Yesterday, If only

I took off yesterday. The original thought was that I would help Grandpa build the little building so we could get the chickens to Chico. That is not exactly the way it turned out. I made the mistake of showing Mama an ad for calves that I had printed out several days ago. The prices were pretty good so she called.

There were still heifers available. In fact, he had five we could have gotten yesterday and it sounded like a pretty good deal. The seller led us to believe that the five head we were talking about were several months old. The price was around $335 per head. We were making plans to leave in the morning (this morning) when he sent pictures – of tiny, barely off the bottle calves. We backed out.

While all this was going on, Mama and I went to the development commission to see if the property Victoria was attempting to buy was grandfathered into the older acreage requirement for placing a septic system and well. The new requirement is for a minimum of two acres and the property in question has slightly less land – 1.86 acres. We were assured that we would be able to put in the septic system since the last warranty deed on the land showing the new boundaries was dated in early 1994.

All this time Mama was texting back and forth with the seller in Prosper, TX. It would have been about a 2 ½ hour trip each way so we were crowding the clock to get it done that day and Mama was growing more and more apprehensive about the whole deal. So, before we backed out and while Mama and the seller were still negotiating time and price, Peggy called and asked if we could be at her place to pick up the propane tank we asked to buy from her.

She had arranged a tractor to load the tank onto our trailer and we only had a small window of opportunity. So, having finished our business at the county offices in Decatur, we hurried to the house and unloaded the trailer so we could take it to Peggy’s house to reload it. It all worked out –especially since we decided not to make the trip to buy the heifers, but it was a very busy morning.

Later that afternoon, Mama, Grandpa and I worked on the little tin shed. Several times Mama encouraged us to take it all apart, pack it up and take it back. It was a tempting thought but we struggled on and I think we are at a point that we can see how everything is supposed to go together. Mama and Grandpa are going to work on it more today. They should be able to finish it by tomorrow and we will get the chickens to their new coop by the weekend.

Later in the evening Mama, Victoria and I sat down and did some of the homework we are required to do for the class we are taking on Monday nights. We thoroughly enjoyed our first class Monday night. The lectures are quick-paced and jam-packed. There is a study guide provided that is set up for filling in the blanks throughout the lecture so it is easy to keep up.

Grandma sat in on a little of out reading – which is what most of the homework entails – and she enjoyed what she did get to hear. There is so much to cover that I worry about her starting her religious discussions as we are trying to get through the homework, but we will somehow work through it.

I had to endure one of her “church on every corner while the country gets worse and worse” lectures as I tried to eat lunch yesterday. I nodded but reserved comment. That always leads to a debate which is unwinnable because of the “straw men” arguments – if we lived an absolutely pure life, if we showed men who God really is rather than promoting our church, if we all agreed together in love, etc.

Unfortunately, we no longer live in a world that readily accepts even the most basic moral concepts as absolute; much less the Authority of the Bible. That is not a reason to give up on our faith or walk with God. It is all the more reason to continue in that walk as God gives up strength to do so.

We can continue to hope that we will be part of the solution rather than part of the problem – regardless of how Grandma sees it.