Dear Watchman:

Greetings. Your email was indeed a refreshing to me and a timely call to my soul for perfection (Genesis 17:1). That is what a preacher does, he calls to souls.

There was something about you leading about a wife that really struck a chord within me. Your woman will have to be a very, very special, precious, lovely woman for that holy assignment. I do not believe that you would settle for less. He that findeth a wife findeth a good thing and obtaineth favour of the Lord (Prov. 18:22). The generative principle in man manifesting in children is greatly magnified in the scriptures both physically and spiritually. The Lord and the great apostle Paul counselled to remain unmarried for those that can receive it--with marriage comes troubles in the flesh--but if need be, take your wife and live as joint heirs of the grace of life. There are people today that do not get their marriage license from the state. They have their own marriage ceremonies and ways with witnesses present. There are examples of marriage feasts and ways right in the scriptures--Adam & Eve, Isaac & Rebecca, Samson's feast for his marriage. Ancient cultures knew what foods to eat to prepare the bride and the groom for optimal fertility, healthy bodies, healthy babies...

Your comments about manhood have enlightened before, and yes, seeking and attaining is a real and powerful and motivating force.

Although the call to humility prevents you from focusing on yourself, I can indeed say that man is indeed great--a lord over the entire earth (Genesis 1:28). And those to whom the word of God came were called gods (John 10:34-35).

You mentioned the liberating exercise of identifying wild edibles in your own yard. I was just finishing up our Weed Walk page that features a few of the weeds and wild edibles that we forage for in our yard that have wide distribution. Please take a look at it and tell me if you have noticed any of these in your area.

If you do not have books by Linda Runyon and her new Master Class DVD, I **highly** recommend them all for your bookshelf, including her weed identification cards. http://www.ofthefield.com/ The DVD is helpful for those who have already begun identifying wild edibles and have read her "Homestead Memories" book and perhaps perused her "Essential Wild Food Survival Guide" (formerly, "From Crabgrass Muffins to Pine Needle Tea").

I thought about what some call a complete breakfast the other day
1. Toast (carbohydrates)
2. Orange Juice
3. Milk
4. Eggs

An equivalent wild breakfast--
1. Prepared dandelion root and/or acorns (can make bread, etc. if desired)
2. Pine needle tea
3. Dandelion leaves 10-15 dandelion leaves has as much calcium as 6-8 ounces of milk. I have heard dandelion flowers described as "pure calcium".
4. Clover, dried comfrey with purslane (high protein)

There is enough food outside to live off of.

It is now time to prepare for spring plantings. I had some potatoes in the pantry with eyes growing on them. I sat them on the table for futher chiting (stems growing out). I'll plant them next month (March). God made the seasons exactly and precisely for a specific reason. Spring rains, dry sunny summers with timed rains, dry cool harvest season, cold winter to kill back insects, prepare seed with required chill hours, allow root systems to develop, etc. There is a rhythm to the seasons. In the winter, we do the inside work, sewing, crocheting, planning and some outside work, e.g., pruning....

I am ordering some tepary, desert-type beans. I am focusing on a few choice plants. I want to eat the food that I grow, perhaps exclusively. There will be room for my wild edibles. In some cases a single plant like Lamb's Quarters or polk sallet can give you an entire winter's store, or close to it.

Mephibosheth