All of this Will End -- Will you have what He gave you on the last day?

Don Lotspieche has a heart of gold and a personality that you can only shake your head and wonder about. He also has two boys. He's good to them and treats their friends like they're his as well.

One of those boys is one hell of an athlete. He's a football player. Football is huge in South Texas. And it's even bigger in Refugio. Well, there are other sports to play and Don was trying to convince one of his boys' friends to play baseball. The team needed another player, and this kid's dedication and athletic ability made him a pretty big target for everybody's recruiting efforts. ;)

Just to let you know what kind of boy this is, know this. He read about two-a-days in the local newspaper and so when the day rolled around, he went to practice. He started in with all of the other kids until one of the coaches had to pull him aside.

"Two-a-days are for highschool only, " coach informed him.

He's in the seventh grade. He wakes up at night to lift weights. He goes to two-a-days anyway and works out while the older boys practice. Then, when the first session is over and they run wind sprints, he gets in line and runs too. After that he goes back to lifting and waits for the second session to end so he can run again with "the big boys".

Well Don, in wisdom like only Don has, laid one on him right before little league started. Don's not the most wealthy man in the world, and the boy is not very well off either.

"You need to play ball, " he said.

"Nope. I don't like baseball. I'm a football player, " came the reply.

"You see this fifty dollar bill? This fifty says you're gonna play baseball, " Don told him, "And if you keep it until the end of the year, I'll give you another one."

The deal was on. He played ball and Don payed up. The end of the year rolled around and when Don asked about that fifty the kid reached into his pocket on the spot and, along with his toothy grin, showed it to Don.

Then he told Don not to pay him the other fifty. He only needed one I guess.

In today's readings John quotes Christ as saying, "And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything of what he gave me, but that I should raise it on the last day."

Too many times I find that people, including myself, let things they are passionate about or very talented at fall into the hazy oblivion that is 'real life'. And it's so true that if you don't use it, you lose it. Our Lord grants us passion and desire for things for a reason. On the last day, when you get put on the spot, will you raise up those things He gave to you?

Related Reading
- Thursday story that sheds some more light on Don, in case you don't know him.
- It's Ringing . . . Answer Him: A post encouraging action and passion

Colt Killin'

Russ was young. High school aged anyway. But for Russ, that's old. Hell he'd been riding horses all of his life. And he thought it was a pretty tough one, too. He was born into Rusty Carroll's training operation and those of you who know Rusty know that Russ may have been on to something. If there was one thing Mr. Carroll had, it was a work ethic. And if there was one thing Mr. Carroll wouldn't tolerate, it was someone without one.

"You tired of riding that colt son?" Rusty half asked and half jabbed.

"Yes, " came Russ's Napoleon Dynomite-like reply. Half mad, half bewildered with total frustration mixed in.

"Then make a horse out of him then, " came Rusty's reply.

And so it is in life. To have a nice riding green horse, you have to get rid of the colt that's within. Then, to have a finished horse, you have to "kill" that green horse as well. Only then can that trained horse's new life begin. By the way, if you know me, you know how I train horses and you know that this is strictly metaphorically speaking. I can't stand trainers who spend every day beating on the animals entrusted to them. It seems, the less you know, the more brutal you are.

Anyway, there has been much reflection on death and rising lately. It's that time of year. Easter. The season of the Resurrection. My wife and I attend Faith Formation every other Monday and last night covered these same topics. It reminded me of the story that was shared above.

Basically, we have to let Our Lord shape us. And it's not always warm fuzzies. In fact, it's rarely warm fuzzies. You have to pay attention throughout the mess that is life; you never know what He is preparing you for. You have to keep what you learned and leave the actual experience behind; you can't exist in the past, but you must learn from it.

And you have to die; new life with all of it's experiences and mysteries will never come unless you let go of what should be dead.

Remember, bad things will happen.

And you will have no choice in the matter.

The only choice you have is to accept them, or stay hung up on it. Rebirth or squalor.

You don't have to be Stephen, but be somebody.

Today's Readings lead us down the road of reflection. Do we believe? Do we truly believe? And is believing alone enough?

If one truly does believe, they won't stop there. The desire for action burns in the heart of believers. And so those seeking God's ways can never stop at simply believing. Stephen understood this, spoke of this, lived this and died by it as well. He was the first to die for Christ. The first martyr.

The gospel reading from today also deals with belief. Are we seeking bread just to satisfy our growling bellies? Or do we yearn for more than that, something larger than ourselves? Only you can answer that question for you. And only me for me.

Build faith by building character. Build character by resisting the small injustices in life. Just pick one today, like gossip. And serve. Serve Him by backing Him up in your daily life. Be Somebody. Be the person He made you to be.

