Our "vacation" from the usual

Everybody needs a vacation once in awhile; a change of pace; something different than the usual daily routine.  Our daily routine, we must admit, is pretty enjoyable: daily exercise walk, a little gardening or outside work, a daily siesta, visiting with friends, dancing two or three times a week, occasional symphony orchestra concerts and university theater plays, and lots of time for reading. But, since several doctors have delayed our summer travel schedule, we decided we needed a vacation!

We drove north for about two hours,

through the cactus, mesquite and brush of south Texas

to the small city of Falfurrias.

It is the county seat of Brooks County, Texas.  Just south of the city there is an Immigration Control Enforcement (ICE) checkpoint where all northbound vehicles must stop for questioning or search. Some residents of the area declare that there are more apprehensions of illegal immigrants there than at any other checkpoint along the U.S./Mexican border  But the town of Falfurrias was not our destination.

Just a mile or so north of the town, on the east side of Route 281, is the Falfurrias Church of the Brethren. That's where we would spend our "vacation."

We had visited there a few years ago.  Now, we were returning to feature the ministries of the little church on the on-line congregation for which we help provide some leadership. We arrived at the church a week early to see if we could be of any help in their ministries.

The congregation had been founded in 1928.  

The building was erected in the 1940s 

and space was added in 1962.

The large sanctuary is a reminder of the days when it was filled on Sunday mornings.  

The smaller group that gathers each Sunday morning now meets in a smaller, side room 

in order to be good stewards in their use of utilities.

But this logo is clearly displayed on the front wall of the church building which faces U.S. Route 281. It was the life perspective of one of the ancestors of the Church of the Brethren, and clearly describes the continuing purpose of this congregation.

The church-owned acreage around the building is farmed on shares by a neighbor.  But the fifteen acres surrounding the church building includes a variety of ministries.

The congregation owns 2 houses, which are occupied rent-free
by needy members of the church or community.

A healthy flock of chickens is kept by the resident of one of the church owned houses.

Eggs are gathered and sold to those who stop in response
to the sign in the front yard of the church: "Fresh Eggs for Sale."

The large yard surrounding the church building also has room to house a neighbor's goats!

Inside the church building, space no longer needed for activities of a larger congregation are filled with boxes of used clothes, sewing machines for mending them, shoes, and toys.  They are neatly sorted and packed in boxes which are delivered several times a year to Border Mission.  This mission is located in the Rio Grande Valley just a block or two from one of the bridges that connect Mexico and the U.S.  

The congregation is active in the local community food bank. They also serve with a cooperative effort of Falfurrias  churches to address social needs of their community and county, including the plight of illegal immigrants headed north along the route on which the church is located.

So, what did we do on our vacation at this active little congregation?

We mowed and trimmed the cemetery, under the wild olive tree.  I washed windows in the church building and Bruce helped with a building project.

We helped mow the LARGE lawn around the church building,

and trimmed around trees and out-buildings nearly overgrown with grass and weeds.

And all the time we were working, we could enjoy the lovely flowers and trees:

the esperanza (hope) tree

the Indian blanket blooms,

and the graceful, yellow-tipped branches of the retama tree.

After a week of gathering aching muscles, new friends, fresh insights into Texas history, and some very delicious Mexican food,  it was time to head south again, back "home" to real life!

Aromatic Accident Account

We don't even need to leave home to get excitement and adventure!  It comes right here to our RV park just 100 feet or so from our front door!   Since it was a rainy Saturday, we were working at home, inside, and missed the whole event!

It seems that a neighbor down the street (who shall forever remain nameless!) needed to do a small welding job on the back of his expensive motor coach.  Instead of renting a welder and doing the work on his own site, he decided to back his coach close enough to the tool shed to use the company welder.  What he didn't know has hurt us all!

(Photo by Lee Marks)

Beneath that grassy spot he was backing over lay three of the park's septic tanks.  Our friend couldn't figure out why the back wheels of the coach suddenly sank into -- and below -- the ground.  The frame of the coach was resting on the ground and the front wheels on the passenger's side were up off the ground!  That's when someone told him about the septic tanks below!

