Lately, everyone is antsy to be elsewhere. My daughter in law put a neighbor’s calf back through the fence, later noticed one of ours was on the wrong side, and made a mental note to fix that later, as she went off to do other chores. Driving country roads, you see cows reaching through the fences to eat what’s on the other side. All are chasing green, and so far, there isn’t much to be had.
A late spring is tough on everyone. Cattle know it’s time to go to grass, and ranchers need to get them moved. There’s so much to be done, and so few days to accomplish it all, what with brandings to attend, end of school activities, and fences to be repaired.
My son sat the family down with the calendar and they came away knowing that every minute until the first of June is accounted for. One grandson made state in track, and his dad decreed, “We will get up early on the day of your race, drive 5 hours to watch your two-minute event, and jump in the car to drive home. And you will be with us, not riding the bus back.”
Another grandson, while listing the brandings and other deadlines, sighed and said, “Maybe it’ll get better in June.” Doubt it. I know he has a football camp and a fishing trip lined up then, and his brother has high school rodeos every weekend.
I had an errand in Mullen last Friday. I pulled away from the grocery store at noon as kids came running out of the elementary school whooping and hollering. High school kids trudged down the hill with a look of joy on their faces, or gunned their vehicles a little extra, as if to announce, DONE!
On the way home from town, I saw a calf on the road near a neighbor’s place. The mama was lying on her side of the fence, not very excited about getting him coaxed back where he belonged. Maybe she was of the same mind as teachers who turned the kids loose for the summer—”I deserve a break!”
At a ladies’ gathering on Saturday, the talk was of teachers who are retiring or moving on to other life chapters, which young people are headed off to college and the military, a family wedding, and other new babies to arrive in the rest of this year.
Life proceeds at a run in May. No garden planted yet; no plants bought. No raised beds made, as planned for on long winter days. I looked at our calendar and discovered that we need to be in Rapid City, Cheyenne, Thedford, and Stapleton this week. And wouldn’t you know, the lawn needs mowed. That’s a five-hour deal around here, and the forecast is for showers until the days we are on the road. Maybe I’ll just hire the hay crew to come deal with it.