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A Tin Ceiling and Wood Bunk Beds

Mark Twain once observed that the secret to making progress is to get started. If there is one thing I have learned about progress since starting our off-grid adventure in Big Bend it is that slow progress is better than no progress. And making any progress means making decisions and then taking a step, no matter how small, to get started.

Taking small steps is definitely paying off for us at our off-grid property. Because we can only visit for short periods every few weeks, we have to make the most of every visit. That means careful planning, making lists and checking them twice, purchasing materials, and then working the plan.


I keep a little black notebook where I draw sketches of upcoming projects, make lists of materials, keep important measurements I need as I dream and plan, and make general notes about this and that. The cool thing is that as I leaf through the pages, I can see a record of all of the progress we have made since 2018.

Cheryl and I spent the past week at the cabin. Our hope for the week was to make a little more progress toward the completion of the guest cabin built by my Band of Fathers group that I meet with every Wednesday.


Project One was to run the electrical wiring and refrigerant lines for the mini-split. That’s where my neighbor Joe Pound comes in. He is an off-grid guru who knows just about everything about off-grid survival. Joe stopped by to do the work on the mini-split while I finished wiring electrical outlets and switches.


With the electrical and refrigerant lines in place, I was able to add the final pieces of insulation and paneling to complete the walls. It was a good feeling to have all of the walls in the main room completed.

Project Number Two was to finish insulating the ceiling and then adding the corrugated tin panels. I know that there are other ceiling options, but we like the rustic look of the corrugated tin. Hanging tin, however, is definitely a two-man job. My neighbor Chris Smith stopped by to help me finish all of the ceiling work. Once again, it was such a good feeling to look up and know that I could now check the ceiling work off of my project list.


Project Number Three was to build the bunk beds. Cheryl and I drove to McCoy’s in Alpine, with black notebook in hand, to purchase the lumber for the bunk bed build. With the lumber secured in the bed of my truck, we stopped by the Dairy Queen next door to McCoy’s for a quick Texas gourmet lunch before heading back to the cabin.


A couple of months ago Cheryl and I took our granddaughters to IKEA. While there Cheryl noticed that their bunk bed mattresses were on sale so we purchased the mattresses right away. One more thing off the list.


The bunk bed build was a fun project. We were able to build both sets of bunks beds. I decided to use black iron pipe and flanges to make the ladder to the top bunks. On our next trip I will install a grab bar and add a safety bar to the top bunks, all using black iron. The final step will be to build an open storage closet between the bunk beds so guests can have a place to stow gear and hang clothes.

As we do on every visit, we invited our neighbors over for a cookout on Saturday evening. This is always a fun time to reconnect with one another and to enjoy conversation around the campfire. Especially enjoyed meeting a new neighbor who is making a go of off-grid living not far from us.

On Sunday we enjoyed worship at Terlingua Ranch Community Church where we have attended since starting our off-grid adventure in 2018. Love this little church in the desert.

Before we headed home on Monday, we sat outside to watch the solar eclipse. Although it did not get completely dark at the cabin, it did feel a little like dusk. This is the second eclipse we have watched from the cabin.


We returned home by way of Uvalde where we spent the night with our nephew Ryan and his sweet family. Highway 90 is a fun alternate route home for us. Even stopped at the world’s smallest Buc-ee’s east of Marathon.


Cheryl and I are happy to have made a little more progress on our guest cabin and, best of all, grateful for the time spent with our friends and neighbors in the Chihuahuan Desert.

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An Adventure Deep in the Heart of Texas

In November 2022, Big Bend National Park topped National Geographic’s Best of the World Travel List. Located in the vast Chihuahuan Desert, Big Bend also boasts the darkest night skies in the nation. It’s one of the places that affirms “the stars at night are big and bright, deep in the heart of Texas.”

In 2018, my wife Cheryl and I purchased the first of our off-grid tracts deep in the heart of Texas. Beckoned by the wide open spaces, distant mesas, deafening silence, and endless skies, we established Dos Arbolitos, our off-grid base camp for solitude and adventure in the Big Bend Valley section of the vast Terlingua Ranch.

One of our dreams for Dos Arbolitos was to host adventures for boys and dads and also for boys without dads. That dream came true three years ago when we hosted our first Big Bend Adventure for boys from fatherless homes in partnership with The Hangar, a Christian nonprofit situated in Brookshire.


