Peace On Earth

The Story Behind is taken from this link.


"I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day"



by Tom Stewart

December 20, 2001



One of America's best known poets, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882), contributed to the wealth of carols sung each Christmas season, when he composed the words to "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" on December 25th 1864. The carol was originally a poem, "Christmas Bells," containing seven stanzas. Two stanzas were omitted, which contained references to the American Civil War, thus giving us the carol in its present form. The poem gave birth to the carol, "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day," and the remaining five stanzas were slightly rearranged in 1872 by John Baptiste Calkin (1827-1905), who also gave us the memorable tune. When Longfellow penned the words to his poem, America was still months away from Lee's surrender to Grant at Appomattox Court House on April 9th 1865; and, his poem reflected the prior years of the war's despair, while ending with a confident hope of triumphant peace



As with any composition that touches the heart of the hearer, "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" flowed from the experience of Longfellow-- involving the tragic death of his wife Fanny and the crippling injury of his son Charles from war wounds. Henry married Frances Appleton on July 13th 1843, and they settled down in the historic Craigie House overlooking the Charles River in Cambridge, Massachusetts. They were blessed with the birth of their first child, Charles, on June 9th 1844, and eventually, the Longfellow household numbered five children-- Charles, Ernest, Alice, Edith, and Allegra. Alice, the Longfellows' third child and first daughter, was delivered, while her mother was under the anesthetic influence of ether-- the first in North America.



Tragedy struck both the nation and the Longfellow family in 1861. Confederate Gen. Pierre G. T. Beauregard fired the opening salvos of the American Civil War on April 12th, and Fanny Longfellow was fatally burned in an accident in the library of Craigie House on July 10th. The day before the accident, Fanny Longfellow recorded in her journal: "We are all sighing for the good sea breeze instead of this stifling land one filled with dust. Poor Allegra is very droopy with heat, and Edie has to get her hair in a net to free her neck from the weight." After trimming some of seven year old Edith's beautiful curls, Fanny decided to preserve the clippings in sealing wax. Melting a bar of sealing wax with a candle, a few drops fell unnoticed upon her dress. The longed for sea breeze gusted through the window, igniting the light material of Fanny's dress-- immediately wrapping her in flames. In her attempt to protect Edith and Allegra, she ran to Henry's study in the next room, where Henry frantically attempted to extinguish the flames with a nearby, but undersized throw rug. Failing to stop the fire with the rug, he tried to smother the flames by throwing his arms around Frances-- severely burning his face, arms, and hands. Fanny Longfellow died the next morning. Too ill from his burns and grief, Henry did not attend her funeral. (Incidentally, the trademark full beard of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow arose from his inability to shave after this tragedy.)



The first Christmas after Fanny's death, Longfellow wrote, "How inexpressibly sad are all holidays." A year after the incident, he wrote, "I can make no record of these days. Better leave them wrapped in silence. Perhaps someday God will give me peace." Longfellow's journal entry for December 25th 1862 reads: "'A merry Christmas' say the children, but that is no more for me." Almost a year later, Longfellow received word that his oldest son Charles, a lieutenant in the Army of the Potomac, had been severely wounded with a bullet passing under his shoulder blades and taking off one of the spinal processes. The Christmas of 1863 was silent in Longfellow's journal. Finally, on Christmas Day of 1864, he wrote the words of the poem, "Christmas Bells." The reelection of Abraham Lincoln or the possible end of the terrible war may have been the occasion for the poem. Lt. Charles Longfellow did not die that Christmas, but lived. So, contrary to popular belief, the occasion of writing that much loved Christmas carol was not due to Charles' death.



Longfellow's Christmas bells loudly proclaimed, "God is not dead." Even more, the bells announced, "Nor doth He sleep." God's Truth, Power, and Justice are affirmed, when Longfellow wrote: "The wrong shall fail, the right prevail." The message that the Living God is a God of Peace is proclaimed in the close of the carol: "Of peace on Earth, good will to men."



Christmas Bells"

(The original poem, complete with all seven stanzas)



"I heard the bells on Christmas Day

Their old familiar carols play,

And wild and sweet

The words repeat

Of peace on earth, good-will to men!



And thought how, as the day had come,

The belfries of all Christendom

Had rolled along

The unbroken song

Of peace on earth, good-will to men!



Till, ringing, singing on its way,

The world revolved from night to day,

A voice, a chime

A chant sublime

Of peace on earth, good-will to men!



Then from each black accursed mouth

The cannon thundered in the South,

And with the sound

The carols drowned

Of peace on earth, good-will to men!



It was as if an earthquake rent

The hearth-stones of a continent,

And made forlorn

The households born

Of peace on earth, good-will to men!



And in despair I bowed my head;

"There is no peace on earth," I said;

"For hate is strong,

And mocks the song

Of peace on earth, good-will to men!"



Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:

"God is not dead; nor doth he sleep!

The Wrong shall fail,

The Right prevail,

With peace on earth, good-will to men!"


And here are the words to the Casting Crowns Version:

I heard the bells on Christmas day


Their old familiar carols play

And mild and sweet their songs repeat

Of peace on earth good will to men



And the bells are ringing

Like a choir they're singing

In my heart I hear them

Peace on earth, good will to men





And in despair I bowed my head

There is no peace on earth I said

For hate is strong and mocks the song

Of peace on earth, good will to men



But the bells are ringing

Like a choir singing

Does anybody hear them?

Peace on earth, good will to men



Then rang the bells more loud and deep

God is not dead, nor doth He sleep

The wrong shall fail, the right prevail

With peace on earth, good will to men



Then ringing singing on its way



The world revolved from night to day

A voice, a chime, a chant sublime

Of peace on earth, good will to men



And the bells they're ringing

Like a choir they're singing

And with our hearts we'll hear them

Peace on earth, good will to men



Do you hear the bells they're ringing?

The life the angels singing

Open up your heart and hear them

Peace on earth, good will to men



Peace on earth, Peace on earth

Peace on earth, Good will to men

Another Simple Homemade Gift Idea

We have a couple of neighbors we like to give simple, homemade gifts to during the holidays.  Along with one of our calendars, I put together a little stocking of canned goodies.  I made these stockings and had them on hand for just such an occasion!

