StillwatersIowa

 Last Sunday evening Jan took this picture during Parking Lot Praise at our church. This picture made me wonder what our country will look like when hopefully our grandchildren have families of their own. And then a followup thought. Am I doing everything I can to help. Thanks Ethan, Elijah, John, Rachel, and Amelia. It's enjoyable to help with the little things. Gideon and Noah stopped by yesterday, said their mower had quit working, and asked if they could borrow Grandmas. I heard Gideon tell his friend Noah, "Wow, this is a nice mower". I used to worry about what folks might think if we had newer paint. My point in this story is you can't help folks if you don't have something reliable to share with them. We shared things with a half a dozen folks this week. Another little way we can help is to teach the young ones to help others. This project involved picking apples for Grandma. I wasn't real successful in this endeavor. If you look close Lane is throwing ...

Late summer is a season of relationships. With family and vacations. With friends and visits. With crop input suppliers and landlords, planning for next year. I'd like to share four examples of folks no longer with us that had a preferred outcome and made decisions with our family's best interest in mind. My father said no when he was asked if I could be on the football team as a freshman by North Mahaska's coach. He said there was farming to do. And I needed to get a part time job. We went to see Walter, an older crop and sheep farmer in our neighborhood. I was 14 years old when I started helping Walter. Little did I know that my father's decision for me would be my start in my current occupation.   Walter and I became good friends. I worked for him for three years. When I was 17 years old I found Walter in his home. He had died of a heart attack. His family rented me their 200 acres from 1974-76, until the farm sold. Walter's family wanted a preferred outcome. The...

 I enjoy our Sunday morning chats. If the truth be told I'd probably still get up early on Sunday mornings and collect my weekly pictures and thoughts even if you all didn't read them. However the fact that you do take the time to be part of this visit is an encouragement and I value the relationship. One of the many groups that joins us in this visit is grandchildren. They are often part of our stories. One day seven year old Jackson said, "Grandpa, I read your blog". I was surprised and asked him when he learned to read. He said, "I leaned to read in 1st grade". This morning's thoughts are written for grandkids. Please look over their shoulder and join us as we tell this week's story. One May morning 32 years ago a truck I didn't recognize pulled on our yard. Shannon introduced himself and said he had come to ask me to sell seed for the Roberts family who owned Dekalb. I told him I was not a salesman. He accepted that but asked if he could come...

Today we are blessed to live in a country where we still get to build. Yes...projects, businesses, and a way of life. However today I want to remind ourselves we also get to build mission, purpose, and responsibility. Below Jayden, Lane, Jackson, and Malaki are building those charecter traits as they pick and shuck sweetcorn for Jan for lunch last Monday. When those traits are encouraged in the early years of one's life it opens doors. It's the foundation for confidence, independence, and being productive. Those three cornerstones of our culture are being challenged today by our leaders. They are pushing fear, dependence, and unemployment. And they are using Covid to accomplish their objective. Today we live in a country where we have shortages because folks have lost their compass for building. Below is Karl and Kristin's family farm. Kudos and blessings to those of you who still choose to be confident, independent, and productive. God created family to be the glue for muc...