Here I am making another late night blog post. My family and I, along with many good friends tonight attended a party and 50th wedding anniversary for some icons of the community. Thank you to the Moore family for all their hard work in making tonight a great party honoring your mother and father on their 50th wedding anniversary.
As I grew up Dick and Melette were people in the community that I was very proud to know. Mellete was always a strong supporter of my efforts at showing cattle despite the fact that she had two lovely daughters that were one year younger and one year older than I was. As the mother of a teenage daughter during my teen years this was not a small feat. Dick spent many years serving on our local fairboard and although I once tossed him a case of beer over the fairgrounds fence as a high schooler he was able to command respect and attention without ratting me out to my parents. Thank you to both of them for their efforts at raising me properly and their continued support through adulthood! I now watch my own daughter compete against their grandkids showing cattle and often smile as I see this circle of life continue.
Summer is coming to a close and that is always a difficult time for me from an attitude standpoint. Shorter daylight hours, knowing cows will soon need to be fed supplemental feed, and the potential for cold and snow can be depressing to even those with a good grasp on life. The last few days as I have contemplated the end of summer it is easy to see all the goals and plans for another year that I have failed at. About the time I am thinking things are not very good I just take stock of the rest of my fellow cattlemen across the country and realize life is pretty damn great at the current time here in the Pacific Northwest. Earlier this week I came across a broken irrigation riser that made me cuss. As I looked to the heavens and asked Dad why things like this always happen to me he spoke to me with some sage advice. Would you rather be in other parts of the country where they are suffering from extreme drought? How many guys in other parts of the country would give anything just to have access to some irrigation water? Humbling and reality, nothing better to bring a man back to what matters in life!
How many people across the country would love to have old cows standing in grass like this raising calves? Yeah, It quickly makes a guy thankful!
It is not that everyday life cannot make your life interesting at times. The other night as Dakota washed up her steer in preparation for clipping for this weeks fair, she lost water pressure. I was pretty sure that the issue was the stockwater well had blown a hose. As I removed the lid from the stockwater well I was faced with a discarded snakeskin that gave me a bit of a jolt! I have yet to meet the snake that left this behind but I am alright with that.
Many people would find this life I lead as monotonous and boring. For me I am thankful that I am able to make a simple living chasing cows, chasing life and living a dream. Being able to live with and witness the power and beauty of Mother Nature suits me just fine. Luckily I had many people in my life like my parents and the Moore's that looked out for me and my future.
Today's Cowman Youtube music selection is Sawyer Brown singing, "I'll take the Dirt Road" which eloquently describes the joy of living the life I lead.
As I grew up Dick and Melette were people in the community that I was very proud to know. Mellete was always a strong supporter of my efforts at showing cattle despite the fact that she had two lovely daughters that were one year younger and one year older than I was. As the mother of a teenage daughter during my teen years this was not a small feat. Dick spent many years serving on our local fairboard and although I once tossed him a case of beer over the fairgrounds fence as a high schooler he was able to command respect and attention without ratting me out to my parents. Thank you to both of them for their efforts at raising me properly and their continued support through adulthood! I now watch my own daughter compete against their grandkids showing cattle and often smile as I see this circle of life continue.
It is not that everyday life cannot make your life interesting at times. The other night as Dakota washed up her steer in preparation for clipping for this weeks fair, she lost water pressure. I was pretty sure that the issue was the stockwater well had blown a hose. As I removed the lid from the stockwater well I was faced with a discarded snakeskin that gave me a bit of a jolt! I have yet to meet the snake that left this behind but I am alright with that.
Today's Cowman Youtube music selection is Sawyer Brown singing, "I'll take the Dirt Road" which eloquently describes the joy of living the life I lead.
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