People hear weather reports about Arkansas and conclude we are suffering the ravages or snow, sleet, or wind in this corner of the state. However, if you look at where we are, in the very corner of Northwest Arkansas, you will note how the storms veer north to Joplin, Missouri and St. Louis - or they head south to Ft. Smith and Little Rock.
Eastern Arkansas received five (5) inches of snow last night. We had fog and a little mist all day, but no snow or ice, apart from the little bit that fell and melted early in the morning.
A few storms do roll in and stay. We had snow like that last winter, a few times, but no so far.
The flurries we had yesterday were publishing flurries. The Faith of Jesus is now at Amazon, in production. That is the black and white edition. I can probably order copies sent later today. Norma Boeckler volunteered to work on the full color edition, which can start when I receive the Word file back. Various fussments took place yesterday as decisions were made. I am keeping the retail cost very low for the printed and Kindle editions. My main interest is distribution, so there will be free PDFs available fairly soon.
So the birds made noises like a Shriners' convention yesterday - all day. They wanted to be energized for the coming storm. It was a ruse, but we all knew it. I kept scooping sunflower seeds and corn in the backyard. They treated us to a constant display of flight, feeding, and fun.
Planning ahead is the key for birds and gardening. Human management is down to a science. Professionals can get a certification in Project Management, which is quite beneficial in the workplace. LI said, "It only proved I could pass a software test." But the idea of the Gannt chart is to plan ahead for materials, timing of the plan, execution, and all that.
Birds, bugs, and all plants do that without the agonized thinking that we endure for getting a big project done. Because all of created life plans ahead, we can take advantage of that by what we do.
Borrowing an idea from someone else, if we concede that all the hardware evolved - and we do not - then how does one explain the software that runs the world?
Our helper has noticed this too as he watches the plant life in his yard. The mint remained green until the extended cold weather. But the roots are full of energy and ready to grow when the soil warms up. His new maple tree, transplanted from our yard, went through the autumn color change in miniature, but kept its leaves for a long time into our exceptionally mild winter.
My roses kept their green leaves until recently and now have the look of winter, but the roots have been growing miles of root hairs, ready to swap carbon for water and nutrition with the fungus strands in the soil. Who taught the plants and fungus a skill so elaborate and refined that soil scientists only discovered it in the last few decades?
The birds know they will nest, so they look for areas where they have materials for nesting, good shelter, food, and water. They are scouting and I am recruiting. I do not have to make decisions, the way college football teams look for a great wide receiver or a five-star linebacker. Instead, I let them sort that out by themselves. They have the software but I cannot crack the code written by the Son Himself, when all things were created through Him and nothing was created apart from Him.
Planning means having as many kinds of natural food available, preserving the shelter the birds and bugs require, and catching rain or snow for drinking and bathing.
