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April 29, 1999Oak Glen, California Dear Friends & Family, The guy on the right is my older brother, Mike Riley. When Mike went off to college in the Sixties, I was still four or five years old, and one of my earliest memories of him was hearing him sing Splish, Splash, I was Taking a Bath. At the time, he had soap all over his head. "How come you don't cry when the soap gets in your eyes?" I asked him. "Because," he said, "I'M A MAN." I believed it too, because all the girls loved Mike. Whenever he had a date, he would bring the girls home to meet his two youngest brothers, Scott and I, and he would put us in the back of his Volkswagen for a ride around the town on summer nights. Mike is one of those people who has a gift for accomodating the very young and the very old. Many years later, when we were both in my father's business, I was walking out of a restaurant with him. There was a woman in her late seventies sitting by the door, just getting ready to leave. "Hold it, Jim," he said. "Let me hold the door for this beautiful lady." Her eyes brightened up. "Oh thank you!" she said, in a way that made me believe she meant it. In college, Mike met and married a stunning blonde beauty from San Clemente, Myrna Hall, and they now have five children--all of them over six feet tall, even the two girls. His oldest daughter, Tammy, was just married and when Mike took the first dance with his daughter, they played the theme from Tammy and the Bachelor. There's a scene in that movie where Debbie Reynolds, playing the part of Tammy the country girl, yells out, "ain't nothin' that brings a man closer to the Lord than farmin' and raisin' children!" With five children of my own, all growing up on a farm, that strikes home with me, and, well, let's just say all my little lambs saw me scrambling for a handkerchief. This Sunday, we found out that Mike has a fairly significant health problem. We told our children about it in the afternoon, and we asked them to pray for him, but in the hours that intervened, with dinner, and talk, and getting ready for bed, I had forgotten about it myself. One by one, at the bedside our children began their prayers, until we came to Lizzy, who usually gives the shortest prayers. "Dear Father in Heaven," she said, "please bless Uncle Mike so that he'll feel better." Tammy was telling the truth. Would you all say a prayer for my brother, Mike? Your Servant, Jim Riley P.S. For the sake of those "web portals" constantly browsing the internet to update their search engines, we include the following boiler-plate. (Feel free to read this, if you're new to our site.) Riley's Farm is a working apple orchard and living history farm in the Oak Glen area of Southern California. In addition to farming, we love history and we have provided a venue for re-enactment units comprising many different eras. The farm regularly hosts banquets, birthday parties, weddings, and office parties. Every year, literally thousands of students participate in one of our school tours, where they experience everything from weaving, candle-dipping, and cider pressing to the drill and muster of a Revolutionary War or Civil War battle. Our farm has appeared on the History Channel and in the recently released feature film, Amistad, as well as many other film and television productions. (We even try to get the producers to include us as on screen talent, but that's another story.) On selected weekends throughout the year, we offer "farm-stay" weekends, where families can experience--clothing, wood stoves, muskets, and all--the life of an 18th or 19th century American farmer. We grow sweet corn, apples, raspberries, pears, and sunflowers, just to mention a few of our crops. Our nephew, Devon, keeps some beautiful Belgian draft horses for country hay-rides. We love America--its traditions, its people, its history, and its cherished heritage of liberty in Christ. Have we said enough? Well, one more thing: In the fall, thousands of families make an annual pilgrimage to the farms of Oak Glen to experience the closest thing to a New England fall California has to offer. Why don't you stop by and say hello? |