Related Reading:
- Building Faith with Consistancy

Kentucky-Like Equine Incentive Program In Texas?

House Bill 1881 has passed the Texas House of Representatives and is headed to the Senate.

Kentucky successfully instituted an incentive program for quarter horse breeders in 2007. You can read all about it here.

Almost certainly inspired by the success in Kentucky, Texas State Representative Sid Miller authored HB 1881.

- Here is the history of the bill.
- House Bill 1881 as it was when it passed the House April 23, 2009
- The vote was 144:Y - 1:N and 1 present and not voting

Basically, this bill requires horse breeders to pay "not more than $30" into the program which will then "grant incentive awards" to owners of eligible foals. This could be great for AQHA horse shows since there is currently no compelling monetary reason to show other than improving the desirability of the genetics of winning horses.

But, here are a couple of questions I have for our law makers:

• What happens if breeders do not submit there intention to not participate in the program?

- The bill states that in order to not participate, horse breeders would have to submit a letter to "the department not later than the 30th day before the owner's annual breeding report is due to the applicable breeders' association". This just sounds like a huge headache for many Texas horse breeders.

• Who is the regulating body behind this?

- The Kentucky Quarter Horse Assoc. regulates their incentive program. They have one main prupose - to improve quarter horse activity in KY. What other motivations could Texas government have. I posit that they are probably more concerned with collecting fees than they are the preservation of the horse industry in TX.

See the miraculous in the common

"The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miraculous in the common." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Today is just another day. Surely you've all been there. . . You take a trip, celebrate an accomplishment, experience a loss, form a new relationship and guess what, life goes on. Be mindful of those days when nothing is happening. Those are the days when all your exciting days are being planned. Those are the days when you have to rejoice in the grind.


Luke is a three-year old that is in that inbetween stage. He is really riding around great. He has a smooth crossing over turn-around and a great stop.

But now it's time to move on. He's learning to be a calf roping horse. He has plenty of gas, and lots of cow. But right now, we're in the grind. He gets lost every now and then, sometimes he's a little late finding his stop, etc. These are all normal things with young horses, but that doesn't make it any easier to stomach. I'd rather be showing him at a horse show or entered in a rodeo. This is the hard part.

These are the days that lead up to the "big day". These are the days that nobody sees. This is the grind. But in the grind, there is greatness.

In Today's Readings, there are two instances of being aware of the spectacular that lies within normal everyday things.

First the apostles rejoice in being punished for the sake of the name of Jesus Christ. They are simply doing the things that Jesus told them to do. They are called before the Sanhedrin and flogged for it.

There are two things to pull from this. First, punishment isn't always punishment. And second, they would never have had the chance to suffer for Christ's sake had they not diligently worked on his behalf in the temples and in their homes during the days leading up to their "punishment".

In the Gospel Reading today Jesus shares the five loaves and two fish with the crowd. What amazes me with this story really isn't part of the story. It's something that Fr. Ed shared with us. Here is Jesus, the Son of God. He could divine a steak dinner for every man and child present if he wanted to. But the scholars teach a different kind of miracle. In those days everyone traveled with a little bit of food. An emergency ration. The miracle that occurs here is that Our Lord was able to convince everyone there to share their rations with other people. Think about this. Can you imagine getting 5,000 people together and convincing them all to help feed one another. Truly that would be more difficult than divining a loaf of bread for everyone. To convince, on a normal day, normal folks to love and care for one another. Truly that was the miracle.

Solemn Thursday

Two eighteen wheelers are neck and neck, an oversized load dragging the blades to one of T. Boone Pickens wind energy mills, mobile home after mobile home, even a honda civic with a brush guard . . . all going at least 85 mph. West Texas traffic is a little different than any where else in the state. It's incessant.

But, just north east of exit 400 time stood still for a generous gathering of quiet country folk dressed in black. Some were overwhelmed by their loss, some just reminded of what's in store for them, but all of them struck by the hope they have in Christ. After all, it's only a matter of time.

It was a day to remember Marvin F. Shurley. Pastor Lewis Allen, of Sonora, delivered a short graveside remembrance since we had all just come from the service in town. It was difficult to hear as car, truck and motorcycle after car, truck and motorcycle kept barreling down I-10 topping 90 mph. But then we bowed our heads for the final prayer.

Traffic stopped. It was awe inspiring to say the least. As Pastor Lewis spoke for all of us as we lifted our friend to Our Lord, there wasn't a car in sight. Silence. Then a breeze drifted through the gravestones and cowboy hats to rattle the leaves as Lewis got things wrapped up for ol' Marvin. And just as he did wrap it up in Our Lord's precious name, so did the silence wrap up and roaring highway traffic commence.

