Life is full when it is filled with blessings
There was an old gent we knew when we were growing up that comes to mind as I jot down some of my thoughts.
Actually, never thought him to be all that knowledgeable, really thought he was just a bit windy. But he would invariably start a tale with describing when it occurred.
He’d say, “Well, it was a Wednesday ‘bout 2:00, 2:30. Not a cloud in the sky, when that ol’ boy come ridin’ over the ridge just a yellin’ ‘bout a big wind acomin’ an’ how we’d best button down afore everything blowed away!”
Actually, he was a bit windy, but he had a vivid memory or at the very least a vivid imagination and ability to recall. I guess most of us oldtimers tend to fit that pattern. I know that I find it easier to recall an event from boyhood days than to just remember why I walked into this room! But that story will come later. I visited with my brother Bill, he’s known in cowboy circles as Willy, and he said he was “under a horse working on his shoes.”
No, he’s not telling a tale, that’s just who he is. Seventy-seven, plagued with various cancer problems, but always busy doing a ranch chore. He said he didn’t dare slow down, because that might allow some other malady to catch up to him. He does a lot of work at his cowboy church helping the preacher take care of everyday chores and he does day work for a near-by rancher.
This man has boys that do what he tells them too, but they never see the next task on their own. On the other hand, Willy does the job and looks for the next thing that needs tending to. I think the rancher hopes that Willy’s example will soak into those youngsters and that they will begin to see how it should be done.
You see, one job often leads to another. And I guess it’s an oldtimer thing to know that the job is not complete until you’ve finished all of the chores. Life is great when lived to the fullest and at the same time we need to be thankful that the Lord is filling us with His blessings.
Oldtimers
I often think back to yesteryear,
When life was less complicated,
We’d ride them broncs showin’ no fear,
‘Til appetites were satiated.
The days were spent roustin’ wild eyed steers,
Dodgin’ limbs in mesquite filled draws,
With thorny branches slappin’ our ears,
Like the slash of an angry wildcat’s claws.
But you dodged an’ busted through that brush,
Just to keep them scamps on the fly,
‘Cuz they’d spook an’ scatter in a rush,
Leave you sittin’ there blinkin’ your eye!
Ahh that sun… how it made your poor eyes squint,
And scorched your face a leather brown,
Thus, moldin’ a look wherever you went,
Even smilin’ or wearin’ a frown.
A feller could get dog tired out there,
You rode a good hoss, but he wore out too,
Still, you slapped that rope through the air,
An’ stayed with it ‘til you was through.
A green hand will do just what he’s told,
But often there’s more to see about,
That’s where an oldtimer is good as gold,
He’ll take the lead an’ guide the young sprout.
Sometimes a job pops up to be done,
In the course of doin’ another,
An’ a good hand will have it begun,
Finishin’ one while he’s doin’ the other!
That’s how it is when you ride for the brand,
From daybreak ‘til after settin’ sun,
That’s just how you make a decent hand,
One that just plumb always gets ‘er done.
‘Course, a cowboy will take timeout for chuck,
The mornin’ coffee, biscuits an’ beans,
A mid-day biscuit if you’re in luck,
Beef steak at supper by any means.
Then at the bunkhouse you smokes an’ you jaws,
But hit your bedroll plenty fast,
To dream of wild rides an’ the applause,
An’ just that quick, the night has passed.
You hate it, but crawl out of your bunk,
To face whatever the day may bring,
You get your coffee saucered an’ drunk,
An’ figger which pony from your string.
Well, the years have shore drifted by,
You ain’t near as young as you once was,
An’ it’s tougher to do, but you try,
‘Course, it ain’t for the pay that you draws.
It’s mostly pride in the job that you do,
An’ the things that you might could pass on,
An’ yore proud when fellers look up to you,
An’ you’re glad that is how you are known.
Life brings opportunities to you,
And you decide how to handle each one,
And mostly you’ll follow what’s true,
You see, that’s just how it is done.
Then when you stop to check your back trail,
An’ your thoughts go back to yesteryear,
The Lord kept you safe from life’s travail,
He helped to keep your direction clear.
So, you take a knee an’ give thanks to the Lord,
For His example that showed you how,
With what He taught, from the blessin’s He poured,
An’ the love He’s showin’ you now.
© Ol’ Jim Cathey
God Bless those old Hands that train the Buttons and God Bless America!
God Bless each of you and God Bless America!