There was no way he, or anybody else, was going to get that rig out of that spot.  A wrecker had to be called! 

(Photo by Lee Marks)

Not just any wrecker, mind you. but a BIG WRECKER!  The kind that can tow out semi trucks.  He deftly pulled that marooned motor coach right up and out of its septic snafu!  We're told that it was great entertainment for the crowd that had gathered to watch.  Nobody (probably including the coach's owner) wanted to even try to estimate what it costs to engage such a motorized marvel!

(Photo by Lee Marks)

With the coach out of the way, the spectators could review the damage.  Clearly, the lid on at least one of the three septic tanks was broken.  But what about the other two?  How much damage had they suffered?

The site of the dirty deed was temporarily covered over with a slab of plywood.  The entire area was marked off clearly with a fence of "CAUTION" tape until repairs could be scheduled.

It took a week and a half, but the "repair regiment" did arrive.  Of course the big back hoe and pumper truck had to make the hole worse before they could make it better!

(Photo by Misty Katz)

Those of us watching the operation quickly learned to move upwind to the process.  The aroma wafting forth from the work site  would have a dismal future if ever distilled into a perfume!

(Photo by Misty Katz)

What a smelly mess!  But the workmen seemed not to mind at all as they pushed dirt, pulled dirt, piled up dirt, and suctioned out the unspeakable -- and invisible -- mess from below.  In the midst of that putrid odor, they had some good news for us: only one of the three lids was broken and none of the tanks was seriously damaged.  To make them feel useful, I guess, they replaced the lids on all three tanks.  The extent of wear on the middle tank prompted the park owners to have them replace that one tank while they were here.

(Photo by Misty Katz)

Even replacing just one tank looked like a big job to us, but they handled it so smoothly and quickly it was clear that this was not the first time they have done such a dirty deed!

(Photo by Misty Katz) 

Within five hours, the unpleasant undertaking was completed, the site again hidden with innocent-looking dirt.   The back hoe and pumper truck and their skillful crews were on their way home.  Or, perhaps, they were off to another aromatic adventure for that day.

Cruising on the Rio Grande

It's not as scenic as the Danube, nor as romantic as the Seine.  It's not nearly as busy as the Potomac, but it is the southern border of our nation.  Last Thursday, March 19, we went cruising on the Rio Grande River.

Riverside Restaurant on the U.S. shore of the river offers boat cruises. So we joined about 35 friends from our park and explored part of that winding and historic waterway.

Riverside used to have fierce business competition on the river.  Pepe's Backyard had been in business just up the river for many years and was a very popular gathering place for food, live music and dancing.  But, in 2010, the rains of a hurricane flooded the river so badly that Pepe's was nearly destroyed, and stands as this empty shell.  The narrator of our boat cruise reported that it may have been bought by Mexican money to be renovated.

As we traveled downstream, we were pleasantly surprised at the amount of development that has been done on the Mexican side.  This new house under construction appears to be a large and sturdy structure.

Much of the shore on the Mexican side is occupied by private dwellings

public parks for recreation,

and this rather elegant private party house.

Another public park, larger than the first, offered boat rides and was hosting small crowds of school children as we cruised by.

Because the course of the Rio Grande River is so crooked and serpentine, this very large Mexican park lies north of the park across the river on the U.S. side. Before the flooding in June, 2010, this park hosted hundreds of family picnics on sunny afternoons. Mexican children swimming and their families gathered in palapa-roofed picnic shelters were clearly visible from the U.S. side.

But the hurricane and flooding of 2010 changed many things.  The long peninsula upon which this park was built was torn in half by the raging Rio Grande.  An island of destruction was left unconnected to the main land.  The course of the river was changed so dramatically that we had to sail through Mexican waters to get to our destination downstream.

Anzalduas Dam, seen here in the distance, was as far as we could travel downstream on the river.

This large dam is part of the extensive flood control and irrigation system that keeps the Rio Grande Valley green all year round.

