Nearing the end of our 2024 ride to Idaho, Jerry and I said goodbye in John Day, Oregon, where Highways 395 and 26 met. He went west as I turned south, both riding home solo, an enjoyable part of our trips. A day later came my last, and I pulled out of Lone Pine at 7 AM, hoping to get the 240 miles home to Temecula before the traffic congealed into an unholy mess. Not long after, a road sign announced a welcomed passing lane ahead, that alleviated concerns about some slow trucks clogging the lane.
But the promised passing lane soon proved to be closed for construction, yet with none in sight. So I looked around and spotted heavy construction off to the right, just north of Olancha. Turns out Cal Trans has decided to change the route to bypass the entire Olancha area. I guess that will help the traffic flow, which is nice, but will likely kill the remaining business there. The Rancho House Café was a regular stop for me and Dad, and we’d get gas at the rock walled Union Gas Station with a red Coca Cola cooler outside the door. Both had been closed for years, but I enjoyed the memories that seeing them provided.
Getting closer to home revealed more changes, often a four lane freeway, quite a contrast to the washboard dirt road Dad took to Rock Creek starting in 1925. Fortunately that road changed, and he’d point out the old roads along the way. I’ve taken that responsibility over with my grandson and friends. Frankly, this change makes me uneasy. Yes, the travel will improve, allowing more people to trek north and fill the campgrounds and clutter the streams. No, Cal Trans didn’t consult me.
Nor did a changing culture. But I’ve decided to accept them as reality. Yes, I’ll likely not take the bypass to Olancha more than once. And I still desire to have some influence on our culture. But to do that means recognizing the changes, not complaining about them. Too much.
We choose to complain or adapt. I’ll take the latter. Because as culture changes, we need to know it enough to speak to people where they are. Not to agree, but to understand, to listen, to get them. To speak God’s unchanging truth in love. I appreciate 1 Chronicles 12:32, “From the tribe of Issachar…these men understood the signs of the times and knew the best course for Israel to take.”
Responding to the times. Paul did that, crafting his delivery to match his audience, whether Jewish or Greek. May we do that same in our changing world.
Kick Starting the Application
Do you tend to complain or adjust to cultural changes? What causes that? Can those on the changed side sense your love of them, or your disapproval? How can you stay true to God’s standards amid changing values?