The ranch is 500 acres, and we maintain 250 head of cattle. It is very fulfilling, as regular work involves moving fences and cattle back and forth across our land.
The small ranch house that we have moved into is quaint, with just enough room for Betty and me. We have a small kitchen, so we often visit Kaitlyn’s home for meals. It is nice being so close to family.
Kaitlyn’s husband, James, is a nice fellow. He helps out around the ranch, though he sometimes gets in the way. He always wears this ridiculous-looking hat and bright-colored flannels. I have repeatedly reminded him that they are not appropriate workwear for a ranch hand. Yet, he laughs and says he can wear whatever he wants.
Betty tells me I need to stop harassing him about what he wears, but I just don't think it is right that he doesn't wear a proper cowboy hat and clothes that he can get dirty in.
Every morning, I get up before the sun and start my rounds. I make sure to say hello to each of our cows and assess whether they need to be rotated in the fields to keep them well-fed. I am usually able to get them herded to the gate before James is awake and ready to help. However, he usually just gets in the way, and as the sun rises, he asks me to help Kaitlyn get the kiddos ready for school.
Jeremy is the oldest, and at thirteen, he has decided that he doesn't need or want any help. However, I still sometimes pack his lunch for him before he can complain, and when I do, I add an extra candy bar for him because I think he needs a little pick-me-up.
Wendy, the middle child, is ten. She lets me pack her lunch and allows me to tie her shoes when she isn't running late because, according to her, I am the best shoe-tie-er in the world. She is a smart cookie and often tells me a fun fact while I help her.
Ricky is the youngest at eight. We share the same name and birthday, October 17th. He is having a rough time at school and often drags his feet, getting out of bed, getting ready, and gathering his homework. He reminds me of me when I was younger, though I always enjoyed attending school when I was his age. There was always something fun to do.
After the bus leaves with the kids, Betty has already begun preparing breakfast so the adults can eat when James returns from the fields. Then, he and I start our daily chores of repairing and maintaining the ranch's machines and fences.
By lunchtime, I am usually tuckered out, and James tells me that I can return home and he will continue working. He really is a good fellow. He knows how to respect his father-in-law and lets me rest when I please.
By the time I return from the field for lunch, Betty has my favorite prepared egg salad sandwiches, she knows me so well. However, I am concerned for her health. Every so often, as I enter the house, I hear her complaining to Kaitlyn about what the doctors have said. I have always accompanied her to the doctor's office within the last year, so I am not surprised. The doctors always seem so solemn; they ask me plenty of questions. It makes me think that if I didn't know any better, the appointments were for me.
The doctors say they don't know what is wrong with Betty but always schedule follow-up appointments so that they can keep an eye on her. She seems healthy enough, so I have started asking if the doctors really are any help at all. Betty shushes me and says they are helping, and asks that I keep coming with her to the appointments.
After lunch, I am still worn out, so I ask Kaitlyn to call James and let him know I won't be back out, but if he really needs me, he can call, and I'll help as much as I can. He has yet to call back once since I bought the ranch and hired him, which I'm not complaining about, but it sure would be nice to be needed every once in a while.
However, I have grown to enjoy my afternoon naps. When I wake up, I like to work on the crossword puzzle in the daily newspaper, which has been getting more challenging lately. Betty says it must be because of all the newfangled words that the kids are inventing nowadays, and the newspapers are trying to get them interested in the game so that they sell more copies. I have asked Jeremy if he can help me, but he just looks at my guesses, shrugs and walks away. Thanksgiving has ended. We had a wonderful time; my other two children and their kiddos came to visit. We had all the traditional fixin’s, and I was able to share plenty of stories that kept the grandkids captivated. Betty is doing better as well and was able to stay on her feet the entire time as she helped prepare the meal and helped to clean up. Oh, how grateful I am for her.
