AlO-LancMtsr Farming, Saturday, Novambar 11, 2000
OPINION
The American Flag
I am the American flag, listen to me and I’ll tell you my story. My
colors are red, white and blue. 1 have a field of fifty stars and thir
teen stripes. I am also known as “The Stars and Stripes” and “Old
Glory.” I am honored to be in all public places. I go to schools where
the children pledge allegiance to me. I attend all sporting events and
stand proud and fly high as they sing my song “The Star Spangled
Banner.” I am honored when I go by in a parade and my people sa
lute me.
Yes, I am the American flag. I served under forty some presi
dents. I was in peace and war. I was at the battle of Bunker Hill and
Valley Forge where I saw the soldiers starve and freeze to death. I
was with General Washington as he crossed the Delaware. I was in
the Civil War where I saw father and son, brother and brother fight
against each other to save the Union. I was there when they freed
the slaves. I was at Gettysburg with President Lincoln, where in a
few minutes he gave the most famous speech ever heard “The Get
tysburg Address.” I went along to the trenches in France in World
War I, the beaches of Normandy in World Weir 11, the day which
lives in infamy at Pearl Harbor, the sands of Iwo Jima, where a few
soldiers planted me in the sand to fly high with honor over them. I
was in many wars and places with the people of my country. The
farthest distance I have traveled is to the moon where I’m also fly
ing high to honor my country.
1 am the American flag. I stand for freedom, but freedom has its
price. Freedom doesn’t prevail without tyranny. I was disgraced
many a time. I was spit on, stepped on, shot at and burned. I saw
racism and other violence in my country, but I have overcome, for I
fly over America the greatest country there is. A land of freedom,
liberty, opportunities, a place to dream and live your dreams, a land
of bounteous blessings, a land of milk and honey. A land to worship
your Lord and Master. If we would just open our eyes and hearts
and believe in God and ourselves we could move mountains. What a
great country I stand for. I’m proud of my patriots. May they be
proud of me!
I am the American flag. I am at the boot camp where the morn
ing reveille is played. I am the cover over the casket when one of my
servicemen who have served their country reach their final resting
place. And I’ll fly high with honor while taps are played for those
who have served their country and have paid the price. They gave
their all so that I may fly free.
Yes, I am the American flag. May I long wave over the land of
the free and the home of the brave.
God Bless my Country! God Bless America! Long may She live!
Clarion/Venango Holstein
Annual Meeting, Wolfs Den
Restaurant, Knox, 7 p.m.
Year 2000 Goat Conference,
Penn State Ag Arena, Univer
sity Park, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
27th Annual Berks County
Farm Tour, noon-5 p.m., also
NAILE Feeder CairSaleTKerr
tucky Fair and Expo Center,
Newmarket Hall, Louisville,
Poultry Health and Manage
ment Seminar, Kreider’s Res
taurant, Manheim, noon.
Dauphin County Cooperative
Extension 4-H Achievement
Night, Pa. Farm Show Cafete
ria, 5:30 p.m.
Pennsylvania Farm Bureau 50th
Anniversary, Hershey Lodge
and Convention Center, thru
meeting on equipment main
tenance, Adamstown Equip
ment, 7:30 p.m.
Clarion County Corn Day,
Custom Harvesting, Riverside
Inn, Cambridge Springs.
Anna Landis
Herndon
(Written in honor of
those who have served
and died for their country.)
♦ Farm Calendar *
Land O’Lakes Regional Meet
ing, Clarion (formerly
Embers), Carlisle, 10 a.m.-
1:30 p.m.
Lebanon County Dairy Herd
Improvement Association
Annual Meeting, Hoss’s Steak
and Sea House, Annville, 6:30
p.m.
Penn State Golf Turf Confer
ence, Nittany Lion Inn, State
College, thru Nov. 16.
Dairy Cattle Nutrition Work
shop, Holiday Inn, Grantviile,
thru Nov. 15.
4th Decennial National Irriga
tion Symposium, Phoenix
Civic Center, Arizona, thru
Nov. 16.
Extension In The New Millen
nium, Ramada Inn, Altoona,
thru Nov. 15.
Solanco Young Farmers meet
ing, Corn Grain Management,
Solanco High School. 7 p.m.
Er^^^^Coniere^^R^
xtension conference, 'enn
State Conference Center
Hotel, thru Nov. 16.
