Patience is a thing that can sometimes be in short supply. Like love and other mental attributes, patience can be defined to a degree, but not captured in a bottle to be able to be applied like medicine. It must be learned and also, like most things that must be learned, its value is usually larger then the work put in to achieve it.

Virtuous though it is, patience is hard to achieve on a consistent basis. The drone of the modern world can obliterate it, especially in a world where convenience has overtaken quality and appreciation as the top motivators in what people are willing to invest in.

However without it, many situations can appear to be lost causes. Although there are times when patience should definitely run out, there are other times when it is sorely needed and usually on a much more consistent basis.

Like many of the most desirable traits in man’s list of favorable virtues, there are similes in nature that bind this concept to our very core and instinct. There is the patience of the fisherman or the hunter, who must wait for the right moments of opportunity to come along to be able to eat.

Right now, people around the country can smell Spring in the air, no matter what their location. For some it might mean digging out the snow, a patience showed by many of our Native Americans who lived in such a climate. It was a matter of surviving the storms and having patience that the sun would come back again to claim the Earth.

Modernly some are just waiting for the usual uptick in activities that come in the summertime with carnivals, outdoor sports and county fairs.

Patience is almost the base ingredient in most of the major events of our lives; it is almost a kind of internal faith that allows us to wait for a better day or the best day. Patience can be a tactical advantage in any skirmish, be it a better price on milk or proposing to the love of your life.

Why did I feel strongly enough to share this with all of you?

Because observation has shown all of us that we are becoming worse at patience collectively. We want our gas now, we want our food now and we all seem to want out pay checks yesterday.
Even in smaller areas of the world the feeling has crept up behind people in a world of instant everything. Places that were accused of being so laid back and peaceful that they almost seemed to be in a different mode of time have begun to accelerate.

Which is good, acceleration is good. Enough acceleration and you could drive past fear, move forward and explore anything, from the moon to your own inner thoughts.

However, acceleration mixed with patience means we may not miss all the sights along the road.

If you have had the patience to read this far and come along with me, I just felt it was something worth our time thinking about. Just takes a little time…and patience of course.

Our own Aransas National Wildlife Refuge has been nominated as one of the 10 best Wildlife Refuges in the country in the latest travel award contest by USA TODAY! An expert panel of USA TODAY selected Aransas National Wildlife Refuge – Texas as one of 20 contenders for the Best National Wildlife Refuge category. The contest gives voters four weeks to vote for the candidate of their choice at http://www.10best.com/awards/travel/best-national-wildlife-refuge/. A person can vote once a day until the contest ends.

Voting ends Monday, March 30th, 2015 at 11:59 a.m. EDT and the winners will be announced on 10Best on Wednesday, April 1st, 2015 at 11:59 a.m. EDT, then later on USA TODAY. Winning or just being in the top 10 will give our refuge a lot of national attention and increase the number of visitors which will help with funding this great asset to our area and state. Please VOTE
now!
-Vera Wiatt

My neighbors Parker and Patty are always telling me how proud they are to be a part of Port O’Connor, Texas. They say it is a great community and so friendly. They had the grands here for Spring Break this week, but it was not very springy. They worked hard to find things to do. They went to the library, a movie, had ice cream in town one day, and even walked through the mall, but none of these were what the three grands told their parents when they picked them up on Friday.

The oldest said, “Mom, It was so cool! Nani taught me to sew on the pedal sewing machine. I made this pillow.” Then she proudly showed a small head pillow they stitched up on the old treadle Singer sewing machine owned by Patty’s grandmother. The grandson gushed on and on about watercolor painting with Pop and Nani, and gifted his parents with his favorites, a picture of a spring bird and a shark that was somewhat open to interpretation.

The baby of the bunch was jumping up and down and telling mom to get out the old toaster ‘as soon as they got home.’ When asked why, she held up a sticky jar of grape jelly canned ‘all by herself with just a little help from Nani.’ They all three got in the car and headed home proclaiming it was their greatest visit ever, and promising to be back as soon as school ends, and could we please do more things like this? Huh? Could we please Nani?

Patty and Parker settled into their chairs to rest up from the grands visit, and looked at each other in amazement. Who would guess that after traveling, cruising, theme parking, road tripping, and even paying for grandparent ‘experiences, the greatest visit ever would be six rainy days stuck inside together, no fishing and very little other. The free grapes from the freezer made into jelly, material scraps made into a pillow and pictures that only a grandmother could love or identify would add up to the zero dollars and priceless memories.

Just goes to show you the best memories are time shared together and sometimes that is all you need. Maybe next time they will beach comb or garden. That’s free too!

Just one of the great things about being a POC grandparent.

James Michael (Mike) Starkey, Sr., age 69, of Pawnee County, Oklahoma, passed from this life on Tuesday, January 15, 2015, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He was an avid hunter and fisherman. He loved to share stories of his Indian heritage. He was baptized on February 14, 1999. His faith sustained him, and he shared God’s Word as he provided Bibles to various penitentiaries and jails.

Mike was born on April 29, 1945, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to James and Imogene (Terry) Clements Starkey. He attended school in Tulsa and worked various jobs during his lifetime, such as working on the Alaskan pipeline to being a manager at Rice Food Markets in Houston, Texas. Mike owned a tire and trailer repair shop called Mike’s Tires, on the corner of Adams and 9th Street, Port O’Connor for several years.

Mike married Gladys Swenson-Fulk in July, 2001, in Sand Springs, Oklahoma. He is survived by his wife Gladys of the home, three sons: James Michael Starkey, Jr. of Checotah, Oklahoma, Patrick “Butch” Starkey of Turley, Oklahoma, and Chris Adams of Cleveland, Oklahoma. He is also survived by his grandchildren Jennifer Starkey, Bryan Starkey, Marissa Starkey, Patrick James Starkey Jr., and his aunt Betty Walker and cousin Terry Mann.

Mike was preceded in death by his parents, a brother Steven “Max” Starkey, and a sister Abby Smith.

A Memorial Service will be held at Fisherman’s Chapel, Port O’Connor, Sunday, March 29, 2015, at 2:00 p.m. Everyone is welcomed.