Now that winter is starting, James and I have to ensure the cattle get the food they need by hauling the hay we gathered in the fall. I am not as strong as I used to be, so it is good that James bought me a new tractor to move the bales around. He hasn’t let me drive it yet, but I sure would like to. Betty tells me he just wants to ensure it is safe before letting me operate such a big machine. Still, I think it shouldn’t be that much different than driving a car, though, to be honest, it has been quite a while since I have needed to drive since Kaitlyn does such a good job driving Betty and me into town. Today is the day.
I have decided to drive that tractor this morning. I woke up early and couldn't get the thought out of my mind. I want to surprise James with my ability to operate such a beautiful machine, and I think he will be impressed that I have learned so much just by watching him. I have decided I will skip my morning routine of saying hello to the cows so I can be on the tractor before James arrives.
I did it; I drove the tractor. It wasn't hard at all, at least not at first. I was able to find the keys, which James said he had hidden in the barn. Then I started it up. Oh, the rumble of the engine made me laugh out loud; I couldn't believe James had been keeping this experience from me. I began backing it out of the barn and was doing well. However, I saw James running out of his house in the rearview mirror. His ridiculous hat nearly flew off his head, and his bright flannel was halfway buttoned. I couldn't let him stop me. I continued backing up, but then I heard a crunch. I stopped, pulled the parking brake, and got out. And deary me, I had crushed a row of fence posts. They were all in splinters and the wire was a tangled mess. James caught up to me and started shouting at me to turn the tractor off. By this time, I could see Betty and Kaitlyn in the backyards, yelling to James making sure I was alright.
I wasn't fast enough to turn the tractor off, so James did that for me.
Then, he grabbed me by the elbow and calmly said, “Richard, I need you to stop pretending that you are the rancher here. Luckily, you just smashed a fence this time, but I don't want you getting hurt or hurting others.”
I was defiant. I said, “I am the rancher here, and you are the ranch hand. Certainly, you can tell that by the way we dress differently.” I gestured to his funny hat and his ridiculous flannels.
“Richard, you are wearing slippers, a cowboy hat, and plaid pajamas, which is what you wear every morning when you think you are helping by moving the cows. I was ok with you doing that because you never got them past the fences. And you didn't ever get hurt. But I am putting my foot down after this tractor-driving incident.” James was again shouting as his emotions got the better of him.
Betty had made her way to us now, and as she wrapped her arms around me, I could feel she was worried.
I didn't know what else to do, so I sobbed like a little child lost in a department store. I was, in fact, wearing slippers and plaid pajamas. I reached up and felt my cowboy hat; it was still stiff and felt brand new. I continued to sob as Betty led me back to our small home right next to our daughter's home. Things clearly were not what I thought they were, but I couldn't figure out what I was missing.
I wasn't fast enough to turn the tractor off, so James did that for me.
Then, he grabbed me by the elbow and calmly said, “Richard, I need you to stop pretending that you are the rancher here. Luckily, you just smashed a fence this time, but I don't want you getting hurt or hurting others.”
I was defiant. I said, “I am the rancher here, and you are the ranch hand. Certainly, you can tell that by the way we dress differently.” I gestured to his funny hat and his ridiculous flannels.
“Richard, you are wearing slippers, a cowboy hat, and plaid pajamas, which is what you wear every morning when you think you are helping by moving the cows. I was ok with you doing that because you never got them past the fences. And you didn't ever get hurt. But I am putting my foot down after this tractor-driving incident.” James was again shouting as his emotions got the better of him.
Betty had made her way to us now, and as she wrapped her arms around me, I could feel she was worried.
I didn't know what else to do, so I sobbed like a little child lost in a department store. I was, in fact, wearing slippers and plaid pajamas. I reached up and felt my cowboy hat; it was still stiff and felt brand new. I continued to sob as Betty led me back to our small home right next to our daughter's home. Things clearly were not what I thought they were, but I couldn't figure out what I was missing.
-- Grey Paladin
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