A “Little” Overview of October
October kept us busy with mostly our usual routine of life in Mineola. There was no great excitement this month, but maybe that was our blessing.+++++
Our church activities keep us busy on Sundays and some Wednesdays, and Barbara has taken on a new responsibility as the unofficial “official” photographer. This month, the church began work on a new pictorial directory. Several days were set aside for folks to come to the church to have their pictures made by photographer. However, there were a number of people who, for one reason or another, could not come to any of those sessions. Pastor David realized that there are several shut-ins and homebound church members, so he asked Barbara if, when the opportunities arose, she would go with him to take pictures at the homes so those members could be included in the directory. We did find that to be a very satisfying and heartwarming experience.+++++
A church-related event that I began this month was to start going to Lake Fork with the Monday night fishing group with David, Jeremy, and a few other men from the church. We generally meet at 4:30, get into two or three boats, and fish until around 8:00 (well after dark), and then go to the home of one of the ladies in the church (who allows us to use her rights to the boat ramp) for fellowship, coffee, and whatever new treat Mary has come up with while we were on the lake. I can’t say that I have done great at fishing, but I haven’t been “skunked”…yet.
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Mother continues to do well at Wood Memorial Nursing Home here in Mineola. A couple of concerns that we have are that she is slowly losing weight, just a little each week, even though her appetite remains strong, and that she is having more days when she doesn’t know where she is. She is comfortable in the setting of her room, and we will be having a perfectly normal conversation with her, when she will ask where she is. Each time that happens, we remind her that she is at the nursing home and that she is there to receive the care and attention she needs to stay healthy. Even though most days are good, it is difficult to watch as the Parkinsonism continues its inexorable march through her brain, taking away her memories and reasoning capabilities.+++++
One of the main activities of the month was to try to get caught up with our journal/blog writing and posting. We had gotten so far behind that we almost decided to forget the whole thing, but decided instead to try a new format. For five years, we have written the journal in a day-by-day format, and that was well and good when we were travelling or involved in a lot of interesting activities. Since we are now “town folks” with a somewhat limited range of activities, we decided to try something different. We still have a lot of pictures to share, so we came up with the idea of giving a general overview of the month and then adding in pictures and descriptions of any special events that occurred during the month. Luckily, we have kept our calendar current, so it wasn’t too difficult to construct a written account of the three months we had “lost.” But, it was a time consuming project. With the posting of this writing, we will finally be up to date with our entries.+++++
After a long, hot, and very arid summer, it was refreshing to not only begin experiencing slightly cooler and much easier to withstand temperatures, but we also received three very nice rainfalls during the month. We are still way behind on our annual average, and the predictions for the winter aren’t all that favorable, but we cheerfully accept rain in any amounts and at any time. Unfortunately, area lakes remain anywhere from 6 – 8 feet below average, so prayers continue for the rains that will return East Texas to its prime state.+++++
For part of the month, we remained under siege by our local armadillo, who continued destroying our lawns each night. We tried everything we knew to do to catch him, but nothing seemed to work until Barbara and I constructed a makeshift fence across the end of the street. That seemed to keep the armadillo away from the yards, but we knew it would be only a matter of time before he would figure another way in. John (across the street neighbor) and we set out our traps next to the fence, but had no luck catching the critter until one Saturday morning when we had given up our efforts, went to get the traps to put them away, and John found the critter in his trap. Hallelujah, the siege was broken and our yards were safe again!!!+++++
October also provided us with opportunities to visit some children and grandchildren and to renew acquaintances with friends, some from many years past. God provided us with His traveling mercies as we continued to log the miles on the new car and make our way through Dallas/Fort Worth and San Antonio, two of our non-favorite cities in which to drive, as we made our journeys. We did find, however, that as we became more like the drivers in those cities, we were able to negotiate the traffic much more easily.+++++
After watching me struggle through writing previous issues of the journal/blog on my aging Toshiba laptop, Barbara decided that I should think about getting a new laptop. She did some research and came up with a Dell laptop that I really liked, so she ordered that and now I am preparing this issue of Little Times on my combined birthday and Christmas present. I must say that it has made writing and browsing much easier and more fun.+++++
That’s the background story for October, 2011. Now, on with the pictures and descriptions of some of the special days we shared together and with family and friends…+++++
Sunday, October 2We spent the afternoon cleaning up the pad and patio and rearranging the carpets and furniture to include the new picnic table in the setting. It is so nice to have the new covered patio area for lounging in the solitude of our property.
