the lazo

When we arrived at the church where the wedding
rehearsal was, police were in the driveway and had put up
the yellow warning tape that said 'do not cross'. The
rehearsal had to be in another location, and all weekend I
thought about the tragedy that ended a young man's life.
This wedding had some traditions that I had not
experienced before. The bride's brother explained the
arras, or coins, were given to the groom as a symbol of the
parent's trust in the groom. The groom then places the
coins in the brides hands, signifying his trust to her all his
worldly possessions.
The tradition that resonated deeper was the lazo. It was
a 'lasso' of a ornately beaded crucifix that was placed
around the kneeling couple's necks. It symbolized the
bond of matrimony that tied them together as one.
Here I was in this beautiful church, rich in tradition. A
place of hope and happiness for two who had come here
together with all their friends and family.
What a paradox, just the night before this holy place had
been the scene where a lost soul had found no hope or
faith, ended his life here.
The lazo of life. broken for one, forever binding two.
Muchas felizidades Brian and Neddie. May you have long
and happy lives with God and each other.

what I did this summer

Well it seems the summer consisted mainly of rain, but looking back at the old journal, Scott did a few interesting things this summer of 2007.
In May I BBQ'ed chicken for my sister Megan's high school graduation. It was a hot day, but it was good to see little sister cross the stage. Plus there was karaoke, which was fun. My bro and I sang "The Weight" and Callie sang "Obla-Di O Bla Da."
June was our annual trip to the Frio River at Leakey, Tx. We rented a different house this year that was great. Right on the river. We rented kayaks and tubes and soaked it in. Great trip.
The weekend we got back, Trina and I hosted a group from Minnesota for a hayride and steak cookout here at the ranch.
June also was when we got into the square bale hay business. We brought in 1350 nice coastal Bermudagrass bales, and ended up selling most of them out of the barn.
Then the rains came. The Watterson round bale operation pretty much ground to a halt. I got a P.A. system for our team sortings.
In July yours truly was recruited to play in a jazz quartet for a wedding. That was a first. I'm NOT Buddy Rich. We also had the biggest turnout for the Watterson 4th of July picnic, in the pouring rain of course.
The remainder of the summer was hauling hay when we could, working on broken tractors, selling a few calves and watching it rain.
We hosted our first co-ed rodeo in Smithville in August.
Labor Day weekend we had the TETRA group here for a ride, and we cooked catfish for 50.
Now Callie has started 4th grade. Where did it go?