March was that fickle and surly thing again this spring. She was warm, then cold and laughed with glee when she frosted on the peach blooms. We had a good frost yesterday morning. I had to scrape the windshield on my pickup. Now April is looking us in the eye, so here's to a glorious month of green and warm breezes! No, I don't mean on some tropical island either!
The calves are growing so fast and I am once again proud to be a producer of beef. Not much change in my pocket but plenty of pride. I can't think of anything much prettier than a green pasture with black cows and calves. It does an old producer's heart good to look at things like that. I must remind you, not all of us want the same breed of cattle and that is fine. Makes us what we are, independent and free.
I tried to buy another tract of land last month, thought I had the deal made and it sifted out at the last minute. I am sorta glad because you know how pestering land payments are to a working man. I thought we needed another eighty acres, but the feller didn't know it was tied up in a trust. He was sure disappointed since he was already counting the money in his pocket. He was married to the third removed grandchild of the trustee, and that land is tied up for several more years.
Not much going on at headquarters since all the Easter eggs and baskets have been done in for another year. We didn't count the youth in our yard, but we realized they were not all of our offspring. We laughed and enjoyed the silly stunts as they hunted, and the older grands would re-hide the ones found as the hunt continued. We had a moist day, but it didn't seem to quench the fun. The best part of the Easter morning was filling a couple of pews with family in our church, then hearing the resurrection sermon again!
I didn't get the kind of stand I hoped for when I seeded some of the pastures last year. I want to start that again as soon as possible. We have been putting out tons of commercial fertilizer, and it is so costly that I am about ready to call a halt to that. Lime is ground up rock and, since this is a rock pile, it sure hurts my feelings to have to spread lime, aka ground up rocks! The soil tests said it was gonna be necessary, and we know we can't continue to deplete the ground and not take care of it.
It is my opinion, and everyone has one, season after season we see hope offered to all of us. This is the season we are relieved to get warm weather, so we hope for pretty days and grass. Then summer comes along and we hope for rain. Autumn brings hope for cooler days, and the winter causes us to hope for spring! Are we ever satisfied? it is my opinion, no, we never are!
Keep on grinning!
Bill is the pen name used by the Gravette-area author of this weekly column. Opinions expressed are those of the author.
Editorial on 04/06/2016