SPEAKOUT

Tuesday, January 8, 2002

Call 471-6636

Missouri's third place from the top of the Nation's Road Contest comes with some surprise. I recently had the pleasure of meeting some of the officials who were responsible for the study of the conditions of our nation's roads. They used quite sophisticated apparatus to determine the smoothness of the surfaces of our highways. It consisted of a bus-like vehicle that at its mid-point, has a seismograph that measures vibrations, not unlike those used in earthquake measurements. As they drove over the roads, the measurement of vibration was correlated with the deterioration of the surface of the road. They had tested almost all quadrants of Missouri when they arrived in Southeast Missouri and the Sikeston area. Up to that point, Missouri was in the bottom third of that contest (i.e.: we were doing quite well). Then they took a left onto Wakefield.

I put silk poinsettias on my mother's, dad's and two brothers' graves out at the Dogwood Cemetery. I went back this week and a lowdown snake, with two legs, had taken most of my poinsettias off and the rest were scattered on the ground. This is lower than a snake! They are watching the cemetery, but I'm sure they can't watch all the time. But I know one who does watch, my almighty God. Don't ever doubt he will take care of you. When he gets through with you, you won't want to steal anymore, you low life snake!