Remember those 'compare & contrast' paragraphs you wrote for school? The ones where you were to pick a subject and write one paragraph comparing all the similarities and another contrasting the differences? Sometimes we would pick the silliest things, like the pencil sharpeners in the two class rooms, or morning recess compared to noon recess.
A few posts ago, I shared pictures of our perfect day at the river. And while there was really no green grass to speak of - just 'hay on a stem' - it was still quite beautiful and scenic.
But just a few miles down the road, to the north or west, the scenery was a very different story. What started as a fire from dry lightning turned into a 75,000 +- acre fire across the northern section of our state.


My parents live within 15 miles of where this fire started - I spent many summers swimming and playing in the waters of this beautiful river valley and neighboring creeks. Over 98 fire units in Nebraska alone responded to assist in battling the blazes that burned so many acres of canyon, farm ground and pasture. Several people lost their homes and many buildings were ravaged in the fire.





Here's a great contrasting picture showing a side of the river not touched by fire and the burned side. You can see by the grass in the forefront why everything is so flammable! Our state is in an extreme drought that is affecting all types of livelihood, starting with those in agriculture. Please pray for rain as everyone in Nebraska desperately needs it, especially for crops and livestock.