The Brookshire community, located west of Houston, has the highest percentage of fatherless homes in the greater Houston area. The Hangar, a ministry of Eyes on Me, exists to mentor, disciple, and serve at-risk youth and their families.


This week, we hosted the third annual Big Bend Adventure for boys (and their mentors) from Brookshire. This is one of my favorite weeks of the year. The adventure is designed to provide opportunities for good conversations between the boys and mentors around the campfire and on the trails.

One of the key things we focus on is teaching the boys that it is better to do life in community with others because alone is dangerous. We teach them the importance of watching out for one another on the trails. And, the work projects we plan can only be accomplished by cooperating and working well with others.


The boys arrived at Dos Arbolitos on Sunday afternoon. The first order of business was pitching tents and setting up their respective campsites. For many of the first-timers, this was the first time they had set up a tent. It was nice to see the older boys teaching the younger boys how it’s done.


James Meredith returned for the third time to serve as camp chef. I don’t know of a better guy to cook for a campout than James. He is a master at cooking on grills, griddles, Dutch ovens, and campfires — and usually uses all of these to prepare a single delicious meal. James is, understandably, a very popular guy on the campout.

On the first night of the adventure, we sat around the campfire and presented the boys with their hiking gear. We gave each boy their own hydration backpack, first aid kit, headlamp and flashlight, survival blanket, whistle, compass, and more. We explained each item and why they are necessary for the adventure — and then used each item as a metaphor to talk about an aspect of their walk with Christ.


After giving the boys their gear, one of the youngest guys on the team sat wide-eyed at all that he had received. He looked at one of the mentors and asked, “Do I have to give all of this back after the hike?” He was blown away to hear that this was now his own personal gear and that he dId not have to return it after the adventure. I don’t think he took off his backpack the whole time we were together.


I invited my friend Joseph Bear, known as Yogi to locals, to do a star party for the boys. Yogi and my Big Bend neighbors Chris and Ken were kind enough to set up one of his large telescopes. Yogi told stories about the night sky. The boys enjoyed looking the moon, planets, and stars. My neighbor Chris took a great pic of the moon through lens of the telescope.


As in previous years, the boys spent two days on day-hikes in Big Bend National Park. This is always an eye-opening, jaw-dropping experience for these boys who live in tough urban settings. The hikes are also an opportunity for mentors to talk about outdoor preparedness and safety and why adventuring alone can be dangerous.


We also set aside one day to do tasks around the property — jobs that can only be done by communicating and cooperating well with others. These included clearing fence line, bracing corner posts for a new section of fencing, addressing some erosion, and adding t-posts for future fencing.


These tasks are hard and require attention to detail and looking out for the guys working beside you. After working on a section of fencing, one boy shared his thoughts around the campfire. “This was one of the hardest things I have ever done,” he said. “And now I know that I can do hard things.” Wow! That is a valuable take-away for a young man.


One of the boys worked beside Ian, one of the mentors. As they cleared brush for a future fence, Ian shared the story of Jesus with Gavin. After a long conversation, Gavin placed his faith in Christ for salvation and was later baptized in the Rio Grande River along with four other boys.


My favorite night was our final night around the campfire. On that night Dennis, the executive director of Eyes On Me, the non-profit that directs the outreach to at-risk homes in Brookshire, asked the boys to affirm one another. The boys then took turns speaking words of encouragement and affirmation to one another. The words spoken were better than food for many of these boys who seldom receive such affirmation.


This Third Annual Big Bend Adventure was so much fun and a huge success. The boys were so appreciative of the opportunity to participate in the adventure and returned home tired but encouraged by their time under the vast Big Bend skies, deep in the heart of Texas.

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Five Years of Progress in the Desert

Five amazing years!

It’s hard to believe that Cheryl and I are ending year number five of our off-grid adventure in Big Bend. And what an amazing five years it has been.

One of the mantras we have adopted as we have worked to develop our slice of the Chihuahuan Desert is “slow progress is better than no progress.” But slow progress times a few visits each year actually equals a lot of progress.


This past week, my good friend Mike Aronson and I made the 9-hour and 60-minute journey to Dos Arbolitos (the name of our little 20-acre place in the desert). The plan for this trip was to work on the guest cabin — a gift from my Band of Fathers men’s group.


On a previous visit I built a wall to divide the main room of the cabin from the bathroom. My good neighbor Joe Pound then wired the cabin in preparation for the addition of solar panels. With the wiring done and receptacles in place it was time for the next step — insulation.

Mike and I decided we could make more progress by dividing and conquering, so we each took ownership of a project.


