Desley grew up in QLD, and hates to be cold. So in winter, she loves our lounge room fire to be fully stoked and cranked right up so she can wander around in a T-shirt while the rest of us roast. On the whole we indulge her heat proclivities, but sometimes we open the windows when she is not looking.
All that heat requires firewood, and that's Rod's responsibility, as it is to light the fire and keep it stoked to her requirements. Lucky he likes lighting fires, and lucky he loves getting out in the bush cutting firewood with his trusty Stihl! So they make a good team.
Each Autumn, Rod searches our bush to find a grey gum log (or three) suitably dry for her sauna-inducing needs. This year he was blessed to find one that had been blown down in a big wind 7 or 8 years earlier, and with most of it off the ground, meaning it was beautifully dry.
One Sunday he set out to get her Mother's Day present - her first load of firewood for the season. The log was some way off the track, so he used the tractor and blade to push a track through the bush and in to the log. Then he sharpened the chainsaw with a new jig she bought him last year (so thoughtful of her!), fuelled and oiled it up, and set out for an afternoon of blissful solitude. The result was a trailer load of lovely dry rounds, ready to split.
Meanwhile, back at the house, our three girls were giving Desley their own Mother's Day present - painting her stairwell and putting up a photo gallery of family photos. Desley's (and many other mums') love language is definitely acts of service!
We share this story because it reflects something we believe in: that the best things take time and care. That grey gum log spent seven years drying in the bush before it was ready. Some things just take time. Getting to know someone's idiosyncrasies, learning a new skill, the development of our children, growing good organic food - these things shouldn't be rushed. No shortcuts, no pushing nature faster than she wants to go. Just love, good soil, good seed, good environment and patience. Some things - most things - are worth the wait.