Loving Our Neighbors As Ourselves
Thanksgiving 2024
This Thanksgiving I find myself balancing between gratitude and thankfulness AND a heaviness and burden. Let me try to explain.
Just this week as Sam was researching some of our family history, he ran across a newspaper ad from 1962. The ad was for a 113-acre farm, complete with farmhouse, barn and outbuildings, “if interested write to the Ray Evans Estate, Mt. Crawford.” This is indeed the farm where Green Valley is now, including the house where some of my fondest memories took place like Grandma fixing a big Thanksgiving meal. It also includes the barn, where both the Auction and Bookfair started, and where most of my growing up took place. The ad also mentions 10 acres of woodland, that’s where you will find my house, built in 1988 and home to so many wonderful memories of our kids growing up. As I think about it, that ad really is for more than 113 acres, it’s for a way of life. Without the farm and the barn to hold the first auctions in, I’m not sure Dad would have made it in the auction business. Certainly, the Bookfair wouldn’t have been a possibility because paying rent definitely wasn’t in the budget for the first 10-15 years.
I asked Dad about this ad and after being shocked (first time he had heard of an ad running), he explained that my Granddaddy Ray passed away in 1961, leaving my Grandma to manage the farm and make ends meet. He assumes that my great aunt placed the ad without anyone knowing because she was concerned that grandma couldn’t manage on her own. My grandma was as stubborn as my father is and they had both agreed that they weren’t going to sell the farm; however, that didn’t stop real estate agents from stopping by with offers, “in case they wanted to sell.”
This ad ran in November 1962; just 4 ½ years later in the spring of 1967, the first Friday night auction was held in the old barn on the farm. This Thanksgiving, I am especially thankful for my Grandma persevering during those difficult times; I am thankful for my dad’s desire to hold onto the family farm and his entrepreneurial spirit; I am thankful for my mom, who not only worked hard raising 4 kids, but also worked side by side with dad in the auction and book business. In short, I am thankful for my way of life.
That last thought “I am thankful for my way of life” is where the gratitude and the heaviness - the thankfulness and the burden - the angst I find myself sitting in comes from. This year as I reflect on what might have been if the farm had been sold, I also look around and see the challenges and struggles people are facing today. Rent, house prices and mortgage rates are all extremely high; food and other expenses are higher than ever; people are struggling to make ends meet. Fortunately, I can turn to the Scriptures to hear what God has to say and find not only comfort, but direction. In the Old Testament, God tells Abraham that he is blessed to be a blessing to others. In the New Testament, Jesus not only gives instruction, he also demonstrates compassion. For me, I find it all summed up in what Jesus calls the second greatest commandment, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” I also rely on God’s love, grace, mercy and forgiveness when I don’t get it right—but that is another whole chapter!
It is out of gratitude for what Jesus has done for us and our desire to follow Jesus that I combine Thanksgiving with Christmas. As we reflect on what we are thankful for, we can also look ahead and see how we can be a blessing to someone struggling this Christmas. This year in partnership with Pleasant Valley Elementary School, we are presenting our own Angel Tree for our Green Valley Family. We truly are glad that we get to know and work with so many wonderful people and we truly feel blessed. In that spirit we want to share this opportunity with you for you to help us bless these 5 families this Christmas. Please, follow this link or stop by Green Valley and choose a person to bless this holiday season. All gifts/donations need to be brought to Green Valley by December 20 and if you have any questions, please email (info@greenvalleyauctions.com) or call (540-434-4260).
Link to Angel Tree Sign Up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0D4DAAAE2BA0FFC34-53576324-help