The first thing I did was put a small jar of peach jam in the toe of the stocking.

 Next a quart jar of apple sauce went right in and fit perfectly!

Simple, homemade, local an from the heart

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from our home to yours.  May you know the love of Christ in your heart not only during the Christmas season, but all year long. 

Thank you for your friendship, your love, and your support over this past year. 

Luke 2 (The Message)

The Birth of Jesus

About that time Caesar Augustus ordered a census to be taken throughout the Empire. This was the first census when Quirinius was governor of Syria. Everyone had to travel to his own ancestral hometown to be accounted for. So Joseph went from the Galilean town of Nazareth up to Bethlehem in Judah, David's town, for the census. As a descendant of David, he had to go there. He went with Mary, his fiancée, who was pregnant.

While they were there, the time came for her to give birth. She gave birth to a son, her firstborn. She wrapped him in a blanket and laid him in a manger, because there was no room in the hostel.

There were sheepherders camping in the neighborhood. They had set night watches over their sheep. Suddenly, God's angel stood among them and God's glory blazed around them. They were terrified. The angel said, "Don't be afraid. I'm here to announce a great and joyful event that is meant for everybody, worldwide: A Savior has just been born in David's town, a Savior who is Messiah and Master. This is what you're to look for: a baby wrapped in a blanket and lying in a manger."

At once the angel was joined by a huge angelic choir singing God's praises:


Glory to God in the heavenly heights,

Peace to all men and women on earth who please him.

As the angel choir withdrew into heaven, the sheepherders talked it over. "Let's get over to Bethlehem as fast as we can and see for ourselves what God has revealed to us." They left, running, and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. Seeing was believing. They told everyone they met what the angels had said about this child. All who heard the sheepherders were impressed.

Mary kept all these things to herself, holding them dear, deep within herself. The sheepherders returned and let loose, glorifying and praising God for everything they had heard and seen. It turned out exactly the way they'd been told!



(Photo courtesy of Wikepedia)

Wordless Wednesday

Quick, I need a gift!

Mike called me and said he was on his way to the house to pick up something to take to a bereaved family.  I didn't have anything baked and wondered what to do.  I grabbed a basket out of the yard sale/donation pile in the basement,  Then, I ran to the sewing room and grabbed a piece of material and put it in the bottom of the basket.  The next stop was to the "cellar" where I picked up some of the canned goods that I had made this summer.  While it isn't the fanciest gift in the world, there is something comforting about home canned food and the gift took me less than five minutes to put together.

PS  I have since ironed my table cloth!  ;-)

Miscellaneous Monday ~ Nobody's Perfect

Have you been striving hard to make changes in your diet and to eat more healthy food?  As you struggle along making good choices, do you sometimes make a bad choice?  Have you ever had someone point out to you your faults and be quick to tell you what you are NOT doing right?  Do you eat healthy, real food for the most part but sometimes slip and eat a piece of homemade pie that has been cooked with refined sugar and/or  processed flour?  Do you sometimes read the blogs of other "foodies" and something they say makes you feel like you just could never measure up, so why even try?

I think we can all relate to the questions above.  The truth is, there are folks "out there" who make us feel intimidated or "belittled" by their apparant perfection.  Some of these folks even like to "lord over us" and insist how evil we are because we are not as organic as they are, or because we sometimes don't eat "real" food, or because we just don't have our act together as they do. 

I hope I don't ever come across that way in this blog, on my facebook page, or in person.  I love to try to help others by sharing things that I have learned, but I hope that never comes across as being proud, arrogant, or pretending that I have all the answers.  I think specifically about my choice to not eat factory farmed meat.  I do share that with you all here because it is important to me.  However, for the record, I want my readers to know that I consider this a personal choice and I do not expect everyone else to be as burdened about this issue as I am.  I also do not condemn or judge those folks who do not follow the same guidelines in choosing the meat that they eat.  However, I do post from time to time on this subject because I know that there are folks who just are not aware of where their meat comes from and rather than make uninformed choices, I would like to see folks make informed choices.

I have been trying to formulate a blog on this subject for some time now and just was not able to completely get it together.  To my rescue, The Nourished Life: Real Tradition Food and Natural Living wrote a post that says more eloquently what I have wanted to say. 

I quote from their post:

I’ve been noticing some disturbing comments in the online world of real food. They don’t occur often, but I’ve seen a few of them recently, and I have to say it doesn’t sit right with me. Here’s an example of one comment I ran across:












"In my opinion, you have to be all or nothing about natural health."










This kind of comment will generally make someone feel immediately defensive or utterly discouraged. In my opinion, this way of thinking really gets in the way of making progress in the world of real food and natural living. The moment we start pushing people with this kind of dogma is the moment we alienate ourselves from anyone who would have considered listening to us.






Once you get into the all-or-nothing mentality, you lose perspective and start trying to achieve perfection. This kind of thinking will trap you in one of two ways: either you’ll become an ego-maniac who fiercely denies the possibility of having flaws or being wrong, or you’ll become incredibly discouraged and just give up altogether. Frankly, neither of these outcomes is a good thing. So the only solution is to throw the all-or-nothing mentality right out the window!






Being healthy is not all or nothing. Life is not all or nothing. Nobody’s that perfect. Nobody can actually do it all. And that’s perfectly fine. We don’t need to do it all, we just need to do all we can - whatever that means at any given moment.






This blog is about bridging the gap between real food and real people. And real people mess up. A lot. Some days we’ll feel like super heroes that can conquer any obstacle that besets us. Other days we might feel like wallowing in a well of self-pity (and a carton of ice cream if we’re really feeling down). The point is you are going to mess up sometimes. You’re going to eat that brownie when you’re trying to go sugar free. You’re going to miss that morning jog. You’re going to go to bed late and miss out on some much-needed sleep. It’s going to happen.






My point is not that we should be cynical pessimists or give up on trying, but that we should embrace the fact that nobody - not us or anyone else - is perfect. This adage pretty much sums it up:






"It’s not how often you fall down, but how quickly you get back up."






