On Being FarmWif (and other hazan Joyce Bupp As if there weren’t enough our galaxy containing Earth. scary things in the world. Which would no doubt create Like terrorists, lagging eco- all manners of disruption, and nomics, floods, droughts, pesti- possible end, to life as we know lence, uncontrollable diseases, today; . bureaucrats and telemarketers. Reading that sobering news Now we have the notential re P° rt **■ me to tlunkm 8 about threat of destruction S °T P w f s t 0 “ . ~ J one’s remaining tune, should no lff' ... . „ . . such a cataclysmic event ever Black holes are defined by seem imminent, astronomers and space scien- Qq t 0 the mountains or lists as collapsing objects in camping with the family. Hike space so dense that their gravi- through the forests and along ty draws in ail material around the streams, play games, read them, including light.' books with the grandkids, and Frankly, L can’t even com- have a hot dog roast with lots of prebend that. Good thing I’m a marshmallows for dessert, farmer and not a space scientist Take a trip with The Farmer person, huh? . to drive the Trans-Canadian But, some very learned Sface highway and spend some time scientists have reportedly found visiting Alaska. Then, head the through humongously sensitive fther direction for the canyon outer-space-detection gear two lands of the Southwest. Swing giant black holes in I distant a ™ nd b ? Idaho on the wa y to •ms's? «ow CTte d. Si . PC”? “ ueve 7 0 on the deck and read a good newly-discovered black holes . will “dance” with each other Take a hot balloon ride . untd they converge, then col- Go whale-watching. lapse with such force that they Eat M the deUcious goodies will send npples throughou the that me ilt then I universe. Those npples will m strawbcrries and ice turn, like tossing a pebble mtb cream, potato chips, doughnuts, our rejuvenating farm ponds, cheeseburgers, pie (pecan, ba expand outward. nana,.creanhl*mon.l|«ringue, And ultimately ripple' jiistto fudgesundaes through more local neighbor . juid chocolate. Lots of choco hoods in the universe, life. -" " 1 ■ ! eed Carts - Express Wagons - Hardware - Martin Senour Paint - Kendall Motor Oi 958 Vintage Road, Christiana, PA 17509 Special Hours: December 3-24: Mon., Wed., Thurs. and Sat. 6:30 AM-4:00 PM "Dies. & Fri. 6:30 AM-7:00 PM, Dec. 24 closing at 4:00 PM MODEL 350-* 10” Air Tires, 20”x40” Bed $157 With Racks In The U.S. (Except Model 1300) - You Pay Shipping In Advance Or We Will Valley Hardware Go outside and play with the grandkids. Play fetch with Derra Dog. Cuddle the fat, fluffy kittens in the calf bam. Watch the birds. Find some meaningful way to make life a little more com fortable or pleasant for some one in pain or in need or grief stricken or lonely. But wait. Those black holes are not ex pected to collapse for, oh say, millions, maybe even billions, of years from now. So they aren’t likely a life-threatening event for any of us. Besides, those same space scientists predict that, before the Black Hole Twins threat be comes imminent, our own sun is expected to explode into a nova and collapse into its own black hole first, making any fu ture concerns totally irrelevant. Okay, so we can all go back to worrying about the likes of terrorists, lagging economics, floods, droughts, pestilence, un controllable diseases, bureau crats, and telemarketers. And, meanwhile, cram as many of the fun things and eating as many of the fun foods as we can sensibly inject into our daily routines. It never hurts to be prepared. MODEL 1300-* X4 B” MODEL 171 A iOO 10x175 Wheels, 16' w/Racks 9X9J A 1 F7O Bed 897 w/Ra< w/o Racks 91/1] At right, these West Perry FFA members attended the 75th National FFA Convention in Louisville, Ky. From left, Katie McMillen, James Reisinger, Kelly Miller, James Adams, Amber Rock, and Cole McLaughlin. ****** RY SALE iber 24 iers ,00 Worth Ml Gifts, Dog [Vine and Paper or Knife Grip AGONS Small Lancaster Farming, Saturday, November 30, 2002-B3 Hans Herr FFA Is One-Star Winner LANCASTER (Lancaster Co.) The National FFA Organization re cently selected the Lancaster Men nonite High School Hans Herr FFA Chapter as a one-star winner in the National FFA Chapter Award pro gram. Chapter members who were rec ognized for the honor at the 75th National FFA Convention in Louis ville, Ky., this fall are senior Jay Lehman, son of Stephen and Mary Lehman, Holtwood; senior Dara Melrath, daughter of Dennis and Dana Melrath, Oxford; senior Kevin Shaiebly, son of Nelson Shaiebly, Conestoga, and Sandra Shaiebly, MountvUle; and junior Philip Weil er, son of John and Karen Weiler, Ephrata. Teacher Lem Metzler served as their adviser. Persons honored for Lancaster Mennonite’s National Chap ter Award are, from left, Jay Lehman, Dara Melrath, Philip Weiler, Kevin Shaiebly, and adviser Lem Metzler. Lancaster Mennonite’s Hans Hen- Chapter is one of 57 chapters' select ed from a pool of more than 500 candidates nationwide ranked as a one-star winner. The award pro gram is sponsored by Cargill and Land O’Lakes Foundation as a spe- dal project of the National FFA Foundation. In other Hans Herr news, three chapter members participated in the 2002 National FFA Marketing Plan Career Development Event during the national convention. They are Mary Nickle (2002 LMS graduate), daughter of James and Sharon Not tingham; Oara Melrath; and Philip Weiler. The marketing plan event is one of 23 national events that use the fun of competition to connect classroom learning and careers.