Monday, October 3
The armadillo has made a couple of particularly vicious attacks on the lawns lately, digging even deeper holes than before in John’s, Addie’s, and our front yards.
Using our Odyssey of the Mind skill sets, we placed ornamental wrought iron fence sections that used to line the driveway, and even a folded card table and a six-foot school cafeteria-style table to fill in the blank spots. It looked like an Arkie/Okie project, but it extended from fence to fence across the street at the edge of the North 40 and appeared, at least, capable of keeping the armadillo away from the yards until we could come up with something more suitable.
Tuesday, October 4
After going to the weekly prayer meeting at Yantis FBC this morning, I went to Our Little Lot at Holiday Villages of Lake Fork to continue working on a three-day project that I started in July. This morning, I wanted to get as far as I could with tying in a water line that will run from the existing line to the new shed.
The work was tedious, mainly because the ground is so dry and hard-packed from the drought, but I managed to expose the water main and dig under the existing sewer line so I could install the final four feet of water line.
I found that because of the way I had to lay the line, I was going to need a couple more connecting joints, but at least I knew I was much closer to finishing this part of the project than I was before.
When I returned to Mineola, I went to the post office, stopped at Ace Hardware to buy the PVC joints I needed, went to O’Reilly’s Auto Parts to get a new battery for the motorcycle, and then returned to the house.
The job wasn’t as easy as it might seem, mainly due to the hard ground and the contours we had to follow, but after an hour or so, we had a solid, if not highly aesthetic fence line stretching from one side of the street to the other
After making sure that everything was placed as wanted and needed, we reset the traps, one in each of the drainage ditches that John and I dug last year, and then sat back to hope for the best.
This afternoon I took the motorcycle to Lindale for its annual inspection…one of the few rides I’ve had the opportunity to enjoy lately.
Barbara had her ladies meeting at church in Yantis tonight. We decided that since she had Bible study tomorrow morning and there was work for me to do at Our Little Lot, we would treat ourselves to a night away from the house and stay in Big V tonight. So, after finishing our daily chores and feeding the puppies, we drove out to the lot. Barbara dropped me off at Big V and then went on to church, returning after the ladies group and we then enjoyed a nice evening in our own home.Wednesday, October 5
After a very pleasant and restful night in Big V, we lounged around a bit this morning and took advantage of the time to take a few pictures of Our Little Lot. The drought this summer has taken a heavy toll on the trees around us. What appears to be the beginning of fall colors are really leaves and branches that have gone into nature’s “self-defense” mode of dropping leaves to conserve the available moisture needed to keep the trees alive. We’ve been told that trees can do this once in a lifetime before succumbing to the forces of nature and eventually dying. We just hope that this is the first time for this to happen to the trees around our lot. And, in answer to the inevitable question, that is not an outhouse in the center picture; it is the small storage unit where we keep flammable fuels and some garden tools…we are highly civilized and have all the comforts of home in and around Big V, even if we don’t have many opportunities anymore to enjoy them.
While Barbara went to Bible study this morning, I stayed at the lot to finish connecting the waterline. Working in such a confined area was difficult, but I finally had all the pieces cemented and connected and ready to test (or so I thought).
I went to the cutoff valve, turned on the water, and returned to the ditch to check for leaks. I immediately saw that water was building up in the ditch, not a good sign. Then, I saw the problem…there was one joint, the most difficult one to access, of course, that I had neglected to prime and cement.
So, I cut off the water, struggled to disconnect the PVC at the bad joint (giving myself a mud bath in the process…it’s amazing how much pressure had built up in the line), and finally got the joint cleaned, dried, primed, cemented, and reconnected.
After waiting a few minutes for the cement to dry, I opened the waterline again, checked the joints, and found that all was working exactly as it should. Now I have two of the three phases completed…laying the electric and the water lines. Phase three will be replacing the existing sewer line and replacing it with a fitting that will allow me to tie in a drain line from the storage shed, where we hope one of these days to have a washer and drier.