I took on the task of insulating the walls of the main room with R-13 insulation. I left one 16-inch section open for the time being. Joe will later run the refrigerant lines for the mini-split that will heat and cool the cabin through that section of the wall. Once those lines are in place then I will add insulation and nail in the bead-board paneling to that section of the wall.


While I worked on insulating the cabin, Mike loaded up the paint sprayer and primed and painted all of the bead-board paneling for the walls of the cabin. We set up a paint station against the outside walls of my shipping container shop. Fortunately it was not too windy to paint.

Cheryl and I chose the color “Sands of Time” for the walls of the cabin accented with white base and trim boards. I purchased pre-primed boards for the trim and will later paint these with a white semi-gloss paint.


Mike installed the beard-board paneling. Painting these panels ahead of time was the smart thing to do. He measured and cut the openings for outlets and made a lot of angled cuts for the upper sections of the side walls. Once everything was in place, we added the trim pieces and baseboard.


While Mike installed the paneling, I worked on framing the door and windows. As in our main cabin, I used corner blocks with a Texas Star for the window and door trim. I like this look much better than mitered corners.


After we finished the work on the main room, we put away the tools and then swept and mopped the floor. I then hung a pic of the guys in my Band of Fathers group that built the cabin in November 2022. There are a lot of guys not in the picture because they were unable to participate in the build but who contributed generously to make this blessing a reality. I am honored to do life in community with these dear brothers.


The final touch was hanging my old Boy Scout flag above the door. In the early 1970’s I became the patrol leader for the Buffalo Patrol in Troop 68. My sweet mother surprised me with the coolest flag ever. It was the envy of the troop. I have treasured the flag ever since as a reminder of her love and kindness.


I was happy to find a pic of me with the patrol flag taken in July 1972 while camping at Buffalo Trails Scout Ranch in the Davis Mountains. This pic is a reminder of how much I have enjoyed adventuring from a young age. And now, as a man in his late sixties, I still enjoy adventuring. My theme song for this stage of life is Toby Keith’s “Don’t Let the Old Man In” — a reminder to stay active to the end.

As I look back on the past five years I see a trail of God’s blessings — the distinctive signature of His kindness. And as I look ahead in anticipation of the coming years, I am excited to see what good things will happen as we continue to develop Dos Arbolitos.

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Enjoying Projects and Friends in the Desert

The cabin. Ahh, the cabin. Seems that no matter where I am in the world, my thoughts often turn to our little cabin in the Chihuahuan Desert. It has become my place of guaranteed solitude, silence, and simplicity — monastic disciplines that help to reset a busy soul.

The past year has been intensely busy with travel, mobilizing thousands of volunteers to serve others both domestically and internationally, and strategically planning for the challenges and opportunities of the coming year.

That’s why our retreats to the cabin are so important to me. Our cabin is a place where I relax by working. I know that sounds strange, but the work is therapeutic. Because so much of my life is given to tasks that are open-ended, it is nice that at the cabin I can start a project and complete it. Done. Checked off the list.


Don’t get me wrong. It’s not wall-to-wall work at the cabin. The evenings in the Big Bend of Texas are magnificent and call for a warm campfire — a place to have pleasant conversations or to just sit and stare at the dancing flames. And then, peaceful sleep in the deafening and cradling silence of the desert. Always good.

But, back to the projects. Because home is ten-hours away, we have to make every trip to the cabin count in terms of making progress, however small, on the things that need to get done. Our current priority is working to complete the interior of our guest cabin.


Our friend and neighbor, Joe Pound, agreed to stop by to wire the cabin for our off-grid solar powered electricity. He will later install the solar panels and mini-split unit in the cabin. Joe is an off-grid guru with a remarkable skill set. He has been a part of our journey from the start. We owe a lot of our progress to his help and counsel.


It took Joe no time at all to pull all of the wire in the cabin. Now that this task is done, I will plan on insulating the interior walls with R-13 insulation on our next trip. Once the cabin is insulated, then I can start installing the beadboard paneling.


I did manage to install paneling on the interior bathroom wall. We wanted to do this to get a glimpse of what the finished walls will look like. Cheryl painted the panels with “Sands of Time” paint accented with white baseboards and trim and door casing.


I then installed the sliding barn-door hardware in preparation for hanging the old door that I prepared for the cabin. A few weeks ago, I picked out an old vintage door from my uncle’s inventory of old building stuff on a trip to South Texas. I sanded the door smooth and then added the stained glass Texas flag to complete the rustic look of the door.


