One of a series of cartoons from the 'What I Saw at the Calgary Stampede' collection By Calgary Herald cartoonist, Stewart Cameron |
Cows.
I know you’ve seen them.
Quietly standing in the ranchers’ fields, peacefully grazing
or happily chewing their cud.
Gentle. Calm. Maternal.
Okay, here is where I debunk the myth.
Because – and I know this will be shock to some – All Cows
Are Not Created Equal.
Oh, there are many who are exactly as they appear. Tranquil.
Easily managed.
But then there are some . . .
Maybe a story will illustrate.
My grandfather, George Stringam, and a group of men had
gathered together a herd of cattle for shipping. These animals were from
several different herds. None knew each other. (Yes, cows can tell.) And all
were ‘feeling their oats’.
So to speak.
They had chased each other around the pens and corrals of
the train terminal and finally managed to break down one of the fences.
Oops. I think Bossy did it!
Moving on . . .
One of the critters managed to escape through the
newly-created exit.
And she was headed for the nearest far-away place and didn’t
care who knew.
By this time, it was growing dark and all of the men were
using lanterns to help them see to sort out the mess.
One of the ranchers, intent on stopping this determined
animal stepped in front of her.
Yes, you heard that correctly.
His thinking was that if he swung the lantern in front of
her, the cow would just naturally turn and head back to the corral.
Seems like a sound theory to me.
Of course it didn’t work.
The cow skimmed past him.
Closely.
In fact, so closely that one of her horns snagged said
lantern.
The last they saw of her was a light going over a distant
hill.
Do the words, “Follow me! I’ll light the way!” come to mind?
Don’t do it.
I have a visual of that. How I wish I could paint that picture of the lone cow headed off into the distance with her lantern.
ReplyDeleteHeading for the nearest 'far- away' place!
DeleteNow that's funny! Great word picture as well as the cartoon
ReplyDeleteThank you, Carol! :)
DeleteThe cartoon is funny, and your story more so! Did they ever get the cow back? Had she started a prairie fire with the lantern? So many questions!!
ReplyDeleteNo prairie fire, thank goodness. This could have been a disaster in so many ways. I can picture coal oil on the animal with disastrous results. Fortunately none of that happened. She managed, somehow, to lose the lantern. When they rounded her up days later, she was fat and healthy. But just as wild . . .
DeleteI can see the glow through the night! I wonder ifthey caught her before she ran out of gas! Sorry had to say that one haha!
ReplyDeleteBwahahaha! Perfect!
DeleteIf I see her I'll let you know, okay?
ReplyDeleteI expect she's still running! Thank you! :)
DeleteI can just picture it all. The light disappearing over the horizon. Another one that brought me some great smiles...........
ReplyDeleteBlessings for this one!.
Heehee! Thank you, LeAnn!
DeleteThat light at the end of the tunnel - not necessarily a train! Great story, Diane. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteYeah. But still a light you don't want to get in front of . . . :)
Delete