Frank J. Buchman

Cowboy • Horseman • Writer

A Time For Everything

“It never was that way before.”

The comment rang appropriate truth not just subject at hand but seemingly everything nowadays.

Conversation related to several dump truckloads of creek gravel in a big yard pile for spreading on the driveway.

Ruts and potholes in the barnyard entrance needed filled and smoothed again. Be interesting to know how many times that’s been done in a half century, nearly 48 years home place.

Simpler than days gone by as the ranch manager son is talented operating tractor with frontend loader leveling the roadway.

What brought the subject up was cleaning old hay out of the pole storage barn, coupled with downpours.

The barn held standing water with big ruts in front. Even deeper water bogged furrows in the lean-to where the square baler is stored.  Gravel will make a base again.

Winter cow lots don’t have a bottom without gravel for solidity. However, those bovine, their calves, sometimes other cattle and horses year around leave droppings accumulating to necessitate regular cleanup.

With loader tractor and manure spreader wastes go on nearby brome field. That again leaves low spots in the corrals and accompanying pens which must also be filled with gravel and smoothed out.

Never before at least in lifetimes have some seen so much rain causing such havoc in so many directions. Likewise, when Mother Nature wields additional detrimental acts hopefully one has not experienced and never does again.

For certain with maturity come physical and mental issues of never before and completely unimaginable they’d be possible.

How could there be all those bald spots; such little air on top but oodles on ears, nose and face? It is inconceivable looking at college photos; longer hair than Mom liked but much shorter than hippy-type classmates.

What happened to that scales? It must be wrong. Never has showed so many pounds, almost twice high school driver’s license weight.

Jeans must have shrunk; can’t get them buttoned and zipped.

Where did that paunch, humpback, overall body stiffness come from?

Unbelievable, barely get the saddle on, impossible to pull tight, and then use a ladder to get on.

History repeats itself, yet despite poor memory certain it’s never been this way before.

Reminded of Ecclesiastes 3:1: “There is an appointed time for everything. A time for every event under heaven.”

+++ALLELUIA+++

XIII–28–7-7-19

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