I then hung an old piece of art that was displayed in my grandparents home when I was a kid. Lots of memories associated with this old piece and with the door. As my friend Mike Aronson said to me when I told him about my plan for the door: “New things are nice but old things tell a better story.” I totally agree.


On Sunday, we tuned in to Kingsland’s Live Streaming service and then got dressed and drove to Terlingua Ranch Christian Church — our church away from Kingsland. We always enjoy our visits to TRCC and to reconnecting with so many friends we first met in 2018 when we started our desert adventure. Wonderful folks.


I also took a few minutes to swap out our old propane heater with a new ventless indoor unit. It kept the cabin cozy warm on the cold nights this week — on the lowest setting. Nice to have a new heat source for those really cold desert nights.


Cheryl worked on defining a path to the peaceful spot where we buried our little Biscuit one year ago. Biscuit always enjoyed her visits to the cabin. She ran free and enjoyed every inch of this place. Cheryl’s path will wind its way to Biscuit’s grave and the bench that I made for her to sit and enjoy the view of Nine Point Mesa and Black Hill to the East.


As on all of our visits, we always have a gathering of our closest neighbors — those who live within a few miles that we have come to know. It’s always fun to share a meal and to get caught up on things while sitting around the campfire. Wyatt, the youngest son of our good neighbors to the south blessed us with his sweet words, “You all are like family to us.” Wow! Touched us deeply.


At the end of the day, the sweetest thing of all is making meaningful connections with others wherever God leads us. The world is so crazy-full of hate and anger that we need more people like Wyatt to cut through it all to what really matters — being a good neighbor to those around us.


And now, it’s time to return to the suburbs but, as always, with deeper gratitude for the blessing of our little place under the magnificent Big Bend skies. Thanks for following our adventure.

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Return to Matagorda Bay

It has been more than a while since I have gone fishing. But, that changed last week when my friend Paul Sinclair invited me to join him on a fishing adventure to Matagorda Bay. Of course, I said yes to his invitation — without hesitation.

Paul is from a family that loves adventure and appreciate how adventure can bring men together. I have lots of fond memories of previous fishing excursions with Paul and his brothers and his late dad, Holloway. Holloway and I traveled the world together to do the kind of fishing Jesus called Simon and Andrew to do. But, I digress. Back to Matagorda Bay.

I was happy when Paul told me that Captain Keith Phillips of Red Fish Matagorda would serve as our guide. Keith knows Matagorda Bay and he knows fishing. He has a quiet confidence that comes from years of experience. He thinks like a fish and always seems to know just exactly where to anchor his boat and just exactly where to cast the line.

We arrived at Matagorda Bay early last Friday morning. Fortunately for us, the last of the cold front was hanging around for a bit longer. Layered up against the cold wind, we boarded Captain’s Keith boat and moved with anticipation to a spot that would yield lots of fish.

Captain Keith picked a spot that looked promising, anchored his boat, and put generous chunks of bait on the hooks. And then, one by one, he cast the lines against the cold wind so that each one landed just shy of a grassy shoreline.

It was only minutes before I sensed something toying with the bait on my line. And then wham! Fish on! I reeled in a nice Black Drum, the first of four I would catch. From then on Paul, David, Thomas, and I continued to reel in the fish — Black Drum and Red Fish — until we reached our limit before noon.

Captain Keith had done it again. He had led us to the right spot. We never moved. We just reeled in the fish and only tossed one back.

With a full ice chest and the wind just a little warmer, we headed back to the dock. There, Captain Keith cleaned and filleted all of the fish and divided up the fillets and throats in zip lock bags. Each of us went home with lots of fish.

Beyond the fishing, it was just a great morning to be out on the water with guys that enjoy adventure. This was my first time to fish with Thomas but one of the good things about fishing is that it makes it so easy to bond with the guys on the boat.

I have spent so much time out of the country this year and some enjoyable days at our cabin in Big Bend that it was fun to return to Matagorda Bay.

I remain grateful to live in the Lone Star State and enjoy all that it has to offer — from the Gulf of Mexico to the Chihuahuan Desert and from the Rio Grande Valley to the wide spaces of the Panhandle. I am blessed, indeed.

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A Fun Reunion and Small Projects

It’s been a little more than two months since our last visit to the cabin. Life has just remained so busy, leaving me with little white space on my calendar. Lots of international travel, local projects, and more. But, this trip had to happen. No excuses.

