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Chapter 6 Not Giving Up

The benches were full of cattle buyers. Some set straight up in their chairs, knees slightly apart, arms resting in their laps and in their hands they play with their pen. Some lean lazily back, their legs crossed at the ankles, and a toothpick hanging loosely from their lips.

Down in front, the auctioneer was taking his place on the high stool, a black felt cowboy hat on his head. To his right sets a blond haired middle aged woman. She was busy zeroing out the scale. To the left stands the owner of the barn, one hand resting on a large gate, a toothpick hanging loose in his mouth. He wears a black hat as he looks out into the crowd.

All of a sudden, he opens the gate and in runs two old black cows. The sale has began. "Who will give me 50? Yep! Now 51? Yep!" On and on the auctioneer hollers as the cows run around the ring and out the other end.

Mark sits there two rows up. He appears as calm as a kitten, a small calculator in his pocket and a paper and pen held in his hand. I sit beside him, my legs crossed, a crossword puzzle laying on my lap. I'm trying hard to relax.

We were at the other end of the stick this time. Do you remember those steers we bought a year ago? Today they were standing outside in one of those pens, waiting to go through the ring. Would we get enough to pay off the debt? The prices were a little lower than last year for sure. Mark was a little concerned. The winter had been hard and the feed sparse but we tried to give them extra protein. Mark decided to pasture them for another summer to see if they would slick up a bit and put on a little more fat.

Around 2:45, the owner swings open the big gate and in runs nine of our Angus steers. They were the heaviest ones out of the 20. The owner picks up the mic and clears his throat. "These next 20 steers belong to Mark and Carrie. They came in early this morning on their little straight truck. They've had all their shots. Good looking steers. right off the grass. Start them at 50."

"Who will give me 50? Yep! Now 51?" They looked so pretty, there in the ring. My heart wanted to cry because they were leaving us for always. On and on the buyers went until "sold to number 35!"

In they came one bunch following another until all twenty had left the ring and left us. It only took about 5 minutes. The owner raised his hand and looked at Mark and said "Thanks, Mark."

Mark slowly took his calculator from his pocket and started to punch in this figure and that one.

"How'd we do?" I asked. "Boy that sure didn't take long did it?" I could tell he wasn't listening, so I just sat there working my crossword, looking up once in a while to see what was in the ring.

After a bit he put his calculator and pen in his pocket, still studying the piece of paper. "Well, shall we go?"

"How did we do?" I asked once again.

"We'll talk about it in the car, okay. Lets go get the check."

Our first check. Wow you know there is something special to actually hold a check in in your hands and know you worked for that money. Even if it was short $2,000. Yes Mark told me his fear came true...we had bought our first calves and...lost!

You know what? I loved him more at that moment than ever before. I saw in him a young farmer who tried but missed the mark. I saw a young farmer that was determined to try again and again and again, until someday he would accomplish what he set out to do. His attitude and determination gave me a true feeling of admiration!

"Well, we are about $2,000 short Pete, but I have a little wheat I can sell to make it even I'm sure. I was a little scared this would happen. We just didn't have the feed like we needed," Mark said as we sat there in those black chairs at the bank.

"Well, I understand. But, like I said, a fellow needs to start somewhere. I must say that I hope you both decide to stay in the area. I enjoy working with you."

Mark gives a little chuckle as he signs his name to the check. "Thanks, we do like it here although I have to admit the summers about kill me. I'm not used to all this humidity!"

Taking the check, Pete walks us to the door. "Hope to see you again. Don't hesitate to come see me if you need help."

"Well, that money sure didn't stay in our hands long." I said as we got into the car.

"Nope it didn't, and what's more, it never was ours. I promise that some day we will have a little to call our own," Mark told me reaching over for my hand.

There were wheat fields to disc and get ready for planting. A little silage to round off the neighbors silo. This winter our cows would have plenty to eat. We had all three of Grandpa's silos full and had to borrow one of the neighbors.

I loved this time of year. Mark worked all day planting the new crop of wheat. Hope filled our hearts. Then in October, we brought in the cows for the winter. This was my happiest time! All those mommas in the corral in front of the old barn. A couple of bale feeders here and there. A row of feed bunks lined up down the middle. Morning and night we would load up some silage and I would drive while Mark pitched it into the bunks. When it got wet we would borrow a wagon from Roy and pull it behind the tractor.

Finally the day came! Mark came in and asked me to come with him. He took my hand and led me to the corral. "Look over there." I looked over by an old ceder tree and there on the ground, all wet and wobbly was our first baby calf!

"Oh Mark, it's precious. It's a miracle! A new little life!" Right there I fell in love all over again.

