A Loss and a Gain

On Wednesday, January 11, I lost something precious, but gained something of even greater value.

We loaded pecans in Willcox, AZ and proceeded to make our way back to central Texas on Wednesday morning. We drove as far as Las Cruces, NM and stopped for some lunch. The welcoming committee was standing at his station waiting to greet visitors from the west.

This is a large metal sculpture of a road runner that stands out by the interstate as the road begins its descent into Las Cruces.

And this is Las Cruces.

It is nestled up against those snowy mountains, which are noticeable for miles and miles, especially since they are situated in a fairly flat environment.

After lunch we crossed the border into Texas and drove through El Paso. We don't get here very often, but I am always fascinated to look across the Rio Grand into Mexico. The difference is astounding, even though those buildings and the Texas ones are separated only by a narrow shallow river and a train track. It never fails to leave me overwhelmed with grattitude for the blessing of living in this country.

We stopped to fuel in El Paso, and then proceeded on east. We were about 10 miles out of the city when I felt a sharp barb on my wedding ring. (I sit and twist and fiddle with my ring all the time. Just one of my unconscious habits.) I thought how odd it was that there would be a rough spot. There was a reason for the roughness. Somewhere between Willcox, AZ and El Paso, TX one of my diamonds had fallen out. I am not a happy camper!

Logic says there is a high probability that it's in this truck somewhere. But we've both looked to no avail. Between the grit and lint and sand and pebbles that get tracked into this truck, it's like looking for a needle in a haystack even though I had just cleaned the floors. We only looked for a short time and then decided we might as well accept that it's gone. At least it was one of the smaller ones. And it can be replaced, but in the mean time, the hole is rather obvious and unattractive.

I may have lost a diamond, but on the same day I gained an even more valuable jewel in my life. My sister's baby was born on January 11 in the evening. She weighed 7lbs 6oz and was 20 inches long. I say was, because she's 2 days old now and I have no idea if she's already grown or what. It stinks being so far away from "home" at times like these more than others. Anyway, I'd love to introduce you to Miss Ava Grace Hooper. Now I have 4 beautiful nieces to love and spoil!

I can hardly wait till February to see her and my sister. It's hard not to turn this truck east and head in that direction right now.

However, my responsible side is keeping this rig heading in a north-westerly direction. We loaded in Oklahoma last night and pulled out at mid-night. Right now we're heading out across Kansas, where there's not much in the way to block the view...

...but then there's not a lot to view either...

...which for me is part of the attraction. I do love big open spaces with not a lot in them!

We're hauling drilling sand bound for Sidney, MT. We'll be delivering that tonight and then heading to the house for a little break till Monday morning. Malcolm's going to take the opportunity to put new tires on the trailer, and I'm going to get the laundry done and play house wife for a while. We're looking forward to a little tiny break. They always make it easier to stay out a long time.