When we returned to Mineola, we went through our normal activities…went to the post office, visited Mother, and spent the afternoon mowing and trimming the yard.
We noticed that the hummingbirds hadn’t been around for several days, so we declared the season closed and took down the feeders, washed them, and put them away until next year.
Thursday, October 6When we got up this morning, we found that the armadillo had breached the fence we put up Tuesday, probably by climbing on top of my trap and stepping over a low spot in the fence. We remedied the situation by putting another section of fence along the side of our trap. Now we just have to see if that works.
After going through our early morning routine, I took Spike to the vet to get his weekly laser treatment to ease some of the pain and stiffness from his arthritis. Spike is a great traveler and really enjoys the car rides. A few years ago, he would stand up in the seat and stick his head out the window to enjoy the breeze, but now he just sits and watches the world go by.When we left Dr. Bradshaw’s clinic, I took Spike to Wood Memorial for a visit with Mother. Mother loves to see her puppies, and Spike is very well behaved, so it was a very nice visit and I was able to get a couple of good shots of Mother with her favorite son.
Spike and I said our goodbyes to Mother and returned to the house where we all spent a very average and unexciting afternoon and evening.
Saturday, October 8
When we went outside this morning, we noticed that the armadillo hadn’t paid a house call, but didn’t pay any attention to the North 40 or the traps.John came over later and very excitedly said, “You’re not going to believe this!”
We went across the street with him and saw that the armadillo was caught in his trap. John hadn’t even looked for it; he was just going to get the trap and put it away, since we hadn’t had any luck with it.The armadillo wasn’t a bit happy about being caught. Barbara took a few pictures of it (Jaycie said she had never seen one, so we promised we’d send a picture as soon as we caught the critter).
Once we were done with the picture-taking session, John and I quietly carried the cage down to a copse of trees in the North 40, where the animal died of “sudden onset lead poisoning.” We then returned to our respective houses and informed neighbors that the two-year armadillo siege was now over and it was safe to come out in our yards again.
Monday, October 10
We had made arrangements to go to San Antonio to visit with John and promised that we’d bring him some food, so we spent most of today cooking up some of our favorite dishes. Barbara cooked and froze several packages of hamburger and chicken to be used as the base for different dishes, and I made up three pans of meatloaf and a large batch of spaghetti sauce. Needless to say (but we’ll say it anyway), the kitchen smelled beyond wonderful all day.
In addition to 30 Patriot Guard Riders, Mr. Herbert was surrounded by his loving family during a beautiful and moving service at Roselawn Memorial Cemetery north of Mineola.
Tonight, we spent our time getting things ready and packing for our trip to San Antonio tomorrow.
Tuesday, October 11 – Thursday, October 13
Some San Antonio Time
Tuesday, October 11
I got up early this morning to go to Yantis for the weekly prayer meeting. When I returned, I got the puppies ready to take to the veterinary clinic’s “Doggy Hotel” for a couple of days while we went to San Antonio.Once the puppies were taken care of, we began packing the car and closing up the house. When all was done, we drove over to Wood Memorial to visit with Mother for a while and then headed out of town, pointed in the general direction of San Antonio, with our route taking us west on I-20 to Dallas, and then south on I-35 E until we joined I-35 W at Hillsboro, and then on to San Antonio with the always delightful carnival ride through Austin.
As we were preparing to make a comfort stop along the way, I received a call from Jack Roe, corporate president of Holiday Villages of Lake Fork, in Dallas. Since I am the chairperson of the committee that is overseeing the transition of management of HV/LF from corporate management to property owner management, Jack wanted to set up a conference call for me to talk about some of the legal and financial responsibilities that we would be taking over on January 1. Barbara explained that I was driving through Austin and told Jack that I’d call him back later to set up the call sometime tomorrow.Barbara: For some reason as we were travelling along the interstate, I decided to look at the map as I recalled friends who lived in the San Antonio area. To my surprise, I found that every time we’ve gone to San Antonio we have passed the towns where two of my dearest Lubbock friends lived. One is Barbara Curbo Pirch, who is battling cancer right now. Once I realized that we drive right through her town of Cibolo, I texted Leah Renee (who is my own personal directory assistant), and within minutes, she had a phone number for me. I was able to call Barbara and to her shock and mine we were able to make arrangements to meet at the Texas Roadside Park which was on her way home from radiation and our way to John’s. After a quick hug, a snap of the camera, and plans for breakfast on Thursday, Barbara and I said good-bye reluctantly, but with happiness, knowing that we would soon see each other again!