No one else spoke of it, but surely there were more who noticed. It was God's moment of silence. And rightly so. Mr. Shurley was a unique man. Good. Diligent. Determined. Entrepreneurial and Kind. Read the obituary if you'd like to know more about Marvin.

Unfortunately, you won't get the whole story. I'm not sure it could be told. As I stood and listened to Louis Balas tell Pastor Allen how well he did the service and that Marvin would have appreciated it, I think Pastor Allen said it best.

"Well, I am certainly honored to have the respect of someone like Marvin, " he said.

I wish I had the benefit of knowing him better, but there are two things I'll never forget. His two-door Cadillac and an evening I spent with him on a back porch in Fredericksburg, Texas. I had known him as a rancher and pioneer in the meat goat industry until that night. After that I thought, hell he's a philosopher and politician wrangler. We discussed everything from the types of people it takes to stick with ranching horses, cattle, goats, sheep or whatever all the way to motivating politicians in Washington, D.C. to take actions that benefit the agricultural industry here in Texas that Marvin evidently felt responsible for.

Many of us that are involved in ag owe Mr. Shurley a thank you and don't even know it. But don't worry, he wouldn't hold it against you. He lead a rough life. Very rough. Right until its end. And you'd be hard pressed to catch him without a smile on his face and one hellofa conversation in his mind.

Thanks for turning down the volume today, Lord so we could have a chance to say goodbye.

Usually I head to the ranch on Thursdays. Here are some of those stories:

• Cowboy Consistancy in South Texas - Part 1


• Working Cattle and Riding Colts: Thursday Reality Check


• Calf Roping - Rough Trail Drives - And Family

God so loved . . . Earth Day

Happy Earth Day!

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten son . . ."

The gospel from Today's readings shares the most quoted bible verse of all time. John 3:16. What's interesting is something that Fr. Ed shared this morning. It isn't translated as "For God so loved man"; It's "For God so loved the world".

"One could not pluck a flower without troubling a star." - Loren Eiseley

Loren was a man born in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1907 who understood what it meant to live. That the secret to life is living. Only by flailing headlong into life can one even begin to understand it. We really don't even know what we need until we have needed it, or know what we've had until it's gone. Loren's books reflect this mentallity and the fact that he's most widely known as a naturalist writer is ironic at best since his grasp for the love of his world so closely reflects God's love for the same world.

God loves us. There is no doubt. But His Creation was here first. We were made in His image to enjoy it - To love it as he loved it. Let's take some time to be a better steward of His masterpiece.

5 Best "Good Guys" in a Western Movie

It's hard to walk the line. Temptation is everywhere. We all fall, and we'll probably fall again. However, there are a few impervious to the will of Evil . . . even though they're fictional and never existed. ;)

Here's five of the best 'white hat' characters from a western movie. These guys walk the line.

Wil Andersen


Woodrow F. Call


Jim Craig


Mathew Quigley


Roy Rogers

I wanted to list 10, but pickins are slim when you're looking for good guys in a great western. If you know of some more, leave them in the comments. Just click the comments link below, or click the title of this post and scroll to the bottom.

Do you SEE?

Richard Miller was a great friend of my grandfather. He called him up one day and asked him if he had any roping calves at the ranch. "Why sure, " came the reply and Richard filled J.M. in on what he needed.

He was looking to purchase a new calf roping horse and needed a place to try him. Well, J.M. and Richard roped together all of the time and so this was no special occasion. He told him to just come on and that he'd see him when he got there.

Richard, J.M. and his father, John J. were having a typical truck bed conversation when the fella with the horse showed up. He got stopped, walked back to the trailer and untied the blood bay and backed him out. He was a good looking heavy-set quarter horse. Richard was pleased, but John J. let him know that that horse didn't look like he could run.

Well, they got the introductions and pleasantries out of the way and headed toward the arena. Richard mounted up and got warmed up while J.M. got some calves ready for him.

Richard backed the bay into the box and nodded his head and off they went. He and that stud rode right up in the middle of him and made a hellofa run about half way down the pen. After he got his calf untied, Richard walked back toward the box and called out to my grandfather, "You got some fast ones in there John?"

"Yea, but you ain't gonna catch him, " he called back only half joking. This little crossbred could drift across there and he had to go half way to catch the last one. Well, that wasn't going to deter Mr. Miller. He backed into the box again, nodded and the dirt went flying. A streak of brendel went drifting down the arena and when Richard got to the other end, he brought her back this way. That little heifer had her tail up and was rollin on back toward the calf roping box that Richard had just left when he finally caught up to her. He roped her and tied her down, but that was it.

