“You can make water go uphill, but you can’t make it go west.”
             We were standing in a trench. It was a Saturday morning and I was helping a crew of men fix a clogged sewer next to the church.           
            “What are you talking about?” 
            Roger leaned on his shovel. “In this country," he glanced at the field across the street, "if you want water to flow west, you got to dig to China.”
           I was still confused.
            An older man named Tony took pity on my bewilderment. He explained that the lay of the land here in West Texas is deceptive. What appears to be level prairie is actually an immense grade sloping down from the Rocky Mountains. For this reason it’s easier to get water “to flow uphill” than drain toward New Mexico.
            “So that’s why we’re digging a trench away from the nearest storm drain?
            Tony nodded and I realized, once again, that a pastor learns a lot from hanging out with the men in his parish.
            Some folks think that church work is women’s work. This is understandable. The flurry of activity prior to Sunday Mass usually involves women placing numbers on hymn boards, arranging flowers at the altar, setting out chalices and scanning pews for children to serve as acolytes. The work accomplished by men tends to occur during the week and behind the scenes. With a bit of practice, however, one can learn to detect evidence of it.
            This past Christmas, for instance, an outdoor Nativity scene at a rural parish included a heat lamp from a farmer’s barn. And I suspect that the treble cord attached to it came from the toolbox on a flatbed truck.
            In rural Texas, you encounter racks for cowboy hats in the vestibules and mud scrapers for boots outside the main doors. If a maintenance closet door hangs open, you'll see snow shovels leaning alongside the collection baskets.
            Yes, the majority of lectors, cantors and choir members are women, but most custodians, ushers and fish-fryers are men. Occasionally, these men might even help with the decorating.
            The rebar crosses on the gates of the church parking lot where I served last weekend provide a good example. They were colorful, attrative and, most of all, durable.
            The parish was named in honor of our Lady, but those handcrafted crosses would make her husband proud.
            St. Joseph the Worker, pray for us!