H>—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 10, 1976
LIFE on the farm
It's a blessing that our neigh
borhood mechanic always had a good
sense of humor. Somehow he had to
have one to survive, for he was often
asked to do the impossible In the
opinion of many, he was the best. And
he never let anyone down
The sound of a two-cylinder tractor
approaching probably gave our
mechanic frequent visions of “one
more problem” coming up. It wasn’t
necessarily the tractor itself which
would bring on headache number 13,
but more likely who or what was on or
behind it.
Shortly after one of us from our
nearby farm would pull into his
driveway, Mr. Owad would invariably
crawl out from underneath a car or
behind a hood and give us a friendly
greeting. Then a brief moment of
silence would follow as he circled the
work we had brought him Sometimes
the sight would make his head
oscillate from side to side and a slight
smile would appear as he returned
his attention to whoever brought him
the contraption
Mr. Owad (I've always called him
Mr. Owad because Dad taught us it
was proper especially for those
whom we respected) clamped his
cigar between his teeth and im
mediately inspected the broken
pieces with both hands Like a doctor
examining a patient, Mr Owad
methodically continued to study the
equipment. His questions might be
“How did you do this 7 " and “How
soon will you need it back 7 ”
Generally, it always worked out
that we needed our repairs done
about the time six others wanted
theirs completed That’s why our
neighborhood mechanic needed a
good sense of humor in addition to his
many mechanical skills A person
could always count on him
The radio was almost always
turned on at John Owad’s “Woodbine
Garage" and more often than not, the
RURAL ROUTE
listen, a farm pond h/
A LOT OF &ENIFITS XT
WILL 0E A REAL ASSET TO
THE PROPERTY
Ltsw''
By Dieter
Krieg, Editor
owner joined right in with the music.
Whenever a program featured songs
from the 1930’s and, '4o’s, the
amiable mechanic would shift into a
world of his own He'd glide across
the parts-strewn floor, making his
way to the tool bench, and proclaim
the “Big Band Era” to be the best
there ever was or ever will be The
rhythm, of the music went right
through him and showed up in his
actions Some small talk got started,
and the work, as well as the beat,
went on
I don't doubt that
LUKE I'M SURE IT WAS
MONEV weu invested
/O
From early in the morning, until
late at night, John Owad continued to
work on anything from tea kettles to
manure spreaders and transmissions
to condensers Nothing was ever too
big or too small as the able mechanic
accepted everyone else’s problems as
his.
Talking much of the time whenever
someone else was around to listen
Mr. Owad extended a hand of
friendship even while both blackened
hands were wrestling with an exhaust
system. Animals around the neigh
borhood also shared in the man’s
warm personality, as most rarely left
the premises without a few friendly
pals across the back or head.
Finishing the chore, Mr Owad
would inspect things again as
carefully as he did when the broken
item was brought to him Then he’d
tell us it should hold better than the
original because it had some
“Woodbine” on it.
Nowadays most farms have their
own rather elaborate repair shops,
and men like John Owad are harder
to find than ever before
Nevertheless, whether the
mechanic is the farmer himself or the
man down the road, he's a fellow the
farmer can’t be without
The days of our Life on the Farm
would sometimes have been a lot
longer had it not been for our neigh
borhood mechanic fixing things for us
so well and promptly
WHAT DO
I LACK?
Lesson for July 11,1976
Background Scripture:
Matthew 16:24-26; 19:16-30; 2
Corinthians 6:14 through
7:1; Colossians 2:16-23.
Devotional Reading: 1
Corinthians 12:1-13.
The story of the “Rich
Young Ruler” (as it is more
commonly known), is one of
those stories that can easily -
though not comfortably - be
personalized. Try reading it
sometime and substituting
the pronoun “I” for the
young man who came to
Jesus inquiring of eternal
life.
‘Tve done
it all!”
It doesn’t take too much
imagination to hear our
selves saying to Jesus,
“Lord, what remains for me
to do in order to be assured of
eternal life?” We may not
verbalize it very often to our
friends and neighbors, but
many of us, like the young
man in the story, are con
cerned to find assurance of
eternal life. No pastor who
visits the sick and the dying
can be unaware of that deep
concern.
I must assume that the
young man in Matthew 19
was sincere in his question,
yet, at the same time, there
was also at work in him a
certain smug pride. It was
the kind of question which is
asked by someone who
anticipates that the answer
is going to be to his favor.
Consciously or un
consciously, he is not so
much asking a question as he
is seeking a “pat on the
head.”