Jim: Following the brief, but very pleasant meeting with the two Barbaras, we continued our drive down I-35 to Anderson Loop, where we left the interstate and drove the final 25 miles to John’s house. During that time, Barbara had reached Carol Armstrong thanks to Leah’s efforts and she was busily working out plans to see Carol and her husband Terry the following day!
John, who works out of his house most of the time for AT&T, met us at the door (after a brief wait while he finished a conference call), and helped us unload the car and get us set up inside. We visited for a while, and then John called Carol and Randi to see if they would come to the house and join us for dinner, featuring John’s famous smoked chicken. We had already decided that we wanted to eat at the house, rather than at a restaurant, so Carol and Randi agreed to come over for the evening to join us.
While Barbara got some things ready at the house, John and I made a trip to the grocery store to get a few of the things that we would need to fill out the dinner menu. We ran into Carol and Randi at the store and they followed us back to the house where we visited while John, Barbara, and I got the meal ready to serve.
The company was fun and the food was delicious. I’ve talked about smoking chicken in our new smoker, but haven’t gotten around to it yet. After tasting the chicken thighs that John had prepared, I’ve decided that someday soon, I’ll have to give it a try myself.
We spent the evening eating, talking, and generally getting caught up on things that have happened since we last were all together. And, of course, there were pictures to take…lots of pictures.
When Jack Roe finally called me, the projected 30-minute conference call lasted nearly an hour; my arm was tired from holding the phone that long and my ear hurt, but I had a lot of valuable information to share with the other committee members when we returned to Mineola.
Barbara: While Jim was talking to Jack, I called Carol to finalize our plans as Jim wanted to come, too, if Terry was going to be there. He had met Carol several years ago when we were returning to Liberal from spending time with mom and Dad, W.T. and Virginia Perry, in Mission one summer. But, he had never met Carol’s husband, Terry, who is retired from the air force and with that love in common, he was certain they would hit it off!
But…before we get into the visit with them, I must write down a part of my history with Carol. I first met her in the early 70’s through another teacher friend Judy Clemmons. The two of them helped raise my sons as back then Henry travelled a great deal and we only saw him on week-ends. Therefore, we spent a great deal of time with Carol (this was before Terry, too!) and Judy.
However, after John and Jimmy became men, anytime I mentioned either Judy or Carol and did they know who I was talking about they both would say, “Hey, they are the ones who took us to the park and wound up sitting on the picnic table crying!”
Why were they crying? This particular day was August 16, 1977, and as the boys played in the park, we three were listening to the radio, talking, and laughing when we heard the news that Elvis had died! Carol and Judy broke down in tears and the boys noticed and were worried about them! Because I wasn’t crying, the boys thought I had made them cry…LOL!
Anyway, there are a million more stories I could tell; but that one has to be written down for the grandkids to hear.Terry and Carol live in a beautiful home and were extremely gracious hosts. While Barbara and Carol did the grand tour of the house (Barbara had seen it only when they were in the building stage several years ago), Terry and I retired to the living room and talked, and talked, and talked. It was almost as if we had known each other for years, rather than having just met.
We thoroughly enjoyed the time we spent together, but all too soon it was time to say goodbye and work our way back across San Antonio to John’s house to get ready for a big family dinner.
On the way back to John’s house, we stopped at Walmart to pick up a few things for the spaghetti dinner that we were planning. Then, when we arrived back at the house, we waited for John to complete his work assignments before bringing him into the kitchen to observe how we prepared some of our favorite recipes.
John and I got the spaghetti sauce all put together and simmering so that we could eat at 6:00. Carol and Randi arrived in plenty of time, but Kris (John’s stepson), Taryn, and Rhett (John’s step-grandson) got tied up in San Antonio traffic and didn’t make it until 6:30.
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Monday, October 17
Tuesday, October 18
Yantis First Baptist Church has decided that it is time to have a new pictorial directory of the church families. Today, the photography team from the company doing the directory arrived at the church to begin taking pictures.
