Photo: Great grandparents at their farm in Blandinsville, IL, with five of their six children .. my grandpa was yet a twinkle in grandma's eye. Stable boy and governess also pictured. Hodges farm, circa 1903-4

Thursday, January 09, 2014

New Year .. New Way of Living?

I'm old school.  Traditional.  Father and mother under God's authority; children under their parents' authority until the age of accountability.  God, Family, Country .. to be exact.  A way of life melting away faster than a popsicle on a warm summer day.  So, we  'old folks' are not alone in this feeling of wanting the good old days.  Here's an excerpt from the preface of the book American Cookery, 1798.  The first published cookbook written by an American (orphan) in America.  This is a good read from the perspective that history repeats itself (so to speak) .. and a historical account of cooking methods in our nation's infancy.

"The world, and the fashion thereof, is so variable, that old people cannot accomodate themselves to the various changes and fashions which daily occur; they will adhere to the fashion to their day and will not surrender their attachments to the good old way--while the young and the gay, bend and conform readily to the taste of the times, and fancy of the hour."
 
 
The Mr. retired last week.  It's nice to have him home.  We made it to our rocking chairs with a little less hair on his head and silver tresses on mine.  A few delicious grandbabies and relative good health.  The new year holds much promise with a few trips planned, gardening, putting away provisions and bike rides together.  No time clock to punch and every day is Saturday, but Sunday.
 
Happy New Year from the Mac Family

15 comments:

Dorothy said...

I'm old school, too. There's not much 'old school' I don't love.

Happy New Year from Dotti in Australia.

FlowerLady Lorraine said...

Congratulations to you and your husband as you begin this new phase of your life. Enjoy each and every day you have together. You have some great plans lined up.

Love the photo of your family.

Love and hugs ~ FlowerLady

Rebecca said...

I appreciate this post - congrats to your Mr. on his retirement; kudos to you and your family for healthy habits; and Happy New Year - belatedly!

Visiting you (and other kindred spirits) always makes me think of Elijah - who thought that he was the only one left (I Kings 18: Then Elijah said to them, “I am the only one of the Lord’s prophets left, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets...") but God showed him later - next chapter - that there were actually 7,000 others! He WASN'T alone!

Karen K said...

Congrats on Mr's retirement. I love the "old", sometimes our think our society is in such a hurry to embrace the new that we overlook the good things that "old" had for us.
Enjoy the retirement, the trips and especially the grand babies & those precious moments for the two of you!

Sandy Livesay said...

Mrs. Mac,

Congratulations, I know both of you've been counting down the days till retirement. Now enjoy spending days together without having to watch the clock.
This entire country needs to step back, slow down, and push family and values.

Anonymous said...

Congratulations to you both! You have done a great job of getting ready for this and have displayed all your hard work for the rest of us to see. I have appreciated your wisdom, devotion, honesty and creativity. My husband and I are "old school" too and that frequently requires extra prayer the way our world is changing.

Bless you both and please take us along on the next phase of your journey!

Sally

Felisol said...

Congratulation with the Mr.´s retirement. I agree with you, old family values are best. Then again, my Grandfather didn't retire still he was 73. My mother never retired. She nursed my father till he died at the age of 86. She had help, but even so, she was the one that everything revolved around. Gunnar and I asked her to come and live with us, but she was to eager being free and self-sufficient. I often think we need to become more old-fashioned. On old Norwegian farms one still can find the small houses beside the main house. That was where the parents moved out when it was time for the younger people to take over the farming. Even my mother´s eldest sister got to live that way. Only when they needed medical help 24/7 my uncle and aunt moved to a nursing home. We have come a long way finically and with modern household equipment e.t.c., but I think we have lost something of human value along the road. Togetherness through the generations. Our Serina is staying home for the second year now, and here she shall always feel free to be , until she´s well enough to find a job and hopefully continue her abrupt carrier. My brother has taken over the home my parents built, but we have our own keys and our own rooms there and try to be together as often as we can. Family is so blessed in so many ways. I pray to God He´ll let us stay together for a long, long time.

Felisol said...

P.S. I hope I didn´t sound to overwhelming in my last comment. It´s early in the morning and I´m trying to express thoughts and feelings in a foreign language. I love the MacFamily, you know that, and I am impressed you find a way and a time to care for each and everyone. Mrs.Mac, you are the arch mother/wife/homemaker and I quote you all day both to my daughter and to my husband.
Your conscious and methodical way of administering the family both physically and spiritually are inspiring. You are something as rare as a whole person, I´m glad to know you, and to be a witness to your victories through hard struggle. Have a blessed Lord´s Day.

Sandy said...

I could not have written this post any better. I feel just as you do. And, once again, I say congratulations to you both.
Love,
Sandy

Anonymous said...

Happy New Year (late I know!, may God bless you richly this year and I hope your husband has a wonderful retirement!
Helen UK

Crown of Beauty said...

I agree with you, dear Mrs. Mac. I'm old school too. It gladdens my heart to see some of my blog buddies beginning to blog again. Let's keep the blog neighborhood abuzz with fresh bread from heaven's oven... morsels and chunks to feed hungry passers-by. It has been wonderful getting to know you more these days. Want you to know that your kindness has touched me, more than I can ever express. As I leave for home in a few days, I take comfort in knowing that we can never be too far away from one another... the internet has given us its wonderful benefits of staying connected! Much love, Lidia

Mrs. Mac said...

Thank you for all of the support and kind comments. You all make this blog worth the effort.

xx Mrs Mac

donna said...

Chiming in here from ny with added encouragement to keep on blogging as you enjoy the retirement years, the good ole life. Big Hugs

Barbara TherExtras said...

OUTstanding post!

Agreeing with you on all.

We will have much to say to each other on all accounts - on that one day in the future when we meet in person. <3 you!

Linda said...

Happy New Year Cathy. Congratulations to you both. I am back to blogging and please do visit!
Hugs