So don’t sit around beating yourself up about every time you fall down - just hop back up and try again. That’s how all successful people do it. Successful people aren't extraordinarily flawless--they get where they want to go because they just keep trying no matter how many times they get it wrong.






You can find this article here. 

You might also like to follow The Nourished Life on Facebook.

Joshua's Well

Although there was a time when I wrote here on this blog of my son's death and the subsequent feelings of pain and grief that I feel from losing him,  I made the choice to make public my grief blog and write there instead of combining such personal feelings here with my farm blog.  I felt that this would give me more freedom to express myself  in both blogs and that it would help folks not feel uncomfortable about visiting the farm blog.  At this time, I am going to digress from these self imposed rules and post here about the memorial that we are trying to raise to honor my son's memory.  This memorial will be a tremendous undertaking and will only happen in it's entirety if a number of people get involved.  If you read the following information and you feel the need to run in the opposite direction because you don't want to have anything to do with it, have no fear.  I am aware that most folks will not be able to help nor would they have any reason if they did not know Joshua personally.  Do not feel pressured.  Just consider that you are being presented with an opportunity to help and if you do not wish to help, then no one will ever be the wiser.  Unless you wish to let me know that you have contributed, I will never know who did and who did not because the donations will be anonymous to the family. 

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

I received a telephone call from Josh and Alissa's paternal grandmother this week. We talked for a few minutes and then she began to share with me what was on her heart. As she began to share, the tears began to flow down my face. For over two years now, since Josh's death, I have searched my heart for a cause that would be a lasting tribute in memory of Josh. I have donated to various charitable organizations including Heifer International and also SHIP (Safe Harbor International Philippines) a non-profit, residential care facility for abandoned, abused, neglected and orphaned children in Baguio City, Philippines that was founded and is maintained by my good friends John and Kim Piet. While I continue to support S.H.I.P. with my donations, I have been praying about something that we could do that would specifically bear Josh's name and be a lasting tribute to his memory. Josh's grandmother provided me with exactly the project for which I have been searching.




Dick and Kay Hall (Josh and Alissa's grandparents) went on a trip this past year to Guatemala where among other things, they spent time in the poverty stricken villages as well as in the orphanages. They were working hand and hand with an organization called Cause Life. In these villages, there is a serious lack of clean water, which is a basic necessity of life. Dick and Kay were so moved by their experiences in Guatemala that when they came home, they were touched to try to raise money for a well for a village and to have that well dedicated in memory of Joshua. In fact, the well will be named Joshua's well. I can't think of a more beautiful tribute to my precious son than to know that adults and children alike that otherwise would not have access to clean water, would be able to have life giving water from Joshua's Well.



The following news release was taken from Cause Life's Web Page and references the trip that Dick and Kay took to Guatemala:



I DO THIS FOR LOVE



We just returned from Guatemala where we took a passionate group of people for a week. They came from California, Virginia, North Carolina, Washington, and so many other places. Some were pastors, businessmen and women, politicians, and everyday people. The youngest was 9 and the oldest struggled to walk. Each of their stories was different, but every one of them shared the same desire . . . to make an eternal difference in the life of another.



Through the causelife project, they caught the vision that giving clean water is the key to providing life. I can’t tell you how excited I was that we were dedicating 5 new wells! Each well was made possible through a person, just like you, who saw a need and acted.



These wells are in villages where there has only been dirty, contaminated water. Infant mortality is 50 percent and higher in these places because of water born diseases. The conditions are deplorable and miserable. The only sound that fills the air is the sound of babies crying out from hunger and thirst.



But now these villages are experiencing a transformation. When these wells are turned on kids start laughing and playing in the water. Mothers begin filling buckets. The whole mood of the village instantly changes. It is the change that comes from hope replacing despair.



Hope of Life in Llano Verde, Guatemala has an incredible staff of dedicated people. They all come from the local villages. One of them said this week, “I don’t need things. Why am I going to have things when these children . . . they have nothing. How can I buy things when I see them die everyday? I don’t do this for money . . . I do this for love.”



These wells in Guatemala, and other parts of the world, are not a testimony to money. They are a testimony of compassion motivated to action! They are a testimony to love.



Cause Life FAQ





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



The following is information taken from Cause Life's web page:





Clean water is essential for life.But more than 1 billion people in the world lack access to clean water. This causes over 2 million unsafe drinking water deaths every year, and most are children.



Every day, 6,000 children die from water-related illnesses such as diarrhea, malaria, typhoid, cholera, worms, and parasites. With each sip the number of deaths grow. This contaminated water is the only water they have ever known. And for some, it will be the only water they ever have.



The lack of clean drinking water in developing countries is the starting place of a thousand miseries. It exacerbates malnutrition, sickness, infant mortality, poverty, and illiteracy.



Their greatest need is clean water.





WATER CHANGES CHILDREN



Children’s lives become a reflection of the water they drink. When the water is contaminated, every area of their lives becomes affected. Contaminated water brings diseases from waterborne parasites and bacteria. Typhoid, dysentery, malaria, and cholera create sickness and death.



Children cannot go to school because their parents need them to fetch water. Walking for water is the most common chore that keeps children busy during the day, preventing them from attending school. Even if they have time, the high number of illnesses stops many from going to school.



This lack of education continues the cycle of poverty found in developing countries. Short-term solutions such as trucking in water or food are just that, short term. These quick fixes absolutely save lives, but they do not create self-sustainability. Instead, they create dependence without progress.



The root problem will always be dirty water. It is a life characterized by sickness, poverty, illiteracy, and early death. But when dirty water is replaced with clean water, everything changes.



High mortality rates drop because babies no longer suffer from parasites and diarrhea. Children are healthy enough to attend school and they have the time without long walks to a water source. Some may eventually attend a university where they will receive a higher education, bringing hope to their villages and communities



There is more food from gardens and irrigated land. Livestock is healthier and provides better meat. Families eat what they need and can sell what is left at the market.



Productivity increases, poverty decreases, and children’s lives are transformed.



WATER CHANGES HEALTH



"Don’t drink the water!"



The only times we hear those words are in travel warnings to countries in Latin America, Asia, and Africa. But, children living in those countries drink the water every day and they are dying from it.



