Mr. Hey-yo!

There are a lot of things I can do without, but when I run out of sugar, it is NOT a good thing! I don’t mind diet drinks, diet soda, etc. But when it comes to coffee or tea, I NEED sugar ---- that good old, grainy, white stuff that we are supposed to ban from our lives. But for me --- no sugar???? No coffee!!!! Period! Bottom line. I’ve tried a million times to go sugarless, use sugar substitutes, and all the rest. I’ve given in to my weakness, so sugar it is.

I went to the grocery store for sugar and came home with a cart full. Plus, I stopped at the roadside veggie stand. Poor old guy --- his fingers were so cold that he couldn’t even get the plastic bag open.

So I’m good to go for a little while. I have my sugar, my veggies, and Buster is restocked on treats and dog food. He checks his stash carefully, gets a bone, and lays down with a big sigh that tells me, “Life is good!”

On the way home, I passed a little “farm” --- just as I have a million times before in the past few years. Mr. Hey-Yo lives there. Not his real name, but we all seem to know who we are talking about when we refer to “Mr. Hey-Yo!” Several years ago, this little piece of land was parceled off and a “For Sale” sign was posted. It looked like a slice of pie, or a little wedge of left over land. This three-sided weed patch borders on a busy road, a large utility corridor, and a church property. Across the street is a grade school. NOT a quiet haven for a home, for sure.

It wasn’t long before it was sold. Then a home. Then a farm fence. Then a barn/shed type building. Then cross fencing. Then. . . A truck! And we knew someone was making their dream come true ---- a little piece of Heaven in the middle of nowhere. It wasn’t long before we saw an older man working around his property. Then we saw chickens, goats, a turkey. . . And then, miniature horses. I can’t remember why, but my sister had some questions, and I mentioned to her that perhaps this guy could give her some answers. Her response was, “What am I supposed to do. . . . Stand at the gate and yell at the top of my lungs, HEY-YO!!!!!” So, to this day, the man with the slice-of-pie farm is quietly called Mr. Hey-yo, and we all know who we are talking about.

Today, as I passed by, Mr. Hey-yo’s goats and miniature horses were grazing by the fence. I glanced over and looked, and the old man was standing there looking at his animals. Though I never met this man, I felt I knew so much about him. He seems so content with what he has. So gentle with his little baby goats. And there is just something about miniature horses. . . They make me smile. I can’t imagine why this man raises these little horses --- they seem so useless. I think if I were to ask him, he would just smile and say, “Just because!”

I learned a lesson today. It seemed to hit me and I couldn’t get it off my mind. I wondered what people see when they look at ME???? Do I show contentment? Am I gentle? Do I make the best of my little slice-of-life God has given me? Am I a sheltering person? Do I have the kind of faith that sees a weed patch become a realization of a dream?

Thank you, Mr. Hey-yo, for reminding me today that all that I have is truly all that I need! And thank you, Lord, for sugar!