Westmoreland County Farm-
City Dinner, Mountain View
Inn^rreensburß^JjnL^^
Catocun Soil Conservation Dis-
(Turn to Pago ASS)
<J / -
«« , ?**,
To Understand
Deer Stand Safety
In an effort to outsmart the elusive
white tail deer, more and more
Pennsylvania hunters are taking to
the trees to bag their quarry, accord
ing to Earl Robbins, Tioga County
extension agent.
Hunters may climb existing limbs
or use ladders, steps, or commercial
climbers to reach perches 10 to IS
feet off the forest floor.
Tree stands have been very popu
lar with hunters in archery season,
and now more hunters are using
them during rifle season.
Hunting from tree stands may be
more productive, but using them
WHAT WILL YOU
LEAVE ME?
Background Scripture:
1 Kings 2:1-4; 3:1-15; 1 Chronicles
29:22-25; 2 Chronicles 1:1-13.
Devotional Reading:
Psalms 119:101-9.
In David’s life, there came the
time that comes to all of us. After a
reign of 40 years, the man whom
God annointed to be king over Israel
was facing the hour of death. He had
built up a strong kingdom and accu
mulated much wealth.
We can imagine that some of Da
vid’s heirs were already wondering
what their rich and powerful father
would leave to them. One of David’s
sons, Abiathar, had already tried a
power play to seize the throne for
himself, a ploy which Solomon’s
mother, Bathsheba, had quashed.
David, however, had something
even more important to give Solo
mon than riches and power the es
sence of what his father had learned
over the years. David charged his
son; “Be strong and show yourself a
man, and keep the charge of the
Lord your God, walking in his ways
and keeping his statutes, his com
mandments, his ordinances, and his
testimonies... that you may prosper
in all that you do wherever you turn
that the Lord may establish his word
which he spoke concerning me, ‘lf
you sons take heed to their way, to
walk before me in faithfulness with
all their heart and with all their soul,
there shall not fail you a man on the
throne of Israel’” (1 Kings 2:1-4).
It seems sad to me that, although
we pass on to our children and the
coming generations much in the way
of material wealth, we are much less
likely to pass on to them what we
have learned. Perhaps that is be
cause, despite the longevity of our
lives, we think that we haven’t
learned all that much. Or perhaps
we do not value spiritual advice as
much as material goods.
I wish that I could leave each of
my children with a nest egg amount
that would provide them with help
in buying a house. The chances for
may be dangerous. One out of every
three tree stand users will eventually
fall out of a tree stand. Nationwide,
about 10 hunters every year are
killed in falls from tree stands, while
many others suffer temporary or
permanent injury.
Human error is the main reason
for tree stand accidents. People
climb into trees or stands when con
ditions are wet, icy, or windy. They
also fall asleep and fall out of the
tree or become excited when a deer
appears and take one step too far.
To Be Safe
In Tree Stands
Earl Robbins, Tioga County ex
tension agent, recommends hunters
follow these safety tips when using
tree stands;
• Do not use weathered, home
made tree stands. These stands often
deteriorate quickly and often are un
safe even when newly installed.
• Wear a safety belt or harness.
These products fit under both arms
and are attached to the tree and the
hunter. If the stand breaks or slips,
the hunter remains in position.
• Always unload firearms before
pulling them up into or lowering
them from the tree stand.
• Choose an obviously healthy
tree that can support the additional
weight. Make sure the tree has no
dead branches or fungal growths.
Mushrooms or fungi on trees can be
a sign of ill health.
• When climbing up or down, al
ways ensure that your hands and
feet are secure at three points of con
tact before moving the fourth point.
• Closely follow manufacturer’s
directions when using commercial
tree stands.
that are not very great, but I can ac
tually leave them something more
important: what I have learned.
Walking In
His Ways
David’s advice to his son is simple
and straightforward: “Be strong and
show yourself a man, and keep the
charge of the Lord your God, walk
ing in his ways and keeping his stat
utes, his commandments, his ordi
nances, and his testimonies, as it is
written in the law of Moses, that you
may prosper in all that you do and
wherever you turn, that the Lord
may establish his word which he
spoke concerning me, saying, ‘lf
your sons take heed to their way, to
walk before me in faithfulness with
all their heart and with all their
soul, there shall not fail you a man
on the throne of Israel’” (2:2-4).
