Columnists

Q: Our beagle Wilson’s eyes are red and foggy, and he’s squinting. He’s also rubbing his face on the carpet a lot. Does he have allergies? Can a dog become allergic at the age of 6?

A few weeks ago I wrote about the Christian practice of baptism, focusing on a type known as “proxy baptism.” This allows people who died without accepting Jesus as Savior to have another opportunity for salvation. While this practice has raised some controversy, during the course of my research I discovered that the traditional baptism practiced since the early days of church is also becoming controversial.

The Gilroy Garlic Festival this weekend will bring tens of thousands of people to our region to experience the culinary delights of America’s most famous food festival. Even though the festival casts a spotlight on the South Valley as a gourmet haven, there are plenty of food eating opportunities than just the garlic-laced ones here. Morgan Hill Access TV’s very own Judy Keyes has a regular show called “Cooking for All Seasons” where she helps local residents appreciate the art of preparing delicious meals.

What do you get when you take 49 stunning, superbly trained horses (11 breeds), that live with gentle love and care, while consuming 17,500 bales of hay, 36,500 pounds of oats and of course 1,750 pounds of carrots annually? Add 120 performers and handlers, a 10-story tall white big top, a specially equipped Boeing 747 (for horse transport), a stage as wide a football field, a stable that spans more than 16,500 square feet and 2,500 tons of sand and you get “Cavalia” – a sensational experience like no other.

People from all over will come to the Gilroy Garlic Festival this weekend to sample the gastronomical delights in Gourmet Alley and munch on an assortment of victuals from various vendors. If you attend South Valley’s biggest culinary event, please raise a glass of wine in toast to America’s first “foodie.” I’m referring to my favorite Founding Father from Virginia, Mr. Thomas Jefferson.

Each spring I write a column providing information about Vacation Bible Schools or Day Camps offered by local churches. Some readers have said it’s helpful and that they look forward to reading it in the newspaper. Of course, each program is as different as the congregation sponsoring it, but they have many aspects in common: volunteer workers, hours of planning time, a carefully crafted curriculum and a devotion to sharing God’s love with children from the community.

The San Martin 4-H club celebrated a birthday last Saturday night. Peg and I were invited to their party to mark 65 years of youth activities. Most everyone knows about 4-H, but I’ll bet a lot of you don’t know about all the activities this organization has for its members. There’s a lot more than just working with farm animals at the County Fair.

For some inexplicable reason, I wax nostalgic in the summer. Perhaps it’s the gentle, warm breezes blowing my bedroom curtains or the far-away drone of a small airplane that brings to mind my childhood back home in Colorado.