NON-TRADITIONAL GIFTS FOR FARMERS AND RANCHERS

Sunset at the valley farm.

Now that Thanksgiving is over with and I’m still feeling stuffed and full, I am going to make my Christmas list. Farmers and ranchers are not the easiest people to shop for. Coveralls, boots, and gloves are not especially exciting gifts to give or receive. So I think I’ll look for some unusual and non-traditional type of things to give my men.

·                    How about a hat with a wide brim, one that will keep his face from being sunburned but won’t keep the sunshine out of his life. It should give him protection from the storms of life as they come, but, again as with the sunshine, not take those storms away as they are the rungs on the ladder to success.

·                 Maybe a suit of armor should go with the wide brimmed hat, so the entire body receives protection. Of course that would be dangerous when they are out irrigating or if an angry cow decides to chase them, so I guess I’ll cross that one off my list.

·                        A pair of rose-colored glasses with a special prescription for better foresight and an option to disregard hindsight. These glasses could be treated with a temperance coating that makes it possible to see the good in all people.

·                   A hearing aid specifically geared to enable him to hear good comments about agriculture and appreciation from the people who eat the food we produce. These could also have a special attachment that recognizes the different drum-beats individuals march to. Another good addition to these hearing aids would be a special setting to be able to hear his wife when she’s talking to him.

·                    How about a watch that will add or subtract an hour, depending on the need: add an hour when there just isn’t time to do everything; subtract an hour or speed up the mechanism on the watch when time is going too slow. But it does need to correlate with the watch that his wife has or there could be trouble with this gift!

·                      Specially treated gloves that convert sweat, grease, manure, and dirt into moisturizing cream, thus softening the hands as a reminder to treat those he meets with softness, gentleness, and kindness. These gloves need to be warm in the winter but have a cooling affect during the summer.

·                         Pants and coveralls with built-in knee pads that automatically kneel down at least once a day so the wearer can give thanks for the opportunity to work the land and with his animals. These knee pads will also help when he is kneeling by a sick cow or calf.

·                      A pair of boots with an occasional pebble or nail inside of them, so the owner will remember that not everyone goes the same speed as he does. Also, the boots need a good sole and heel to make firm footprints and an accurate path for those who will follow him.

·                   Perhaps a flashlight with a special heater to keep the hands warm in the cold of winter. The beam of this light would be formulated to give guidance on the darkest nights and in the darkest moments of the owner’s life. And it might even be able to guide and help those close to the owner using the light.

·                  Rainbows. He needs these periodically, not for the pot of gold at the end of it but for the moisture in front thus making it possible for him to create his own pot of gold. A rainbow also adds beauty to his life. And it usually means there has been some needed moisture to help in his life.

·                  A song in his heart so when things look bleak and gloomy, he has a reserve to draw on.

·              Beautiful sunrises to give him a positive start to the day and help him accomplish what needs to be done.

·                   Beautiful sunsets to encourage him to welcome in the night and help him to rest, free from worry.

I          I realize the last few are things that can’t be purchased. They are things that are free for all of us to enjoy. Now, if I could just find a place to buy some of the other items I’d have my Christmas shopping done. 

PREPARING THE RANCH FOR WINTER

Winter scene at our valley home

            This year we’ve had rain storms at unusual times, causing concerns about whether we would have enough feed for the cattle to see them through the winter. So in late September and early October my men were at the ranch cutting grass for hay and getting it baled. I can’t remember a time when we were cutting, raking, baling and hauling hay this late in the season. But this enabled us to have more feed for the cows, and that’s what we needed. Boyd always likes to have extra in case we have a heavy snow fall during the winter or early spring and are unable to get the cows to summer pasture as soon as we like to.

            The calves have been moved down from the ranch and weaned and the cows will be brought down between Thanksgiving and Christmas, depending on the weather. The sheds here in the valley have been scraped clean and lime spread on them, preparing for calving that starts mid-December at our place. New canvas has been put up and when it gets closer to the time we use them, straw will be spread out in the sheds.

Preparing and storing feed and getting sheds ready for winter use for the animals is not the only chores we need to do to get the ranch ready for winter. There is equipment to winterize and put up. The combine with its header is already in the shed at the ranch. After we are through cutting wheat, Doug, our oldest son, often leaves a list in the combine of things that need to be fixed the next spring. However, Doug had already left for Antarctica to work by the time we cut the wheat this year, so I don’t know if anyone else recorded things to do. That always helps come summer when no one can remember what needs to be done to get the combine running good.

We had the swather and baler in the shed at the ranch also, but the guys brought them back to the valley so we could get another cutting of hay off one of our fields. Boyd said we may store them down here this year instead of moving them back up – guess it will depend on when we are through with them and the condition of the roads. Bad roads are hard on equipment as we move it from the ranch to the valley farm and then back.

The fields have been disked and ready to work for spring planting. The plow shears have been painted black to keep them from rusting through the winter.