Our appointment was scheduled for 5:15 this afternoon, but we were dressed and ready to go well before that time, so we drove on out to the church to get our portrait made, hoping to get worked in early if no one else showed up.
The session went well enough and we were soon headed back to Mineola. As we got close to town, I suggested that we stop at a little rest area just north of the city limits to take some pictures of ourselves, since it will be quite awhile before we get to see the new portrait.
We had a few difficulties finding a place to set the camera for the time-delay shots, but ended up being very pleased with the results.
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Wednesday, October 19 – Thursday, October 20A Little Time with Grandchildren
Last week, Andy called from Richardson and asked if we’d be able to help out with Alexander and Abby this week while he and Heather had parent conferences at their respective schools. We said that it wouldn’t be any problem and that we’d love to do it, but suggested that it might be easier overall and more fun for the kids if we picked them up and brought them back to Mineola with us, also giving them a chance to see Granny.
So, after visiting with Mother for a few minutes this afternoon, we took off for the drive to Dallas and Heather’s (and the kids’) school, Lakehill Preparatory School, near the SMU campus.
When we arrived, we went in to find Heather and she took us to the after school activities room where Alexander and Abby were decorating pumpkins to give to a local children’s shelter. We visited a bit and then gathered up the kids and their backpacks, loaded them into the car, and began the journey back to Mineola. We stopped for McSupper in Terrell and then drove on home, stopping first at Wood Memorial so Mother could see her great-grandchildren.
One of the effects of Parkinsonism on Mother is that it has robbed her of much of her facial expression, leaving her with what some would consider a permanent frown or scowl. However, when Alexander and Abby walked into Mother’s room tonight and she saw them. Her face broke into an expression of joy that we haven’t seen for a long time.
Both children visited with their Granny for a bit and then demonstrated their reading skills by reading aloud passages from the book that Mother is currently reading. She couldn’t believe it that Alexander, a second grader, and Abby, who is in kindergarten, could read passages from such an adult book.
We left the nursing home and went on to the house, got everything unpacked and put away, and spent the evening visiting and playing games until it was time for a tired Alexander and Abby and a very tired Grams and Gramps to call it a night and go to bed.
Thursday, October 20
We were all so tired from the activities and travel yesterday that we managed to sleep in this morning. Barbara and I got right to work on a favorite breakfast for Alexander and Abby, bacon, eggs (cooked to order) and pancakes. Abby and Barbara like their eggs scrambled, but Alexander and I like ours fried and over easy. Even during breakfast, we managed to keep up the conversation and joking as we continued to enjoy our short visit together.
After breakfast, we got the dishes washed and the kitchen cleaned. The kids then decided to do their part to help by gathering up all their things and loading them in the car so they’d be ready to go when it was time.
The kids and I drove to the post office to check the mail. We flipped a coin to see which of them would open the box and which would get to take out the mail. Alexander won the toss and got to open the box, but there wasn’t any mail, so we quickly changed the rules and had Abby close and lock the box. Then, it was back to the house to play some football in the warm morning sun before having a light lunch.
After eating lunch and resting a bit, we loaded the car and drove over to Wood Memorial for another visit with Granny.
Today was Mother’s day to get her hair done at the shop in the nursing home. We got there just as she was finished and waiting for an aide to wheel her back to her room.
Instead of waiting for the aide, Alexander pushed the Geri chair while Abby held Granny’s hand and walked beside her.
When we got to the door of Granny’s room, she wouldn’t let go of Abby’s hand, so it was a tight squeeze to get them both through the door without squeezing them too much.
With Mother safely back in her room, we all said our goodbyes, loaded up the car once again, and took off down U.S. 80 toward Grand Saline, where we stopped for a few minutes to show the kids the newly remodeled Salt Palace. The Salt Palace was one of their favorite memories from a previous trip, so we were all glad to go through it again and see the changes that had been made. We didn’t have time this trip to watch the movie of how they mine the salt, but promised the kids that the next time they come to visit we will take more time and see everything.
