Howdy,
I didn’t write or get a blog post up yesterday as yesterday was a big, busy family-and-community-service-day.
I have no intention of crafting an excuse—in fact in that first line I substituted “as” for the “because” I had drafted, since I didn’t want it to say “I didn’t write yesterday because …— because when it comes right down to it I want to write, and that is my intention. To write. It’s a matter of getting it done or not, and of course there was some time to do it, if I had done it.
I didn’t blog yesterday, but I mention the big day because it was big and busy for our family and the community service was important and a privilege to be a part of, even if just for a sliver of the time that some are putting in as volunteers.
Wednesday night, our family of five left Turlock about ten o’clock (hoping the kids would sleep on the way) to drive up to Mariposa for the night. Being night, obviously our travels sped through the dark, and as we climbed into the foothills I smelled the remains of the humungous and devastating Detwiler FIRE before I noticed any sight of it. Jasper (who was not sleeping an hour into the trip, though the younger two were out) responded, “Yeah, I do smell it” when I stated I could smell the wildfire smoke and ashes.
On the way home the following afternoon/evening we’d have the chance to see a lot more of the fire’s blazed paths and blackened wreckage. (Here’s a good link for updates, information, or stats on the Detwiler fire: http://www.fire.ca.gov/current_incidents/incidentdetails/Index/1672)
But before that two main reasons brought us to Mariposa that late night for the next day. First, was a 9:00 a.m. appointment to have fish stocked in our family’s pond. My parents thought the boys would enjoy seeing the fish released into the pond: 500 blue gill and 50 bass. It was great to see fish life refreshed, as we had lost—after decades, to before my knowledge, of healthy, sizable fish and good fishing—all fish on the property when the pond dried completely with the drought before refilling all the way again during this wet winter.
It is great to have fish again, as I said. The only bummer is that there’s a reason I didn’t capitalize “fish” in the title. The fish are small. Mariposa’s Detwiler FIRE was/is BIG (record-sized for the area) and the family pond fish are now small. Five hundred and fifty fish dumped into the pond from three small buckets. (Okay, I guess, regular-sized buckets—but not pumped out of the “live fish” truck like you might imagine; it wasn’t stocking a popular public lake, that’s for sure.) In a way, the actual stocking of the fish, tipping three buckets, was quite anticlimactic, but I’m not knocking it—it’s exciting to have fish in there. Especially for the kids. It’s just that the fish are minnows, or at least looked like it.
But they say they grow fast: two inches long now, four inches next year, and spawning and make more fish the year after that, so the pond is on its way again as a fish habit, and that pond has been good for fish. We’ve caught big bass and catfish out of it in the past. No catfish now, but the bass can get big again, and the blue gill are fun fish.
I’m smiling while typing just thinking about fish swimming in that pond again. Time is a weird thing; and it passes. And those fish will be big ‘uns before we know it. Lunkers, as they say.
Passing time and cars: clunkers (or classics if you do it right).
Passing time and fish: lunkers.
So, that was the morning: new pond life and a promise of fishing trips.
The afternoon was critical community service. Our hours weren’t “critical” or to take any credit, but the work and relief that the church site and many volunteers have been doing for days as a Red Cross fire evacuees relief site has been crucial and constructive for the community as parts of Mariposa and its people begin to rebuild.
My parents, and others, have been volunteering all week, and we—even the young boys (we were very proud of them)—were able to volunteer for the afternoon after donating some goods. Helping unload people’s vehicles of their donation drop-offs; carting supplies into the facility; stocking tables of food or other needed items; organizing and folding clothes; breaking down a mountain of cardboard boxes (the pallets of donated items is impressive, a definite blessing!); and prayer teams to hear and help, support and encourage, and be there for people who may need so much after great loss.
It was good to be there, if even for a snapshot, hoping to be a help and an encouragement—even if only to the faithful and hard-working day-in-and-day-out crew. Besides without our three boys giving trial runs to the used toys how would we know if the items worked properly or not? Actually, I was proud of our boys when it come to the toys too, for a couple of reasons. One, they did a good job of working for an extended time before being sidetracked with enticing finds to play with as they went. And, two, they never complained about not being able to take any toy home themselves, showing an understand and appreciation for what was going on around them. Jasper locked in on and tried his hand at going from action figure to car with a pretty cool Transformer while Titus did lap after lap inside the New Life multiple-purpose room on a balance bike. He may have learned how to ride a bike yesterday; I’m not sure—as his father I’ll have to check in with him on that, maybe grab the back of his bike seat on his next ride and take credit.
The drive home did reveal fire damage, like you’d imagine: but also probably more than you’d imagine. Having just been camping and enjoying a few campfires with friends and fam and thinking of the small circle of ash left after a hot fire for roasting marshmallows for s’mores, I said to Jasper, more than once, “Look at that (fields of ash under toasty trees), it looks the same as our campfires, but gigantic. Can you imagine how big and hot the fire would be compared to a little fire that’s so hot?” (Said to Jasper because once again the other boys were asleep in the car, instantly after the big and busy Mariposa day.)
No, didn’t find—make—time to write that day, but we did take the swing-by trip to Granddad and G.G.’s on the way home, generously going out of our way to stop in and eat some of Granddad’s birthday tarts and get clothes mended. A loose button repaired right on the spot: not a bad deal for the price of eating their delicious celebratory tarts.
And, today?
Today … well, today is going to have to wait, because I wrote a post’s worth on today (and two’s worth today on yesterday). Tomorrow you can read about today and the things that three-and-a-half-year-olds think and say.
—Billy
Reading. Writing. Living.
Word Count: 152,507 / On Pace: 156,750 / Year’s Goal: 200,000
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