Monday, April 22, 2019
Yes, it was a beautiful Resurrection Sunday. A cloudless blue sky, with a warm 75ºF (24C) afternoon temperature. Okay… there was a little frost in the early morning, but it burned away quickly. Church services at WCC were terrific, and the special day brought a better attendance. It was a happy time. In the evening, John and his family came over for an egg hunt and to have supper together. Grandma and grandpa got to play outside with the girls. We missed Ben and Kierstin–he was at work, flying from Alabama to DC. But, making the best of it, we enjoyed our day, a sweet, memorable one.
Part of the playtime with our granddaughters was watching them run through the dandelion puffs at the edge of the field. Simple joys!
The sunshine continues today, with a few wispy clouds overhead. Now that Easter is behind us, we are even more eager to get going. John is giving the NH3 application tool the once-over again this morning. We hope to get that going soon. Perhaps the sprayer can run again soon also. I think I can take the backhoe to the Watjen farm to push out a tree that has fallen from the fencerow into the field. The recent (Thurs-Sat) rain of almost 2″ has pushed back our spring work again.
It kinda feels like that when it does break loose, there’ll be a mountain of work to do all at once! In times like that, one has to remember to keep a proper pace– not too hurried so as to become foolhardy or dangerous, but steady and dedicated. Yes, it’ll get done. And, planting time is so critical to get ‘right’.
John is working on the NH3 applicator today. Field work is surely getting closer.
And, when you see on Twitter that farmers in Iowa or Nebraska are running their planters…you see the dust in the air… it gives you a greater urge to get going. Of course, we are happy for them–we are just eager to get some dust flying, too!
Thinking back a few years, the spring of 2012: We finished all spring planting work on April 13! The nitrogen went on in late March, the spraying was completed early and accurately. We planted into warm, moist soils. We were convinced that we had hit a home run! But the Great Drought of 2012 made for different results. It was a firm reminder that we must do everything we can possibly do to launch a successful crop. But in the end, if there are no timely rains, we will have a failure. So we do our part, and trust God for the increase. In our line of work, it should be no question on how utterly we depend on the blessing of our Maker!
We hope you have a special, safe, and productive week.