A single sip of water is all it takes to be infected. A single drop of water can contain over one billion bacterial organisms. Diarrhea, malaria, typhoid, cholera, worms and parasites, and trachoma just to name a few.



All the pills in all the bottles in the world won’t help a child who drinks dirty water every day.



It is often said that the best way to treat an illness is to make sure you don’t get it in the first place. Although it almost seems too simple, the best medicine really is prevention.



Prevention can be as simple as a cup of clean water.



WATER CHANGES HUNGER







You see a starving child. You think: Food.



Yes, they need food, but what they need first is clean water. Life-giving nutrients from food cannot be absorbed because of the different diseases and parasites brought about by the contaminated water they are drinking.



In Guatemala, 44 percent of children suffer from chronic malnutrition. But it is the lack of clean water that is the main factor for this high number. It is estimated that every year 860,000 child deaths from malnutrition worldwide could be prevented by providing clean water.



Over 840 million people worldwide suffer from malnutrition. At least 799 million of those live in developing countries and 153 million are young children.



Our first thought will probably always be that we need to provide them with more food. Ending hunger will bring transformation, but providing food is not enough.



We must start with clean water. We can work on alleviating hunger through providing water.



WATER CHANGES EDUCATION



Each year in Africa, 40 billion hours are spent just on fetching water.



In sub-Saharan Africa and many other areas around the world, children must walk an average of four miles each way, every day, just to provide water for their families. This takes hours.



The consequences are tragic. Children have no time for school.



Even if they had time, the water they drink keeps them too sick to attend school.



Globally, children lose 443 million school days each year because of waterborne illnesses. And every year, 400 million children become infected with worms, which severely limits their learning potential.



But when children have access to clean water, school enrollment increases and education improves, further reducing poverty.

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



The need is there and I have joined with Dick and Kay to try to raise money to dig this well for the people in Guatemala who need clean water so desperately. In doing so, I will be able to help provide a lasting memorial to my son not only through the well that bears his name, but also through each child that is given the chance of life by simply providing them with clean water.



Dick and Kay hope to travel back to Guatemala when the well is dedicated. I am hoping that Alissa will be able to make that trip as well. I am even praying, that by some miracle I would be able to find someone to take care of our animals so that Mike and I could also make that trip.



If you would like to help by donating to Joshua's Well, you can do so by sending a tax deductible donation to:



World Help

PO Box 510

Forest, VA 24502



Be sure to mark your gift as a memorial for Joshua Hall and to go towards the drilling of Joshua's Well.



If you would like to donate and prefer to do so online, you can go to causelife.org and send in your donation in this manner. Once again, be sure to mark it for the Joshua Hall memorial fund for Joshua's Well.



For those who are unable or don't feel a desire to donate, we would still appreciate your passing this information on to others who might be interested. Even if you can't send a gift, you can pray, and that would mean the world to us.



I think it is very fitting that we should do something for others in memory of my son who was always giving unselfishly of himself to help those he felt were in need.



Peace,



Tammy

Scrumptious Saturday ~ Marinated Mozzarella

I found the following recipe for marinated mozzarella and had to give it a try.  I made the marinated portion in a larger batch, packed the cubes of mozzarella in pint jars, and poured the marinade over the cheese in the jars.  I did put these jars in the refrigerator which caused the olive oil to become thick and cloudy.  I simply take a jar out and let it sit at room temp for a while before serving, allowing the olive oil to become clear again.  The only thing I did differently from the recipe below is that I used peppercorns instead of ground pepper and I used our own dehydrated tomatoes from this summer's garden in lieu of the sun dried tomatoes. 

So as to not waste the delicious, Italian seasoned olive oil, I simply drained the mozzarella through a strainer before serving (this also eliminated the peppercorns) and saved the oil.  I can use this oil in which to dip bread, or add some to vinegar for a nice Italian dressing. 

Prep Time: 20 minutes


Chill: 8 hours

Yield: Makes about 4 cups

Ingredients

3 (8-oz.) blocks mozzarella cheese

1 (8.5-oz.) jar sun-dried tomatoes, drained and halved

1/2 cup olive oil

3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Garnish: flat-leaf parsley sprigs or fresh rosemary stems

Preparation

1. Cut blocks of cheese into 1-inch cubes. Arrange cheese cubes and tomato halves in an 8-inch square baking dish.



2. Whisk together 1/2 cup olive oil, chopped parsley, and next 6 ingredients; pour evenly over cheese cubes. Cover and chill at least 8 hours or up to 24 hours. Transfer mixture to a serving plate. Garnish with fresh flat-leaf parsley sprigs, or spear tomato halves and cheese cubes with short rosemary stems, if desired. Drizzle with marinade, if desired.

Southern Living, OCTOBER 2007

Friday's Featured Farmer ~ Susan in Virginia

Whispering Pines Farm, Ferrum, Virginia

As for me, I believe I live in paradise, most times, except when the electricity goes off for six days, or getting up the driveway is impossible due to the snow, or keeping water to the animals when it’s freezing outside. I am about 4 miles from the Blue Ridge Parkway in Southwestern Virginia, about six miles from a small town called Ferrum, Virginia, home of the Ferrum College Panthers, the Blue Ridge Folklife Festival and Whispering Pines Farm (which is us!).



I grew up in the city but my favorite memories are on the farm in downstate Delaware where my aunt and uncle lived. I’ve always loved animals but never had any except a parakeet and a cat or two, until…



We moved to Virginia in the spring of 1992. We had 3 acres and a small house. LAND FOR ANIMALS!! Sure! I’d always thought about raising something, but goats were never my first thought. Started with chickens, then got tired of them and traded an incubator for my first herd of 9 pygmy goats. It went from there. I went from pygmy to angora, to pygora, to Boer, to Nubian. I fell in love with the Nubians and decided that would be the direction in which I would continue.

In addition to goats, I also sew, and people with whom I was involved, talked me into making goat flags.

With this new idea, I made new friends, among them is a lady in North Carolina who raises Nigerian dwarf goats. She heard about mini-Nubians and figured she had the Nigerian stock and I had the Nubian stock, so we should start a mini herd. This was 2002, I think. I had my first mini-Nubians in 2003 and have been raising them ever since.

