My Little House on The Prairie
A while back, my girlfriend invited me for a few nights’ stay with her at Rachel Ashwell’s "The Prairie" If you don't know it, look it up! It is an incredible bed and breakfast in the heart of Texas antique town, Round Top, halfway between Austin and Houston. She drove from Austin, and I drove from Houston, and we met in the middle as I was coming off a weekend volleyball tournament with my daughter. Driving in, I was tired and stressed, discouraged and irritable. I just came from a loud convention center, screaming coaches and fans, whistles blowing, flying stray volleyball, and a hotel full of unaccompanied minors! I was ready for my girl’s week but could not unwind, try as I might. My excitement grew, however, when I finally came upon a long dramatic, gravelly old country road leading up to the check-in lodge, and I could see our prairie cottage tucked away down another path just beyond that. Peace and quiet awaited me!!!! Just the check-in lodge alone was stunning and decorated with all the best shabby chic decor you could imagine, no one in sight, just " Walin and Willie" playing softly in the background and keys left in our name with instructions printed on delicate pink paper.
The solitude was exhilarating to me!! Like I just stepped through the looking glass or had a secret no one else knew.
I followed the instructions, drove back down the gravel road to our cottage, and began settling in. As I went to and from the car carrying my luggage and taking in the beauty all around me, in all my excitement, I locked myself out! Purse and keys inside!! " NO, NO, NO, NO!!!!!" I did have my phone in my back pocket and remembered at the check-in desk, there was a phone number to call for assistance. Still, in my flip-flops from the car ride, I knew my only hope was to hoof back down the road I had just come up to the check-in lodge for assistance. It was 80 degrees, no one in sight, and I could hear dogs barking, donkeys braying, and I think I saw a vulture circling me.
I began to walk and then run, kind of freaking myself out all alone out there on "the prairie," where the peaceful serenity would normally be bliss. I was now kicking up dust as I ran and even got stung by a wasp. After calling the fabulous ranch hand, I got a new set of keys and asked him if the only way back to my cottage was down the long gravel path.
I probably had dust on my face and a tumbleweed in my hair, not to mention I was wincing from the pain of the wasp sting!! He was tan... no leathery, strong and kind, and he laughed at me and said, "Girl, you did not have to run all that way, I knew you were comin', and I mowed a little path for you." He pointed diagonally to my cottage across tall green picturesque prairie grass, "Ya can't see it til' ya get right up on it… but it's there." I turned to look where he was pointing, and all I could see was prairie between me and my home, scenic prairie but no path, so I walked towards it in faith, knowing that anything was better than going back down my previous path, with the threat of wasps and fear of the unknown.
Then I saw it... a freshly mowed path leading to my cottage! I took off my flip-flops and began to run, run with hope and assurance and joy, and began to laugh at my little journey. The cool grass between my toes was such a contrast to the dust that covered them moments before, and by the time I got to my cottage and looked back, my stress seemed far away. It made me think of my relationship with God… the things we sometimes do and the mistakes that make life hard and frustrating, rocky and dirty, the sting of misfortune, and even disappointment. God is there saying, "I never intended for it to be this way for you. Come over here. I have been waiting for you, I even made a nice easy path, just for you. You won't always see it if you aren't looking, but it's there, and I am here waiting for you with times of refreshing and restoration. Run to me, and I will show you the way!"My girlfriend shortly arrived, and we had the most relaxing, refreshing, and restorative few days.
We walked on that path numerous times a day, talking, laughing, and dreaming, always grateful for it. We tried to take pictures but agreed that words and pictures could not capture and express what we were experiencing. It was divinely orchestrated by God and exactly what we both needed.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6