Where Are You Living?

"I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances." ... Philippians 4:11


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My favorite participant sport? Wandering through old houses via estate sales. 

No, really. I'm a pro at that one.  😉

But oh, some of the kitchens these women put up with for 40+ years! Wow, they shock both Tom and me. Kitchens like this one (from a current local listing), for example--

See that bit of orange countertop? That's all of it. There is no more, unless you want to count the table and that whatever-it-is beside the stove--

Ever stood over a low table chopping and mixing? Makes my back hurt just considering it.

Me? Whole decades ago I'd have added skinny cupboards beneath the two windows and banked the stove, above and below, with cupboards, drawers and more counter space.

Eegads. Obviously this 1954 house is a one-family-owned one and oh, the poor woman who cooked thousands of meals there. Maybe with her coffee, she sat at the table facing her backyard windows, dreaming of a kitchen which made sense or heck, a whole other house, one with a real dining room, a finished 2nd story and a den in the basement, all of which she never had (she could've, the last two, anyway).

Or maybe, like Apostle Paul, she learned to be content.

Perhaps she read 'How To Make Your Small House Feel Larger' type books and became super-efficient so that she didn't even need extra space. Maybe, personally, she preferred smaller rooms.

Or perhaps she had just the right amount of stuff to clean and owning more made her nervous. She might have worked an outside job or appreciated the extra non-cleaning time for her hobbies and craft-making. 

Perhaps The Mr. (he with the terrific garage) never understood the need (or had the money) for a sensible kitchen or a finished 2nd story, so The Mrs. decided to do what she could. You know, like wallpapering the dining area and guest room, adding scented drawer liners, sewing curtains. She may have spent tax refunds on new bedspreads, bathroom towels or an occasional framed painting, sofa or carpet in hopes of making this small house, her only one, its very best.

Maybe when the dining area chandelier was replaced, she felt such gratitude, that her too-tiny kitchen no longer mattered. She finally had her pretty light. 

Or hey, perhaps her lovely future home in Heaven kept her dreamy-eyed within this limited one upon Earth.

One thing I've seen around my area? Women married in the 50's through 70's tended to find within themselves a gratitude for whatever home they'd been given, no matter how lacking. Oh, not all women, of course! It just seems like 'a thing' more prevalent than Today.

And oh, it's not all bad how Nowadays Ladies tend to want more. Hey, I find myself there, often(!) But where I'd rather be? 

In the delicate balance, the reaching for more with hands already grateful.

You know, wanting more, but with a contented heart which says."I'd like something else, but if I don't get it? That's ok. Knowing God is what keeps me satisfied, even if outward circumstances never change."

Yep, sometimes I'm there, but I'm aiming to live there 24/7.

If you think about it, this kitchen is another cramped one, but the ladies 'round the table look perfectly happy anyway. Imagine that.

"... abound in thanksgiving."   ... Colossians 2:7

"Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."   ... 1 Thessalonians 5:18


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More from The Mrs.' house--

In a safe neighborhood, one near ours, with 2 bedrooms, 1 bath, 800 sq. ft., not including the unfinished 2nd story or basement and a needs-help kitchen with no dishwasher(!)----- $69,900.



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A friend shared this photo at Facebook. Cool, right?

And another friend shared this--

---which I've found to be so true.



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"Walk ... with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love." ... Ephesians 4:2