It's nice to sit on the porch and hear the world wake up

I find myself sorta pacing around, waiting for the proper time to start cutting hay. I am the most hay season hating person that ever drew breath on a farm and here I am, anxious and anticipating the first cutting round in the field. Well, there is some tall clover that, due to a hard wind and beating rain one spring, we lost. It is once again just picture-perfect and I am about to have a hissy.

I sat down with the community leaders at the roundtable this morning and absorbed the world news. The best and most promising item was that the pecan pie would be out of the oven and cool to cut by noon. I already knew about the Korean deal and the scandals that the news media loves to report. The fellers did have some interesting things to tell about the buzzards that are so plentiful around our area.

The black buzzards are causing some problems for the livestock producers. It seems the things will start eating on living animals and maim or kill them. I have not had the problem that I am aware of, and am glad when the buzzards clean up the carrion on the highways and in pastures. Of course, it is illegal to kill the varmints, gotta have a special permit that costs plenty, is not so easy and fast to obtain, but it can be done. Seems like it is illegal to kill most things, but some are needing a good dose of lead poisoning.

I am proud to report the yard work for my close relative is at a slowdown. She has planted the flowers and the garden, excused me to my own business and, believe me, we are eating lettuce by the bushel! I love garden lettuce if it is wilted in bacon grease and served with biscuits for sopping. No such business in my home, not heart healthy. My thought is why have a healthy heart when your spirit is smothered with vegetables?

All the calves have run the course of scours and seem to be doing well. Now we are inundated with millions of flies. We spray and have sprayed, but they are still here. We got the steers up and did them again, the heifers are gonna be this week. I suspect the animals lose more pounds than we realize by fighting the nasty things. The fly population is a bane to humanity. I have tried ear tags, feeding special ingredients to kill the larva in the fecal droppings and not one thing works better than an old fashion rub filled with fly dust. That also kills ticks.

It is my opinion, and everyone has one, one of the best things about this time of the year is getting out of the house early, drinking your coffee on the porch and listening to the world wake up. I am so much easier to get along with when I am drenched in the chirps and songs of birds and the low calling of the cows as they get their calves up for breakfast. The horses make special sounds in the early part of the day, stretching out kinks and grunting to each other.

So, be thankful to our kind Lord for what He allows us to enjoy and keep 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 05/23/2018