Cypress & Sage - Hill Country Living

GATHERING VESSEL

Market Days display

Gather
Assemble
Bring together from scattered places

​Wimberley, Texas is nestled amongst ancient cypress trees, scruffy cedars, 
and gnarly live oak trees. It is trekked by whitetail deer
​and carved with limestone-bedded waterways.
The hills are dotted with a variety of rental properties
for vacations and other gatherings.
Family reunions. Weddings. Romantic getaways. Conferences.
Crafting retreats. River recreation. ​Festivals. Rodeos. Shopping.

Market Days wall display

One of the most popular and free gatherings in Wimberley is Market Days – the second largest outdoor market in Texas with over 450
​vendors, food, and music.
​The Lions Club sponsors Market Days, and the money made from parking and barbeque is contributed to local non-profits, animal rescue groups, and student scholarships, trips, and projects. http://www.shopmarketdays.com/

I went to the the August Market Days with a friend.
The temperature was 5000 degrees on the tree-shaded lanes. 
We visited booths with displays of art, jewelry, pottery, antiques, 
and stuff. And more stuff. And more rows of stuff.
But we found a treasure. Sacapelos. An orange tool that looks like
​a Velveeta cheese slicer but yanks out facial hair with no mercy.
$10 well spent.

It really does hurt.

We gathered in the pavilion for lunch while listening to friends, Young and Rusty, (Sue Young and Rusty Nelson) sing their original folk and Americana songs. ​Our neighbor joined them playing bass. http://www.youngandrusty.com/

Today’s technology driven savviness has enabled us to meet, communicate, work, plan, brainstorm, learn, play, date, and be entertained with our eyes and attention glued to devices.
​There is a legitimate time and place for these encounters.
But I submit to you that we have lost the art of gathering. IRL. (In Real Life)
 
I love throwing gatherings of all kinds. Why?
Because IRL gatherings trigger all my senses.
​I taste the salsa someone made with vegetables from her garden.
I smell the rain-pelted rosemary (or occasional skunk) from the porch.
I hear music and giggles and weeping. I feel the hugs.
I see expressions. I don’t misinterpret sarcasm or irritation
like I do reading a text.
 
Life is chaotic. People are busy. But creating a holy or celebratory or goofy or relaxing vessel in my home for others to gather is my jam.
​I often go overboard, but that’s me.
​What kind of gathering vessel would you love to craft for your people IRL?
Do it.
​

Comfort & Joy

​For where two or more gather in my name,
there am I with them.
Matthew 18:20 NIV

The opening scene and the final scene of my novel
involve characters gathered around tables. Read about it.
ALL IN FOR LIFE

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