Richland Spring Report

It grieves me to look out over my beautiful trees and see the leaves turning brown. They are parched, and I fear I will lose more of them this year or next. I thought we might get some rain Saturday, but it passed us by. I know many people are praying for rain, but we need to get serious about it.

I have been a virtual class student for the last five days. As an adult, I found it interesting, and I gained valuable new information from it. As a student, I can feel the pain that so many of our kids have felt trying to assimilate a ton of material from a screen. We really do need to get these kids back in school. For Richland Springs, that means this Friday. I’m hoping our COVID measures aren’t going to be too bothersome.

My excitement level has gone up a few notches ever since I read we are going back to school. I’m not sure how I will handle the disappointment if we decide to back track and go virtual again. As little as we are, there is no need to stay home. I have plenty of room to social distance. Apparently out here in the country, we are not afraid to go to school and teach. The air in Austin must be bad if all those young teachers fear for their safety. We make them tough out here, and we are ready to teach our kids.

I’m settling in for the summer heat. My classroom is ready for school for the second time this summer. It was good to go in May, but a recent water leak flooded my room and caused a rapid rearrangement of the room. So, Coach Burkhart did what he could, and I am back in business. Mind you, I’m not sure when I will be back in business. I can’t stand the thought of not having the kids in class. The last months of school were enough to show me that online schooling is not for everyone, especially young kids. So, now we wait.

I am in mother’s heaven. I have managed to see all four of my children in the last two weeks. My youngest son, Shane, and his wife, Earnie, were here for the day on Saturday. My youngest daughter, Christine, and her husband, Bobby, came last week and helped install my floors. Thursday, I was lucky enough to attend my grandson, Dustyn’s, strange graduation, and Tracy now lives here on the property with her husband, Mark.

The dust storms out west have made for some beautiful sunsets. As I sit down to write the column, I can see a brilliant, orange sun lighting up the sky in shades of dusty pink and orange. The mosquitoes forced me in from the front porch, but the cool breezes just don’t seem right for the middle of June. I am not complaining; these cool mornings and evenings are a blessing.

By the time you get your paper Thursday, I will be in Stonewall, Texas. The quilting ladies and I are headed to four days of hard sewing. I am looking forward to this trip just so I don’t have to do yard work. I can say for myself that I have done more outdoor work in the last two months than ever in my life. The weather was perfect, the rains were plentiful, and things just worked out. My yard shows the results of all that hard work. Russ keeps me hopping.

I forced myself to leave the front porch and come inside to type the column. It’s beautiful outside, cool, not much wind and crispy clean. It’s cool enough outside that I will have to get Russ an extra blanket for the bed. I should get my new chickens shortly; with any luck they will survive the hawks, owls, cats and whatever else is out there. Oh, do not forget the snakes. A chicken snake cleaned out my bluebird nest, and I shall add that predator to my list.

I am excited that Texas is reopening its economy though on a limited basis. Deep in my heart, even though I knew it didn’t make sense, I was hoping that our schools would reopen. The polls are showing the response levels of different states.

As we begin week four of our social distancing and homebound learning, it is time to take stock of where we are. I feel I am a little more comfortable with this online classroom. I have a way to go, but I don’t feel so frustrated. Most of my students, and hopefully their parents, have reached a zone of comfort. I wish I could say that all of us are totally at ease, but that would not be true.