Wait Here I'll be back!

Contentment is natural wealth,

luxury is artificial poverty.

        Socrates

Oh my, what a difference a week has made here in Canada formerly known as “The Great White North” I know a lot of you are dealing with ice and snow in places like Texas and The Plains but my cows are munching on green grass and happy to be doing so.

As per usual I headed back to feed the cows, and as I drove down the lane the mud splashed up on the tires and then splashed on to the windshield. I know with these fancy newer tractors there is a windshield washer, oh yes that is the truth, but I have never took the time to figure out where the windshield wiper fluid goes so I just put on the wiper and smear the mud across my point of vision.

The girls were meandering about enjoying the shoots of green sprouting in the numerous puddles along the laneway and in the pasture fields, I could see Annie smiling. The temperatures are a little cool in the mornings lately but for the most part it has been very pleasant, damp but pleasant. I stopped hopped out of the tractor and walked through the mud to open up the gate, back in the tractor I picked up a couple of bales and drove back through the gate, popped back down shut the gate then climbed back in and drove over to see the girls. Most times they surround me and I patiently break the bale open using the prongs on the bale spear and let them pick through it and then I carefully back up making sure none of them are behind me. This is where the horn comes in. I held the button down and they moved, well sometimes they move, I am pretty sure they know they have all the power in this relationship, I wait for them.

I must have grabbed a second cut alfalfa bale because on breaking open that bale all the cows started running towards the bale and surrounded the tractor quickly grabbing from the bale and munching with their tales wagging just like little puppy dogs. I sat there smiling thinking it was like a bin of free chocolate bars or something. I have a sneaking suspicion the aroma was more than they could handle and once they had that first whiff they were under its spell, oh yes just like those chocolate bars. I sat there for a while and let them all take a big mouthful and then I backed up slowly honking the horn and let them be, smiling, munching and those tails contently wagging. Knowing they were indeed fine and happy I headed down the lane towards the bush to go for a little stroll before I had to start my busy day.

Once I made it to the opening to the great unknown (not really I know every inch of the place I was heading) on instinct I reached behind the tractor seat and pulled out my snowshoes, I hopped down into the mud (well that’s not right). I leaned the snowshoes on the front of the tractor and told them to wait there, there would be no need for them today. As I entered that forest of Pines and Maples I wondered if the creatures of the forest were out and about but knowing there was no chance of seeing tracks in the snow so I was pretty sure I would never really know. I headed through the gate; it was indeed a beautiful day.

 I could hear the mooing of happy cows drifting through the air, the smell of the Pines, the Cedars and those decomposing leaves filled my nostrils.  I pulled an apple out of my pocket and while munching and smiling I strolled slowly along thinking that if I had a tail it would be wagging too.

Later