Plain Wisdom Read Online Free PDF Page B

hands. And it accomplishes what cannot be possible.
From Miriam
    Giving my fingers a break from the pricking needle, I sat back and admired the beautiful quilt stretched out before me. The colorful fabric pieces formed a perfect Shining Lone Star pattern. A dozen or more ladies sat around the quilt frame, stitching away as we all got better acquainted.
    For years the Cumberland Valley Relief Center in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, in cooperation with the Mennonite Central Committee, has opened its doors to many different church groups, allowing them to come together to volunteer their time for a variety of relief projects. There is a job for everyone: some quilt or knot comforters, others weave rugs or make homemade soap, and still others prepare health kits, AIDS kits, newborn-care kits, and school kits—all to be shipped to people in need.
    We also help with the Mennonite Central Committee’s meat-canning ministry, which has been providing food to hungry people for the past sixty-two years. Every year people in approximately thirty-eight locations across the United States and Canada can high-quality meats to ship to at least twenty-two countries. These shipments, along with other kinds of material aid, provide significant help for the poor.
    When the traveling cannery comes to the Chambersburg area for a week’s worth of canning, the churches come together. Fresh boneless turkey thighs are cut and canned. The cans are washed, labeled, and packed for shipment. By the end of the week, forty-eight thousand pounds of meat have been packaged in 26,880 cans. The whole process is under inspection, and all volunteers are required to wear white caps and aprons or coats.
    As I stood at the door of the cutting room, observing the assembly line with everyone dressed in white, I envisioned a bit of heaven on earth—people of diverse backgrounds from different church groups with varied lifestyles all coming together … working side by side for the sake of others … bringing them hope and encouragement … in honor of the same God.

K ITCHEN T ABLES
    Part 1
    Better is a dry morsel, and quietness therewith, than an house full of sacrifices with strife.
    —P ROVERBS 17:1
From Cindy
    When our two older boys were in high school, they joined numerous extracurricular activities. My husband and I had known the busy teen years would shift how we handled our days, and we were ready to roll with the punches. But our five-year-old was caught off guard.
    One evening I prepared a meal, set it on the table, and called our youngest to the table. The house was empty except for the two of us. His teenage brothers were at marching band practice, and Dad was still at work. Tyler came to the kitchen, took his plate off the table, and moved it to the island. “Lunch again, Mom?”
    “No, this is dinner.”
    He frowned and shook his head. “It’s not a real dinnertime unless everyone is here to sit at the table.”
    “But you said you were hungry. And your brothers and dad won’t be home for another two hours.”
    “I’m not hungry for food as much as I wanted us to have dinner together.” He pushed the plate back. “Can I just have an apple?”
    I knew what he meant. I felt the same way.
    Is it possible that when God created humans to need food, part of the plan had nothing to do with meeting physical needs? Newborns can’t feed themselves, so their first connection to Mom and Dad is warm, tasty milk filling their empty bellies while the parents snuggle with them, making eye contact, cooing or singing. Putting a high priority on that bonding time is good seed for future relationships and self-esteem.
    Sometimes I wonder how emotionally distant we could become if our physical bodies didn’t require sustenance. Fortunately, adults eat two or three times a day, so we have numerous opportunities to come together and emotionally connect with those we share a life with.
From Miriam
    Every year we hold an Amish school sale, auctioning off