Volume 39 Number 22 December 19, 2001

Pigs and God’s Promise

Leonard K. Plett

IN ECCLESIASTES 11:1 it says, "Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again." This spring I had the opportunity to help on of our fellow Christians. He appreciated it, and I felt good about it. I felt as if I had cast some bread upon the waters.

About four months later, my wife and I were at a church service at the Mennonite Heritage Museum. It was August long weekend and it was very hot. The church service was almost over when a lady came in and announced that there was an emergency call for me. My wife Elfrieda and I left immediately and followed the lady to the artifacts building.

This was a long way to walk, and all the way our hearts were anxious about what could have happened. Could someone have had a heart attack or had an accident? (After all, you don't make an emergency phone call for a trivial matter.)

The lady gave me the phone number I was to call, and I knew it was from our son-in-law, Murray Klassen. When I said, "Hello," Murray did not beat around the bush; he just said, "All your pigs are dead." Well, praise the Lord, it's only a bunch of pigs!

We had a thunderstorm on Saturday to Sunday night. Lightning had struck a hydro pole close to the farm. There was no one at home at the farm that night. Murray, who is on the same power line as we are, noticed the lights blink, but come on again. However, the breaker at the yard pole on the farm had kicked out and did not go on again.

Leonard K. Plett is now retired and living in Landmark, Man. He is part of Prairie Rose EMC. His grandchildren are Laura, Benjamin, and Emily Plett. His wife is Elfrieda.

When Kevin, Murray's son, came to do the chores on Sunday morning, he noticed it was very quiet as he approached the barn. When he opened the door, he saw that all the pigs were dead, except for a few stragglers.

When I came to the barn in the afternoon, the hydro was still not on, and it was relatively cool and very quiet in the barn.

All the dead pigs would have to go to Rothsay, a rendering company in Winnipeg. On Monday, because of the long weekend, everything was closed in the city. I had to wait till Tuesday to start cleaning up.

It was very hot that day, so I did not start pulling out pigs to have them lay outside in the hot sunshine till Tuesday morning. By Tuesday morning I could not sleep very well. The heavier pigs were bloated so badly, I had nightmares of not getting them through the door. By this time I was starting to feel sorry for myself, which does not help very much.

By Tuesday morning there were six young, strong men to help me clean up the mess. Yes, I had asked a few to come help, but more came to help—including one of our ministers—because they heard of my problem. I thank the men who came to help at this time. They did not come because it was a pleasant job; it was not.

I had lost 232 hogs. With the help of two big trucks, two tractors with front-end loaders, six men and myself, we had it cleaned up by noon.

I cast my bread upon the waters in spring and four months later it came back to me; I thank the Lord for it. "Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again." It's a promise to every one of us. Try it.