Ready to begin putting up fencing
Well, we did it – we hit 98° degrees on Tuesday, February 12th. Today it is down to a cool and pleasant 83.6° again. I am afraid that our “winter” has ended and we are back into sweltering heat again. It was really a very short and warm cold season this year, even when compared to what normally happens here.
We are also getting very dry again. We need rain soon. The sugarcane is growing, but very slowly due to the lack of moisture in the soil. The dryness also means that the weeds and grasses are not growing very quickly either. This has given us a respite from our battle with the weeds, but I will take the rain any day.
We are also facing a new and unexpected battle now with the farm – the prices of sugar in
Digging holes the hard way
Mexico. I don’t know very much about how the system works here, and I certainly don’t want to pretend that I understand it at all. But what I have gleaned is this – due to lack of good agricultural controls, and no doubt bad planning on the part of the government, Mexico has been importing cheaply from foreign sugar producing countries at a rate that undercuts what the domestic market can produce. This has put a glut of sugar on the market and has driven the price of sugar (and hence sugarcane) down to an incredibly low price on the domestic market. I am not sure that my figures are 100% accurate, but I believe that the price of sugarcane dropped down into the mid $400 pesos per ton range as compared to the usual range of $600 plus per ton. The cost of sugar in the stores dropped down to about $10 pesos per kilogram. This, of course, has drastically affected the sugarcane farmer (and us).
Palo del sol branches. They look dead but will take root and grow to make a living fence
This year was a very good year across the country for sugarcane production. Apparently not only were we blessed with a good harvest, but nationwide the sugarcane crop has been good. With the glut of cheap, imported sugar flooding the market, and the high volume of cane grown this year, the bottom has dropped out. The law of supply and demand has kicked in big time.
The sugarcane growers unions across the nation have been striking and putting pressure onto the government to get control over the system that is presently spiralling out of control. For the last several weeks all sugarcane processing plants across Mexico have been monitored and watched by the sugarcane unions to prohibit any processed sugar from leaving for sale into the domestic market. Sugarcane is still being milled, and sugar can still be exported out of Mexico, but none can be directed into the domestic market until the cost reaches a value back in the $600 peso range ( I can’t remember exactly what that set price is).
On Monday night Javier and I took our turn at the ingenio (the sugarcane processing
One post at a time
plant). It was an all-night vigil in which we drank too much coffee, ate too many tacos and pan dulces. In all truth, after a long day, I must confess that I cheated and took a couple of hours of shut-eye in the van somewhere around two or three in the morning. But, it is interesting to me how God uses even a protest to his glory. During our long and quiet evening and night we were able to visit with, and get to know some of the leaders of the particular growers union that we belong to, as well as some of the truck drivers and other farmers.
Several interesting things happened over the night. Javier was able to talk at length to several of the union leaders about the Lord and the Christian faith. Also, camaraderie and friendship developed between us and farmers that we did not previously know. Further, we were accepted as being “one with the farmers” – a good place to be as a Christian witness in a rural area. Then, incredibly, we are invited by the union leader to come by his office the next day to pick up a packet of liquid fertilizer that he would give us.
We need more in between still, but this is almost done. They will root and sprout as soon as the rains begin
When I arrived at his office the following day, not only did he remember me well, but he even remembered details of the production on the farm and the vision that we have for the school. Then, instead of a single pack of fertilizers he gave us three – enough for the whole five hectares – and each valued at approximately $850 pesos per pack. This means that he gave us a gift valuing about $2,550 pesos (about $200 dollars).
The galera - what a beauty!
onto safer topics…
The galera - soon there will be a staff house under half of this building
We have looked all over in order to try to find anyone who still hammers through rock by hand with a bar and sledgehammer. We have found that this is a dying breed (literally). The only ones left who know the trade are very old men who apologetically explain that they can no longer do the hard physical labor of the job. The young men are no longer interested in the art of piercing through rock by hand. So, we will try to do so with a hydraulic hammer.
If we find a good source of water on our land it will revolutionize what we can do there. Besides being a source of water for the school, it could potentially also be enough to irrigate the farm, or at least vegetable plots. Please pray that a miracle will happen, and we will hit the mother of all veins when we begin to break through the rock.
We will then also use the equipment to remove topsoil from the building site and bring in
Javier enjoys the shade under the roof of the newly completed galera
fill “choy” to build up the area so that we have a firm foundation for the construction. It is all exciting because this means that we are actually beginning to move towards building.
However, we are also pretty much out of money. God has miraculously provided enough that we should be able to get the excavation and fill done. At that point though, we will need to stop and pray for God’s provision in order to continue.
One plan that we have come up with which should help make things move faster, is that we are hoping to be able to finish off temporary staff housing inside the newly completed “galera” by pouring a floor and building cement block walls. We will probably use half of the structure for a staff house, and the other half for equipment storage and a lockable shed. When the actual housing is completed at some time in the future, the small house in the galera can still be used for an assistant staff couple. However, in this way we can get a presence set up on the farm sooner, with less money initially, and in adequate housing to begin the work more quickly. If need be, we can house students in town until God provides the funds to begin building the actual dormitories and attached staff house. At least, that is the idea and the plan.
We have begun fencing the Training Center site with living fences. These are really very interesting. The scientific name of the tree is Gliricidia sepium. It is useful for forage, shade, firewood, and many other uses. However, the really unique thing about this tree is that you can hack off a dead-looking branch, stick it into the ground, and in several months you have a living, growing tree; and in our case, a living fence. Cool!
Theresa continues to be very busy. Between her other work she has finished off the curtains for the Bible Institute. Her sewing classes are going very well. She will probably soon begin teaching English as a Second Language classes again. And today she is finishing off a couple dozen Valentine’s Day decorated cup cakes for the young people’s party that will take place above the church on Thursday evening. No rest for the weary I am afraid.
The Bible Institute and Project LAMBS continue to go well and to grow. Exciting things are happening, and God is doing good things.
I need to run over to the new Bible Institute building and finish off some last minute details in preparation for the classes on Saturday morning, so I had better close.
Thank you for your love, giving and prayers.
Blessings,
Steven and Theresa
