Conversations, Cars, Careers and Careening
Today is moving day for Grant and Clarissa. They've been working hard to get ready, and the goal is in sight.
***********************
Last night the comp class met at Marvin Yutzy's house for our comp class party. We had a wonderful time with the telling of many stories around our supper table. And yes, with all the inevitable side trips, telling about our summer plans can take up most of an evening. Everyone plans to start the summer with a trip to Guatemala--the destination for the Spanish class trip. Sometime after that many of the students plan to participate in their youth group's mission trip--to Hutchinson again this summer. Sleeping a lot, playing softball every Friday evening and driving around town, going swimming, and getting a tan came up a number of times--sometimes in jest, but also reading, working in the garden, and cooking. Employment possibilities (or dreams perhaps) ranged from Starbucks and Absolutely Flowers to "working for my dad" or another employer in a Mennonite-owned business. Family trips were mentioned.
The romances of friends and siblings got a bit of attention, as did prospects for new babies in the extended family. One class member hopes to become an aunt this summer for the first time and I hope to welcome our third grandchild in August.
After one student lamented that "this is our last summer" [between years of school] and another student suggested that "next year is our last year of high school" sounded a lot better, a brief discussion of how girls should decide what to do after high school came up. Planning for a career is a little awkward in case marriage and family are part of the future, and planning on marriage and family with no career goals seems a little presumptuous too.
I didn't think to say it then, but I wish I had thought to say that I think spending time after high school either as a volunteer or in a job that is related to a career path you feel drawn to makes some sense. If you do decide to pursue further training in that field, you will be able to do so, better prepared to make use of the investment. I've also observed young people being able to earn money and acquire other kinds of valuable life experience while "biding their time" in a job not in their preferred line of work. The funds and the experience can help them advance toward accomplishing long-range goals, or provide direction for the future. I really believe also that sometime in life every young person should experience the demands of labor all day, every day, on a regular schedule--for the insight it provides into others lives, for the respect it engenders for those who do this, and for the reflection that is possible when the hands are busy and the brain is free. I don't think filling all such time with music is a great idea.
Honeymoon stories told earlier by the students' parents appeared to be a recurring theme at one point in last night's conversation. One set of parents went snorkeling, and got very worried when they realized that the current was carrying them far away from shore. One other couple also had a memorable beach-and-ocean honeymoon event. The bride sat on the beach and watched while the groom went "surf sailing." That wasn't what it was called, and I'm not sure I'm picturing it correctly, but "he's not the kind to take lessons or anything" so he set sail without lessons. Things didn't go too badly until he too began to realize that he was a long way from shore and wasn't sure how to get back. With his limited sailing knowledge, he got the sails set to move sideways, and eventually got to a place where he could land safely.
Another student summarized his parents' "honeymoon" by saying they "milked cows." They didn't have a honeymoon, in other words. They were Amish at the time.
The pronunciations of Missouri, Colorado, Illinois, Arkansas, and Dubois all merited some discussion. Foraging and sushi and collecting stamps and rocks, and former friends turned Goth, and flying helicopters, parachuting, mountain climbing--can you tell we covered a lot of territory last night?
********************
I had the foresight to trade vehicles with Hiromi yesterday morning so I could be assured of having lights on the way home from the party. His old clunker has a very simple pull-out-the-knob light switch. Everything worked out well, except that the windshield wiper malfunctioned. Turning the "wheel" on the turn signal lever seemed to have no effect on the action. It alternated between long pauses and steady speeds, but I could not speed it up or slow it down or shut it off entirely, so the wipers busily screeched over a dry windshield most of the way home. Hiromi dismally noted that we might have to junk this car too because we can't drive it without functioning wipers, and the motor will surely burn up if we can't shut it off. Have I mentioned lately that I really miss my minivan?
BTW, we have several seats for a 1998 Mercury Villager (the above-mentioned minivan) that are "living" in our study that we need gone. They are gray-upholstered captain's seats, and came from the center section of the vehicle. If anyone who has a vehicle like this and wants to replace seats is interested, let us know. They haven't been used much. The first owner, and we, had them out of the vehicle much of the time.