The waterers are checked for any problems even though it seems that cold weather always brings problems with the waterers whether they are checked or not. The panels have been put into the empty canals to keep the cows from going into the neighbors fields via of the empty water ways. The fences and gates have been checked and fixed if they need it. It won’t matter to some of the cows if the fences are tight and seem to be secure. But for the majority of our bovine friends, the fences are fixed to hold them in.

We’ve moved the camp trailer down, parked it by the garden for the winter. All of the water has been drained out of it and it has been winterized.

There are also things around the house and yard that needs pre-winter care. The garden plot has been cleared, sprayed, and tilled ready for spring. The tillers and lawn mower have been stored in the bully barn and the snow blower has been moved out into the garage. The flower beds have been weeded, spring bulbs planted, and roses covered. The dogs dug down in a spot where my washing machine drains, and so that hole was filled to prevent the drain from freezing. I’ve got all of the hoses hanging up behind the bully barn, except those needed to fill one of the water troughs that isn’t automatic.  The heater has been moved to the porch ready to turn on as the nights get colder. That keeps boots and coveralls warm as the guys spend so much time out in the cold during the winter.

There's much to be done in preparation for Mother Nature's most challenging season, but we're pretty well ready to face it and deal with whatever she throws at us. Now maybe we can all relax and enjoy the long nights and short days.

           

             

TRICK OR TREAT

TRICK-OR-TREAT

Grandson, Chance Ellis, ready to go trick or treating

            “Trick or treat” is a familiar chant we hear on Halloween. Children in many countries do this as they travel from house to house asking for treats. The “trick” is usually an idle threat to perform mischief on the homeowners or their property if no treat is given them.

            According to the internet, almost all pre-1940 uses of the term “trick or treat” are from the western United States and Canada. Trick-or-treating spread from the western United States eastward and this has been a Halloween tradition since then, and maybe even earlier.

            When I was young we lived in Ammon, which was a small community at that time, and we knew nearly everyone who lived there. I don’t remember my parents voicing concern about us going out after dark on Halloween to trick-or-treat. I do remember the time a friend and I were going door to door and some teenage boys in a car stopped and scared us by pretending they were going to kidnap us. We screamed loud and ran hard as we heard them laughing at their joke. That didn’t stop us from our canvassing the neighborhood for candy.

            Also when Boyd and I were young, there was vandalism associated with trick-or-treating. One of the favorite was tipping over outhouses or moving them off the hole to another area. Most homes had an outhouse even if they had modern indoor plumbing. The “tricks” were innocent and didn’t harm anyone, just inconvenienced them. Often the guilty parties were apprehended and had to restore the outhouses to their original spot.

            Things have changed a lot from the time we were young. Back then any kind of candy or homemade sweet was accepted as the “treat.” But when my children were young, someone put razors in some Halloween treats, and the public became more concerned about the safety of what was being handed out. We used to nibble all evening as we were going door to door. Now, the children take their treats home and their parents check them, many times discarding homemade cookies and candy, and keeping only the wrapped candy purchased at a store. Even those purchased treats are checked to make sure the wrappings haven’t been tampered with.

            Halloween was a fun time then and still can be now. We worked hard to make our own costumes when I was young. Rarely did we buy a costume for our kids and I don’t think costumes were available to purchase during my childhood. With our children, as soon as they came home from school on Halloween, I tried to have their evening meal ready. I would fix an easy one, usually hot dogs with the trimmings, as they would be excited and I wanted to have supper dishes finished before our doorbell started to ring. But that goal was never accomplished. Invariably, small groups of ghosts and goblins would start ringing the bell at 4 in the afternoon. At that early time it would usually be smaller children with a mom or older sibling standing in the background, helping get them from door to door. Back then, trick-or-treating was limited to neighbors and we knew all of the spooks coming to our door. The idea of putting the kids in the car and going into an unknown housing area never crossed our minds. Years later people started driving their children into areas farther away from their homes, including nursing homes and even malls.

            Not everyone welcomes trick-or-treaters. When our children were young we were encouraged to turn on our porch lights if we accepted the costumed young ones at our door. Our children were taught not to approach a home with its lights out.  After we moved to our farm we had our grandchildren and a few neighborhood children come trick-or-treating, but not anymore. The neighbor children and the grandchildren have all grown up past that stage. Plus living out in the country with houses far apart really discourages trick-or-treaters, and especially their parents who have to drive them.

            Trick-or-treating has changed a lot and is not the safe, fun activity for children that it used to be. Thus the introduction of the “trunk-or-treat” by some churches and schools. With this, trick-or-treating is done with parked cars in a local parking lot, often at a school or church. The trunk of one’s car is opened, displaying candy, and sometimes games and decorations. The children then go from car to car with their bag to accumulate goodies. Parents see this as safer for their children and it is easier than walking the neighborhood with their kids. Some schools and churches are making this into more of a carnival type atmosphere by adding food, music and games, and even giving prizes for the car that is decorated the most like Halloween.

            Now Boyd and I go to the “trunk-or-treat” at the church parking lot, visit with other adults, admire the children’s costumes, and partake of hot cider and doughnuts.  That helps us feel the excitement of the season.