In addition to the goats, we have 3 great Pyrenees guard dogs, all of which are rescues. I raised two litters of pups before I realized that these dogs need specific environments to do their jobs properly, and people were buying them as pets and not using their abilities. I decided rescue is a better way to spend my time.

We also have three cats, a rabbit, two peacocks (both rescues, believe it or not), two ducks, guineas and chickens.



Funny, my husband was raised on a farm in Ohio and couldn’t wait to get away from it. Now he’s stuck back on the farm and insists he dislikes every critter, but you should see him with the new babies in the spring. He’s done his share of mid-wife duties when I was not around, and even when I am around. He insists the only time goats are cute is when they are babies, but I think he’s full of goat pellets!

While I do milk from time to time, I don’t do it as a matter of course. However, those that I do milk have done well and I am very pleased at the Mini-Nubian breed. The size allows for older people or people without a huge amount of land to have a milker or milkers with less hassle.



When I moved to Virginia, I brought my younger son with me. A few years later, my older son moved to go to college at Ferrum College. He has gone on to become a professor there and he and his wife and my three grandchildren live about 4 miles from me. My other son is successful in computers and lives about an hour from me, so I have my family around me, too.



I guess that’s about all I can tell you. I love what I do and who I am. I am looking forward to the day when I can retire and not have to drive an hour each way to work, but when I pull into my driveway at night, I know I am where I want to be.

Thank you, Tammy, for allowing me to share!

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

Thank you for sharing, Susan! 

Susan has been a wonderful friend and an awesome mentor to me.  When I got my first two goats, I did not have a clue what I was doing (and still don't).  It's nice to know that she is always there and willing to help me out with any questions that I might have and to lend moral support!  I couldn't have done it without her!  I am currently leasing one of her bucks to breed my girls.  Once again, I just couldn't do it without you, Susan! 

Susan often has Mini Nubians for sale including does, bucks, kids and sometimes doe/kid combination packages. 

You can visit Susan's web page or get in touch with her by email.

This & That Thursday ~ Making Pon Haus (otherwise known as Scrapple)

When my husband told me that we would be making pon haus, I did not have a clue what he was talking about. 

"What't that?", I questioned.

"What do you mean?", he replied.  "You've never heard of pon haus?"

Feeling like I must have really missed out on the important things in life I quickly googled it and this is what I found:

Scrapple, also known by the Pennsylvania Dutch name pon haus, is traditionally a mush of pork scraps and trimmings combined with cornmeal and flour, often buckwheat flour, and spices. The mush is formed into a semi-solid congealed loaf, and slices of the scrapple are then panfried before serving. Scraps of meat left over from butchering, not used or sold elsewhere, were made into scrapple to avoid waste. Scrapple is best known as a regional American food of the Mid-Atlantic States (Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Maryland). Scrapple and pon haus are commonly considered an ethnic food of the Pennsylvania Dutch, including the Mennonites and Amish. Scrapple is found in supermarkets throughout the region in both fresh and frozen refrigerated cases. ~ Wikipedia

The same day we rendered lard, we also made pon haus.  The first thing we had to do was get a big fire going and set the kettle with water in it over the open flame.  When the water began to boil, we added the scraps of meat.  We through the scraps in including bone and even included some of the organ meat. 

After the meat had cooked for several hours and was beginning to fall off the bone, we removed the meat from the broth and deboned it. 

Once the meat was deboned, we ran it through a grinder.

The ground pork was then placed back in the broth in the kettle and placed over the open flame once again.  At this point we added salt and pepper to taste and let it all come back to a rolling boil.

Once the mixture came to a rapid boil, two people stirred while two people began adding cornmeal to the mixture.  The cornmeal had to be added slowly and evenly so as not to clump.  We also added a little flour from time to time. 

As the cornmeal and flour was added (mostly cornmeal with very little flour) the mixture became thicker and thicker and more difficult to stir.  When the experienced folks said that we had enough cornmeal, we then stirred until the mixture boiled down and became extremely thick.  Stirring was not a job for the faint hearted, for if the pon haus stuck to the bottom of the kettle, it would be ruined.  When the pon haus was finally decared to be the right thickness and consistency, we then removed the kettle from the fire and quickly scooped the mixture into small containers.  These containers were left to set for about 24 hours until they became a small loaf. 

I asked my in-laws for a recipe for ponhaus, but they said they had never used a recipe.  They simply went by taste and experience.  They do not add extra spices when they make it, but many folks do add additional spices.  When I tasted the pon haus, in a way it reminded me of cornbread stuffing that we use to make growing up.  (That recipe to be posted at a later date.)  I think I would enjoy adding sage to my pon haus. 

Here is a recipe I found online to make ponhause/scrapple in your kitchen at home in a smaller quantity:

HOMEMADE SCRAPPLE (Pon Haus)



MAKES TWO 9x5-INCH LOAVES






I have finally become a believer. I grew up in Pennsylvania with Scrapple, a popular breakfast meat, all around me. I just could not acquire a taste for it because of some seasoning to which I objected. Not to mention, I never really understood what was in scrapple and therefore bulked at the mushy consistency. When I started the PA Dutch recipe page, I knew I would have to make it one day and get it posted, whether or not I liked it, using scrapple fans as the judges. I found several recipes, gathered ideas from the combination and, lo and behold, the stuff is pretty good. And, much to my surprise, considerably healthier than I ever suspected. To describe it in terms you might better recognize, it is very much like fried polenta. It is mostly corn meal mixed with cooked lean meat and seasonings, poured into loaf pans and refrigerated overnight to stiffen, then sliced and fried in a little butter or oil. Every recipe I found was different in amounts, seasonings and some of the methodology. You will find some of the variations listed below.






INGREDIENTS






One 3-pound bone-in pork butt, trimmed of visible fat


4 quarts water


Salt and pepper to taste


1-1/2 teaspoons dried thyme


2 teaspoons rubbed sage


1 teaspoon ground savory


1/8 teaspoon allspice (start with less)


1/8 teaspoon nutmeg (start with less)


1/8 teaspoon cloves


3 cups corn meal


Place the pork and water in an 8-quart stock pot. Add salt and pepper. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer until pork is tender, about 2 hours. Place the meat on a large plate; reserve the stock. When the meat is cool enough to handle, remove it from the bones and discard excess fat. Chop the meat very finely; set aside. (See the Variations below for chopping methods.)






