StillwatersIowa

Growing up with siblings adds so many more options to ones list of things to do including chasing and running away from shadows.   Webster's definition of a family is descendants of a common ancestor. Sounds kind of prehistoric. The family below has added two more since this pic with another on the way. Our country's culture and our leaders are doing their best to try and do away with the family structure as we know it. If our culture succeeds in breaking down the family structure it can create a population dependent on it's government and the folks in charge of that government. God created family so folks have a purpose. Families are a unit that teaches values, helps each other out, and gives folks to love. The i in FAMiLY is to be small. It's not about me in family. It's about caring about others and teaching our children to do the same. God expects us to take the blessings and benefits of families and be assets in soci...

Good morning. Thought I'd just give you a rundown of our week. Last Sunday noon our church care group came over for lunch. I totally forgot to take a picture. We had a great time. Thanks Dena and Lisa for your coordination.    It rained most of the day Monday. We hauled soybeans to the Mississippi River where they are loaded right on to barges. A barge holds 55000 bushels. Our rain gauge holds 5 inches. It was full. We had a 5 inch rain in September and now another one in October. The fields are definitely soft and many farmers are making arrangements for duals, 4-wheel drive, or tracks on their combines. Last Sunday evening our Pastor used an illustration about a flood in the late 1800s that blew out a dam because of lack of maintenance on the spillway where lives were lost. He related that to living and how we are to maintain our Christian living so we don't have blowouts in our lives.     Tuesday our local Christian radio stati...

Sometimes when my mind is in high gear I forget what I'm doing. For instance at Cargill the other day I pulled on the scale, got the green light, backed up over the pit, unloaded, pulled on the scale to weigh empty thinking about my day, got the green light to exit, not thinking what I was doing backed up again over the pit with an empty truck.  Once in a great while I have hurried off the yard to go accomplish something all the while thinking about something else and then for a moment wonder where I was headed.  Laying in bed dead tired at night with just a few hours to sleep and ones mind won't shut off is a bummer. I'm working really hard at not arriving late. I've been known to get lost in my own little part of the state trying to find a shortcut.  I want to share a story with you this morning that I enjoyed reading. It reminded me of what happens when you try and fit 5 gallon in a 2 gallon bucket. It did NOT happen to me however ...

Have you ever wondered why you do what you do? Are you effective? What motivates you? Do you have integrity? Does what you do benefit others? Do you have a story to tell? We are living in the season of political ads where folks are talking more about their opponents shortcomings than their own goals. What tells more about a candidates heart, their message or their past actions? It will soon be time to see folks about next years crop seed needs. Crop prices make planning uncertain. In the picture below is a seed dealer, his boss, and his bosses boss. Actually the real bosses in the pic are the other 4 guys, the customer. The customer is the one who pays salaries and keeps companies in business. If a business takes care of it's customers honestly, the bottom line will take care of itself.   Food is usually effective at our house when folks want to show they appreciate our business. Thanks Brent and Randy for lunch in the field. Due to harvest Karl...