What had David learned from
which Solomon, his son, might prof
it? David had personally experi
enced the goodness of God who per
mitted him to prosper and grow as
King of Israel when he kept the
charge of God and walked in his
ways. If you go with God, what he is
saying, and follow his lead, you can
not fail as King of Israel.
Unspoken, but at least implied, is
the fact that although David had
also learned much through success,
he had also learned through failure,
with which he had much experience
also. When he arrogantly abused his
power and sinned with Bathsheba,
plotting for the demise of Uriah, her
husband, David had experienced the
judgment as well as the forgiveness
of God. In the midst of all his terri
ble travail with his son Absalom, he
had found God’s presence the only
means of living through this terrible
time.
So now David died and “slept
with his fathers” and Solomon at
last succeeded to the throne, al
though not without some struggle.
Then, while at Gibeon, a place of
worship, he had a dream in which
God came to him and asked, “Ask
what I shall give you?” (3:5). Solo
mon replies by first thanking and
praising God for his “great and
steadfast love to thy servant David,
my father.”
He also thanks the Lord for put
ting him on his father’s throne. If
Solomon’s words were sincere, this
is a humble prayer: “... thou hast
made thy servant king in place of
David my father, although I am but
a little child; I do not know how to
go out or come in. And thy servant
is in the midst of thy people whom
thou hast chosen, a great people,
Remember, hunters may not place
a tree stand in any tree of their
choice. You need to ask the owner
first. There is a $lOO fine plus dam
age costs for placing a tree stand on
public or private property without
permission.
To Set Hunter
Safety Example
If you are taking a young person
hunting this year, make sure they
understand the importance of hunt
ing safety rules.
Young people handling firearms
need to develop some important hab
its, according to Earl Robbins, Tioga
County extension agent. We can in
still these habits by instructing them
and, more importantly, by setting an
example.
These youth need role models who
practice safe hunting skills. Make
sure firearms are in good working
order and barrels and chambers are
free of obstructions. Make sure every
member of the group wears a com
bined minimum of 250 square inches
of hunter orange on the head, chest,
and back.
Assume every firearm is loaded.
When you pick up a gun, the first
thing you should do is check it for
ammunition. When you pass a fire
arm to someone else, leave the action
open so there is no chance of it fir
ing. Unload guns and leave actions
open when transporting them.
Do not shoot until you are abso
lutely sure of your target. Shooting
at a sound or an undefined shape is
inviting tragedy.
Feather Prof’s Footnote: “The
voyage of discovery is not in seek
ing new landscapes but in having
new eyes. ”
that cannot be numbered or counted
for multitude” (3:7,8). (Later in his
life, Solomon would be arrogant, not
humble, but I take his words here at
face value.)
Bequeathing Wisdom
It is in this continuing state of hu
mility that Solomon now answers
God’s request to “Ask what I shall
give to you.”
“Give thy servant, therefore,” Ke
prays, “an understanding mind to
govern thy people, that I may dis
cern between good and evil; for who
is able to govern this thy great peo
ple?” (3:9).
God is favorably impressed with
Solomon’s attitude and responds,
telling him that because he asked
nothing for himself, “long life or
riches or the life of your enemies,” he
will give him what he asks for, “a
wise and discerning mind,” un
equaled by anyone who lived before
him or will come after him. Appar
ently, Solomon was thus gifted and
his enduring reputation is that of the
“wisdom of Solomon” although as
the latter parts of his story will show,
he didn’t always exercise that wis
dom.
The story of Solomon’s ascension
to the throne also tells us something
more about what God bequeaths to
his obedient and faithful children:
God said to Solomon, “I give you
also what you have not asked, both
riches and honor, so that no other
kind shall compare with you, all
your days” (3:13). It reminds us that
Jesus taught his disciples, “Instead,
seek his kingdom, and these things
shall be yours as well” (Lk. 12:31).
That doesn’t mean we will inherit
Solomon’s riches nor his promi
nence, but that if we walk closely
with him, the Lord will give us all we
really need.
I like the way C.S. Lewis para
phrases this: “Aim at heaven and
you will get earth ‘thrown in’; aim at
earth and you will get neither.”
Lancaster Farming
Established 1955
Published Every Saturday
Ephrata Review Building
1 E. Main St.
Ephrata, PA 17522
—by—
Lancaster Farming, Inc.
A Stemman Enterprise
William J Burgess General Manager
Everett R Newswanger Editor
Copyright 2000 by Lancaster Farming