The Old Adobe

Tonight it has been difficult to decide what to post - not because I have a lack of things that I am grateful for, but because there are far too many things that I am grateful for, and I couldn't decide upon just one.  As the debate was taking place in my head I happened to look up from where I was sitting.  Just above the computer desk hangs this picture:

As my eyes rested upon it, the debate in my head suddenly stopped.  There it was, the "Old Adobe" house.  The house we are currently living in.  I cannot believe that I am going to say this, but it is true - "I am grateful for the old adobe house that we are living in!"  This house was built in 1930 by Blaine's Grandpa Athole Milne.  Athole and Amanda Milne raised ten kids in this two bedroom, one bathroom, 900 square foot house.  It still has the old cast iron stove in the kitchen.  Amanda cooked all of her meals on this stove that was fueled by coal.  Athole also used the stove, but not for cooking.  He used it to warm his feet.  Blaine and I purchased this home and the surrounding property from his family shortly after his father passed away.  We have remodeled it and made other improvements to the property.  When we first moved in we thought it would be for just a few short months.  We were trying to decide whether to buy a new home or build one.  We had just sold our 4100 square foot home that we had down in the Washington Fields, and we knew that moving into this much smaller home would be quite an adjustment, but we figured we could tough it out for two to three months, and our renters were just getting ready to move out anyway.

Well, here it is 10 months later and we are still here.  I will be honest, there are days that I despise this small, old house.  There is not nearly enough room.  It clutters up so easily, and despite it being really cute, I miss the newness and size of my other house.  However, there are many things about this old adobe that are very endearing.  Just the other day a family friend stopped by - Katherine Staheli.  She is in our ward, and she and her husband Ralph are also our home teachers.  The Milne's and the Staheli's have known each other for years.  Katherine loves family history and church history, and it was our lucky day.  She had brought with her a photo copy of an article that was published in the September 25, 1976 Church News.  It was a story featuring Athole and Amanda Milne celebrating 75 years of being married.  It was titled, "We Truly Loved".  Along with the article were three precious photos of Athole and Amanda.  The main thing that stood out in the article was something that Amanda shared.  She said, "Athole was my boss at work and he was the boss at home. We had a rule against quarreling, and to this day, we've never had a real argument."  My heart melted when I read that.  They must have been a very happy couple.  It caused me to reflect on my relationship with Blaine and how too many times we find ourselves quarreling over silly things.  I've decided I am going to be more like Amanda and stop it!  I am so grateful for her example.

I emailed the Church News Archive department today to see if they happened to have the original still.  They only keep pdf archives of the past 20 years.  They kindly emailed back and told me to contact the Church History Library and that they could help me get a copy of the original.  The copy Katherine gave us is wonderful, but I thought it would be nice to have a better quality copy of the article and especially the pictures.  I am going to call them tomorrow.  Once I get a better copy I will post it.  It really is precious.

The above painting was painted by Blaine's first cousin Diane Renchler.  She is an artist who lives in Hawaii and she gave us the painting after Blaine had done some dentistry for her.  We had it professionally framed, and it has been a treasure ever since.  At the time that she gave it to us I would have never dreamed that we would be living in it someday.  It has been interesting though, and I can truly say that I am grateful that we have had the opportunity to live here.  There really is a special spirit in this little home, and I am convinced that it all stems from the enduring love that Athole and Amanda had for each other and the love they had for the Lord.  They truly did leave a legacy of love. We have felt it.  We have definitely grown closer as a family, and not just in proximity.  I thought by now we would have killed each other or at least been very sick of each other, but just the opposite has occurred.  We will not be staying here forever, in fact probably only another month, but I know that no matter where we go and no matter what house we live in we will always treasure our time spent here and the precious memories made in the "Old Adobe" house.

Carter surprised us one day and shared with us a poem that he had written for a class at school.  It's called, "The Old House."

The Old House

The house I now call home

Is one in which my ancestors did roam

It is nearly a century old

Ten kids were raised here I've been told

My Grandpa Glen was the 9th child to be born

On the grounds here his family did mourn

The death of the baby brother Ray

In World War II, he, Glen, and his brother Jake

Had served in the Navy, they were all very close

All volunteers, I'm sure everyone knows

That the heart of a volunteer was what won the War

Without men like that we wouldn't be able to adore

Our gift of freedom, given to us by them that continue to fight

Yes, they fight all right, with all of their might

That's what I love about this old house that I'm in

I've learned to be more proud to be an American

I want to be like these men that I've talked about

These men in my family that I know without a doubt

Are some of the greatest men that I've come to know

Although not alive, their example continues to show

That your family, country, and freedom is what matters most

My family's amazing, although I try not to boast

I am truly proud to be in the Milne family

I am proud to be an American where at least I know I'm free

Carter is such a good boy.  I too am so proud of our heritage.  We are truly blessed because of them. I am so grateful for the many sacrifices that they made so that our lives could be a little bit better than their own.  Because of each one of them my joy is full!