Irrigation...watering our fields in Castle Valley was a chore. When we first arrived, there was a single ditch at the top of the property and the ground was not consistently slanted. We spent many hours working the land--raking and shoveling the high spots and building up the low spots. This helped us run the water down the fields to irrigate them consistently. But it was easier said than done. Our watering times often came in the middle of the night. Before we could even get the water running down our fields, we had to stop up the ditch and provide a spillway where the water could flow from the ditch into the fields. Often the ill-advised dams would break, and we would have to rebuild and repair them. The dark made it that much harder to manage, and the sandy banks were a challenge to control and keep firm. And then in the day time it was so hot. I remember once being at the top of the property watering in the heat of the day. I was so thirsty and the drinking water was way down at the bunkhouse and probably warm, anyway. So I knelt down, put my face in the ditch of water, and lapped up great gulps of irrigation water. It was probably a miracle that I never died from disentary.
It's comforting to look back and realize that though I fell short and my best was often not good enough, I was spared for greater things...and given another chance. I made some foolish mistakes in my youth. We all make poor choices, but that doesn't have to define our future. Someday, we will look back on our past with hindsight and see the wisdom of the Hand of God in our lives. The Lord has provided us every opportunity so that we can succeed!
That I know of assurety through personal experience.
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