I must say I was a pampered princess growing up. My dad did not let his girls use lawn equipment, nor did he make us help with outside chores. I, personally, think he did all the outside work by himself to get away from all the girls. The yard was his domain.

My mom added to the role of pampered princesses. Whenever us girls were attending a high school dance, my mom didn’t let us do any housework. We were to pamper ourselves like Egyptian royalty, soaking in a scented bath, polishing our nails and fixing our hair.

When I got married, I remained a pampered princess. Yard work just wasn’t my thing.

Fast forward 27 years when we moved to my beloved #SpookyHollowSouthernMS. I discovered how much I love the farm life. Polished nails were a thing of the past. I dug in the dirt, touched earthworms, got a farmer’s tan……

I was quickly shedding the pampered princess persona, or so I thought.

Fast forward 10 more years to widowhood. I realized, even though I was no longer a high maintenance city girl, I was still somewhat pampered. The husband may have been disabled, but he was still the caretaker. All I did was go to work and dabble in the garden. I never had to cut grass, cook, clean or fix anything that broke.

This week is brought to you by the letter “W”. We have a broken weed eater, a broken washing machine and a broken water well.

The water well was the worst.

In the past, I would have headed off to work, come back 9 hours later, and all would be fixed.

Now I have to make the decisions. While all I wanted to do was check into a hotel and wait out everything getting fixed, I couldn’t. I had to work, wait for repairmen to get estimates, take care of a sick granddaughter, put pots outside to catch rainwater, haul in water from the redneck pool to flush the toilet, and make sure the dogs, cats, chickens and ducks all had water.

I was so mad at the late husband for leaving me with all this I rode the riding mower in the wet, muddy yard, doing donuts, leaving ruts in what was once the husband’s pride and joy. There take that!

Once I got the frustration out, I knew what had to be done. I saw another rain storm was coming so I filled a bowl of rainwater with Tide, threw a set of clothes in for the next day, put on my bathing suit, grabbed my Avon Veilment Natural Spa Black Rose Body Scrub & Cleanser, Avon Elastine PropoliThera Volumizing Shampoo & Conditioner (OK – maybe I am still a little high maintenance), and headed outside.

The grandson, who was filthy from playing on the faux farm all day, was going to join me. He stepped into the rainstorm and said no way, that water was too cold.

Didn’t phase me. I washed clothes, bathed, washed and conditioned my hair.

I have a new appreciation for our forefathers and mothers whose main job was just surviving by taking care of the homestead.

After this week, nobody better ever call me a high maintenance city girl!

(Just a note to my U.S. readers – I am finding healing in giving back.  My side job – my Avon business – is helping me do that.  My daughter, and youth minister son-in-law, have a personal ministry of reaching out to college students in their home town. Pre-Quarantine, they would bring the college students into their home on Monday nights to break bread, play games and speak the gospel.  They have since then had to find other ways to minister to these young men and women.  I am tithing my online order proceeds to their ministry.  Every little bit helps.  Would you please check out my website?  If this is your first time ordering Avon online, use code WELCOME10 for 10% off any size order.  Your products will be delivered directly to your door.  Some of the college students are foreign exchange students.  From a hand built table in southern Mississippi, the gospel is managing to be spread around the world.  Would you shop from my online store and have a part in spreading God’s word?)

YourAvon.com/ghegwood