Summertime and “The Pit”…

Summer on a dairy farm developed a lot of sweat equity. There was first, second, and third cutting of hay and cultivation of crops in between. The baling also meant plenty of time in the hay loft. 

You’ve never really lived until you’ve stacked hundreds (sometimes thousands) of 50 lb bales in an upstairs room of a barn on a 95-degree day with little to no ventilation. For a teenager who knew his friends were enjoying sleeping in, the pool and possibly golf or tennis, this was pure misery. 

The school system I attended combined three neighboring townships, creating a natural geographic and social divide. There were “East-siders” and “West-siders.”  I was an East-sider and just about as far East geographically and socially as you could get. 

West-sider’s had pools, golf courses and tennis courts. However, we East-siders had something so refreshing, so amazing, we were the envy for miles around. It was our beloved “Pit”.

The Lantz Family had once operated a gravel and sand business. When that chapter came to an end, the old gravel pit slowly filled with water from the many springs in the area. 

The result was the best swimming hole imaginable!

Many, many summer days I jumped on my bike to make the three-mile ride to the “Pit.” After an exhausting day in the field and chores that followed, I somehow found the energy to go for a swim with friends. Before I had my driver’s license, I would beg Dad to let me use the John Deere. More often than not he did. 

The Lantzes eventually realized the gem they had and developed their old swimming hole into Lantz’s Arrowhead Springs. I was a charter member. For the greater community the name change had a more marketable ring to it, but to us locals it was still affectionately known as the “Pit.”

Decades later, one of my coworkers at Sunnyside Village in Sarasota, Florida found out I was from Kokomo, Indiana. Her parents had close friends in the Kokomo area and they had often visited together through the years. Her very first question to me was, “Do you know about the Pit?” It had gained fame all the way to Florida!

While Lantz’s Arrowhead Springs remained open to the public for many, many years, it has since closed. However, before it did, I had the pleasure of enjoying church picnics, family reunions, and even time with my wife and children in the cool waters of the “Pit.”  

So, to the Lantz Family (especially Steve) I cannot thank you enough for the memories and friendships your old gravel pit provided. My heart warms to think about it even now decades later.

It brings to mind this prayer from the Apostle Paul for his beloved Philippians.

“I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, ⁴ always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy…”  Philippians 1:3-4 (ESV)

Paul wrote those words from a prison cell. Yet the very memory of the believers in Philippi refreshed his spirit. They had encouraged him then, and even the thought of them strengthened him in the present.

Is there a place that refreshes your soul? A place whose memory can bring a smile, even in the middle of difficult days. If so, would you join me in simply saying, “Thank You, Lord”? 

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

² He makes me lie down in green pastures.

He leads me beside still waters.

³ He restores my soul… 

Psalms 23:1-3 (ESV)

Amen.

Grace and peace,

Jarvis—From Soil To Soul