May 29, 2019
Liz Writes Life
Published in Siskiyou Daily News, Yreka, CA
Memorial Day weekend is past, but I
still think of Memorial Day as May 30th, which is tomorrow. So,
there is still time to take a few minutes and contemplate the sacrifice of our
military soldiers and their families have made. I watched the 30th National
Memorial Celebration on PBS Sunday night that was held on the South Lawn at the
Capitol. It was a beautiful tribute. Several stories were told. One was about a
medic, who survived D-Day – but not without major injuries of a bullet in his
arm and shrapnel in his thigh. He and his brother were both injured during the
terrifying attacks on sandy French beaches. His brother lived to be 92 and this
man was alive and in attendance.
In another poignant story, two
well-known actors portrayed a black man and a white man who became best friends
during Viet Nam fighting. They made it back, but a good friend that happened to
be in the wrong place at the wrong time did not. They were both in attendance
sitting side-by-side. The Vietnam Wall in D.C. is a tribute to all who lost
their lives in the controversial war, yet took their watch and served.
Much has been said to pay homage in
thanking those who have served and are serving today. I simply want to add my
sincere and passionate “thank you” to our military men and women and our
veterans; and to the families that have grieved, because loved ones didn’t live
to come home.
One meme out there in social media
says it all. I think the caption reads: “A Day at the Beach.” One picture shows
families happily playing in the sand, eating and having a good time. The next
picture is of D-Day June 6, 1944 on the coast of Normandy, France.
I am so grateful for the freedoms I
enjoy as a citizen of the United States. Our country is far from perfect, but
we still have so many liberties and opportunities provided by our Constitution.
Perhaps, we should stop and count them more often.
POW
Scott Valley Protect Our Water will
meet this Thursday, May 30, 2019 at the Fort Jones Community Center. Time is 7
p.m. Bring a dessert to share, if you can. Ray Haupt, our Siskiyou Co.
Supervisor for Dist. 5, is our lead speaker. He participated in the American
Forester Resource Council Conference in Washington State last month and will
give a report.
Ray told me it was quite a surprise
on May 17, when the new Secretary of the Dept. of Interior, David Bernhardt,
released a letter reversing the stand of DOI regarding Klamath Dam removal. You
see, back in 2016, President Obama’s Sec. of Interior, Sally Jewel, sent a
letter to FERC urging the approval of an application to remove four
hydro-electric Klamath dams. Sec. Bernhardt’s letter withdrew DOI’s support of
dam destruction.
This is huge folks!
In a press release, Dist. 1
Congressman Doug LaMalfa said he was able to personally explain the situation
to Bernhardt before he was appointed. LaMalfa thanked the new secretary and
added, “This
course-reversal by Interior is a big victory for those fighting this misguided
dam removal and a positive development for Northern California – we
need to support new and existing water infrastructure projects, not tear
them down.”
For sure, Ray will also have
additional info on this situation.
Erin Ryan, staff for Congressman
LaMalfa, sent me a note of apology saying she is not able to attend the POW
meeting. Bummer! She has been asked to meet with an attorney who is working on
an appeal for benefits for a veteran. Erin did the investigation and LaMalfa
has added a full-press on the Veterans Admin. Hopefully, their work will help
this veteran obtain benefits he was denied for 40 years.
More LaMalfa
Recently, LaMalfa and Calif. Democrat
Rep. Salud Carbajal partnered to reintroduce the Veterans Record Reconstruction
Act, which would ease the process for veterans to prove their eligibility for
certain benefits or decorations. This bill implements uniform guidelines to
simplify processes and “make veterans’ lives a little bit easier,” Doug said.
Our congressman has been busy working
to get more aid to the Northern California 2018 fire victims. Soon, the U.S.
Senate will be voting on a disaster aid package that will provide $19.1 billion
for states affected by the disaster. Because Doug has been a strong advocate,
Paradise will be eligible for an additional $150 million in rural development
funding. The legislation is expected to pass the senate and will move to the
House for approval.
Rebuilding is happening in Paradise,
after the Camp Fire destroyed most of the city in November. Last week, LaMalfa
attended the re-opening of the Paradise Medical Group that will be using a new
virtual care platform allowing patients to see medical providers via mobil
phone, tablet or personal computer. He told the group he was grateful to Blue
Shield of California and PMG for their commitment to helping Butte County
recover.
Garden
The weather stations were right. It
hasn’t frosted even though the snow-level was down to 4,000 ft. on Sunday
morning. I didn’t trust that I would actually receive the forecasted rain, so
Friday night I irrigated everything. No, I haven’t harvested the rhubarb and it
was thirsty. Admittedly, I was surprised when it started raining about 11 p.m.
Saturday and then more on Sunday. So nice!
My Oriental orange poppies are
blooming – a bit behind – along with iris. Must say I enjoy the orange
California poppies flowering near the lavender lupine. There are now six
zucchini plants up and will need thinning to just two. Eight cucumbers have
popped-up and the tomato plants, garlic, pumpkin plant, lettuce, bee balm,
hollyhocks and chives look happy. Last thing to plant are the green beans. Just
in time for the return to warm weather.
It is so great that the surrounding
mountains received more snow and the Sierras are reporting over 150 percent of
average. Looks like a good water year for a change. Smile, life is good!
Liz Bowen began writing ranch and
farm news, published in newspapers, in 1976. She is a native of Siskiyou County
and lives near Callahan. Columns from the past year can be found at:
lizwriteslife.blogspot.com. Call her at 530-467-3515.
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