Turning around, our boat headed back upstream, past the dock where we had loaded.  The next crowd of riverboat travelers was waiting for their turn.

On the U.S. side of the river, our next view was of this large number of Border Patrol vehicles parked at the boat launch of the neighboring RV park..  As you may imagine, the Rio Grande River is one of the major areas where the Border Patrol tries to prevent the crossing of Mexican national without papers.  It is a constant effort.

The Chimney Park Resort and RV Park is named for the large brick chimney, part of an early irrigation system, that stands in its midst.

It was an enjoyable little cruise.  As we disembarked and headed for a delicious lunch at the restaurant, the image of the RV park and the Border Patrol vehicles remained in my memory.  They seemed symbolic of life on the Rio Grande River!

ANSWERED PRAYERS

 

 

Throughout

the drought

we prayed for rain

in groups and all alone.

But no rain came.

It seemed as if

God was not at home!

 

This year it's rain

again, and again,

as if it will never be done!

But,

it's just God answering

last year's rain-prayers,

slowly,

and one by one!

 

 

 

The Best Gift

If Emmanuel came to our world this month,

Would it make the evening news?

Or would it be lost in TV ads

For gadgets we’ll never use?

If the Incarnation came to our town

This week, could we really tell?

Or would His gentle blessing

Be drowned out by jingle bells?

If Jesus came to our house today

Would we have time to visit?

Or would we be out shopping;

Not at home, and so we’d miss it?

But REJOICE!

God is with us every day,

Goes with us everywhere.

God’s love is the very best gift of all;

Given to us so we can share.

MAY YOU BE BE BLESSED

BY GOD’S LOVE

AT CHRISTMAS

AND THROUGHOUT THE NEW YEAR!

CAUTION: Technology may be hazardous to your health

Before I begin this rant, let’s get something straight. The word "technology" in my vocabulary means only a personal computer and a cell phone (not a smart phone whose intelligence exceeds mine!). Those two devices are the extent of my entry into the 21^st century’s mysteries of domesticated electrons (or whatever it is that runs that "techy" stuff).

But even my tentative entry into that electronic world has convinced me that technology can be hazardous to your health! For many years we’ve known about wrist pain (carpal tunnel syndrome) as a result of spending too many hours keyboarding. We can develop blood clots (deep vein thrombosis) in our legs, back pain, and stooped shoulders (or should that be "stupid shoulders"?) from too much time spent sitting at the computer desk. Eye strain and hallucinations can result from uninterrupted hours of staring at a computer screen.

Fingertip numbness can occur from pounding the keys of the computer keyboard in frustration after too many hours of inability to complete a task. This can lead to hearing strange voices as your numb fingers hit incorrect keys and bring up advertising for stuff you’ve never heard of before! By this time, you have a full-blown case of computer addiction and information overload.

Cell phones have different health hazards. A pain in the neck is one of the first symptoms of overuse. That progresses to a permanent crook in the neck toward the ear accustomed to balancing the cell phone on your shoulder. Scientists are not of one mind on whether the use of a cell phone causes radiation to your brain. They all agree, however, that continuous overuse can result in an enlarged, cauliflower-shaped ear. Like the old game of "telephone," constant use can also cause the spread of inaccurate information which may lead to broken friendships.

So why do we take these health risks? Why do we endanger our well-being with these electronic boxes? Advertising has told us that they will make our lives more convenient, transactions faster and more secure, and we will be more accessible to our friends and important information.

Well, I think advertising has sold us a bill of goods! Tell me about convenience when I have just spent twice as long registering on-line than if I had used a pen and paper. Tell me about faster when I have to boot up for the umpteenth time because the wi-fi system has gone down again. Tell me about security when Chase Bank, with all it levels of security, has been hacked into and customer data has been stolen. As to better access to our friends, what about the non-friends who infect our on-line accounts with viruses, or strangers who come out of the woodwork "liking" us. Not to mention our access to scammers who promise us a fortune for the cost of only a few dollars. And, of course, there are the ads that pop up in every possible location trying to sell us stuff we don’t want. And important information? Indeed, it is there, but it’s usually buried deep under a mound of UNimportant information or appears only in the small print.