Place 2-1/2 quarts of the stock in a 5-quart pot. Add the thyme, sage, savory, allspice, nutmeg and cloves. Bring to a boil and gradually add the corn meal, stirring or whisking rapidly until it is all combined. Reduce the heat to medium or medium-low and continue to cook, stirring often, until the mixture is very thick, so that a spoon almost stands up by its own, about 15 minutes. (If it gets too thick, just add a little more of the broth and stir well.) Add the meat and stir well to combine. Reduce the heat to low and cook for an additional 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. After a couple minutes, taste for seasoning and adjust as desired. Scrapple must be well-seasoned or it will taste very bland when fried.






Place a piece of waxed paper into the bottom of two 9x5 loaf pans so that the ends extend over the two long sides. That will make it easier to lift the refrigerated loaf out of the pan later. Pour half the mixture into each pan. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight or until chilled and solid.






To fry, remove the loaf from the pan and place on cutting surface. Slice into about 1/4 to 1/2-inch slices. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add some butter and, as soon as it melts, add the scrapple slices. It is critical with scrapple to let each side brown thoroughly before attempting to turn it over or it will stick and fall apart, so be very patient. Serve as is or, as many PA Dutchmen would do, with ketchup or apple butter.






Notes: You will have to learn, as I did, what degree of thickness to cook the corn meal. On my first attempt, it obviously was too thin because the chilled mixture did not get as stiff as expected. If that happens to you, don't panic. I was still able to slice and fry it, although it fell apart easily. You will need to play with the seasonings, tasting and adjusting until you get what you want. Many people dredge scrapple in a light coating of flour before frying. Scrapple freezes very well; just slice and wrap individually in waxed paper and then place in freezer bags. Take out as many slices as you want and fry them with or without thawing, reducing the heat slightly if frozen to allow more cooking time. Remember, everything is previously cooked so it only needs to be browned and heated through. Serve instead of bacon, ham or sausage for breakfast, lunch or dinner.






Variations: Two of the recipes I used as sources were from a Jeff Smith cookbook and Grandma Born's Scrapple on my Recipes from Visitors page as submitted by William Cooper. One recipe uses pork neckbones, which I understand produces a more gelatinous texture which aids in holding the mixture together. The other uses boneless beef chuck in addition to the pork butt, but less broth to cook the corn meal. The seasonings are completely different, one using herbs and the other baking spices. Another difference is that, in one preparation you coarsely chop the meat, while in the other the meat is passed through a meat grinder. I do mine in the processor, but not too finely. So you can see that, once you start making scrapple, there are many ways to conform it to your own tastes. Since I posted this recipe, another, simpler version was submitted by Mark Voelker, called Mark's Scrapple. You might want to check that out as well.



The photo below is of our finished product.  In order to eat, simply slice and fry. 

 

Wordless Wednesday

Tuesday Tutorial~Making Lard the Old Fashioned Way

I posted  previously the easy method of making lard.  As promised, I wanted to dedicate a post to making lard the old fashioned way.  I am indebted to my awesome husband for taking two days out of his schedule to make the lard rendering day a reality.  He worked hard the day before to prep things, including getting the kettles and other items out of storage where they had been for years and hauling them out to the hunting cabin.  In addition, I am filled with gratitude for my in-laws.  Their willingness to not only give instruction, but to also jump in and work as hard (if not harder) than the rest of us left me once again realizing how blessed I am not only to have such a wonderful husband, but also to be a part of this wonderful family.  I am deeply grateful.

The day was windy and cold, but we made it a fun day by taking a "picnic" lunch of homemade potato soup, crackers, corn bread, homemade blue berry pie and cookies.  We had hot tea and coffee and a roaring fire both outdoors and inside the cabin. 

The first thing one needs to make lard the old fashioned way is fat from happy pigs!  (Happy pigs are pigs that have been raised humanely and allowed to be pigs!)  We received the fat back from our butcher in long strip that he had tossed into a couple Rubbermaid type tubs that we had provided for him.  We took that fat and sliced it into smaller pieces. 

 Mike's dad had gone over early and had a nice fire going.  So, the next step was to take the pieces of fat and dump them into the kettle.  (Don't call it a pot!  I called it a pot and my father-in-law will never let me live it down!  ;-)  Rather than just dump all the fat in at once, we took a few pieces and allowed them to start sizzling, cooking and melting in the pot.  This created just enough grease in the bottom of the kettle as to keep the fat from sticking.  After the kettle was coated,  two men lifted the tub of sliced fat and dumped it into the hot kettle.

 
(Note:  Notice the long handled paddle that Mike's cousin, Dennis is holding.  This was made about 70 years ago by a friend of the family specifically for stirring lard as it was being rendered.  It is made of walnut.)

The next step is to simply stir and stir and stir.

We all took turns stirring the lard.  We had to keep the fire going while not letting it get too hot.  We stirred and stirred and stirred some more until finally the cracklins started floating to the top. (Cracklins are the little pieces of rind and meat that float to the top and are leftover after you make the lard.)

One must be careful not to overcook the lard.  We were on the verge of overcooking but I tested the lard last night when I fried potatoes and it is fine.  There is a fine line between "done" and "overdone", so you have to be really careful!  My dad says when the cracklins start to float, then you know the lard is done! 

At this point, it is time to remove the lard from the fire as you don't want it to continue to cook.  Notice the hooks that the guys are using to move this big kettle.  It was a lot of fun for me to see the stands, kettles, hooks, paddles, and lard press and imagine them being used over and over again in years past as my husband's family processed lard. 

The next step is to run the lard and cracklins through the lard press.  We lined the lard press with cotton flour cloth, poured the grease and cracklins through it, clamped it down tight and squeezed the grease out of the cracklins.

We bought the lard tins at a local farmer's cooperative.  In the above photos, the tin is setting in a pan of cold water to help bring the heat down on the lard. 