He stepped off, loosened both cinches, and walked back to where J.M. had been turning out for him. Only roping two calves is not even close to a normal session with Richard.

"What are you doing, " asked J.M.

"Hell, I'm taking him back. He's a nice horse, but he's not gonna do me any good, " came the reply from Richard.

And that was the last time they saw old King. That's right, Mr. Hankins over in Rocksprings bought the horse not even a month or two after that day. He went on to be one of the cornerstone sires for the AQHA. A legend.

So was Richard so disciplined and focused that he new a horse like that wouldn't fit his program? Or did he miss the opportunity to diversify his horse business into the realms of breeding with one of the greatest sires of all time?

We'll never know if he saw what that horse could've been. I sure would have loved to have been there. One of the all time leading producers of running quarter horses . . . couldn't run a lick himself. You can only find that kind of irony in the horse business.

This story was recently relayed to me by my grandfather, but today's gospel reading reminded me to share it. Jesus is filling Nicodemus in on what he could be. Nicodemus saw himself as the calf horse that couldn't out run old grandpa, but Christ saw him as He made him. Worldclass. Born again of the spirit . . . and poised for greatness.

We are the lucky ones.

John 20:29 reads, ". . . Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed."

The other readings for today can be found here, but before you head over there, remember that we are the lucky ones.

Some may wish to have lived in the times of Christ, but are we that strong. Are we able to follow the 'new guy' with all our hearts, all our souls and all our minds. Or would we be standing on the sideline quietly watching as Christ was put to death?

Those who were living good lives, not rocking the boat, but not taking action to follow Our Lord. Where are they now? I wonder where I would have been. Where would you have been? Quien Sabe?

We don't have the benefit of "seeing". We still have to make that decision - Do we stand on the sideline?

But, we have the benefit of years of Christian influence, teachings and traditions. We are the lucky ones. Though we have not seen, We Believe.

The Struggle

His phone rarely rings. He has it set to vibrate first and he usually catches it pretty quick when it starts to go off. Today was no exception and it was Mike Powers on the other end. He let Morgan know that there was a cow down in the creek on his place. He wasn't sure if she was the only one, but he knew there was at least one down there.

Dad let Mick and Dick know and they penned the remuda horses. Those are the horses in the front trap that we use to work cattle. Everybody got saddled up and loaded up and they headed to the creek. It takes a while to get back there.

Once they arrived, it didn't take long to find her. Dick was on a big sorrel that he calls Hercules. He struck a trot toward the big brehmer pulling his rope down with Mick and Morgan just a few strides behind him.

That's when it got interesting.

Hercules all but disappeared.

When you grow up between two large creeks, you are taught how to deal with quicksand at an early age. Dick stepped off quickly, got horizontal and rolled out of there. By then Mick and Morgan were part way in it as well. It pulled on their horses pretty bad but they skirted it enough to not go down... for the moment.

As Dick tried to get Hercules out of the quicksand, Morgan and Mick went to that cow. Morgan roped her and the little grulla he was riding went down. That quick sand was all over. Morgan was lucky though that he had the bank on one side and he just stepped off. The little mare had a fight on her hands though.

Of course, horses don't really have anybody to teach them about quicksand. What they do have is instinct. They'll fight it, but they know when they're fighting a losing battle. They'll quit and get real still when it starts to pull on them too hard.

The little mare Dad was on did just that. She was fighting it, but she was going the wrong way. Her and Hercules both were pushing themselves toward the middle of the creek. See, the slope heads downward into the creek so that seems to be the path of least resistance to them. It's not.

Dick had dug around Hercules enough to get him unsaddled and was trying to coax him out of his predicament.

The grulla mare, on the other hand was in a little different situation. She fought into the water and evidently thought that it was still quicksand. She had laid down and quit. Completely quit. She was still tied off to the Brehmer at this point, and now she was floating down the creek like a dead fish. She wouldn't swim 'cause she thought she was still in the sand.

Well, Mick and Dick had gotten Hercules pointed toward the bank finally and were letting him catch his breath. Morgan was waiting for his mare to feel the bank so that she would hopefully stand back up. She wasn't going far since the brehmer cow was in the quick sand too now, like an anchor for Dad's grulla, four-legged bass tracker.

She finally did find the bank and get up. The crew was back in business. They dug around the cow a bit and then Mick and Morgan pulled her to the bank. Dick was still dealing with his sunken comrade.

He was pointed the right direction but not trying anymore. So, a little incentive was needed. By incentive, I mean nylon incentive. And by nylon incentive, I mean he had to wear his ass out a little with his rope to get him to try some more. He did. And he got out. Finally.

