10
—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, December 16,1978
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BLESSED
AMONG WOMEN
Lesson for December 17, 1978
Background Scripture:
1 Samuel 2:1-10
Luke 1:39-79.
Devotional Reading:
Luke 1:68-79.
Four miles outside the city
TO SORT TOBACCO
Tobacco stripping is un
derway in this part of the
state and many hours will be
spent pulling the leaves from
the stalks. The days of
special handling and sizing
seems to be over; however,
it is still very important that
growers sort the ground
leaves and the injured leaves
from the good tobacco. If the
crop is being sold on grade,
then this is required. With
some “pull-off’ crops this is
RURAL ROUTE
WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE
FOR CHRISTMAS THIS j
YfAR
of Jerusalem (urban sprawl
keeps it from seeming that
far) is the little Judean hill
town of Ein Karem. From
the Hadassah Medical
Center one can view the
ancient town and its
monuments to John the
Baptist. For here according
to tradition John the Baptist
was bom (marked by a
Franciscan church and
monastery). Another
Franciscan monastery
stands beside the hill cave
where it is believed John
lived the last years of his
life.
Most important for the
Christian pilgrim, however,
is the lovely Franciscan
Church of the Visitation,
commemorating the ecstatic
TIME By Max mitb ’
of less importance. On the
other hand, growers should
be honest enough to sort out
the undesirable leaves. If
this is not done, then the
buyers will be unhappy and
look elsewhere for their
tobacco supplies. Some
sorting is necessary with
every crop, regardless of the
method of selling.
TO PRODUCE
DAIRY BEEF
Since dairying is so im
portant in this part of the
country, it might be
profitable for more
dairymen to feed out some of
their bull calves as steers.
Dairy beef is very much in
demand because it has good
encounter between John’s
mother, Elizabeth, and her
younger cousin, Mary, from
Nazareth. Whether or not the
tradition is correct in
identifying Em Karem as the
“hill country... city of
Judah” in Luke 1, the
pilgrim can hardly escape
catching there a spiritual
glimpse of that great oc
casion which we com
memorate again each Ad
vent season.
Filled With The Spirit
Mary’s quiet, uneventful
life had been jolted by her
owlt experience of God’s
messenger who came to her
in Nazareth and told her that
she was to become the
mother of the Messiah.
Informed that her cousin
flavor and does not carry a
lot of waste fat. The beef
trade today is demanding
more lean beef. With the
lower price of feed grains,
especially corn, many
dairymen can add extra
income from their dairy
herds be feeding out the bull
calves; they can be fed out
as bulls, or preferable
steered at an early age.
Open sheds or pole bams can
provide adequate housing.
TO ORDER SUPPLIES
It’s not too early to be
placing orders for farm
supplies for 1979, Many
concerns may give a good
discount when supplies are
ordered and accepted in
would like Your father
to get those two cows
HE WANTSjAND NOTHING
WOULC PLEASE ME MORE
THAN FOR YOU TO HAVE
A GOOD YEAR AT SCHOOL
w
COMMENTSJ
I’ve long been a fan of Longwood
Gardens, Chester County, but rt
wasn’t until two years ago that 1 first
saw their spectacular Christmas
display Anyone within a couple
hours’ drive of Kennett Square
should certainly make an effort to see
the famous Gardens. The beauty is
just about beyond belief and cer
tainly can’t be adequately described
in this column
Although Longwood Gardens is
filled with beauty the year around,
the facility has a special Christmas
treat each year It doesn’t cost much
either. It s only $2 for adults and $1
for children ages 6-14. Those under 6
get m free
But the charge of admission is
beside the point The sights at
Longwood Gardens are well worth
the price Recognized as one of the
great gardens of America, Longwood
Gardens are located along U.S
Route 1, just east of Kennett Square
Aside from acres of superbly
manicured outdoor beauty, there are
also arces of indoor displays During
the Christmas season (which of
ficially began here yesterday) the
facility also features 50,000 lights A
Elizabeth was also to bear a
child of religious
significance by the power of
the Holy Spirit, Mary rushed
to visit with her. She needed
to talk to someone who might
understand. Who in
Nazareth would believe her
or know how to help her
Entering the house of
Zechariah and Elizabeth,
she greeted her cousin the
customary way. But
Elizabeth’s response was
anything but customary.
