Weather? What Weather?

Weather? What Weather?

Written July 3, 2012

We've been having a stretch of very hot weather too soon. This, and the fact that Daddy's birthday was July 9, have brought him to mind many times the past couple of weeks.

Except for the first two or three and the last one of his almost 96 years, Daddy had animals that depended on him for their daily food and water. And, he depended on them for his lively hood. That meant that he went out in the blizzard to feed them and sweltered in the hayfield to provide the winter feed. The weather was irrelevant to the task at hand. He went out in whatever weather EVERY day.

Daddy was very aware of the weather and he prepared for it. Hay was stacked as close as possible to where the cows would be. The haymow was filled to capacity so the horses could be fed quickly on winter mornings giving them the energy to pull the sled full of hay for the cattle. If it looked like there would be a big storm coming in, he might feed a double load. He built windbreaks in the winter pastures so the cattle could find shelter. And, he bought 100 lbs. of beans every fall so his family and hired men would be fed.

And, he dressed for the weather. Long underwear, levis, coveralls, cap with ear flaps, scarf. He didn't care what he looked like.

But it was the summer weather that really taxed him. The hot, dry, windy days of late July and early August when he worked from sun up to sun down in the heat took a toll. He would dress for the sun -- levis, long sleeved shirt, wide brimmed hat, gloves. But he would sweat profusely and his armpits would scald. He would eat extra salt and always carried a water jug. And, every evening he would all but collapse as soon as supper was over and necessary preparations made for the next day. And, his usual optimistic and fun loving spirit would drag.

After he retired and moved to town, he still had horses to feed and water every day. His winter habits didn't change that much. He made sure he had feed on hand and he dressed for the cold and didn't care what he looked like. But he let Mother buy the beans a pound at a time. And, he waited until the sun was up to begin the day.

In the summer, we would often find him sitting in the yard in his levis, long sleeved shirt and wide brimmed hat enjoying the SHADE!