For one cow, it was a long drawn out ordeal. But it was called a success.

I wonder sometimes if I'm in quicksand. Do you ever get that feeling? Sometimes you think you're headed in the right direction and you struggle and struggle so sure of yourself. Then something, or someone, changes your direction. Probably the work of Our Lord. You probably think they're crazy. You may even resent them. They might even have to wear your ass out a little in order to get you going again.

Remember that you can fight the wrong way for only so long. Sometimes you have to take someone else's lead and change direction. Trust them to get you to the bank, even if they're whipping your ass to get you there. ;)

Stand for what is right.

Lynn Cadell is a humble gentleman from South Central Texas who enjoys a good team roping when he can fit it into his schedule. Neck surgery placed quite a restriction on the movement of his neck permanently making him a heeler rather than a header.

Lynn attended the San Antonio Stockshow and Rodeo this past February during the Select Sale. The San Antonio Select Sale is an auction held by Dale and Donna Segraves where 300 registered quarter horses and paint horses are sold to the highest bidder.

Well, Mr. Cadell hadn't planned on buying anything, but when the gavel dropped on a good looking young buckskin filly, he was the highest bidder. And he was psyched. She was nice and he picked her up for what he thought was a bargain.

Evidently, the owners thought so, too. Lynn went and paid for his new filly, signed the ticket, and eased back to her stall to get a good look at her. There he was met by the should-have-been-ex-owners who asked him what he was doing. I wasn't there, but I can only imagine Mr. Cadell in his most authoritative effort coming off more inquisitive than anything else as he told them that he was looking at his new horse.

"We didn't sell her, " they told him.

"Well somebody did because I've got the signed ticket right here, " Lynn said.

Lynn was upset at this point, but just like SO MANY other good Christian people, he let it go. So, the people who brought the horse and didn't follow the proper procedure to pass on the sale got to take the horse back home. And the people who held a sale, sold a horse, and completed paper work for the sale of the horse didn't have to do anything. And the man who did everything right . . . got screwed.

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Herman Rose of 7HR Quarter Horses was at this sale as well. He was on the other end. He consigned a very nice two-year old son of Smart Chic Olena. The colt was the third high selling horse of the sale and the highest selling two-year old. Congrats to Mr. Rose.

Well, not so fast. Mr. Rose got a call almost thirty days later. The new owners claimed that the horse only had one testical. They had a vet, Dr. Keller of Sonora, inspect the colt and declare that both visually and by palpation, it was determined that the horse had only one testical.

Segraves called Mr. Rose and he quickly let them know that he would take the horse back. He told Mr. Segraves that he had not inspected the colt and that he honestly had no idea. I'm sure Segraves had heard that before. Long story short, the horse was returned.

BUT, that's not all. The colt has two testicals. The whole situation turned on it's head when the colt arrived back to 7HR Quarter Horses. You can easily see both testicals when you're just standing next to the horse. I've seen them. We were on location taking pictures unrelated to this situation for Mr. Rose's website when he asked me to take a look.

So . . . The guy who paid for the horse, took him home and manipulated medical information on the animal got his money back. The auctioneer who sold the horse, provided all the legal paperwork to make sure that this doesn't happen and allowed it to happen anyway got off free and clear - again. And the man who consigned one of the best horses in the sale and bent over backwards to be helpful when he thought he was in the wrong . . . got screwed.

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Yes, Our Lord instructs us to be humble and contrite. However, we forget that He also asks us to stand for something. For Him. It's not our job to be humiliated, but to have humility. We aren't here to cower to the unrighteous in an effort to be meek. We are here to discipline the unrighteous and yet not lord it over them, but be merciful.

Proverbs 10:17 "He who heeds discipline shows the way to life, but whoever ignores correction leads others astray."

Work to stand for what is right even if it means conflict. Most Christians are humble people and if they stand to benefit, they feel like they are taking advantage of the situation. However, by allowing the unjust to benefit from their ways, we are actually leading them astray.

Would you know Him if you saw Him?

Today's Readings confirm to us that although Christ has died, His love and works are still alive and well. The first reading tells of Peter heeling in the name of Christ.

The Gospel reading shares a story more similar to the footsteps on the beach story. Although Christ had just been crucified, He joined Cleopas and his companion on their way to Emmaus on the third day. The two disciples didn't recognize Him. He shared wisdom with them like they had never heard and yet they still didn't see Him.

Such is life. God puts people in our lives everyday. He works through them and we never recognize Him. Look for Christ in everyone. He's there. Thank them for the good that it is in them. It will do them well to hear it.