Without understanding what
was happening within her,
Elizabeth felt her unborn son
move vigorously in her
womb. This was no mere
kicking movement ex
perienced by many pregnant
mothers-to-be, but
advance
season. This is the best way
to get the variety and quality
of materials that are wan-
ted. Next spring there may
be shortages of brands of
fertilizer, or varieties of
farm and garden seeds. The
same is true with tractor and
machinery repairs. If the
dealer is given tune this
winter to work on the
equipment, he will have it
ready for spring use and
may give some discount for
keeping his labor busy
during" the winter season.
Plan ahead and take ad
vantages of discounts.
By Tom Armstrong
mothers sure are
.STRANGE PEOPLE j
By Dieter Krieg
something much more than
than that! A wave of pure joy
seemed to engulf her and
without thinking of what she
was saying, she exclaimed;
“Blessed are you among
women, and blessed is the
fruit of your womb!” (1:42).
Elizabeth heard her own
words with amazement and
went on to explain to her
cousin what had prompted
this ecstatic outburst.
My Spirit Rejoices
But something was hap
pening in Mary too. Caught
up in a spiritual excitement
few have ever known, she
exclaims, “My soul
magnifies the Lord, and my
spirit rejoices in God my
Savior” (1:46,47). The
TO COOPERATE WITH
WITH AGRICULTURAL
CENSUS
the
growing
The forms for the 1978
Census of Agriculture are to
be mailed out late in
December. We urge com
mercial farmers to
cooperate with this program
by completing the forms and
returning them to the
Bureau of Census. We are
informed that the forms
Annual meeting of the
Pennsylvania Seed
smen’s Association, 10
a.m. at the Treadway
Resort Inn, Lancaster.
Tuesday, Dec. 19
Ephrata Area Young Far
mers annual Christmas
program, 7:45 p.m. at
Ephrata Jr. High School.
Lancaster County FFA farm
mechanics contest. Penn
Manor High School 12:30
p.m.
Seed, fertilizer, pesticide
dealers and college crop
specialist meet, (N.J.)
Pfenmgers Hilltop Inn,
6:30 p.m.
Board of directors meeting
of the Lancaster County
Farm and Home Foun
person just can't imagine the beauty
of such a presentation. Truly, it has
to be seen to be appreciated. In
addition, Longwood Gardens
provides Christmas concerts. One of
the largest pipe organs in the nation
is within one of its conservatories
Thirty different programs of
Christmas music are planned to
provide a ferstive accompaniment to
the visual splendors of the season
Thousands of blooming plants,
thousands of twinkling lights, ,and
hundreds of indoor displays provide
the visitor with plenty to see
Longwood Gardens has something
for everyone who likes Christmas,
and I guess that would include all of
us It’s a terrific Christmas present
from the Gardens to all of us I
personally appreciate their efforts
and I sincerely recommend it to
anyone who doesn’t mind driving
during this time of the year
Longwood Gardens is open from 10
a.m until 9 pm during the
Christmas season For further in
formation, please see a special article
which appeared in last week’s edition
of Lancaster Farming, beginning on
page 108
Farm Calendar
Monday, Dec. 18
words come from her own
mouth but their source
seemed to be “Something
Other.” In her ecstatic song,
Mary expresses her awe, her
thanksgiving for what God is
doing in her, and prophecys
of the mighty works he will
yet accomplish in the days
ahead. (This “song” is
known as The Magnificat,
after the Latin word which
we translate into English as
“magnifies”).
Mary “magnified” the
Lord. Caught up in awe,
wonder, and thanksgiving,
her heart overflowed with
praise and joy.
In the winter light of this
Advent season let us ex
perience our own
Magnificat!
have been revised to make
them shorter and more
easily understood. The
agricultural census is one
way to evaluate the trends
and status of American
agriculture; we know of no
reason why producers
should not give the true facts
on their farming operation.
Agriculture is big business in
this country and we should
be glad to report the facts.
dation, at the Farm and
Home Center, 7:30 p.m.
- Wednesday, Dec. 20
Crop Day at Upper Dauphin
High School, 10:30 a.m. to
2:30 p.m.
Garden Spot Young Farmers
Tour, beginning at 9 a.m.
from the agriculture
parking lot at the high
school. Return by 3:30
p.m.
Swine management meeting
at the Hinkletown
Alternative School, 7:30
p.m.
Thursday, Dec. 21
Milk Marketing Board
hearing concerning a
proposed change for Area
1 dairy farmers,
Downingtown Inn,
Dowiungtown, 10 a.m.