The rest of the trip back to Dallas was uneventful, thankfully, and we arrived at the school right at 4:00 p.m., just as planned. While Barbara got ready to transfer the kids’ things to Heather’s car, I took Alexander and Abby over to the entrance to the school grounds to take their picture and then we went inside to find Heather.
We all went outside, made the transfer of kids and luggage, said goodbye, and then Barbara and I got back in the car and made the drive back to Mineola, tired, but happy to have had some time with Alexander and Abby.
The trip back was every bit as uneventful as the journey to Dallas. We arrived back at the house exhausted and ready to spend the evening doing as little as possible.
Tuesday, October 25
Our friends Gene and Michelle Young, from Inman, Kansas, called last week to say they needed to come to Mineola for a few days to look for a house. We offered to let them use Big V as their home base while they were here. When they accepted our offer, we went out last Friday to clean and straighten Big V for the new tenants.
Gene and Michelle arrived Saturday evening and spent most of Saturday looking at different properties, but did have time to stop by the house and join us for a meal of Barbara’s famous chicken salad. Our friends also presented us with a gift of some of their home-grown peppers of different varieties and sizes. Michelle taught Barbara how to core, clean, and freeze the bell peppers they brought. She also warned me that the chili peppers they gave us were very hot and to be careful how I handled them ( they were, I was, and they made wonderful salsa!!!).
We didn’t see the Youngs again until tonight (Tuesday), when they had finished their search for a house and were hoping that an offer on a place in Yantis would be accepted.
We wanted to go out and celebrate with a steak dinner, but realized that none of us knew a good place for steaks, so we decided instead to go to the East Texas Burger Company to see what kind of meal we could find there.
We hadn’t been able to get a picture of the four of us since Gene and Michelle arrived, but as I was getting ready to take a picture inside the restaurant, another customer came over and offered to shoot the four of us together (along with our meals).
Wednesday, October 26
Barbara had volunteered to take treats to the weekly Bible study group this morning, but when her friend Heidi called and said she needed to visit, I took the treats out to the church and then went to Holiday Villages to meet with the transition committee to conduct some business.
Our meeting went about two hours, and when it was over, I went to Big V to check on some things. While there, I received a text saying that Barbara and Heidi were taking advantage of the lunch buffet at Pizza Hut.
Shortly after I returned to town, Barbara and Heidi came back to the house. We talked a little and then I shot this picture of the two of them before Heidi had to leave and take care of other business in town.
Tonight was our night to keep the nursery during Wednesday evening activities, so we made the trip out to Yantis, arriving a little before 5:30 to start out duties. During the course of the evening we took turns watching Jeremiah in the nursery, took pictures of the various youth groups and activities, downloaded and organized church-related pictures that we had taken as far back as February, 2010, and I worked in some practice time on my trumpet…lots of things going on at YFBC on Wednesday nights!
Friday, October 28
Leah and Ryan recently found that Halliburton was transferring Ryan to their yard in Alvarado, a little south of Fort Worth on I-35 W. We combined a trip of picking up Abby and Alexander with checking out an apartment complex in Midlothian last week.
This weekend, Leah and Ryan were on a housing search in the area. They were staying in Joshua, but we agreed to meet them in Alvarado and help them look, if necessary. So, we put the puppies back in the puppy hotel this morning, went to visit Mother for a bit, and then headed back to the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex yet one more time.
As we neared Alvarado, the kids were just finishing up signing a lease at an apartment complex in Cleburne which, incidentally, is where Leah was born. They came to Alvarado (about ten miles) to pick us up and take us to see the model apartment, since the one they will live in currently has a tenant.
After looking over the apartment complex, we realized that we were only a few minutes away from the neighborhood in which Barbara’s sister and brother-in-law, Nancy and Tom, live. Barbara had already called Nancy to let her know we were in the area, but she and Tom were committed to a production at their church, so they wouldn’t be able to see us this trip.
We decided that we’d show the kids where Tom and Nancy lived and, as we came by it, saw Tom waiting for Nancy in their pickup. We very quickly stopped, got out of the car, and shared quick hugs and handshakes (and took a picture, of course) before Tom and Nancy had to get on to church.
After a little more sightseeing in Cleburne, we returned to our motel in Alvarado to settle down and watch game 7 of the World Series. Ryan and I went to a nearby restaurant and got takeout dinners and we all gathered in the breakfast area of the motel to watch our Rangers lose their second World Series in a row.