After we had filled two five gallon tins with lard, we moved them inside the cabin and let them set, settle, and cool down for 24 hours.  My father-in-law says you don't want to disturb the lard until it has set up. 

For long term storage, we will simply keep the tins of lard in a cool place. 

When lard rendering was completed, we simply wiped out the kettle knowing that the grease was good seasoning to preserve the kettle, and turned it over to keep rain out and left it to cool.  The next day all the equipment was gathered and stored again until the next time we have a lard rendering party. 

Making Apple Pie

I made apple pie last night using some of the leaf lard that I rendered from our hogs to make the crust.  Actually, I had made a cherry pie earlier in the week and my husband hardly came up from his plate all the while moaning with pleasure over the taste.  So, when he asked me to make another pie, I of course  had to oblige!  ;-)

When I made the cherry pie, I made the crust with leaf lard exclusively.  Having only made crusts with either butter or shortening, I noticed that the "feel" of the crust was different as I was making it.  Before I made my crust yesterday, I decided to do a little bit of research and found this article from the New York Times where the author talks about making pie crusts with a mixture of leaf lard and butter. 

Carefully confected with part butter and part freshly rendered lard, this pie pastry was everything baking-book authors and bloggers wax poetic about: a golden-brown-around-the-edges epiphany richly flavored and just salty enough to contrast with the sweet apple filling, the texture as flaky as a croissant but still crisp. It shattered when you bit it, then melted instantly on the tongue.


Of course after reading such an eloquent description of pie crust made with lard and butter, I had to try it for myself.  While I can't lay claim to the title "Expert Maker of Pie Crusts",  I must say that the combination of lard and butter did produce the best crust I have ever made. 

I used the following recipe for my crust.  It did make enough dough for a deep dish, double crust pie and I had enough left over, that I made a single pie shell for another pie later in the week.

Lard & Butter Pie Crust

4 c. sifted flour

1 heaping tsp. salt

1 cup lard

1/2 cup butter

1/2 c. ice cold water



Place the four cups of flour in a bowl.  Mix in your salt.  Mix lard and butter together and then using your fingers, gently mix lard/butter mixture into the flour/salt mixture. This will produce a crumbly mix.

 Next, create a well or hole in the center of your flour and lard mixture and pour in a small amount of water. 





Work the flour gently into the ice cold water.  You want the flour mixture to be damp and to start sticking together, but you don't want it to be soaking wet.  Continue to add water a little at a time and work in the flour until all the flour is damp.  It's very important to not work or handle the dough any more than you have to.  The less it is handled and worked the flakier the pie crust will be.  In fact, my goal is always to only have to roll the dough out once.  If the dough sticks and you have to roll it out again, you compromise the quality of the crust. 

Divide your dough in half and roll out one section at a time.  Line the bottom of your pie plate with the dough, put in your filling, roll out the top crust and place on top.  You then can crimp the edges with a fork or make fancy fluted edges. 

For this particular apple pie, I used the apple pie filling that I canned earlier in the fall.   However, you can use fresh apples as well.  To make apple pie using fresh apples, I peel and slice the apples and sprinkle with cinnamon, sugar and about 3 Tablespoons of flour.  I put this in the bottom crust, put a few pats of butter on top and then put the top crust on the pie and bake. 

Happy Baking!

Miscellaneous Monday ~ Making Lard the Easy Way

As happy as I am about the humanely raised, predominantly milk fed pork that we raised, I am equally happy about the opportunity to have lard!  Some people look at me with disgust and fear on their face when they hear that I am rendering and using lard! 

"You must wish to die of clogged arteries," they remark. 

"Eeww!  Why would you want to use lard?", other say. 

The truth is, lard has got a bad rap in recent years but the truth is it is actually very good for you.  Don't believe me?  Well, all I can say is do some research for yourself.  I recommend that you start here by looking at information from the Weston Price Foundation. 

From the book Nourishing Traditions by Sally O'Fallon:

Benefits of Lard



Lard or pork fat is about 40% saturated, 48% monosaturated (including small amounts of antimicrobial palmitoleic acid) and 12% polyunsaturated. Like the fat of birds, the amount of omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids in lard will vary accordingly to the diet of the pigs. In the topics, lard may also be a source of lauric acid if the pigs have eaten coconuts. Like duck and goose fat, lard is stable and a preferred fat for frying. It was widely used in America at the turn of the century. It is an excellent source of vitamin D, especially in third-world countries where other animal foods are likely to expensive.

So, now that we have begun to establish the fact that lard is not a terrible product, just how does one go about making lard.  Well, there is the hard way and the easy way.  In the past week, I have experienced both but this particular post is to show you just how easy it can be.  (I will write another post with photos on doing it the way our ancestors did.  It was both educational and fun!) 

First step in making lard the easy way is when you butcher your hogs save the fat.  We did not butcher our hogs this time although Mike's family has butchered for years and I grew up watching my dad butcher hogs every year.  We took the easy way out and let our fabulous butcher do the dirty work for us.  We simply asked him to save all the fat.  We gave him two big Rubbermaid tubs and he threw the strips of fat into those tubs.

After receiving the fat, we worked up about half of it using the old fashioned method that I will highlite in another post.  The rest of the fat I have been able to keep without sticking in the freezer because our temps have been so cold that I have simply kept it in our unheated garage.  Otherwise, I would have packaged it in smaller parcels, labeled it and put it in the freezer so that I could work on it a little at a time.  I take out just enough fat to fit into my large crockpot/slow cooker and slice it up in smaller pieces so that it will cook down more quickly.  I actually turn my crock pot on as I start slicing up the fat and just fill it up with the pieces.  I have been turning it on high but watching it carefully.  As the fat begins to cook, I give it a stir every once in a while but other than that, just go on about my business and let the crock pot do all the work!  I find that in about three or four hours the fat has cooked down and what is left are the cracklins floating on the top of the oil. 

The next step is to very carefully pour the oil and cracklings through a metal strainer.  I line the metal strainer with a cloth that is the consistency of a flour sack.  This catches all the little pieces of meat that might be floating in the lard and gives me a beautiful, clear oil.