You know the drill. Most of the time we don't hear anything unless it's complaining. Let someone hear something else.

I'd share more about the readings from today, but they're so good you really need to read them for yourself. Go Here »

Happy Easter! He is risen!

Hope everyone had a blessed Easter this year.

Please remember His love and self-sacrifice for each and every one of us.

Do something for someone that they don't expect. It will surprise and fulfill you more than them. I gaurantee it. :)

It Was Lost, But Now Is Found

The camera is back! Well, what was once a camera is back. It was found in the middle of the pasture, smashed. The memory card from within the case was able to be salvaged. Here are some of the pics from a Thursday when we branded some replacement heifers.

Branding Cattle at the O'Brien Ranch


The Man In Charge: J.M. O'Brien

J.M. oversees everything. Usually from his trusty Chevrolet.

Morgan O'Brien

Here, Morgan is branding a replacement heifer. She'll get dewormed by Kelley, vaccinated by Doc, tattooed by the vet tech and then out the front of the shoot she'll go.

I'm getting hooked on a little in the crowd pen and Kelley thinks it's funny.

One of these heifers got to raking around on me in the crowd pen while I was waiting to send the next bunch through and Kelley thought is was alot funnier than I did.

So, of course Mick has to wave and tell me to take his picture.

There's always comedic relief when working at the O'Brien Ranch. I'm trying to get myself out of a bind and Mick is hollering for me to take his picture. Of course, if I was wanting to take his picture for real, he'd be running like I had the plague. Gotta love Mick and Dick.

Finally get away from her. Didn't even know this picture got taken until today.


OK, she's leaving, got to get back to work.


Morgan O'Brien branding.


The O'Brien Ranch cattle brand.

Cattle theft is on the rise in Texas and this is one of the best deterents. Read more at the Houston Chronicle...

Mick and Dick O'Brien

THE BEST cowboy team I have ever seen. Yes, they're full of . . . um yea that. Yes, they like to give you a hard time. They usually can make up words to a song that is surprisingly good while they do whatever it is they are doing. And guess what, you will be in the song and probably won't be thrilled about what you are doing according to their Kristofferson-like verses. But, they can get it done. You name it. It gets done. Quick. Right. Every time.

Doctor Williams

Doc Williams headed to vaccinate the next one.

Kelley O'Brien

Kelley O'Brien deworming another heifer.

Dick O'Brien

Dick O'Brien holding a heifer for the vet tech. She'll give her a tattoo ID in the ear.

Cowboy in the Smoke

Branding iron smoke is a great filter for photography. This is Dick about to open the front gate for this set of heifers to go get with the rest of those that have been worked.

Jesse Gomez

Jesse opens the squeeze shoot after each set of heifers have been branded, dewormed, vaccinated and tattooed.

Felix and JB

Felix (left) and JB immobilize each set of heifers by closing the squeeze shoot and holding it until the crew is finished.

Getting everything done on eighty head of replacements takes some time. This crew has been doing it for quite some time though and we wrap it up pretty quick. For a run down on what's going on in some of these pics, go here to read about a branding day.

What's a Seder Meal?

What's a seder meal?

That's what I was thinking when Fr. Ed introduced the idea in church a couple of weeks ago. It's a Passover celebration. A very structured ritual that plays out in the form of a formal dinner, the seder meal is essentially the method used by Jews and Christians to remember the oppressed, and pass down the beliefs and practice of love and compassion to the youth of their local communities.

Attending one is not unlike a large family get together. Everyone is well fed with children laughing and music playing. Except for one thing. The order. Everything has it's place. It's role for the evening. And every person as well. Seder in hebrew is translated as "order". Order is the theme for the night. And it's nice. We learned quite a bit and enjoyed a wonderful meal.

The main thing one should take away from this, though, is not to neglect your freedom. Remember those who have suffered in order to give us what we take for granted every day. Pray for those enslaved today. They exist. I assure you. Enslaved by addiction, illness, injury as well as oppression and false imprisonment. If it seems silly to you, it's only because we are so far from it. Even more reason to take a minute to reflect upon it.

Most especially remember Our Lord. He laid down His life for us so that we may enjoy eternal freedom.

And if you ever get the chance to participate in a seder meal, do it. You'll enjoy it.

Not Thursday

Luke was riding around pretty well and I had just transitioned him to a walk after guiding a while at a lope when the phone rang. It was John. My older brother lives just south of me about 130 miles and I don't get to see him, or his family, nearly as often as I'd like. Time is a precious commodity when you are trying to go through ten head after lunch everyday so the phone usually goes unanswered until after dark. However, the fact that Luke deserved a quick break coupled with my brother being the caller resulted in me whipping open my still beloved tough phone.