One of the reasons I say
this is that the young man
seems to be so “wrapped up
in himself” that he misses
what Jesus says to him in the
response to his initial
question. “Why do you ask
me about what isgood,” says
Jesus, “One there is who is
good.” It is as if Jesus
already knows what is m this
man’s mind; he knows the
man is rather proud of his
own righteousness. So he
reminds the man that no one
but God alone is perfectly
good.
The young man, however,
seems to miss this statement
and only hears Jesus say:
“If you would enter life, keep
the commandments”
(19:17). “Which?” replies
the young man, still smugly,
for when Jesus digests the
Ten Commandments, the
young man is eager to reply:
“All these I have observed;
what do I still lack?” (19:20).
The question he asks skirts
the edge of being an outright
boast.
With his amazing insight
into this young man, Jesus
i i
i\
f.
To Honor
Withdrawal Periods v.
Various drugs and
medicines may be used in
the livestock and poultry
production business. All of
these have definite uses and
times . stated before
slaughter or in the case of
milking cows, the length of
tune the milk is not to be
used. We urge every
producer to comply with
these stated instructions in
order to protect his market
and provide a quality
product. To take short-cuts is
risky and could mean loss of
income and charges of non
compliance.
To Introduce New
Grains Gradually
If new grains are to be
used in livestock rations,
they should be allowed a
curing period of several
weeks and then introduced
slowly into the gram rations.
Too much new grain may
cause bloating and scouring.
In all cases the new grain
should be used only as a part
of the grain rations so the
animals will get accustomed
to it. If new grain is to be
ground or cracked, then only
small amounts should be
used and stored; otherwise,
it may heat and mold before
being fed.
To Control
Face Flies
Cattle on pasture may be
seriously bothered with face
fUes; these insects work
about the eyes of cattle and
will cause serious infection
and even blindness. Owners
are urged to provide some
protection to animals that
are bothered and not having
a chance to get into
buildings. The use of Ciodrin
or CIOVAP as a spray or on
some automatic fly control
equipment is suggested;
these materials will help
control both face flies as well
as other flies. If the animals
can get into a dark building
during daytime hours, this
will help relieve the
problem. Owners are urged
challenged him in the one
area where the man was
extremely vulnerable: his
love of material possessions.
We must realize that Jesus is
not laying down this
challenge for all Christians,
for material possessions are
not the stumbling block for
some that they are for
others. He challenged this
young man to give away all
he had because he knew this
was the man’s weakness. He
really did want otemal life
(just as we do), but he
wanted something even
more (just as many of us
do.)
For all of his faithful
keeping of the com
mandments, the man lacked
the one thing that was most
important: a generous,
loving heart So it may be
with us: we may keep the
rules, be good churchmen,
live lives that seem beyond
reproach Yet for all that
goodness, we may still lack
the most important thing of
all
I know what I lack. What
about you 9
NOW IS
THE TIME... ;
Max Smith
County Agr. Agent
Telephone 394-6851
to check their animals
frequently for this face fly
problem.
To Harvest
Small Grain Straw
Prices for straw seem to
be headed (already there)
for record highs according to
recent sales. The demand
has been greater than the
supply in recent years, and
now with a shorter length to
both barley and wheat, the
crops yield of straw will be
less this year. We urge
growers to cut their grain as
short as possible in order to
get greater yields of straw.
Also, no doubt little of the
straw will be left in the field,
as it is done some years. I
was always of the opinion
that straw should be used as
bedding in order to keep
animals clean and more
comfortable. In comparison
to ground com cobs which
have greatly increased in
value in recent years, straw
is a very important “fringe
benefit” of small grain
production.
God is our refuge
and our strength, a very
present help in trouble.
Therefore will not we
fear, though the earth
be removed, and though
the mountains be car
ried info the midst of
the sea;
Though the waters
thereof root and be
troubled, though the
mountains shake with
the swelling thereof.
Selah.
Psalms 46: I -3
Farm
Calendar
Saturday, July 10
Pennsylvania Young Far
mers continue their
annual Summer con
vention in Lebanon.
Wednesday, July 14
National Chicken Cooking
Contest, Civic Center,
Philadelphia, 9 a.m.
Thursday, July 15
Berwick Vegetable Coop,
directors meet at the
BVC office, 8 p.m.
Friday, July 16
South Schyulkill Young
Farmers Tour, today and
tomorrow.
“Evolution of Agriculture”
Parade, Martmsburg, 6
p.m. sharp; antique
equipment on display and
in use the following day
at Memorial Park.
Saturday, July 17
Berwick Vegetable Coop
annual meeting, 5:30
p.m.
Angus Field Day, Long
Meadows Farm, Port
Murray, N.J. Hunterdon
County, New Jersey,
“Rural Ramble”