Oct. 06, 2001 ~ Dakotah's eyes
Living in the country as we do, I may see things a bit differently than most. In the days following September 11th, I felt the same fears, thought the same thoughts as most everyone else. How could this happen? Will it happen again? And what form will it take? Biological or chemical would be my guess, but, hey... I don't know much. I thought of my children, my family, my friends and loved ones, and was particularly afraid for my soldier boy. And then I looked around at all the animals and thought of them. If something happened, whatever form "something" might take, what would happen to the animals? Are there chemical or biological agents which kill people but not animals, or would the animals fall victim, too? If something DID happen to the people but the animals remained, how long could they last without us taking care of them?
Sad thoughts, I know. Morbid thoughts, yes. Some folks are sick of hearing these kinds of things, but I can't help what I think or feel. Yesterday I was cleaning out Sugar's stall, and Dakotah stuck his head through the window to visit with me. He is SUCH a baby. He has incredibly beautiful brown eyes, or maybe I just think he's a beautiful boy because he's my sweet little horse. I was struck by his innocence, his trust, and by the thought that every one of our animals depends on us to take care of them. They know nothing of religion or politics or unholy holy wars. They only care about grass, hay, fresh water and sunshine. Pastures to play in, woods to roam. I thought about what I would do, if there was some sort of warning that the end was truly approaching. An odd thing to think, just a month ago, but now I suppose it's not so odd. I would want to be with my family, of course, would want them and my friends to know how much I love them, how much they mean to me. And the plan... for the animals... well, it's not much of a plan. But living on a farm and being the animals' caretaker, I can't help but worry about them. I'll bet lots of cattle people have thought about this, too. If I truly knew that there might not be much time left, I couldn't do much for the cows or horses, but I COULD do a couple of things. Open all the gates between the pastures, so they could have the run of the whole place. Normally we move them from pasture to pasture... after they graze the grass short in one place, we move them to another, and so on, until they wind up back where they started. But I'd open all the gates, so they'd have access to as much grass as possible. I'd open the hay barns' doors as well as the gate to the hay storage pens, so they could have access to the hay. I'd put out food for the cats, and that, I guess, would be that. Not much. But something. And it probably wouldn't do any good. But I love these animals, every last one of them, even the raccoons and possums who steal the cats' food from the back porch. Raccoons have to eat, too.
Anyway, there was Dakotah, looking at me with those trusting eyes, and there I was, hoping to be able to take care of him, just like always, for a long, long time to come. We do not sell our horses. They will live out their lives here; they're a part of our family. When kittens are born here, we don't give them away. Same deal. We have the mamas and daddies (all strays) spayed or neutered, have the kittens fixed, too, and we keep them all. This is how we wound up with (at one point) 27 barn cats. Coyotes, bobcats and dogs have killed some of them. The only thing we DO sell is cattle, and I'm not too crazy about that idea. Larry tells me that, being as we are supposedly in the cattle business, it's pretty much a rule that we have to sell them. Sounds like a dumb rule. But while those calves are here, they're our babies, too, and we take good care of them. The cows all have names, and most of them were born here.
Yes, I worry about the state of the world... for our children and for generations of children to come. What must it be like for the parents of small children, and for grandparents with grandbabies? Terrifying, I'm sure. Of course I am most concerned about people, particularly about the people I know and love. But there's also a part of me that sees the innocence in a sweet horse's eyes... and hopes that we can be good caretakers, that Dakotah's world will always be a safe one.
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