All of this is pushing me toward a health problem that I have not yet found listed in any of the medical diagnostic books. It could be that I am the only person suffering from it but I suspect more cases will occur in the future. The disease is "technology induced paranoia".

The initial symptoms are subtle; just a constant repetition of the question "Why?" Receiving no logical answer, the disease grows more serious; I’m becoming convinced that technology has been invented for the sole purpose of frustrating me! It exists primarily to make my life miserable. Otherwise, why can my husband solve a computer or cell phone problem in 15 seconds that has been bugging me for hours? The whole field of electronic devices is out to get me!

And I know that they’re coming for me! Can you hear them? They’re coming up the steps to the front door! I know what they’ll do. They’ll grab me and carry me off to a small, windowless cell containing nothing but a pencil and paper! Without a trial, I’ll be declared an enemy of the Technological State and left there in prison to scribble my life into oblivion!

Help! Can’t somebody rescue me from my suffering in technology-induced paranoia? Is there no hope? Oh, woe is me: I even had to use the electronic box to write this complaint against it!!

Cotton pickin' time in south Texas

When the roadsides in nearby Willacy County look like this,

 

it's cotton pickin' time in south Texas!

 

Usually, on our fall trip south, all we see are cotton fields that have already been harvested and disked in preparation for next year's crop. 

 

 

 But this year the cotton harvest has been late, and apparently abundant.  Harvest season appears to be quite brief and very weather-dependent.

 

 

As we have observed cotton harvest from the sidelines in our northern neighbor-county, the field work involves two large pieces of machinery.  The first is the harvester:

 

 

A four-row picker seems to be the most common in these parts but videos we have watched have shown pickers as wide as six-rows.  Since the harvest is so dependent upon good weather, it's not unusual to see more than one picker at work in order to speed up the process.

 

 

The second essential piece of equipment in the field is the "cotton module builder," also called a compactor:



 

 

A closer inspection would show you that this "box on wheels" has no bottom.  It is moved to the field on its wheels, pulled by a tractor.  When it arrives in the field where it is needed, the wheels are retracted and it sits on the ground.

 

 

The tractor that pulls the compacter to the field provides the power for its operation.  When the picker completes its load of cotton,



 

 

it approaches the stationary compactor,

 



and the load is dumped into the open box of the compactor.

 



  Nothing is wasted.  Even the bolls that overshoot the compactor are gathered up by hand and returned to the machine.

 

 

Then the compactor begins compressing the "seed cotton" into modules by use of a hydraulic device mounted on the compactor.  Numerous harvestor loads of cotton are necessary to complete the module which can weigh as much as 18,000 pounds.  The cotton module is removed from the compactor by a pulley device mounted in the compactor. The module is then covered with a tarp, and left in the field until taken to the gin.

 



 With the harvest complete, it's time for the  next phase of production: the processing.  Specially designed trucks with parallel chains built into the floor of the tilting truck bed, load up the cotton modules in the field and head for the cotton gin.

 

 

Modules of seed cotton await processing at the gin, covered with tarps to prevent any moisture from spoiling the quality of the crop.

 

 



Seed cotton, raw from the field before processing, contains many impurities such as the seeds, tiny branches of vegetation, and field soil which must be removed before it is useful.

 

 

After the lengthy and complex processing of the seed cotton, it is then referred to as cotton fiber and compressed into smaller units called bales.  Each bale weighs approximately 500 pounds.  They are weighed,

 

 

and stored in the warehouse,

 

 

awaiting shipping.

 

 

 Cotton fiber for making cloth, yarn, string, and other products is only part of what the cotton crop yields.  Cottonseeds removed from the fibers are stored in bins such as these:

 

 

and made into oil for human consumption, livestock feeds, and biodiesel.

 

Cotton does not seem to be as important in Texas agriculture as it is in some other areas of the South.   But it is one of the "three C's" of Lone Star farming -- cane, cotton, and citrus -- that we ex-Midwesterners find new, different and interesting.  We thought you might, too!