Lockdown 124

Lockdown Day 124 - 28 July 2020

This day was divided between great conversations and brain freeze. First, we walked our usual Tuesday route of about 6 km. It was cold, but no wind, which made it very enjoyable. The sky was red with sunrise, and I wondered about the saying, "Red sky in the morning, shepherd's warning; red sky at night, shepherd's delight." 

This is what farmers with livestock have believed for centuries. According to the saying we are in for some kind of  precipitation in the next 48 hours. But, with a red sky at night one can expect clear skies. Time will tell where the weather is headed. All I know is the winter's peak has moved from end of July to mid August.

My great conversations were with two wonderful friends I have met since we came to the Free State. For a moment it felt as if Lockdown had not happened as we talked and shared as before this abominable virus.  There is a word for such conversations: heartwarming. Yes. The sun felt warmer and in my spirit the boundaries of Lockdown were invisible and freedom felt tangible. "I can do with this", I thought to myself.

Later, the brain freeze walked in unannounced and, for a moment (maybe longer than a moment), snatched up my sense freedom I was dancing to in my spirit. Without divulging too much, let's just say a government law concerning hunting away from home was passed, now banning any accommodation related to such trips. 

Personally I am not really affected, as our hunting places are closeby and can be done with day trips. What got me was the economy being hit again. And I call it brain freeze, because the mindless draconian rules of government concerning this virus is now starting to hurt the economy in a bad way. More and more people (and farmers, the back bone of our food supply) are stuck between closing down their businesses or losing everything - what a choice to have to make. Government's frozen brains are freezing the rest of the country's brain too. 

So I turned to comfort food, first caramelising the red onions I bought at a farmer outlet, cooking the local pasta that was made with the wheat from a farmer, and frying delicious picnic ham that comes from a farmer, bringing it all together with a blue cheese sauce made from cheese and milk, yes you've guessed it, from a FARMER! 

So tonight I offer up a prayer for all the farmers in our country, whether they farm with livestock, crops or game. I also pray for the unfreezing of brains and a revival in the economy. 

But most of all I pray for God to move in our heart and spirit, so He can spread His light and warmth through us. Because, as Jesus Himself said in Matthew 19:26, "But Jesus looked at them and said, With men this is impossible, but all things are possible with God." Ggt.