Good Food & Girl Talk!

What a blast those "farmgirl get-togethers" those are!!!! I didn't leave my friend Mary's house till almost 1 this morning. DH was somewhat bummed because by the time I got home that meant all I wanted to do was go to bed, IN pyjamas, without any nookie taking place first. *sigh* But, it was LOADS of fun. We all bring something edible to share, and sit around gabbing, and sharing, and talking, and crocheting.....

But, it was even MORE fun after the last of the ladies that I didn't go to school with, left. That left Mary, another former-classmate/friend Bonita, and myself sitting around talking & gabbing till into the wee hours of the morning. And I found myself FINALLY talking a bit about my spiritual path, what little I can really verbally nail it down to, at this point. I'm not comfortable talking about my path with many folks here in town, because I'm honestly just not ready for word to get back to my Dad that I don't consider myself a Christian, and haven't for several years. Mary was similarly worried that the fact that most (though not all) of the women at the get-together are Christian might upset the couple of us that aren't. Evidently one woman that I haven't met yet is a through&through Athiest, and Mary was afraid that this woman may stop coming to the get-togethers because she's not comfortable being around Christians, or even that things may get said at one of the get-togethers that hurt a lot of feelings & leave a lot of people not wanting to come. And truthfully, I can understand this concern of Mary's. Mary Jane Butters makes it very clear on her forum that a "farmgirl" isn't to be excluded or made to feel uncomfortable because she happens to be of a different spiritual path (or, without spiritual path at all). She points out that being a Farmgirl is inclusive of ANYBODY who feels the pull toward some of the "old ways" like community, and gardening/farming, handicrafting, and baking/cooking from scratch. And I think that's an entirely fantastic goal, to try to open our worlds up enough that we can share our similarities & work towards a great ag-based community in our own communities, WITHOUT letting our spiritual paths get in the way of our friendships. And while our spiritual path (or, our morals for those without spiritual path) should be a part of our lives, it shouldn't stop us from forming friendships & community with those who's moral/spiritual path is slightly different from our own. Even if our friendship or fellowship with this person must be kept to more stringent boundaries because of moral issues between 2 people that cannot be bridged, there should still be a willingness & ability to fellowship peacefully in subjects that aren't spiritually based. (Cooking, knitting, gardening, and raising livestock are all activities that can be done & appreciated without letting spiritual & moral issues get in the way.)

Anyway, It was a great time. April's get together will be at another "Farmgirl's" house: "Burleyville". *grin* I look forward to getting together with this group of ladies again. It's nice to have friends in town. I haven't had real friends here in town in a very, very long time. And I've NEVER had friends that I could really calmly talk about & discuss spiritual viewpoints with, and that I didn't hide from, from the get-go. I love being able to talk spiritual viewpoings with folks, when we can do it calmly & without attacking or shoving our own viewpoints down each other's throats. Whether or not you come away agreeing with everything the other folks have said, it's still possible to learn so much. And it's amazing how similar our paths are, when broken down to the nitty-gritty & the morals they impose upon our lives.

It's amazing & fantastic to see my Christian friends realize that my spiritual walk may not be based around the Biblical God, but it still directs me to do my best for the world & it's inhabitants (all of them!); be responsible for my actions; not be a jerk & a hypocrit; and just all around be a good person. It's funny because I hear so many, many people say that Christianity is not based in works. Admittedly it's not BASED in works. But the works of one's hands are a manifestation of the thoughts in one's mind & the feelings in one's heart. And that's the same whether you're a Christian, a Pagan, a Hindu, a Buddist, or an Athiest. And I think that when it comes down to it, no matter which word our spiritual compass is pointing at, our moral compasses SHOULD all be pointing firmly at "love your neighbour" and "make the world a better place when you leave it". That, really, is the basic.

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In other news, I still haven't gotten my voice back completely. I can talk properly, though my voice is a lot huskier & grittier than it was prior to this cold. But, I can't sing at all now. And I don't mean I can't carry a tune in a bucket, I mean that when I try to sing, raspy sounds are all that come out. On the drive home, I tried to sing along with one of my favorite (sappy, cheesy, girly) songs, and I just about wound up crying because I couldn't. It just wasn't there. I MISS singing!!!! It's been a month since I was last able to sing. I miss singing. And I hope this illness hasn't done permanent damage to my singing voice. I could handle having a raspier, grittier speaking voice, but not to completely do without a singing voice.

Have a Blessed Day, Tomorrow!