Day 1 & 1/2 in Berlin

Had a good nacht sleep after walking a few miles last night and started the day at 5am. By 5:30 I was out the door to take some pictures and see some sights before the other three McCloy Fellows showed up.

The sky was clear and a full moon was beautiful as I hit the avenue leading to the Brandenburg Gate. It was nice not have crowds of people there (a marathon is going on this weekend) and the moon was directly over the gate.

After that I followed the map from an app called EveryTrail. It had a pre-programmed map of sights to see and my next stop was the Memorial to the murdered Jews of Europe. It is between the U.S. Embassy and the sight of the Fuhrerbunker. 

I walked into the middle of the memorial and the path I was on was leading down. With the time of day (early morning and little light) it was eiree, like walking into one of the ditches that were used for body disposal.

My next stop was a watchtower left over from the Berlin Wall. It was very humbling to be underneath it. I was trying to imagine what it would have been like to live in East Berlin with towers everywhere looking down at you and guards waiting to shoot people if need be.

From there I walked to a remaining section of the Berlin Wall. I just can't imagine how the people on either side of it felt, knowing that you couldn't move freely about. 

Next stop was Checkpoint Charlie. Need I say more?

That was were I ended my journey following my app map. I headed back to the hotel to grab breakfast and get ready to meet my other Fellows. Also, I needed to repack my things to change rooms so I had internet. What a slave I am to all this technology stuff.

I made it back to the hotel and met up with my first Fellow, Garrick Hall from Utah. His room wasn't ready so we went up to my room and I worked on getting picts off of the camera and ready for posting.

After doing that and me repacking my bags we headed downstairs to get onto the internet. Just as we were getting ready my new room was made available. We headed to that and I was able to post my pictures from yesterday and this morning while he took a nap.

We headed downstairs around 1:45 to meet our host and hopefully or next Fellow. Udo from the DBV (sister organization of American Farm Bureau) met us and him and I had a beir. As we were tossing that back Raquel from Louisiana showed up and joined.

We headed out to take a tour of the area killing time until our official tour. We headed up river and then met our official guide. She took us on a tour of the Jewish area of Berlin (ghetto). We went off the beaten track through openings in buildings for carriages to nice courtyards (and some not so nice but very interesting).

It was very sobering to see buildings that had not been renovated with bullet marks from WWII (67 years) or patched up from bomb damage. The Socialist/Communist system didn't do a good job of trying to build up the economy. It makes me wonder where our country is heading?

During our walk-about we had a good discussion with our guide (who is atheist) about religion. Imagine me being the one to ask the question that is controversial and combative. I really wanted to know because religion was one of the things that I identified during my Eisenhower Fellowship.

In Germany they are taxed at 9% just for belonging to a religion and it is tied to the government because of medical and educational reasons. Another reason for the decline of religion was due to the communist side of Germany (and eastern Europe). If a person belonged to a religion they  or their children could not attend university.

The last reason was family lifestyle. If the parents didn't belong to a religion and brought up their children that way their kids wouldn't be religious. It is amazing how government policy and bias brought that about, especially since it was started under the Nazis.

I don't care what our media or activists say, religion is a major component to the success of the United States. We were founded by people who did not want a governmental religion (Church of England).

Because of this ideal, religious tolerance was a key building block. Each colony had its own religion. From that the people that formed the Constitution realized religious freedom was a key component for a successful nation. Boy were they correct.

We did a little more touring and then parted ways. We covered quite a bit of territory (not as much as I did on my own), but we had a great insight into the history of Germany, yesterday and today!

The time schedule we were on (imagine Germans trying to be punctual) led us catching the train to the station close to our hotel. We arrived there and met the final Fellow, Paul from Arizona.

After we put a few things away in our rooms and freshened up we headed out to do a boat tour on the Spree river. It was only an hour long ride but it showed many of the beautiful building, new and old that I want to know more about and take pictures of .

When we docked at the end of our tour our host suggested a restaurant that we should try. It was started after unification (after the Berlin Wall came down) as a way of making the West German officials feel at home in the new/old capitol.

Our host recommended that we try a local cuisine, currywurst. During my jaunts through Berlin I saw restaurants and small food vendors offering it. It was good but the calf liver our host had looked even better. Next time.

We ended the meal with some awesome schnapps. This made me feel at home because the area I live in is German and I grew up with this. However, that tradition ended with my Great Aunt passing away last year.

