The Richland Springs Report

Despite the heat, the Fall Trade Days at The Feedlot was wonderful. There were plenty of unique vendors to satisfy the pickiest of tastes. Several of my ex-students had what they called a side-hustle. The Sutherlands had jewelry handmade by Kaitlin. I told her I would pray for her and her mom thanks to her exciting job. She has always been a self-determined young lady, but being an explosive engineer gave me a start. Sierra Tharp also had her own side-hustle that she uses to earn money while at college. It was an entertaining day, and I would recommend the Bluebonnet Wagon if you’re hungry. I think I put on weight just sniffing the air. There were so many good tasting, ad smelling food vendors. Clara Elkin was the entertainment. She is a gifted young Country and Western singer. My Chrissy did a good business in plants and knick-knacks. Her blow-up fellow Frankie was a great photo stop. Chrissy made a quick trip home to change into her party clothes for Howler’s Ball that night. If you didn’t get to go this year, mark it down in your calendar for next year. The fund raiser supports the kids, and everyone has a great time.

I’ve had to answer a few worried questions about the war in the Middle East. We may think our kids are not paying attention, but they can feel the uncertainty in the air - and the news is full of horrific details. I answer them from the history book. The Israelis have occupied that land long before the advent of Jesus. The Romans destroyed their country and exiled them. To erase the name of the thorn in their flesh, they named the land after the Philistines, hated enemy of the Jews. The displaced Jews and Arabs were offered a twocountry split by the British. The Arabs refused, and so the story continues. I wish there could be peace, but when your own Arab brethren won’t even allow you safe passage, where do you go? I will continue to pray for peace in the region, but there needs to be a mind and heart change for peace to happen. I don’t like that our kids are afraid.

Homecoming for Richland was a joyous affair. Not only did we advance in the playoffs after a resounding 68-0 defeat of Rochelle, we were represented by some awesome young people in the Homecoming Court. The Homecoming Queen was Rylie Bryant, and the King was Jayden Sutherland. Congratulations to a very surprised couple for Coming Home King and Queen, T. Noel and Cindy Woods. Their kids successfully kept them in the dark. I hope to have a picture for the Homecoming Court next week. The game was followed by a dance at The Feedlot. Pam Starr filled in at the last minute for me singing the school song. I was handling a series of unfortunate incidents at home and lost track of time. She and Karen did a great job.

The Cross-country team will advance to the regionals this week. The varsity and junior varsity football teams will play Lone at Lone on Thursday. Come out and support your Coyotes. Parents, next week is the end of another six weeks. All grades need to be in by Friday. Please have your students check in with all teachers so there are no unwelcome surprises.

I have started final arrangements with my sisters for our spring cruise. This will be the first time in three years that we have been together. We have four ports of call on the agenda including Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic. Look out, here I come, and I’m bringing the sisters with me! We have been known to break out into song if one of our favorite songs is played. I am a source of embarrassment to my youngest son, but he still loves me.

So, we come to our prayer lists. We need rain, lots of it, and I pray that the Lord will send us at least four inches. We also need peace in the Middle East and Ukraine. So many lives, so much destruction, so much money is being used that could build rather than destroy. Our border is being invaded, and we desperately need to close it down and remove people from the country. We have many sick people in the area. This is Cancer Month, and I could list numerous people in our area that are fighting or have fought this monster disease. Please care for them, Lord. Pray for our police, fire and EMT personnel, our Border Patrol Officers and most of all our precious troops and their families. Prepare yourself for the Halloween onslaught, parents.