Our life's stories are a series of memories from as young as we can remember to our current year. Many of the fun times involve interaction with others. Last Sunday our family got together for Mother's Day. It's always fun to watch cousins (our grandkids) enjoy life together.
Every Mother's Day at our church the men in the congregation sing. I'm not sure who to thank for this picture. If you notice we also had communion remembering Christ died for our wrongs and then conquered death by resurrecting 3 days later.
Bev has Brant on 99.9 radio in the evenings talking about 3 things. One I remember is the best way to raise healthy kids isn't to just give them all the latest stuff. It's to spend time with them. Even Grandpa gets to fill in occasionally.
I attended Jackson's preschool program. Thanks Jan for encouraging me to go. Sitting in front of me were Emily's parents and Jackson's grandparents, Jon and Glenda.
All years have their memories. 2019 will stand out for a number of reasons. Last Sunday Karl was able to come home from the hospital after being scary sick with abdominal pain. The doctors did find an E.coli infection however as Kristin writes on her Snapchat picture why Karl gets sick still goes undiagnosed. The last time Karl was very sick was in 2014. He recuperated fast, was back at the shop on Tuesday, and was busy spraying Thursday afternoon. Thank you Kristin for taking such good care of him. Thank you Kasey for doing chores. Thank you God for healing.
A highlight in my day is when we get to have a conversation with the folks we farm for. They are more than landlords. They are friends. Jerry stopped by one morning with his semi after delivering logs to a sawmill.
Joe and Diana, directors of Lakeview Bible Camp will soon be kicking off their camp season again this summer. Joe and I went to Joshua Christian Academy on Wednesday morning where Joe had devotions and talked to Chris about camp possibilities. JCA is a K-12 Christian school in Des Moines for mostly inner city kids. Kudos to Chris and staff for it's continued growth.
Aaron and Madison will remember 2019. It will be their wedding anniversary. Aaron is my brother Bill and Julie's 4th of 7 children. Congratulations on adding Madison to a wonderful family. The ceremony was moved to Federated Church in Pella because of the rain. The reception was at grandparents Marvin and Carol's.
Thursday afternoon was the only day any field work was accomplished. Our spring weather will be something we remember long after this planting season is over. We have had about 2 1/2 days in the field in the last 3 weeks. Many of our neighbors to the east haven't turned a wheel in 3 weeks. There are many areas in the cornbelt with no crops in yet.
The grain markets have been at a multi year low with corn in the low $3 range and soybeans in the upper $6 range. These are prices I started farming with 45 years ago. Focus have been on trade tariffs and lack of exports. I can't count all the conversations I've had with good folks about waiting for that spring rally and the "what ifs" if it doesn't happen. Well on Tuesday afternoon the market focus went from lack of exports to weather and unplanted acres. The chart below show December/19 corn which is what we watch for the current crop. It has rallied 37 cents in 3 1/2 days. Beans are still dismal. For those of you that have old or new crop to sell, this is our spring rally. The weather and forecast for much more rain suggest it may continue. Just don't miss an opportunity. They don't come often these days.
Our farmers are good and getting better at growing crops. We currently have a record surplus of corn and beans. It's unusual and not good to still see outside piles of corn at grain coops and even bags of corn in farmers fields.
The long range weather forecasters nailed our precipitation amounts. Many folks around here have had over 6 inches of rain for the week including some 4 plus inches last evening.
This is our neighbors, Brad and Julie's field of corn in front of their home last evening.
We had to turn around and find a different way home from Aaron and Madison's wedding.
How will we remember 2019? How do we remember our past? It can be tempting for struggles to make us bitter. However they can also make us better. In our circle of friends 2019 has been a year of health issues. A year of poor markets. A year of weather struggles starting with last fall's 23 inches of rain during harvest, a rough winter, and a wet cold spring. However 2019 has also had it's share of bright times. Our attitude is what we choose to remember.
Let's encourage each other. Pray for each other. Help come along side each other when there are burdens. And be genuinely happy for each other when good things happen. Our family is planning a farmer customer get-together to talk about options relating to weather, delayed planting, crop insurance, and markets. Keep an eye out for more info on Jan's, the kid's, or Boender Custom Farming's facebook page.
When God calls me home as He did to my 68 year old cousin Jim from Tracy this week. I hope and pray I will be remembered as being better, not bitter. How about you? Make it a good week.
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