All things have to end and we headed to the hotel to give our host gifts and head to bed for a big day tomorrow. I don't know if I will have time to reflect and post tomorrow, but I will definitely get my travels into this blog.

Prost and Gott Nacht!

ANOTHER LIFE ADVENTURE

I have been truly blessed! When I look at my life and all potential possibilities that could have been I count my blessings every single day!

Today I am headed on another journey that the final destination is unknown. What I mean by that is I don't know what opportunities await after this adventure.

This spring I applied for a McCloy Agriculture Fellowship http://www.acgusa.org/about2.php?pagename=Fellowships&subpagename=For+Other+Mid-Level+Professionals&toppagename=Agriculture&mlinkid=30 and was successful enough to be one of four people going to Germany. This is similar to my Eisenhower Fellowship except I don't choose the destination or program.

What makes this blessed are a few things. First and foremost is my family. Without them and their support and help this would not be possible. Second is my hired man Dean King being there to pick up the slack. Finally my parents for giving me structure and confidence to try things that others said I couldn't do.

While I will be in Germany for three weeks my life's journey doesn't end there. I hope that the knowledge that I gain from this wonderful experience can help me and others in the future, especially Dillon and Logan.

God has given each of us the tools to accomplish amazing things but fear of one kind or another (failure, ridicule, peer pressure, etc.) keeps most people from going beyond points where most people quit.

When I look at myself I am truly blessed. I was adopted and God found a special place and parents for me. At times I wonder what my life would have been had things gone differently.

My life's journey has been driven by trying to live life to the fullest. When my body started to give out my competitive nature turned to learning. I want to learn new things so I can pass that knowledge on to future generations.

This is what life is about, the journey for knowledge and I don't want to miss the train!

A PROUD FATHER AFTER HARVEST

Harvest is one of those times that are demanding, causing one to lose sleep. On the other hand it is also one of the most rewarding times. This is when a years worth of work and worry come to fruition. To me it was more than a years growing time I am talking about.

Having worked every harvest since 1977, I would have to say that this has been by far the most fun. While driving a truck for the first time in a field and having that responsibility was good nothing beats this year.

Most harvest memories revolve around what I was able to accomplish or certain highlights. This year was different because of being a parent...and a proud one at that.

The way my two boys stepped up this year and met the obligations and responsibilities head on will always be at the top of the list (unless it might be grandchildren in the future). 

Dillon ended up getting strep twice this summer and Logan stepped up to fill his spot with mowing, weedeating, and helping dad with jobs in the shop. Dillon was well enough to finish swathing a late first cutting alfalfa while I went to a meeting.

While I view these things as something most kids their age should be doing, not necessarily swathing, but helping out around the house without backtalk or complaining, their growth was more.

Dillon ran combine by himself for the first time and Logan was in charge of the bill of ladings and dumping the wagons. Both jobs were challenges I set out for them and they met them head on. 

I vividly remember some of my firsts on the farm and how nervous I was. I didn't quite see fear in their eyes but there were drops of sweat on their foreheads.

So why was this my most fun and memorable harvest? As a father you want to see your children grow and progress, not only in school but with life skills. I new they were nervous of making a big mistake but after the jitters went away their faces lit up every day.

Farming is a unique profession where a family can do most work together. Now I am not saying that everyone will be talking with each other at the end of the day (hasn't happened yet) but there is a bond between "teammates" that is created that makes the family bond stronger.

Looking back at this year we are fortunate to keep this tradition going of teaching our young farmers and ranchers responsibility and fun. If it were in the hands of the Department of Labor and the Obama appointees this year could not have happened.

While there are many years ahead for Dillon and Logan to grow, learn, and make mistakes I am certain that this year will be one of their most memorable because there is nothing like meeting a challenge head on and looking back with satisfaction at the end of a day with a job well done.

I guess that is why this is my most memorable is I feel that looking back on being a parent and how Dillon and Logan have grown makes me look at them with satisfaction. 

Oh, I had better mention the glue that keeps all of us together, Rhonda. If it wasn't for her being a great mother, wife, and farmer this year could not take place. Her understanding (and cooking) keeps everyone going.

And me, I hope that I am a good father and manager. My job as both is to set people up to be successful. I hope to give them the tools to (physical or mental) to perform and challenge them enough to grow.

This harvest I believe that we all grew in different ways. Me, trusting young adults with their jobs, Rhonda probably trusting that I knew what I was doing, and the boys, smiles after harvest for becoming young men. What father could be prouder?