Why? Because several months ago Cheryl invited her best and oldest friend to join us at the cabin.

Cheryl and Debbie met in the nursery of Second Baptist Church in Corpus Christi and have been friends ever since. Time and distance have done nothing to separate them. They are kindred spirits.

Since inviting Debbie to the cabin, Cheryl has eagerly waited for the day when we would meet Debbie in San Antonio on our way to Big Bend. It did my heart good to see these two friends get together again. Not many people can lay claim to a friendship that started in the nursery and has only grown sweeter through the years.

We have had an enjoyable time with Debbie. Of course, I volunteered to sleep in the guest cabin so that they could talk into the night. They have stayed up hours longer than me and gotten up earlier than me. They have not wasted a minute.

They filled the bird feeders and watering stations around the cabin — twice. They enjoyed sitting around the campfire and scanning the moonless night sky for shooting stars. They cooked for the gathering we host for our neighbors every time we visit the cabin.

They hiked around the property identifying flora and cacti, trimmed Cheryl’s favorite tree, gathered rocks for a stone path to Biscuit’s grave, enjoyed a road trip into Big Bend National Park, and more. It has been fun watching their reunion.

As for me, I punched out several small projects on my list. Whether taking on a big or small project, every step matters when developing an off-grid property.


I finally got around to painting the base of our outdoor fire place. I bought a gallon of black brick and stucco paint. First time I have used this product and I must say that I am impressed. The paint is formulated to fill every little nook and cranny of bricks and blocks. Very satisfied with the results. And, while in a painting mood, I applied a layer of high heat paint on our burn barrel.


The next thing on my list was to finish the flooring in the bathroom of the guest cabin. This was an easy and quick project. I fashioned my own threshold for the transition from the main room to the bathroom. Happy with the results.


I was also happy to finish the soffit work on the guest cabin. I painted the soffit boards before nailing them in place and then finished by running a bead of caulk along the outer edge. A small thing with a big eye-pleasing result. The outside of the guest cabin finally looks finished.


We did not miss the opportunity to watch the eclipse. Debbie’s daughter bought us those little disposable glasses designed for eclipse viewing. So cool to see the ring of fire even though it was only a partial ring here in Big Bend. I did run in to check the numbers on our solar inverter during the eclipse. About the same drop as happens on a cloudy day.

We introduced Debbie to our neighbors at the cookout we host every time we visit the cabin. We are blessed with several good neighbors and always enjoy catching up when we are back at the cabin. On Sunday we worshiped at Terlingua Ranch Community Church where we caught up with several more friends who live here at Terlingua Ranch.

Of course, we had to do the Ross Maxwell Scenic Highway drive to Santa Elena Canyon in Big Bend national Park. We could not have asked for better weather and the late afternoon light at the canyon was perfect for taking a few pics.


Back at the property, I installed all of the electrical boxes in the guest cabin. My neighbor Joe will run wire and insulate the ceiling over the coming weeks. That will leave me the task of insulating the walls and then finishing the interior of the cabin.


So, it’s been a great trip. Cheryl and Debbie have had a great time and I have enjoyed watching them have a great time. We hope Debbie will visit again and we look forward to heading back this way after Thanksgiving. Thanks for following our adventure.

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From Cotton to College

I am deeply grateful that my grandfather, Felipe Garcia, took the time in his later years to journal his personal story. And what an amazing story that is. Reading the words he hammered onto the pages using two index fingers on the lettered stems of his Royal typewriter bring back a flood of pleasant memories.

I spent a lot of my childhood with my grandfather and have the fondest memories of our daily stop at the post office in Mission on our way to his real estate office that he shared with Justice of the Peace Leo Gonzalez. I would play around the office while he met with people and did lots of notary work for poor people, some of whom paid for his services with produce.

My Papa Felipe was born on January 23, 1891 in northeastern Duval County where his family had their ranch. When I was a kid, I loved to listen to his stories about growing up on the ranch and longed to visit the place that meant so much to him.

As a young teenager, he arranged for me to visit my country cousins at the ranch. He bought me a bus ticket from Mission to San Diego and then set me off on a great adventure — all by myself with a small suitcase in hand.

The only thing I remember about the bus ride was that I sat next to an older lady who had doused herself with an overpowering amount of perfume. I could hardly breathe and pressed my face against the window in hopes of getting a whiff of fresh air. Toxic fumes aside, I made it to my destination where my Uncle Florentino picked me up.

