What Are Summers For

For the last two weeks or so it feels like summer has finally arrived after getting behind from a late fall, a hard winter, and a postponed waterlogged spring. 

 Summers are for families. For immediate and extended. For get-togethers and gatherings. For pizza and picnics. Thanks for the picture Karl.

 At our house summers are for Sunday afternoon Ranger rides. Checking crops. Going to see the kid's projects. Visiting neighbors. Finding a small rural cemetery and reading the stories on the tombstones. Just being together.

Summers are for baling hay. It's a memory I dare say most of you remember. The heat, the dust, the bumpy ride on the hay rack, Grandpa teasing about not using gloves, the community water jug, and maybe the swimming in the pond at the end of the day. 

 Summers are for grandkids helping. School is out. Little League is over. They are growing up so fast they will soon have their own jobs as our older grandkids already do. Most look at the job they helped with when they're finished, smile, and feel good about themselves.

Summers are for cold drinks of water. Yes things have changed. No more pass the water jug. No more well water from a good old Iowa hydrant.

 Summers are for cousins hanging out. About the younger ones feeling big getting to be with the older ones. Below is Hazel, Allison, Natalie, and Adi, four of our seven granddaughters.

Summers are for the State Fair. Eating, entertainment, livestock, camping, browsing, and queens. Congratulations Hannah on being our 2019 State Fair queen from Mahaska County. Hannah and Jenny keep all our sprayer records straight at our local CPS who we spray for. She also used our cabin for her Senior party. Her dad farms and works for CPS. Her mom works at Christian Opportunity Center. Thanks for the picture Osky News.

 Summers are for projects. Kurt had Ron and crew help him pour a cement apron in front of he and Emily's shop west of Leighton. Thanks for the picture Kurt.

Our family continued the pond project on one of BJs farms. I brought the old 1945 D73T Caterpillar over and helped. I didn't have to worry about things like cup holders, cell phone plug ins, broken air conditioning, dirty cab windows, or dead batteries. It doesn't have any of those things. You have to crank start the pony motor and then engage the diesel.

At our house summers are for contracting diesel fuel for our fall use. Today our diesel tank stickers remind us about maintenance procedures, filter screen size, low sulfur, and DEF fluid. In 1945 the cap says, "Buy clean fuel. Keep it clean".

 Summers are for mowing grass. BJ and Cassia's John has been helping out Jan this summer. John will be an 8th grader this fall. This week Becky and Brian's Ezra helped me out. Ezra will be going into 6th grade.

Summers are for friends getting together. This past Wednesday evening the gals served around 275 folks at our appreciation supper. A huge thanks to the guys who helped clean up and get ready, to Kristin and the gals for organizing and serving, and Jan for preparing more food than you can imagine. This was our 30th supper. Kurt and Karl were just 4 months old at our first one with Jan's mother helping her out with them. 

John and our paths have crossed enough over the years we have become friends. Since he has grandkids in Oskaloosa and since he had to come to Iowa anyway to tape Market To Market on channel 11 he, his wife Janet, and son Todd joined us for the evening. John and Janet live in Florida and own Roach Ag Marketing.

 Summers are for rejuvenating and growing, warmth and color. Summer is outdoors and sleeveless shirts and swimming. Summer is when young boys explore. When their young minds come up with endless projects to build. Below the young cousins are climbing and checking out Grandpa's stuff.

 Lane was the youngest at our appreciation supper at two and a half weeks old with his mother Emily holding him. In this story this morning Lane would represent the spring season of births and beginnings.

Kurt and Emily's Lane is obviously our youngest grandchild. BJ and Cassia's Gideon is our oldest and is going to be a senior at PCHS this fall. So what are summers before your senior year of high school for? Senior pictures. Becky does an amazing job of capturing a story in a picture. (becky oschner photography)

Spring is birth and beginnings. Summer is growing and relationships. Fall is maturity and production and harvest. Winter is aging and dying. All of us will go through all four seasons in our lifetime. Make your summer count. Thanks for the visit.