*********************
The annual softball game between the grade school and high school proceeded yesterday under soggy conditions, both on the ball field and in the atmosphere. I couldn't believe it was worth the discomfort to anyone. People driving during that time would have needed wipers the whole time, and people got back to the high school wet and cold. It was clearly not mothers making the decision on whether the playing should proceed then or not.
*********************
During the lunch hour yesterday, Richard Y. brought some wheat plants he had pulled up from his field after his daughter Lois had told him I was asking her if her dad could tell how his wheat had fared during our hard freeze this week. He showed us how to feel for the slight bulge in the stalk where the tiny head had begun to develop. Then the stalk can be carefully slit lengthwise, and the head (less than an inch long) is revealed. Yesterday all the heads still looked the right shade of pale green for this stage of development. If the freeze killed it, it will soon turn white. Sometimes, if a freeze occurs early enough in the wheat's development, additional tillers are produced, and heads develop in those new stalks, but yields are always reduced because the number of new stalks will not equal the number produced initially.
On my way to school I saw Joe Y. walk out into his field after the freeze to check the wheat, and heard later that he said every stalk was frozen solid and broke easily when handled. LaVerne M. said he thinks the crop is gone any time the stalks are frozen solid. I'm sure there's a lot of praying happening, and farmers like Richard, Joe, and LaVerne will keep checking over the next week or two to see if the color of those "infant" heads still looks healthy. Drought and freezing temperatures have been the concerns so far. If the crop survives these, there is still the chance of hail, and, although it's hard to imagine, torrential rains at harvest time, both of which could potentially destroy or diminish the quality of the crop.
*********************
"Careening toward the end of school" is how Norma puts it when describing what's happening in our lives right now. Even when each task is carefully lined up and tackled in turn, inevitable crises in school or outside of it intervene and must be dealt with, so things never quite seem under control.
Lord, help us all.
***********************
Last night the comp class met at Marvin Yutzy's house for our comp class party. We had a wonderful time with the telling of many stories around our supper table. And yes, with all the inevitable side trips, telling about our summer plans can take up most of an evening. Everyone plans to start the summer with a trip to Guatemala--the destination for the Spanish class trip. Sometime after that many of the students plan to participate in their youth group's mission trip--to Hutchinson again this summer. Sleeping a lot, playing softball every Friday evening and driving around town, going swimming, and getting a tan came up a number of times--sometimes in jest, but also reading, working in the garden, and cooking. Employment possibilities (or dreams perhaps) ranged from Starbucks and Absolutely Flowers to "working for my dad" or another employer in a Mennonite-owned business. Family trips were mentioned.
The romances of friends and siblings got a bit of attention, as did prospects for new babies in the extended family. One class member hopes to become an aunt this summer for the first time and I hope to welcome our third grandchild in August.
After one student lamented that "this is our last summer" [between years of school] and another student suggested that "next year is our last year of high school" sounded a lot better, a brief discussion of how girls should decide what to do after high school came up. Planning for a career is a little awkward in case marriage and family are part of the future, and planning on marriage and family with no career goals seems a little presumptuous too.
I didn't think to say it then, but I wish I had thought to say that I think spending time after high school either as a volunteer or in a job that is related to a career path you feel drawn to makes some sense. If you do decide to pursue further training in that field, you will be able to do so, better prepared to make use of the investment. I've also observed young people being able to earn money and acquire other kinds of valuable life experience while "biding their time" in a job not in their preferred line of work. The funds and the experience can help them advance toward accomplishing long-range goals, or provide direction for the future. I really believe also that sometime in life every young person should experience the demands of labor all day, every day, on a regular schedule--for the insight it provides into others lives, for the respect it engenders for those who do this, and for the reflection that is possible when the hands are busy and the brain is free. I don't think filling all such time with music is a great idea.
