Chase and Victoria, Texas green, not the pup I expected, counting

Chase and Victoria head back this morning with the little truck. Chase was wanting to leave the topper here and reveal the pickup look for his use in Amarillo but it will be taken off there and stored somewhere close to the house. The idea as they spoke last night was to leave around 7 a.m. and get home well in advance of his starting time at 2 p.m; enough that he could get his work uniform ready in plenty of time. Mama wanted to start them off in the morning so the early departure was not setting well with her. I will find out later how all of that went. Meanwhile I will pray that they make it safely. The little pickup has a couple of minor mechanical issues that are annoying but do not greatly limit its use. I will probably worry more about them than Chase will.


Green grass really does grow in Texas. For the first time since we first saw the property it is more green than brown. The ground is soft under foot and the smell is more of life than the dormant dead, dusty smell it had when we first walked over it. I told Grandpa that if it has looked like this when we first found it, we would not have been able to get it for the price we paid. It really is beautiful. Grandma is able to pick buckets full of grass to feed the chickens and not even notice the place where it was pulled from. In West Virginia this was always the case, it is a new and almost inspiring experience to do that here. God really is blessing this little farm.

Mama did get a pup yesterday; a little male. He was very dirty and very flea infested but she saw what she liked and he came home with them. Victoria gave it a bath last night and he did look much better. He is solid white and fluffy – at least after his bath. Mama told me they were looking for the “badger faced” pups but none of that litter impressed her so the one we have does not have that quality.

He was protesting very loudly this morning when I got up. Although he is very quiet when he is free, he does not like the kennel. I let him out to go potty and he quieted down right away. As soon as I put him away the protests began in earnest. I will be surprised if it did not disturb someone in the house. I left earlier than I would have liked to because I felt like my moving around the house was only adding to the whining and there was no place for me to sit while I was waiting on 5 a.m.

With Chase on the couch in Grandma’s living room and Victoria in her bedroom, I have had to do my Bible reading sitting on the side of the tub. It is not too uncomfortable but it does keep me focused as I read. My routine will change back tomorrow to what I have been doing every other week Mama and I have spent here, but it is really a small sacrifice to be here. No one is in the office when I get there in the morning anyway so it does not really matter how early I arrive.

I plan to take Friday off so I can spend the day out on the farm. Grandpa is at the point on a couple of projects that he needs a little help and I hope to provide that. My back has not been good lately so I have to be careful no matter what I do, but I think us two old men can figure out some way to make things work in our favor. What Grandpa has been able to do on his own is impressive. I am probably the only one who can see it clearly – besides Grandma who has watched him do most of it – but I am constantly surprised by the progress.

Pastor was telling the story of a child asking his father how high he had ever counted. A little caught off guard the father could not come up with a number but instead asked, “How high have you counted?” Without even thinking the son responded, “7352” A little surprised the father asked, “Why did you stop counting at 7352?” The son responded matter-of factly, “The sermon was over.”