A Hard lesson from Mother Nature

Over the past month, we have had a record amount of rain. Starting with tropical storm Claudette, and I cannot remember a single day without rain in the month since. The last time I checked, we were just short of 6 feet of rain for the year.

This has led to the absolute failure of my crops this year. I have a few pumpkins growing still, but everything else has drowned. As a result, my family’s entire food store for winter has rotted from the roots up. I typically grow two gardens a year. The first goes towards food stores for the winter, and the second goes towards selling at the market.

I will use the fall garden to fill in any gaps in my food pantry, but the remaining, as I stated, goes towards my bank account. Homesteading full-time can be a challenge financially, but the freedom of employment is hard to replace. You typically do all kinds of different things to earn a little money here and there.

Sales

One of the ways we earn money is through selling what we sell online and at local markets. Well, the rain has not been friendly in this area either.

Soap does not do well in the rain after all. Well, it does; if you’re bathing in the rain, it’s terrible for the stocked product, though.

Needless to say, it’s been a rough month; but that’s what happens when you place yourself, your family, and all your needs so close to nature. You are at the mercy of nature. Do I regret it? Absolutely not. I highly recommend it, actually. I just always warn people that are doing it.

Floods

Another effect of 6 feet of rain is that the rivers around here stay high. Even after a dry day or two, we are often just below flood stage and what happened yesterday was the roads flooded around me.

My wife and daughter had gone out to meet some of the ladies from the church at a restaurant and have a girl’s night. But, unfortunately, a pop-up storm that has become so common here lately popped up just as they were leaving, and half the roads home were flooded.

My wife called me at 9:45 last night, scared because her car struggled to make it through some of the flooded roads. I know you’re not supposed to drive through flooded roads, but down here, you have to if you plan to get anywhere.

With every path, home flooded, she did what any wife should do, or at least be able to do, and she called her husband. After talking her down from a near panic attack, I grabbed my oldest son, jumped in the truck, and took off after her. I knew she was fine getting home, but I guess she did not know that.

Lesson Time For My Son

I drove through the pouring rain, wind, and lightning on my mission to find her, as well as check the road conditions to find the safest route home for her. While driving, I had a talk with my 18-year-old son.

I asked him if we knew why we were going out, and he said not really. So I explained to him that his mother was scared and that you are a protector as a husband. Being a protector does not mean just home intruders and predatory animals; sometimes, it means braving a storm to bring some comfort to your spouse.

Sometimes it means plotting the safest course home if your wife is not confident. Sometimes it is letting her park her car and picking her up to drive her home yourself. Sometimes it’s keeping a good demeanor and attitude even when everything has gone to crap, like our garden.

A Husbands Burden

Sometimes it is best for a husband to shoulder the burden and carry it for a while. Why? Because we are leaders. We lead, protect, and provide for our families. It is our God-given role in our marriages.

Like I went out into the storm to bring my wife comfort, I have already begun prepping my garden area for the fall crops to grow. I have not asked for her help because I do not want it to be a burden or stress to her. After all, provision is my job. I did not tell her that I was too tired and falling asleep driving through the storm last night because she felt safer, and I did not need her to worry about me as well as her.

I know we should not preach, suck it up and deal with it, and while that is not healthy to do all the time, sometimes it is the necessary thing to do. That is what good leaders do; they give it their all and ask for help when they need it.

And I would like to take a moment to remind all of you fathers of this one thing. You never know when a teaching opportunity is going to present itself. Such as what happened to go to the rescue of my wife. Talk to your sons, make sure they understand what you are doing and why you are doing it. Set that lesson into them now so that they will carry it with them into the future.

AUTHOR

Questions or Thoughts? Leave them in the comments.

Padre

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