Any Cat Stevens fans out there? I have a Cat Stevens song in my head this morning:  

"Oh, baby, baby, it's a wild world
It's hard to get by just upon a smile"

The song's lyrics are actually bittersweet and shouldn't come into my mind when I think about my September wedding.  But when the wedding is taking place at a facility called "The Wilds", the song "Wild World" isn't such a stretch!:)

This past weekend Rachel and I headed to a place near Zanesville, Ohio where our September wedding is to take place.  The ceremony will be held outdoors on a high bluff overlooking the valleys and lakes of a place called The Wilds.  The Wilds is a unique 10,000 acre conservation facility that is home to herds of bison, rhinos, giraffes, zebra, rare antelope, bactrian camel, cheetah, and the occasional African wild dog, to name a few.  The acres are discreetly divided with sophisicated fencing to keep certain animals away from one another (cheetahs roaming the same area as zebra would be a little too National Geographic).  This will definitely be a unique wedding, and our guests are being urged to bring binoculars.

The wedding is exciting - but a bit sobering.  It's sobering, because there is still one piece of business left unfinished that I'd like to take care of before starting such a different phase of my life: securing the future of the Amish Cook column.  And that is why I'm headed to Kansas City this weekend.  My book publisher is based there and I think they can play a role with me in making sure the column is around for another 18 years.  I simply can't imagine continuing into married life as editor of The Amish Cook without some sort of stability and, believe me, this column on its own does not provide that.  Nothing lasts forever.  TV series come and go and so do newspaper columns.  It's just tough to figure out whether the time to pack up is close at hand or whether it has another 18 years left in it? But SOMEDAY the column will end, whether it's 5 years or 50 years from now.  I'll definitely keep readers posted, your support is the only thing that has kept this column going this long!