very vintage inspired...

There once was a girl who thought she needed to prove to herself and those who loved her most that she could take care of herself.   To show herself that she was strong, and self reliant and maybe a bit of a hippie child. 

So she moved to one of the most beautiful area in MI. and rented one of the most affordable places she could find.  You see, there would be no borrowing money, no needing to ask for help.  Not that those who loved her wouldn't offer, but she had something to prove.

So in this land of wine country and hotels and golf resorts, what could she afford?  A piece of Waldens Pond.  She settled in the first day 'nesting', setting up her sweet little cabin and laying out the few art supplies she brought with her and taking stock of her literature. She would need those things,  you see, what she found was this little log cabin set on a tree farm.  One that was full of history but lacking most everything else she took for granted.  No electricity, no running water, no bathroom. What it offered was an unusable outhouse that had a snakes nest in it, and a wonderful little pond which fed her soul and a beautiful blue heron daily. 

I learned alot about myself in the months that I lived in this sweet place.  It doesn't look exactly like I remember it.  It has recently had a fire and so is boarded up.  It seems much smaller than I remember and the outhouse is gone. (too bad) :) 

 I did read a great deal, and I thought I was so cool when I lit my gas lamps to read by at night.  I played with different art supplies and became a bit more confident in my abilities.  But where I gained the most confidence was in myself.  I worked two jobs that summer and I did not have a car so I rode the 10 miles or so into town on my bike, downhill to work and up some crazy hills after a long day of waiting tables.  I was the strong woman I was searching for.

I have never regretted living on Jack Frost's Tree Farm ( yes, that was really the name of it!)  I am so glad the girls wanted to go see it, it made me a bit melancholy but I sincerely loved it.  We took pictures with our phones because we were pretty sure that after the fire it will probably be gone before I am able to visit again. 

It looks like the inhabitants after me had electricity, and there was a t.v. antenna out back... they don't know what they missed out on.

Thank you for going down memory lane with me.

Love,

Theresa xoxo

I am linking up to Vintage Inspiration Friday over at Debras

and Take a Risk Day over @ Nesting Place

p.s.  I reread this and thought just in case you got the idea I was a big brave girl, I was NOT!  I was scared out of my wits at night quite a bit, but I got through it.  I have used that lesson throughout my life, and it has served me well!