I  then pour this oil into clean canning jars, apply new lids, screw the rings down tightly and let sit.  As the lard cools, the lids seal.  That's all there is to it!  I now have beautiful, clean lard from my humanely raised hogs that I can use for frying and for making awesome biscuits and pie crusts! 

 Traditionally, the leaf lard was rendered for making pie crusts and pastries.  This is the fat that comes from the kidney area and rendered makes the purest, whitest lard.  The following is a picture of the fat from around the kidney areas. 

 Store your lard in a cool place and enjoy!

Simply Sunday

"Each friend represents a world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born."- Anais Nin

Friday's Featured Farmer ~ Pam in Alaska!

“Huh?” is usually the response I get when I tell people that my milk cow is a Scottish Highland. You know the ones. They look like a cross between a sheep and a wooly mammoth, with horns out to there. Yep, those are the ones. I milk one. It makes for great stories and admiration that I don’t really deserve. I really was blessed to get the cow that I got and I wouldn’t trade her for anything.




My journey into farming began in 2005 when I managed to obtain some raw milk. See, I grew up drinking raw milk in Colorado and the taste took me back to my childhood. Since buying or selling raw milk is illegal in the state of Alaska, very soon I was dreaming of my own cow. With visions of Jerseys dancing in my head I sat down with a pad and pencil and outlined what I needed in a milk cow. I needed an hardy animal… with horns. We have long, dark, cold winters and large predators in our neighborhood. I needed a cow that would scoff at the most severe blizzards and be begging for AC at -20 F while also being capable of defending herself and her calves against bears, wolves, stray dogs and big cats. Unfortunately, that immediately excluded all of the “dairy” breeds. A local ranch has a couple different breeds of dairy cow and they lose one every year due to our harsh climate. I was putting a lot of money and effort on the line and I didn’t want to start off on the wrong foot. As it turned out, after 2 years of research, the best breed for my purposes turned out to be a breed that’s primarily used for beef.



I found a young Highland x Shorthorn heifer on Craigslist and fell in love. On May 26, 2008 I drove 250 miles to meet a very nice couple who had driven 250 miles from the other direction. Did I mention I live in Alaska? Anyway, they were very happy to see one of their girls going to a good, if slightly delusional home. I had proudly announced that this yellow heifer was destined for life as a milk cow and had met awkward silence and raised eyebrows. In the past, an Highland wife would pull a newly freshened cow from the family fold (an herd of Highlands is called a fold) to be the milk cow for the year. It didn’t seem so odd to me that I could do the same thing! When we pulled into the driveway with the beginning of our farm we had no barn, no real fence and no shelter for her. We had a flimsy, welded wire fence, hay and a Rubbermaid tub full of water. I was in heaven!




Since that day our farm has expanded to include apple trees, raspberries, strawberries, gooseberries, standard Bronze turkeys, a brief visit by a pig and Bonnie‘s first calf, Cody. We are expanding the turkey operation next spring with the addition of Bourbon Reds. We are also going to begin clearing land for hay and pasture using pigs. We have ten acres that can be utilized in some way and we are excited to see how thing develop.





On April 14, 2010 Bonnie gave birth to her first calf ,a bull, sired by a pure Highland. Our milking relationship has had it’s ups and downs but it has been every bit as rewarding as I thought it would be. We allowed Bonnie to raise Cody, sharing the milk with him. Because our pasture (such as it is) is owned by somebody other than us, we stake Bonnie out during the summer. Because of this, Bonnie and Cody were separated during the day and we milked in the evenings before putting them together for the night. This arrangement worked wonderfully and we will do it next year as well. As the pasture is developed they will spend more and more time untethered and free.





It’s seven months later, Cody is now weaned and we milk twice a day. It’s given me a new appreciation for the farmers of old let me tell you. It’s exceedingly difficult to eat when your thumbs are twitching hard enough to vibrate the fork! I have an offer for Cody to be an herd sire but I’m not sure I want to give up my first grass-fed beef. I have a few months yet to make that decision though.

The ultimate farm plan includes more cows (of course), a laying flock of chickens, a rotation of meat chickens and pigs, enormous gardens, a bigger apple orchard and many, many more berries. It will be a challenge to find and raise varieties and breeds that not only survive but thrive in our frigid climate but I look forward to it!
 

 
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Thank you, Pam for sharing your farming story with us!  As you know, I have a special place in my heart for Alaska and it's residents! 

Grandmother and Lana~Buttermilk Cookies and Books!

This is my little friend Lana.  She is helping her grandmother make buttermilk cookies.  When I saw this wonderful picture of Lana helping in the kitchen, I asked if I could share with you all her picture and the recipe.  Lana and Grandmother Zelna graciously allowed me to do so!   This recipe uses a lot of things that we have on had on the farm...........fresh eggs, buttermilk, butter and sour cream!

WENDY'S CHOCOLATE BUTTERMILK COOKIES

1/2 c. butter, melted

1/2 c. packed brown sugar

1/2 c. granulated sugar

1 egg

1/4 c. buttermilk

1/4 c. sour cream

6 tbsp. cocoa

1 3/4 c. unsifted flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 c. peanut butter

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 c. chocolate chips

1/2 c. peanut butter chips

1/2 c. chocolate covered raisins

1/2 c. chopped peanuts



Mix butter, sugars, egg, buttermilk, and sour cream.

Separately mix cocoa, flour, soda, baking powder, salt, and

blend with butter mixture. Add vanilla; stir in chips,

raisins, and peanuts. Drop on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake

at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

When Grandmother (grandgrand as Lana calls her) is not busy making yummy cookies with Lana in the kitchen, she is busy writing children's stories.  Grandmother's name is Zelna Marie Blackwell and she has written a  children's book entitled "Tessie and Lou, Little Warriors for Jesus".  This is the first book in a series and would make a wonderful Christmas gift for the little people in your life.  Don't have small children? How about buying the book and donating  it to your church library?

The books can be ordered through Amazon.  I am posting a direct link here.

You can contact Mrs. Blackwell directly by emailing her at jbandzb@windstream.net. 

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Thank you to Lana and Zelna for allowing me to share their picture, recipe and information about the children's book!