In a Different Place - AGAIN

 If you know us, you know that you always have to ask us - "Where are you now?"  It is kind of a running joke with family and friends.  We have moved often.  I used to say the military has nothing on us for moving around.  So here we are again - in a different place.

Let's go back about 18 months.  Chris had been semi-retired but wrote his poetry book with pencil drawings ("Dust In My Eyes") and we got it published.  In December, a recruiter reached out to him about a position.  He told her he really was not looking but she encouraged him to consider it.  After some discussion, we agreed that he should at least talk to the recruiter and the company.  The company was Santa Gertrudis Breeders International and the position was as Executive Director for the breed.  For those who do not know the history, the Santa Gertrudis was the first breed developed in America and was developed on the historic King Ranch in South Texas.  The breed is actually one of the smaller beef breeds but numbers do not mean less desirable or lesser quality beef!  Santas (as they are known in Australia) or Gerts (as they are known here) are tremendous animals with the ability to produce great quality meat that is tender and delicious, can survive in really difficult climates, are in many countries around the world, and can rival any other breed out there.

Back to the other part of the story.  He interviewed with the selection committee via a Zoom interview, then met with the full board in January.  He was offered the position and started January 17, 2024.  We lived in Canyon at the time, I had gotten my real estate business started again, and we were pretty sure another move was not in the cards for us.  Ha - I am sure God was laughing at that last statement!  Chris lived in the Holiday Inn Express in Kingsville for about 4 months, other than the time he was traveling to events for the breed.  We found a home and closed on it April 5.  Chris camped out in the house until May when I moved down.  Our poor dog, Jake thought we had moved him to satan's house as it was HOT!  The heat index when the moving guys unloaded the truck was between 115 and 120.  But move we did.  We got settled into the house, found a great church, and met so many wonderful people, both in Kingsville and in the breed.  Many of those producers have become lifelong friends.

We had the opportunity to travel to Orlando, Florida for NCBA annual convention in February and got to meet and get to know some of the breeders there.  It was a great venue and an area we had not been to before.  There were a couple of highlights beyond the convention.  We got to meet and speak with Loretta Swit and Jamie Farr (Major Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan and Corporal Max Klinger) from the TV show, MASH.  They were staying at the same hotel we were and were both very kind.  We saw them in the restaurant of the hotel and tried to be discreet (no pictures) but wanted to let them know how much we enjoyed the show and their part in it.  I also got to have my picture taken with Chewbacca (or a close relative of his)!

Then we traveled to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina last April for the breed association's annual meeting.  It was a beautiful place and we got to meet a lot of the breeders.  It was a great trip and again, an opportunity to meet and get to know more of the breeders in the association.  

Through this past year, we have had so many opportunities to meet great people who are a part of the breed.  Some have been a part for a very long time and have great stories to tell about how the breed has grown and how some things about the animals have changed.  We have gotten to visit some of the operations and see how each one handles their animals.  Chris made it his objective to try to visit as many of the producers as possible.  I didn't go to all of them, but did get to visit some of them with him.  I love genetics, science, and getting to listen in to some of the discussions about the breed and what they can bring to a commercial operation has been awesome.  Some days I wanted to go back to school and get another degree!

I did get to try my hand at writing for a publication.  A woman here was trying to get a local magazine about the area started and advertised that she was looking for writers.  I reached out to her and we met at Starbucks and visited for about 3 hours that morning.  Now I am not the writer in the family - that would be Chris.  But I love seeing the things in the area and thought that maybe I could show the beauty through an outsider's eyes.  The magazine was called Kingsville Monthly.  The link will take you to the site where you can read previous issues but it is no longer a working publication.  I wrote for them under the heading "Kingsville Transplant" but never dreamed that our time here would be so short.  

March of this year, 2025, brought another challenge.  Chris resigned from SGBI and has now "retired".  But neither of us is ready to sit down and do nothing.  It actually drives both of us crazy!!!  So we are trying to be patient and see what and where God has for us to go and do.  Our lesson in Sunday School this past week was partially about waiting.  In the past, moves have always had a reason for the change.  But now, we don't have to be anywhere.  We can choose where we want to go and then find things to do to keep us occupied.  Just a side note - Do you know that there is NOWHERE in the Bible that talks about retiring?!  God has things for us to do, encounters that need to be made, and places for us to be to spread His Gospel and be His Light to a dark world!

 So this writing is part of trying to be patient and see where we go from here.  I am not a patient person and do not really want to pray for patience for fear of what that might bring - sort of!  But I do trust the One who created the world and all that is in it.  His plans are best and He knows what He wants us to do and where He wants us to be.  So we will wait.