By May there were 20 of those little miracles running all over that old corral, their little tails flying in the breeze. Gary, from down the road came over one morning and helped Mark and I give shots, and put in ear tags, getting them all ready for the pasture. We were always happy to see them hurry down the chute and out to green grass. They didn't get very far before the mommas would munch on that lush green grass.

Later that summer:

I was so excited!  After we lost on the cattle, Mark and I decided to get into the pig business! Mark's family were cattle ranchers, so pigs would be a new adventure for him! We had bought two bred sows from a neighbor and now we had to fix up a place to keep them. We chose that old shed between the two east silo's.

We had another secret, Mark and me, that we chose to keep to ourselves for a bit longer. We were going to have our first baby! Can you believe it? A real true to life baby and OURS! No wonder I was walking around on cloud nine!

Mark borrowed two farrowing crates from Uncle Ron, and he found some old house doors up in the hay loft of the barn, that were out of grandpa's old house. We took all those priceless treasurers down to that old shed. We set the two crates about 4 foot apart. Then we lined up those old doors long ways, making a pen around each crate and down the middle. We put some shiny yellow straw all around the crates to make it all cozy. In the corner of each pen we hung a heat lamp in case we needed it at night. Now that was our new "farrowing shed" and we were so excited. Pigs! Wow! And a new baby of our very own!

The next day we put the stock racks on our pickup and drove about 20 miles to get our mommas. They looked huge and about ready to pop! "Hey mommas," I said to them "you and me have something in common, do you know that?"

We got them home and unloaded behind the barn at the loading chute. Then Mark got a piece of plywood and I got mine. We let them out one at a time and holding our plywood we guided them to their crate between the old silo's. Sometimes pigs have their head on backwards, but we did get them both in the crates eventually. The south one was Mark's and the north one mine.

About a week later, Mark came into the trailer and said, "Honey I have something to show you!" He took my hand and lead me out the door, past the barn and to the little "farrowing shed" between those silo's.

"Shhhh," he told me and we tiptoed up to the south crate. There close to momma were five little wet babies trying to find something to eat. I just stood there. Our very own baby pigs!

"Oh honey they are so cute! Oh look there's another one just born!" I whispered to him. "They are so tiny!"

"We better leave them alone for a while" Mark said. "I'll check on them later." It ended up that Mark's sow had 15 babies and a few days later mine had 13! Pigs, pigs and more pigs! The problem was mommy could only feed 12. That left four without a dinner plate!

We decided to adopt those four little ones and become their "mommy." We made a nice place in the barn. We piled lots of straw in the pen because we really didn't want a heat lamp in case it would start a fire and burn the whole barn!

We went to the Co-op and got a sack of milk replacer and we were in business. We would mix up the milk about three times a day and those little pigs would come running over to us, their little heads up in the air, because they knew what we had. It was kind of hard to get it poured in the old hub cap we used for a plate. They would get in that milk with all fours, and it would be gone in no time.

They were growing some, but their brothers and sisters who were with mommy were doing a lot better. They always do really. We had so much fun feeding them and sometimes I would see Grandma walk in the barn door. She loved those little orphaned pigs.

One morning in early September our world came tumbling down on us! Mark came to the trailer after doing chores, carrying a little box. Inside the box lay our four little orphan pigs. They lay there so still. Their little bodies were shaking. Their eyes shut.

"Oh no honey what happened? The poor little things." I asked reaching down to touch them.

"I really don't know. It appears they got too cold, so we better get them warmed up. Turn on the oven and we'll hold them in front" Mark said scooting two chairs up close to the cook stove.

We each sat there, holding two little pigs each. We would rub and rub them while talking to them. "Why are they shaking so Mark?"

"I don't really know but I wonder if they are warming up or something."

We sat there in silence rubbing the little fellows, keeping them close to the stove. We rubbed and rubbed, then all of a sudden I couldn't breath! One of my little fellows had kicked a couple times then lay still!

"Oh honey...what did I do...I think he died!" I said pulling my hand away.

Mark grabbed it up and started to shake it but no response. All four of those little fellows kicked a few times than lay still there in our laps!

"Oh no...what did we do!" I sobbed

"I don't understand it. Could they have got gassed? I don't smell anything do you? Maybe we warmed them too fast? I just don't know but they are gone"

"I feel so terrible! Will I make a good mother? Look what I did." I cried and cried.

"Just take a breath and calm down. We did all we could. I'm sure we will have this happen more times than this if we raise pigs," Mark tried to assure me.

Those were the first little graves out in the hedge row under the old hedge tree. We stuck a tree branch at the head of each little mound of dirt. Then we walked hand in hand back to our little trailer. Our hearts were heavy. But we did what every good farmer does. We went back out to care for the rest of our sweet little babies. 

Comments

  1. I enjoy each chapter and look forward to the next one! I love knowing that this isn't fiction but is so "true to life"!

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