Day 254- Thankful for apples in abundance

I just wanted to touch base with you all since I have not been writing much for a while. I have written drafts but cannot seem to actually sit down and write a whole post.

So, after saying our goodbyes to my daughter and son at college the end of August, my husband and I took a different route back home and stopped off for a short hike at the John James Audubon State Park. We saw a young deer across the parking lot from us. I got a few photos, but they were not very clear. It was nice to get a little exercise in a beautiful and peaceful place.

At home again, I started a minimizing process, throwing away what is now trash, recycling old paperwork, and giving clothing and other things that we don’t use anymore to a local thrift shop.

Then apple season began.

The reason this is important is that we have an apple tree. We must have forgotten to prune it last year, and it was LOADED! I could not pick and freeze them fast enough. I tried so hard not to let any go to waste, but it was just impossible. A heavy rain came when many of the apples were already almost ripe, and many of them split, so after a while, the top halves started to rot. I threw that part away and froze the bottom halves. I have approximately 40 quarts of frozen apples taking up most of my freezer. They are a huge blessing! I also gave many pounds of apples to neighbors and church friends. And for the first time ever, I made three apple crisps in a short time span, and experimented with other apple recipes that I would never have tried if not for the overabundance of this year’s harvest.

Every time I thought there were not that many apples left on the tree, I would go out and pick some more, and there would still a bunch. The last time I picked them, thinking there were only a few more, my husband helped me harvest 50 more usable apples.

I was raised by two parents who were alive during the Great Depression, so I was taught not to waste things. Also, my time in Africa and Asia showed me first-hand that many people are in dire need of basic necessities such as food.

And, I see in the Bible where Jesus fed the 5,000 and told the disciples to gather up what was left so that nothing would be wasted.
“Gather the pieces that are left over, so that nothing will be wasted.” John 6:12 BSB

So, I have felt driven to see this task of saving the apples to its final end. I am down to just a small amount of apples in the refrigerator that need to be frozen, so hopefully in another day or two I’ll be done with that and can move on to those last few things on my list and hopefully get back to writing more.

Today I’m thankful for the abundance of apples that the Lord has blessed us with.

I’m thankful for enough to share with others.

I’m thankful for the sense of community that this has helped foster.

I’m thankful that God can bless others by blessing us.

I’m also thankful that God takes such good care of so many natural places and gives us opportunities to go out and enjoy their beauty and peacefulness.