Florentino was a towering man. When I got off the bus there he was — wearing khaki pants, a long-sleeved shirt, black boots, and a straw cowboy hat. He looked down at me with welcoming eyes, shook my hand, took my bag, and led me to his pick-up truck for the almost twenty-mile ride to the ranch. That was the start of a lifelong friendship with Florentino.


Which all brings me back to my grandfather’s journal — page 28. My grandfather was 18 years-old and wanted desperately to go to college. The challenge was finding the money. With such a large family to care for, his family did not have the discretionary income to help him with tuition. But, they did have land.

The solution was for my grandfather to plant cotton on a 60-acre tract and then use the proceeds from the sale of the cotton to go to school. So, he put his hand to the plow and got to work. The 60-acres yielded 27 bales of cotton which he had ginned at Alfred, located west of Corpus Christi. In his words, he made “the fantastic sum of $1,195.00 in cash.”


His earnings became the seed money for him to attend the San Antonio Business College in 1910. The business skills he learned helped him to eventually work as a realtor and notary public and one of the longest serving city commissioners in the State of Texas. He, along with my dad, taught me the value of hard work and helped me to develop a good work ethic.

I miss my Papa Felipe but consider myself fortunate to have spent so much time with him. As a little boy always in tow and always watching him, I treasure every memory. He was always kind, ever encouraging, and set an example worthy of imitation. I’m glad that his hard work growing cotton paid off and paved the way for him to go to college. That chapter of his life laid the foundation for a lifetime of selfless service.

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Better Than Medicine

My travels this year have taken me from one end of the planet to the other. So many flights and airports and delays and rushing to gates and waiting for luggage — all part of the adventure of travel. But no matter where I happen to be, at some point my thoughts turn to the wide open spaces of Big Bend and our little off-grid cabin where I am so often refreshed.

I find, however, that I come by this feeling honestly. My grandfather had the same longings to return to his family’s ranch in Duval County. Throughout his life, he looked for opportunities to go back to the place where his heart could breathe and his soul was refreshed. One entry in his journal reads as follows:

Trips of this kind were better than medicine. Your feelings are better served and the next day a desire to work vigorously. And so time was consumed in these routines of ranch life. What a wonderful method of passing your time.

I am so happy to have had a few days to return to our cabin with Cheryl before I return home to prepare for my upcoming trip to Pakistan. I agree with my grandfather that trips of this kind are better than medicine. My plan for this trip was to enjoy time with Cheryl, to lose myself in projects, and to spend the waning hours of the day reading while waiting for the stars to compete for space in the night sky.

The project for Day 1 was to start the process of extending the pavers under our shade structure to make room for a grill that I recently refurbished. This will give us yet one more cooking option when we are here and when guests visit. I only brought as many pavers as I needed to make the pad for the grill but will eventually add more to widen the area around the east side of the shade structure.

We set aside Day 2, Sunday, to relax. We started the day by worshipping online with our church family in Katy — Kingsland Baptist Church. We then drove the twenty miles or so to Terlingua Ranch Church. We have been engaged with this little church since we bought our place out here in 2018. I ended the day reading in the shade, doing a little writing, and then welcoming the stars with Cheryl.

On Day 3 I was happy to complete a project I have had on my list for some time — framing the bathroom walls in our guest cabin. My plan for the door is to take a very old door I received from my uncle’s estate, keep the old patina, add a Texas-themed stained glass feature, and hang it on barn door hardware. Later I will add a shower stall, a composting toilet, and a sink. I will also build a small closet at one end in which to house our solar batteries and inverter.

The project for Day 4 was to build a pad on the North side of the guest cabin for our water catchment tank. The shed roof of the cabin slopes from south to north. I will add a twenty-foot gutter that will collect and direct rainwater to the storage tank. One-inch of rain on the guest cabin roof should yield 150-gallons of rainwater. At present we have more than 2,000 gallons in our other rain tanks.

Day 5 was set aside for miscellaneous projects. These included making improvements to our burn barrel, moving a third picnic table from our tent sites to the shade structure area, and placing rocks painted by our granddaughters at the grave of our little Biscuit who died last year. We also added more water to our birdbaths and birdseed to our feeders around the property. And I cleaned up the area around the guest cabin in preparation for a future deck build.

And finally, we devoted Day 6 to a road trip into Big Bend National Park — one of the most beautiful places on the planet. Our lifetime senior passes allow us free entry. We enjoyed driving to the Chisos Basin and then Panther Junction before returning to Terlingua ghost town to eat at DB’s Rustic Iron BBQ.