Still, a good time was had by all as we were joined by other folks who were interested in the game and shared running commentaries with us throughout the evening.
The following collage shows how Leah, Ryan, and I watched the game, and how Barbara spent her time while we watched.
Saturday, October 29
This morning was one of the laziest we have spent in a long time…just took our time getting up and around and having breakfast from the motel breakfast bar.
We eventually got around to showering and getting dressed, then loaded the car and made a leisurely trip back to Mineola with stops in Lindale to shop at Walmart and Lowes, and to check at the motorcycle shop to see if my new choke cable had arrived (it hadn’t).
Sunday, October 30
What a beautiful Sunday this was! After getting everything ready to spend the day at church and Our Little Lot, we went to Wood Memorial to visit Mother for a few minutes and then headed out to Yantis, stopping first at our traditional breakfast spot in Quitman, Sonic, to get something to eat.
When we got to Yantis, we found that there were no parking places on the paved lot; once inside, we learned the reason why…there were 124 in attendance at Sunday school and we had around 170 in the morning service, including the 15 children and workers in the nursery, by far the largest number of folks in attendance since we joined the church a year and a half ago. Jeremy, our new youth minister, baptized 4 youth as part of the service, a beautiful and joyous picture for all in attendance, including the four full rows of youth who were present.
Brother David was truly “on fire” this morning during the service (which, incidentally, was also the topic of his sermon), and there were few, if any, who didn’t both get their toes stepped on and gain inspiration from the message.
Since we were going to be involved in the annual fish fry and fall fair at the church this evening, we just spent the afternoon at Our Little Lot at Holiday Villages, just seven miles from the church. It was nice to have a restful afternoon in our own home and enjoy the peace and quiet of our neighborhood.
Before leaving the park to return to church, we stopped at the home of our friends Bob and Mary Royar to pick up some frozen desserts that we had ordered from one of the students in the park and that they were holding for us. We also wanted to spend a little time with them before they load up soon and head to the Valley for the next few months.
Unfortunately, Mary was a little under the weather, so we had to cut our visit short, but it was good to see the Royars again. Bob has been our advisor on all things electrical as we have developed our lot and has been an all-around good friend to many at Holiday Villages.
As we were preparing to leave, our next door neighbors, Wes and Linda Mann, drove by and stopped to ask Bob about Mary’s health. True to our basic nature, we took a few minutes to gather our friends for an impromptu photo session in front of Bob and Mary’s house before we had to leave and get back to the church.
When we got to the church, we immediately started in helping with getting things ready for the fish fry and fair. There are almost always a large number of volunteers to get things done for church activities, and tonight was no exception. By the announced time of 5:00 pm, the food was ready…piles of fried crappie, fried okra, hush puppies, and more side dishes and desserts than we could possibly count.
Pastor David blessed the food and the gathering, and the lines started forming. Within minutes, the first wave of more than 300 people were sitting down and enjoying great food and fellowship.
Barbara was the chief photographer of the event and my job for the evening was to man the popcorn machine in the gymnasium during the fair that followed the meal. We had a huge crowd that stayed until well after 7:00, the planned closing time, and the pictures show that a good time was had by all. Yantis First Baptist Church is definitely THE place to be on Sundays in northeast Wood County!
Monday, October 31
Happy Halloween to All!!
It was a quiet day and evening. I went fishing with some of the men from the church tonight and then spent the night in Big V while Barbara manned the home fires and waited for the trick-or-treaters that never arrived…all in all, a great way to wrap up another month of Little Times.
Birthday Greetings for October go out to granddaughter Jaycie Colwell (1st), Cousin Cindy Wright (3rd), Mike’s mother-in-law, Jan Jividen (9th), Barbara’s sister, Carol (10th), Cousin Ty Hodges (12th), our special sister-friend Becky Roark (13th), Cousin Michelle Sandley (20th), Cousin Paula Wright, 27th, and sister-in-law Jane Little (29th)
“Facing an impossibility gives us the opportunity to trust God.” – Our Daily Bread
From Mineola, Wood County, Texas,
Jim/Dad/Gramps and Barbara/Mom/Grams