Honeymoon stories told earlier by the students' parents appeared to be a recurring theme at one point in last night's conversation. One set of parents went snorkeling, and got very worried when they realized that the current was carrying them far away from shore. One other couple also had a memorable beach-and-ocean honeymoon event. The bride sat on the beach and watched while the groom went "surf sailing." That wasn't what it was called, and I'm not sure I'm picturing it correctly, but "he's not the kind to take lessons or anything" so he set sail without lessons. Things didn't go too badly until he too began to realize that he was a long way from shore and wasn't sure how to get back. With his limited sailing knowledge, he got the sails set to move sideways, and eventually got to a place where he could land safely.
Another student summarized his parents' "honeymoon" by saying they "milked cows." They didn't have a honeymoon, in other words. They were Amish at the time.
The pronunciations of Missouri, Colorado, Illinois, Arkansas, and Dubois all merited some discussion. Foraging and sushi and collecting stamps and rocks, and former friends turned Goth, and flying helicopters, parachuting, mountain climbing--can you tell we covered a lot of territory last night?
********************
I had the foresight to trade vehicles with Hiromi yesterday morning so I could be assured of having lights on the way home from the party. His old clunker has a very simple pull-out-the-knob light switch. Everything worked out well, except that the windshield wiper malfunctioned. Turning the "wheel" on the turn signal lever seemed to have no effect on the action. It alternated between long pauses and steady speeds, but I could not speed it up or slow it down or shut it off entirely, so the wipers busily screeched over a dry windshield most of the way home. Hiromi dismally noted that we might have to junk this car too because we can't drive it without functioning wipers, and the motor will surely burn up if we can't shut it off. Have I mentioned lately that I really miss my minivan?
BTW, we have several seats for a 1998 Mercury Villager (the above-mentioned minivan) that are "living" in our study that we need gone. They are gray-upholstered captain's seats, and came from the center section of the vehicle. If anyone who has a vehicle like this and wants to replace seats is interested, let us know. They haven't been used much. The first owner, and we, had them out of the vehicle much of the time.
*********************
The annual softball game between the grade school and high school proceeded yesterday under soggy conditions, both on the ball field and in the atmosphere. I couldn't believe it was worth the discomfort to anyone. People driving during that time would have needed wipers the whole time, and people got back to the high school wet and cold. It was clearly not mothers making the decision on whether the playing should proceed then or not.
*********************
During the lunch hour yesterday, Richard Y. brought some wheat plants he had pulled up from his field after his daughter Lois had told him I was asking her if her dad could tell how his wheat had fared during our hard freeze this week. He showed us how to feel for the slight bulge in the stalk where the tiny head had begun to develop. Then the stalk can be carefully slit lengthwise, and the head (less than an inch long) is revealed. Yesterday all the heads still looked the right shade of pale green for this stage of development. If the freeze killed it, it will soon turn white. Sometimes, if a freeze occurs early enough in the wheat's development, additional tillers are produced, and heads develop in those new stalks, but yields are always reduced because the number of new stalks will not equal the number produced initially.
On my way to school I saw Joe Y. walk out into his field after the freeze to check the wheat, and heard later that he said every stalk was frozen solid and broke easily when handled. LaVerne M. said he thinks the crop is gone any time the stalks are frozen solid. I'm sure there's a lot of praying happening, and farmers like Richard, Joe, and LaVerne will keep checking over the next week or two to see if the color of those "infant" heads still looks healthy. Drought and freezing temperatures have been the concerns so far. If the crop survives these, there is still the chance of hail, and, although it's hard to imagine, torrential rains at harvest time, both of which could potentially destroy or diminish the quality of the crop.
*********************
"Careening toward the end of school" is how Norma puts it when describing what's happening in our lives right now. Even when each task is carefully lined up and tackled in turn, inevitable crises in school or outside of it intervene and must be dealt with, so things never quite seem under control.
Lord, help us all.
posted by Mrs. I (Miriam Iwashige) at
6:03 AM
1 Comments:
I identify with your final section . . . we are careening toward the end of school, dealing (as well as we can!) with crises as they come up, and praying along with you, "Lord, help us all." Blessings in the final weeks! ~Jeanene
By
Anonymous, at 4/29/2013
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