Cheryl and I continue to enjoy our off-grid adventure. I personally like learning how to do things that I have never done before and then making them happen. Even though I wish we had started this adventure as much younger people, I like discovering what I am capable of doing while I am capable of doing.

Cheryl and I are much refreshed. This getaway did us much good — better than medicine indeed.

Thanks for following our adventure.

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The Therapeutic Value of the Chihuahuan Desert

Cheryl and I are back at our off-grid cabin in the Chihuahuan Desert, our comfy little retreat under the vast skies of Big Bend. After returning home from my trip to Papua which required 58-hours of round-trip air travel and more than 30-hours of airport transit time (not including three in-country flights), I couldn’t wait to point my Tundra in the direction of the cabin for a few days of rest and recovery.

The time it takes to travel from our suburban home in Katy to our front gate at the cabin — almost ten hours across Texas — is the first step toward recharging after an international trip as arduous as traveling one-way more than half-away around the world. The trip to the cabin no longer seems far to us. It’s just the first step in enjoying time away.

The city of Alpine is our final stop before turning south on Highway 118 to descend into the belly of the Big Bend. We always stop there to top off the tank and buy the final few groceries from Porter’s Grocery Store. On this trip, we added an extra stop at the Brewster County Clerk’s office in Alpine to file the survey on our newest tract that we added in March. Happy to get that done.

It’s always a good feeling when Little Burro Country Store comes into view about an hour south of Alpine. That’s where we turn east off the highway and travel down the caliche road that leads to our cabin. With views of Nine Point Mesa and Black Hill in front of us, we are within a few miles of our desert retreat.

After settling in, Cheryl prepared a charcuterie board for a light supper. And then we sat around the fire pit, enjoying a remarkably pleasant evening. We watched the sun set to the west — brush-stroking the wispy clouds with beautiful shades of blue, pink, and orange. Soon after, the full moon made its entrance between Nine Point Mesa and Red Bluff to the east. Stunning. We sat in silence.

The plan for Friday and part of Saturday was to set the cedar corner posts on our new tract and then the cedar line posts along the east side of the tract along the road. Once that was done we marked the halfway points and added the H-brackets that we will later tension with barbless cable.

Fencing is hard work but something I really enjoy. I am careful to make sure everything is perfectly lined up so that when we later add the t-posts and field fencing the fence looks straight and true. And since the fence will outlive me, it is something of a signature — and therefore something I want to do with excellence.

Reuniting with our neighbors is always a must when we are at the cabin. Every time we return we host a hot dog and hamburger cookout and invite the neighbors over for food and conversation around the fire that lasts into the night.

Another project that I find therapeutic is working on our swale and berm on our north tract. Our son Jonathan encouraged us to add swales as part of our permaculture plan for the property so that we could capture lots of water during the monsoon rains.

We were delighted to see that our once barren swales and berms were now teeming with native plants. The swale had created its own micro-riparian ecosystem — complete with flowers, cacti, thistles, and grasses.

Encouraged by the new growth along the swales, I took the time to connect the two swales running east and west to increase our capacity to capture more water. We now have a 300-foot long swale and berm that will capture hundreds of gallons of rain as it sheets across the property.

In addition to getting a few projects completed, we visited the Farmers’ Market in Terlingua, enjoyed a meal out in Study Butte, and worshiped with our friends at Terlingua Ranch Christian Church. And now, it’s time to head home — much more relaxed and refreshed than when we arrived.

Although it may sound strange, there is something therapeutic about coming to the desert. I know that a visit to the desert is not what will help others relax, but it works for us. As locals often say here in the Chihuahuan Desert: from the outside looking in you don’t understand it and from the inside looking out you can’t explain it. We are already looking forward to our next visit.

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A Big Bend Adventure for Boys and Mentors

Last year at this time, my wife Cheryl and I hosted a Spring Break camping adventure for boys from the Brookshire community, located west of Houston. Brookshire has the highest number of fatherless homes in the greater Houston area.

Several years ago, our church entered into a strategic partnership with a local ministry called Eyes On Me — a ministry that exists to mentor, disciple, and serve at-risk youth and their families. EOM has a presence in Brookshire at The Hangar Unity Center.

