The Road

Snow was expected this weekend, but rain came instead, and a very welcome surprise it was! The more our parched pastures and trees get to drink before the ground freezes, the better. I’m especially relieved because now I won’t have to haul any more water to all of this year’s plantings of junipers, willows, cottonwoods, and currants.

Rain, however, is much more inconvenient on our place than snow because of our lane. It’s “the road” when dry, frozen, or snow-covered, but when it’s muddy, it’s “The Road”. The Road is over half-a-mile of the heaviest, stickiest, slippieriest, muckiest muck that any luckless driver has ever faced. When the muck builds up under the wheelwells, it hardens into concrete that can actually prevent wheels from turning, not to mention wear the rubber off of tires.

Lest you think I exaggerate, I quote Jeremy, our Co-op tire guy: “Look at this chunk of concrete wedged in here! It has scraped the sidewall right off the inside of the tire! You must have driven over some wet cement.” I shook my head and said no, I didn’t think so. I could just imagine what Jeremy was thinking: Women drivers! They don’t even know when they’ve driven over wet concrete!

Since removing the concrete is most unpleasant and tiresome, we try to avoid driving on The Road. Fortunately, the ground was frozen early this morning, so Hubby was able to take his car to work. I drove Blackie out to the county road before the sun could warm up the muck. If I need to go to town later, I can shuttle myself out there in the Ranger, which, hopefully, is more amphibious than Blackie.

“Didn't He set us on the road to life? Didn't He keep us out of the ditch?”      –PSALM 66:9