Jesse Howell needed a horse. He had made arrangements with John prior to our visit, but John had just found out that he wasn't going to be able to pull away from work in order to meet Mr. Howell at the ranch. Well, my brother has an amazing ability to influence people and I'm no exception. The next thing I was doing was thanking him for the chance to head south and show Jesse Howell my brother's mare. This reads a bit like my brother is a silver tounge professional persuader in it for his own benefit. I assure you he is not. He's good because he's genuine. He'd do it for me in a heart-beat. And he asked me to take along an additional colt for Mr. Howell to look at that I felt would fit his needs and budget.

So Tuesday morning rolls around and after getting everyone fed four lucky prospects won a free trip southward bound to Quincy. Tuseday's are pretty nice down there. Mostly maintenance days at the beginning of the week. Your looking at projects like gate hanging, water checking, feeding, checking foaling mares, etc. It's a steady stream of effort, but nothing that will get you hooked off the fence or round housed into the roundpen floor.

The horse demo went great. John's mare looked great, but Mr. Howell took a fancy to the little sorrel gelding I took down there. He was a double-bred Gay Bar King two-year-old that had just started to make a move. By that I mean he was getting comfortable with the maneuvers he was being taught and starting to try a little harder. Gaining confidence. Jesse loaded him up and off they went. And just like that, I was 1 head lighter for Wednesday. The Scholl's will be excited. The little gelding belonged to them and they've recently had a stroke of bad luck with the horse deal. This lick was just what they needed.

Don Lotspieche was at the ranch. For those of you who know Don, you're already laughing. For those of you who don't, let me try to shed some light on this stay-put-drifter. Don's child-like wisdom will astound you with it's insight while his cow-hand-gone-hippie facade will mesmorize you into just staring at him wondering what the hell he's gonna come up with next.

Well he came up with plenty. He took John's mare for a ride after Mr. Howell headed back to Premont. Don started that mare and wanted to get a couple of last rides in before calling the job done I guess. So he heads up the hill.

There aren't many hills in South Texas. There is one on our place though. Or so that's what we call it. It's in the same pasture that we keep the roping steers in and it's a great place to take a colt to just push cattle around and get them comfortable doing "real work". When Don got back we had an interesting conversation.

"Hey James, what about that Border Collie? He worked his ass off," he half hollered at me across the pens.

I stepped that way and he continued.

"I was loping that mare down that north fence and she was doing real good. That little charolais-cross-lookin bull that always stays off to himself was out there layin down. We rode up on him and that mare shied from 'im a bit so I walked her back up there and made her stay put. When he got up, I tracked him ALL OVER that place until he had just about had it. He finally turned around like he was wantin' to fight. That damn mare pinned her ears and cowwed down on him. I was real proud of her. She's gonna be a nice mare. That yella gyp and collie dog were lettin that sucker have it the whole time."

"Well I really like hearin that about that mare," I said.

"Yep, that's a nice dog," Don said as he was noddin his head and walkin towards the saddle house.

Here is where most people would think... "What the hell?" ;)

But I know Don. I was once the young fella who would listen to the dogs when we were in the brush and tell him which way the cattle were. Then, ride like crazy trying to keep up. I've seen and heard about him doing things for people that few would bother doing. He's a good man. And having a conversation with him at the ranch is most definitely worth a trip south. Well, if you can call it a conversation.

As in our little conversation today, Don knows where he's headed in life. We might not know where Don's headed, but Don knows. Straight ahead. What you see is what you get. The ability to disregard other's opinions is often frowned upon and sought after by the same individuals. We could all use a lesson in turning loose. Gather your thoughts and realize who it is that you are. Then stand for something. You'll piss some people off. But . . . if you really master the Don way of life.

You won't care.

Palm Sunday: No Happy Endings, Only New Beginnings

Today's Readings prepare us for the holy week approaching as Easter Sunday draws near. They share a message of self-sacrifice, which is what Lent is all about, and the Passion.

Fr. Ed delivered a wonderful message. Beginnings.

Green horses, young horses and finished horses leave the barn for a new home when their time has come. Clients will arrive with high hopes, watch their prized possession go through the motions and then load up and head out. It usually goes well and there's another happy ending.

Well, Fr. Ed gave me a new way to think about it today. It also applies to just about everything else in my life . . . and yours. There is no ending for that horse that leaves. Only a beginning. The beginning of its relationship with someone else.

I'm left to focus on what's to come for the horse instead of what has been. And with other circumstances in life, it's the same. A whole different mindset. With every change from now on, I'll be eagerly anticipating where Our Lord is leading me now. Close your eyes and take that step. Or Leap. A leap of faith into your new beggining.

