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About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (July 13, 2022)
Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, July 13, 2022 -- THREE Spiritually Speaking Chip seal to begin near Lexington You worry and fret about so many things (Lk. 10: 42) By Fr. Thankachan Joseph This Sunday’s Gospel from St. Luke (10: 38-42), through the lifestyle of two sisters, Martha and Mary, clearly depicts our theme vividly. They welcome Jesus Fr. Thankachan into their home in Bethany, though each Joseph does so in a different way. When we come to celebrate the Eucharist, we are sometimes told that we should leave behind our cares and concerns. But what we should do, is bring them with us and lay them at the feet of Christ, as Mary, the sister of Martha, does. It’s the easiest thing in the world to get one’s priorities wrong. It happened to Martha. It’s amazing how trivia jump to the forefront and clamor for immediate attention, whereas important things are perhaps forgotten and remain undone, or if they are done, are rushed and, consequently, badly done. I was reminded of an anecdote that depicts priorities: Two women went to Lourdes on a pilgrimage. They want- ed to bring their pains and sufferings, cares and anxieties to God and to lay their lives before Him. The first woman immediately forgot the main purpose of her visit. She started to rush around to see the sights. Without noticing it, she simply got swept along by the current, pausing only to take selfie pictures. In her rounds, she saw lots of glittering souvenirs and postcards, etc. She took several hours to send all her kith and kin a personal card each and posted them as soon as possible. After finishing all those chores, she came to the grotto to pray, but due to weariness, she could not pay attention to her prayers. What about her friend? As soon as she arrived at Lourdes, she took a good nap in the hotel. Refreshing herself, she headed for the shrine. On the way, she passed by souvenir and card shops. She remembered the purpose for which she had come. She made her way to the grotto where she recollected herself and in a spirit of love and trust, sought to assemble the fragments of her scattered brokenness, worries and anxieties of life and lay them before her God. She could enjoy some sort of relaxation and refreshment at the grotto. There was something in the atmosphere that made it easy to pray. She looked forward to deepening this experience during the days ahead. Martha and Mary welcome the Lord to their home. The first thing Martha thinks about is to prepare a good meal for Him – a very kind and hospitable thought. Being a very practical woman, she gets down to work imme- diately, without even waiting for her sister. There was a lot of work involved because she was concerned about preparing sumptuous and delicious dishes to please and easily get the sympathy and attention of the special guest of the day. We can easily sympathize with her. We can even admire her. But she has her priorities wrong. There is something more important that she is neglecting. Like many of us, she, too, has no time to listen to Jesus. Mary, on the other hand, has her priorities right. First things first. Here was a priceless opportunity to hear the words of the man who claimed to have the very words of eternal life itself. Afterwards, she would be able to see other things. Through Martha and Mary, Christ is inviting every one of us to look into our own lives carefully. Poor Martha. It’s not simply that she is busy, but that she is too busy, so much so that she has time for nothing else. She is anxious, distracted, troubled, and agitated. She had become a slave to her duties. The work has swallowed her whole. We rush about, busy with many things, yet constantly short of time. We neglect people. We don’t have time to listen to them. Just examine and see how many of us have time to spend in adoration? How many of us are able to spend at least a few hours a day silently in some quiet place at least for half an hour reflecting on the type of life that we are living? Chapter ten of Luke ends with a beautiful thought: discipleship is not mere preoccupation of useless things, instead it should be like that of Mary, being attentive to the life-giving words of Christ. Jesus also warns of the life style of Martha. If you think you are exploited, your service becomes a burden that ends discipleship. ODOT will be chip sealing 20 miles of the Lexington-Echo Highway between Lexington and milepost 20, near the Umatilla County line. The chip seal project for Highway 207 between Lexington and Butter Creek near the Umatilla County line is scheduled to be- gin around July 25 and is expected to take about a week to complete. The 20-minute delays, reduced speeds, loose rock on the roadway, flaggers and pilot cars directing single lane traffic through the area. There will be additional minor delays through the work zone during nighttime Extension and Wheat Growers League host crop tour Local wheat growers, beginning and experienced, revel in the opportunity to learn about the results of research completed by OSU Extension in Morrow County. Local farmers and OSU Extension faculty tour south Morrow County evaluating grain varieties and input applications op- tions during the OSU Extension and Oregon Wheat Growers League annual crop tour on June 16. The annual OSU Extension and Oregon Wheat Growers League Morrow County Crop Tour, ended with dinner in the Ione City Park. The event saw 75 growers and their families attend. Morrow County Ex- tension and Oregon Wheat Growers League hosted a crop tour and dinner on June 16. The tour started at Proudfoot Ranches, worked its way through several grower cooperators ending at Keith Morter’s and cul- minating with dinner at the Ione City Park. Larry Lutcher, crop specialist for OSU Exten- sion in Morrow County, A burn ban is in effect for the said that he was very appre- Town of Lexington beginning ciative of the support and cooperation local producers Monday, July 18, 2022 Lexington Burn Ban actual dates are dependent on weather conditions and other factors that may im- pact the project start and end times. ODOT officials say drivers through the work zone should expect up to and early morning hours for road sweeping. Bicycle riders should expect to travel on rock chip covered highway sections behind the pilot car with no usable shoulders, so should consider using alternate routes or delay traveling through the area until the project has been completed. ODOT indicates pedestri- ans will be provided access through or around the work zone. Farmers, ranchers and property owners are asked to keep farm equipment off the highway during and up to two days after the chip sealing has been completed. Officials also ask that irriga- tion and lawn sprinklers be adjusted to keep water off of the roadway. Those who have plans to move livestock on the highway section being chip sealed should contact ODOT District 12 District Manager Paul Howland at 541-278-6044 or via email at paul.l.howland@ odot.oregon.gov. Addition- al information is available by contacting Howland as well. have with Extension. “I would really like to thank Proudfoot Ranches, Keith Morter Farms, Dick Snyder, Snow-McElligott Farm and Ashley and Adam McCabe for working with me this year. The opportunity to work together really helps propel our county agricul- ture forward.” “Larry is outstanding in his field,” said Mor- row County Wheat Grower president, Erin Heideman. “His ability to coordinate growers and complete re- search that is relevant to our needs and growth as farmers is such an asset to our county.” The Bank of Eastern Oregon did the barbecuing for the group, John Wam- beke and Friends provided musical entertainment, Ione Rural Fire Department pro- vided chairs and tables and the City of Ione allowed the use of the park. “It was so nice to be able to get together as growers, some- thing we haven’t done in two years,” said Heideman. If you would like to become a member of the Oregon Wheat Growers League, information can be found at www.owgl.org or by calling the League office at 541-278-2551. No open burning No burn barrels For more information, contact: Town of Lexington (541)989-8515 or Fire Chief Charlie Sumner (541)403-2917 IONE RURAL FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT BURN BAN Scan QR Code to download the app Melanoma stands out. Check your skin. You could spot cancer. No Open Burning - No Burn Barrels EFFECTIVE JULY 9, 2022 UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE ALL NEWS AND ADVERTISEMENT DEADLINE: MONDAYS AT 5:00 P.M. 217 North Main St., Heppner, OR Phone 676-9158 Floral 676-9426 murraysdrug.com Hours: Mon-Fri 7am-6pm • Sat 8am-6pm • Sun 9am-2pm Pharmacy- Mon-Fri 9am-6pm L E AR N M O R E AT STA RT SE E I N G ME L A N O MA .CO M
