Velvet

Velvet...could be a soft fabric or material, or a woman's name, or something that is soft and quiet...but in the country it is the name for a young buck whose horns have started to grow. Here you can see on of the deer from the herd that hangs out in front of my cabin. He has ventured up close and in the yard today. If you look close you can see his small rack and the velvet soft fur that is covering the antlers. This velvet is sloughed off when the antlers stop growing and harden. How brave he was today. He actually had a friend alongside.

Isn't that the way of life. It is easier to encounter the unknown when we are in the presence of a friend. I have just experienced that very thing. I had the priviledge of driving one of my dearest friends, Elizabeth, across 3 states (Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi) to her new home in Athens, Alabama "the other south" as she calls it...which is over 800 miles away. What I have found since I have been home is that I am so thankful for technology (computers and cell phones) and transportation (airplanes and automobiles). It truly brings the world so much closer together. I am thankful to have a Godly friend who is brave and courageous enough to defy worldly standards and follow her husband's dreams and ambitions and doing it with grace and generosity. I hope that the velvet of our frienship nevers gets sloughed off and that we never stop growing together for then we would grow hard. How precious are the lessons we can learn through nature...from the Creator of the Universe, the Creator of all good things. God is Good - All the Time!