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The beginning of a new school year is just around the corner. The new start provides an opportunity for your child to participate in all kinds of extracurricular activities, some of which include sports.

The Peruvian purple corn looks awfully good right now and might actually produce an ear or two in the near future.

I find myself in a predicament, though: How do I harvest these Peruvian treasures before the varmints do?

The hubbub around the Groundhog Hill hood is that a band of raccoons are touring the nearby farms and attacking unsuspecting and unprotected patches of sweet corn. One fellow farmer let loose his own pack of dogs, but they failed to keep the critters from their target.

My brother Philip has one word of advice: Fence.

When choosing vegetables for the grill, select firmer vegetables, like asparagus, corn, peppers, zucchini or squash. Grilled vegetables can be used in a salad or served on a side or as the main dish.

Helpful tips for grilling veggies:

Asparagus and corn can be grilled just as they are and other vegetables should be cut into pieces large enough that they don’t fall between the slats of your grill.

Brush the vegetables with olive or vegetable oil and season with herbs and spices to taste.

“Give ear to my words, O Lord” is the way Psalm 5 begins. The psalmist then gives five suggestions for us to follow that will help our prayers be heard by God.

 “In the morning, O Lord, thou wilt hear my voice; in the morning I will order by prayer to thee and eagerly watch” (5:3).

Ask early. Jesus found asking early to be a good time for Him. Mark 1:35 says of Jesus, “And early in the morning, while it was still dark, He arose … went to a lonely place and was praying.”