My friend Ryan Orbin is the Director of The Hangar. Among their many community initiatives, Ryan and his team have a mentoring program for boys, many of whom have never ventured far outside their community. The Hangar provides opportunities for these boys to participate in outdoor adventures along with their mentors,

For the second year, Cheryl and I were thrilled to host the boys from Brookshire at Dos Arbolitos, our off-grid property located outside of Big Bend National Park. The boys arrived on Sunday afternoon for a week of hiking, working, and adventuring in the Chihuahuan Desert.

The first order of business was to set up base camp at the property. For many of these boys, this was their first time to set up a tent. Because of the size of the tents, the boys had to work together to get the task done.

One of the lessons we want to drive home is the importance of cooperating in order to get a task done. And the boys did just that — they worked together to set up their tents. Teaching boys to work together and to do life in community with others is important because trying to do things alone is difficult and often dangerous.

On the first evening, we enjoyed hamburgers around the campfire. Afterward we gave each of the boys a hydration backpack and the hiking and survival gear they would need for the week. We took the time to talk about why a particular item was important and how that item was a metaphor for how to be better prepared for life in general.

After we gave the boys their hiking gear, my friend and fellow pastor Bobby Cooley shared his personal story around the campfire. Bobby is an outdoorsman who has hiked every trail in Big Bend National Park. He and his kids joined us for a couple of days.

Bobby grew up in an at-risk home — a very broken home — and shared his remarkable story of how a caring adult changed the course of his life. I have heard his story more than once and always wonder what might have happened to Bobby had that one caring adult not come into his life. His is a story of hope and one that encouraged the boys.

The boys enjoyed two and a half days of hiking in Big Bend — recently recognized by National Geographic as one the top places to visit in the world. Once again, we stressed the importance of having adventures in community with others because alone is dangerous.

For most of the boys, this was their first visit to a national park. They hiked, climbed, soaked in hot springs, swam in the Rio Grade River, and enjoyed lunch under the endless Big Bend sky.

Of course, the sky is one of the best things about the Big Bend region of Texas. Big Bend offers visitors some of the darkest skies in the nation. So when the sun goes down, the stars come out — more stars than are visible from Brookshire and the light-polluted skies of the greater Houston area.

I invited my friend Joseph Bear, known as Yogi to locals, to do a star party for the boys. Yogi and my neighbors were kind enough to set up one of his large telescopes. As we sat around the fire, Yogi told stories about the night sky and how the constellations got their names and so much more.

The boys then formed a queue at the telescope to see planets and stars. So cool to see their curiosity spill out into questions about the night sky. The following night Yogi returned with his laser pointer to continue teaching about the Big Bend night sky.

Our campfire times in the evening were special times for reflecting on their day and for sharing stories. Two friends from El Paso joined us and shared their personal stories around the fire.

One of the men shared about the death of his dad in a suicide by cop encounter and how that set him on a destructive course until he had an encounter with Jesus. The other shared about growing up in a broken home, spending fifteen years in prison, and how Christ transformed his life. Both men offered encouragement and hope.

We set aside one day to do work projects at the property — tasks that can only be completed by working in cooperation with one another. Cooperation requires good communication, asking for help, taking the initiative to offer help, and doing what it takes to finish a task well.

The boys cleared a fence line on our newest tract, set t-posts, and stretched field fencing. They learned to nail the fencing to the cedar fence posts and to use clips to attach it to the t-posts.

Once again, every hike and task was designed to teach life lessons. Before working on the fence we talked about doing all things with excellence because the quality of our work is like our signature. Red Steagall is one of my favorite cowboy poets and The Fence That Me and Shorty Built is one of my favorite poems about doing your work with excellence. It’s worth listening to this story.

On the final day, three of the boys who professed their faith in Christ chose to be baptized in the Rio Grande River. This was a special time for everyone and another reason why the work of Ryan and his team at The Hangar is so important.

Of course, every adventure needs fuel — lots of good food to provide the energy to hike and climb and swim and drive t-posts. Once again, my friend James Meredith ran point on providing all of our meals. My friend Doug Rogers and others assisted in meal preparation. One thing is certain, we ate like kings. Every meal was outstanding.

This Spring Break adventure is important, especially when you consider that many boys from at-risk homes are just one decision away from becoming a statistic. But, in the words of motivational speaker Josh Shipp, every kid is one caring adult away from becoming a success story.

I am grateful for every caring adult who participated in this second annual Spring Break Big Bend adventure. This was time well spent — and only time will reveal the full impact of this investment in the lives of a group of boys from Brookshire on the road to manhood.