I started this column back April when we’d only gotten a very sparse amount of rain. I couldn’t even finish it because the right words just wouldn’t come.
It’s now June, and it seems like we’re on a never ending cycle of rain showers and/or thunderstorms and fighting mud. Praise the good Lord for all this rain.
While things have changed some regarding precipitation, it’s still been another lesson for me in patience and a test of my driving skills as apparently I’ve forgotten how to drive in mud after three years of drought.
Earlier this year a mutual friend on social media posted about her changing relationship with God. She’s one that has such great faith and leans heavily on the Lord to lead her in all she does. She’s got many irons in the fire and has dealt with the depths of the drought in her part of the world much longer than we have.
I’m a believer, don’t get me wrong, but I struggle hearing God and being patient. After the Starbuck fire in 2017, I struggled a lot with the why’s. Why did this happen to us? Why does it have to be this way? Why, why, why. Eventually I got to a place where I could see the light at the end of the tunnel and could finally start to breathe again.
Life is never easy and it’s not promised to be. The verse, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens,” is one I have to lean on as the drought here in southwest Kansas and around the High Plains wains on. As we’re almost at the middle of June, I have to remember things could be worse as we’re not as bad as others in this area.
The drought monitor maps remain hard to look at now, even with the improvements in the drought conditions. Same goes with the weather forecast. I don’t know how it’s been in your area, but in my county during April/May, they seemingly teased us with 20% to 30% chances of rain all week, but as soon as the day with the rain in the forecast arrives, POOF goes the rain chance.
It seems like the only thing the weather forecasters got right was the wind. More often than not, they had that dialed right in. The wind puts me into the worst kind of mood, and couple that with the dust in the air and the dirt sandblasting everything it comes into contact, and well, it produces a reaction I’m not proud of.
There are plenty more people out there who are more willing and trusting in their relationship with God, and maybe they have more faith than I do. I’ve had some bad luck through the years, so much so that my motto is, “I wouldn’t have any luck if it wasn’t for bad luck.” So it takes a lot for me to trust in something and not trend toward the negative.
I often find peace out in the pastures, where I can take a deep breath and stare into the horizon. I can feel the sun on my cheeks and just take it all in. All of the beauty around me just didn’t appear, it was created. Whether you believe in God or not, appreciate the beautiful things around you, despite the hardships you may be facing at the present time.
When I was first writing this I went searching for the perfect verse to include and found 1John 3:20, “God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.” He knows I need to work on my patience, and he knows better than I do.
The last three years of drought has taught me we’re tough and can survive what Mother Nature throws at us. It also taught me we need to have a plan. It’s easy for me to listen to and interview sources regarding all the tough things in agriculture, but it’s so hard to take what I’ve learned during the writing process and apply it to our own operation.
One of these days I’ll hopefully be patient enough to really listen.
