ELMER'S POST

Well Eli and I are recovered from injuries from that volley ball game.  Oh, maybe we have an ache here and there, but we are back in great shape for our ages.  Our wives have forgiven us, but they haven't forgotten

Some times you can find the darnest things when your not looking for them.  Edward wanted a certain black and white tile for the floor in his kitchen.  They use to make it in the 1950's - 60's, but they don't make it now.  Edward, Jean, David and anyone else they could let note, myself included, were looking for it.  Any store you went to, said they don't make it anymore.  Haven't made it for years.

There is an elderly lady that owns a farm located not to far from our place.  She has been a widow for many years.  When Mennonite and Amish moved into the area, she and her husband were the first drivers for us in the area.  Her husband has passed and now, due to her age, she only drives during the day and to local places like the grocery store, local doctors, etc.

Her house needed some work on it - both the inside and the outside.  Bishop Joseph and Bishop Eli got together and decided we should help her.  So a group of ladies went over and helped in the inside and we men helped on the outside. Joseph, Eli , a couple other men and myself were outside deciding whether we should just paint the house or put siding on it.  I don't know what all of the ladies were doing but some how they ended up in the attic and were going through things up their with the lady that owns the place.

A little side line here was at break time, when the lady told us about her and her husband buying the farm back in the 1960's.  They were a young couple then.  Anyway, at the time Englisher's owned the farms around them.  She said the Mennonites were the first to move in near her and what farms they bought.  Then, the Amish came in and bought some of the farms.  Right now her farm is between a Mennonite owner farm on one side and an Amish owned farm on the other side.  At the time she and her husband didn't know how to react.  We wear different clothes and carriages with horse and buggies.  Then they got to know each other and came to find, we are all alike, just live a little different.

Back to what I started to tell..  When we got back to work the ladies were getting rid of some things out the attic windows.  Bishop Joseph saw the tile pieces come out.  He told the ladies to hold it and stop throwing it out.  The three of us went to the attic and looked at the tile - sure enough the tiles was exactly what Edward wanted.  The lady said it had been in her kitchen floor, but had been changed years ago.  She forgot she had it.  It seems when her husband bought it was closing out sale so he bought a great deal.  More than enough for her kitchen.

The problem was. was it exactly what Edward wanted and second all, being almost 50 years would it keep on the floor or fall apart when it was put down.  I ran to the shanty and called Edward.  He was over almost as fast as lightening.  He couldn't believe it when he saw it.  We explained how old it was and might not hold, but he was willing to give it a try.

First we had to clean that tile because it had years of dust and dirt on it.  After that Edward, David, Eli and I went over to the house to see what would happen. Seeing it was his kitchen, we let Edward lay the first piece.  We laid about half the floor to see if the tile would last.  The following week Edward used the kitchen, walked on the floor, even rewashed to see how the tile would take it.  It was fine when we went back next week to finish the job.

The lady wouldn't take any money for that old junk as she called it so when the siding came in for her house, Edward helped Eli and I put it on - at no charge.  With the three of us working, we got that place done fast.

We know she is on a low income.Took a look at all the land she has there.  Says she isn't selling any of it, but we explained how she could rent the fields to either of her neighbors and get some money when the crops are sold in the fall.  As she doesn't use her barns, she could also rent them and get some income there.  That sounded good to her.  So Bishop Joseph and Eli got with the neighbors and got the fields rented for her. Last I knew, they were still trying to see if they could rent her barns.

All had a good time helping her. She still needs a little work done, but it can wait until after planting season.  We will all come over and help her fix it up.  It looks a lot better now than it did.  Of course, we didn't charge, but she is a proud woman.  We explained of all the time she and her husband took us out at all the times of the day or night and never charged us.  Well, she said, that's neighbors.  We explained so is helping her.

Now, I have a request here.  We are running out of things to put posts on.  Do any of you have any questions you want to ask?  Or ideas you for our posts.  You folks use to but haven't done it in a long time and we just don't know what to post about sometimes.   So if you have any question you would like to ask anyone of us or have ideas, please let us know.

Trust God's Wisdom,
Elmer