Gardening, NAIS and the Gospel of John

I haven't had any epiphanies this morning, so thought I'd just talk about what's going on here on our homestead. We looked over the garden today. There are baby brussel's sprouts all over the plants. This is our first year to grow them and I'm looking forward to seeing how a "real" brussel's sprout tastes. Another new winter crop for us is kale. We also have cabbages, broccoli, onions, garlic, peas and turnips still growing. One advantage of gardening in the south is that we can actually have produce all winter. It's one of the things I'm currently working mastering to increase our food production and self-sufficiency. I picked several Black Spanish radishes. They're really a neat looking radish and huge. I tried sauteing some in butter with a bit of Spike (a natural all-purpose seasoning) and found that cooking takes the bite out of them. It makes them taste a bit like turnips, only better in my opinion. One can only eat so many pickled products. I'm also told that they are great candidates for root cellaring. Along with the radishes I sauteed up a few Jerusalem artichokes. The key to them is to take them off the heat the minute they're fork tender. We also like them mashed like potatoes. Be careful, though, because to put it indelicately - they'll make you fart.

I've noticed many news articles lately regarding the USDA's decision to make the NAIS (National Animal Identification System) completely voluntary. Along the same line, I've got some wonderful southern Oklahoma land for sale, complete with ample rainfall and a gentle climate. You'll find no sighs of relief here. We don't buy it and are insulted that the powers that be think we would. We encourage all readers to go to NoNAIS.org where they are doing the good work in getting out the best information about this unprecedented intrusion into our way of life.

I'm currently reading in the gospel of John. It's such a beautiful book, and it's easy to see why it's recommended as the first book for new Christians. I did the walk down the aisle in my teens, but was never discipled. Fortunately, even though I didn't know what being saved meant, God did. In my early 30's I sat down and read the gospels for the first time. I remember walking into the living room Bible in hand and asking my dear husband in amazement, "Do you know what this says? And you didn't tell me!" Let us not forget to share the Word with others.

Blessings, until next time.