful livingroom that I stole from Mrs. Maldaner’s facebook page.  (Thanks, Kathy.)

     Their boys and ours stayed up late laughing and horsing around, shooting guns made out of pvc pipes with soft darts for bullets.  They skated and played hide and seek.  Kathy had fun crafts ready for the the girls to do.  Gingerbread men to decorate with glitter glue.  Puffy paint made out of shaving cream and white glue.  We discussed dress patterns, friendships, and fellowship dinner organization in the evenings and mornings we had together while the guys talked work and used Google maps on their I-phones and took care of rowdy children.

    Dan preached the wedding sermon, “Choose to Love” and Grandpa Peachey married the beaming couple.  There was a bag of chips for each wedding guest, which pleased Liesl to no end.  There was fresh salsa.  With cilantro!!  There were coffee bean and burlap decorations, and swirls of pretty girls in lime green dresses.

    The cousins aged 11-14 had a high time together. (below)

    The Peacheys got together to talk and eat before and after the wedding.  We sang Dad’s favorite songs together on Sunday evening.  Our niece Hannah sang a lovely descant on “Unto the Hills” and we tried unsuccessfully to get Linda to sing her “We Are Not Alone” solo.  Carefully we skirted around discussing the recent election when we were all together, in a very un-Peachey-like avoidance of controversial issues.

    Some dear elderly woman wanted a photo of Dad & Mom and their children at the wedding. Here we stand in order.  Excuse the poor photo.  My radically non-Menno brothers still wear white shirts to weddings.  Oh.  I guess David doesn’t. winky

    Dramatic Veronica entertained us and took pictures with whatever camera was available. Here she is below.

     

    The nephews played on Grandpa’s remote controlled recliner.

     

    We ate leftover rice and beans and recado chicken from the wedding meal. A few of us left Raymond with the stomach flu.  I slept nearly the whole way home and ate nothing.

    And my pictures to document the occasion are not very good.  But the memories are sweet.  I am back to baking cookies, making soup, doing laundry, and catching up with online friends. 

    ~Love, Luci

     

     

     

Comments (13)

  • “The beautiful, terrible days.”
    OH, how fitting for my life, as well!
    Your two little hikers are just darling.

  • Enjoyed the post . Yes, hold on to these days. All too soon they will slip away and you will be left with only memories.

    One of our favorite pretend games when I was young was orphans and my children did likewise. Aren’t we privileged indeed that our children only “play” that.

    Enjoyed the tidbits from the wedding. looks beautiful.

  • ((hugs))

    Someday there will only be the beautiful.

    Glad to know you and read your thoughts here on xanga, I can so relate to your thoughts on mothering.

    The wedding looks lovely.

    Hope you all feel better soon!

    Grace and Strength to you on this day~

  • Love your writing style. Yes, life is beautiful and terrible even at my age. I see my parents slipping away. Dad gone and Mom seeming to be going downhill in her mind, knowing that I probably have to say good by to her before too many years and maybe sooner. Yes, just like you said I want to hold and enjoy every minute!

  • This is so great! I can identify with so much.First off, those letters to God are so adorable, please please tuck them away somewhere for safekeeping. Second, those two youngest children…sweet and creative. Mine mostly just wrestle.
    Not talking about the election–this is true, with thanksgiving and Christmas coming up, I’m kind of nervous about that myself!
    AND I have a radically non-menno brother, and everytime he is in a Mennonite crowd he wears a long sleeved white button-up shirt.  I don’t know, being on the safe side, I guess?
    Glad to hear you had a good trip.

  • I too can relate with your mothering thoughts.
    Such a beautiful post! 

    The wedding looks lovely. I’m sure it was so nice to see everyone!

    Have I ever told you how much I like your name? I do. I would love to have a Lucy/Luci one day. It’s a name I’ve always loved but never used.
    I just need a little girl to name now!!! 

    Happy Friday! :)

  • Finally a few minutes to peruse xanga again after my long withdrawal and oh, how delightful it was to read this!  I forgot just how much I love the way you play with words … shaping paragraphs with so much description and emotion that I find myself smiling and nodding then groaning.  It’s so much normal life.  And yes, these ARE the terrible, beautiful days.  

    That journal is PRECIOUS!  And I love, love when kids play creatively!

  • Loved the post, happy for your good times, sorry about the sick ones! Hope you are all better again! 

  • i hear ya luci. they are both beautiful and terrible. :) i’m agreeing with michelle ^^^ too. you have such a knack with writing.

    your trip, wedding and family togetherness sounded wonderful. you and kathy are lucky ducks. i’d love to see you both! how fun that you all could enjoy an overnighter. that pic is gorgeous.

    and your kids. as always. so darling and clever and funny. that whole non-menno brother thing with andrea and you has me laughing too!

    hope that sickness is behind you…happy it’s almost sunday day!

  • but. wait. aren’t you The Preacher’s Wife too? does that make saturday nights getting ready and sunday mornings extra crazy?! :)

  • love tjhat journal….and the beautiful, terrible days…amen to that one, too.

  • Hold those beautiful, terrible moments tight. Ahhh yes. I think Natalia is a sweetheart. I would redo your bathroom for you if I could get up there! You live SO FAR AWAY! I love the soft greens on the table at the wedding. I don’t miss finding Skittles in the car seat but my, oh my, I do miss the little guy who left them there. My Ryan and Brianne are in Texas. I am going bonkers. Keep writing, please!

  • Hi would you mind stating which blog platform you’re working with?

    I’m planning to start my own blog soon but I’m having a difficult
    time choosing between BlogEngine/Wordpress/B2evolution and Drupal.
    The reason I ask is because your design and style seems different then most blogs
    and I’m looking for something completely unique. P.S Apologies for being off-topic but I had to ask!

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