Dedication

Hal is a calf roper. He meets a good friend of his at least once a week and they trot out into the pasture to the arena and rope calves. A couple years back, Hal was given a son of the great Doc O Dynomite by Mr. John Scott. This horse was the real deal. No amount of money could touch him. And he knows it. You can see it in his eyes. He's one of the great ones, but he has nothing to prove. His new job is to take care of Hal. And he does.

Hal works hard. He recently told a good friend of mine that he just couldn't get to those calves like he wanted to be able to so he started running wind sprints in the mornings. He practices every week. And tries to make a calf roping every weekend.

That horse he's got makes it look easy. You can see that he knows that he is one of the great ones. But he just cruises out there and lets Hal rope. He puts those smaller calves on the ground for him so he doesn't have to get them up. He can just tie them down right there.

You see, Hal is 78 years old. His buddy that ropes with him every week is rollin by 80. They'd rope every day they say, but it hurts too bad.

Now I've seen Hal get down the rope, and I can't imagine how long that set of wind sprints takes him in the morning. ;)

But, that's not the point. Dedication. That's the point. Planning like we'll live forever and living like we may die tomorrow.

Thursday's: Shakey Start - Solid Finish

4:30 - Tweety is GOING TO TOWN right outside the bedroom door that leads to our back yard. He must have been on my frequency though due to the steady breathing of my lovely bride. She lay at peace as my subtle little reminder from Him that my alarm was about to blast us to reality was being whistled just outside.

Still the alarm caught me laying there when 5:00 rolled around and the day was rolling.

The truck and trailer were waiting for me right where I had hooked up last night. So, after everything in the barn and outside stalls were fed, it was time to go get my roping calves. Trailers are not the most fun to back in the dark. Especially without trailer lights. Those of you who know me know that this is no surprise. Anyway, no mishaps this morning thank goodness. One stronger black calf had to stay for a second session of being a roping calve but the other santa gertrudis calves were loaded on the trailer and I was headed for Quincy.

Branding some yearling fillies was to compose most of the day today, but the morning started off with a bit of worry. My Grandfather, John Morgan O'Brien, also known as J.M. by some, Pop by even fewer, and PoPo to me, had been sick. We got an early call while feeding requesting us to come by the main house and see PoPo.

I was worried. Dad, however, knew what this meant. It was time to convince a man who'd seen 83 years of South Texas ranch life and still works the crowd pen that he needed to go to the doctor. And Mary Kathryn was drafting some help.

What ensued I can only describe as Love. This is an Irish Catholic family. So when I say we can get worked up, I mean we can get WORKED UP. ;)

But, today was not one of those days. No convincing. No persuasion. Nothing. They just cared. We are blessed to have a close family friend that is a Doc in Victoria. We visited with J.M. a while and then my uncles, Mick and Dick gave him a call. The normal pleasantries followed and then a couple of quick questions about PoPo. Dad lined up a visit with the physician in the nearest town and that was it. A couple of them loaded up with John Morgan and off they went.

We stayed. Foaling mares still have to be fed by somebody. And the two's can't ride themselves. The branding, though, was off.

The day wasn't empty though. Any rancher knows that being bored, unfortunately, is not ever a problem. You adapt, change plans and accomplish new things. Morgan and I sorted a group of calves at the Murphy and dropped off the old set from my house. The Murphy also had a dozer operator that we needed to check on.

A group of three twos were caught up this morning and so they got worked this afternoon as well. There's a black in particular that I'm very excited about. Nice colt.

Well, PoPo got his report and it was a good one. We spent most of the morning and some of the afternoon visiting with him. After we wrapped the twos and I got loaded up to head north, we stopped back by the house. My time with him today was a great chance for a couple of stories. So here they are:
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We were chatting about pasture work making for nicer horses down the road when an event my grandfather had attended, no doubt as a careless youngster, made itself present at the forefront of his mind.

Me and Richard Walker went to a ropin one time out in the middle of the pasture. Great big arena. And there wasn't a fence on one side. The momma cows were over there. So they pulled the calves that day. Penned them and then turned 'em out headed straight back for momma's milk.

Well we had our calf horses there but they couldn't catch 'em fast enough to do any good. Needless to say, nobody else was catchin' 'em either.

Oh and Chic Alexander was with us too. Man, he could tie one faster than anybody I knew. That was if he could catch one though. Tied good, but didn't catch many.

Well Richard and this fella from whoever's place that was were buddies. And that friend of Richard's had a race horse. So Richard talked him into lettin us borrow him.

"I never have roped on him, " he said.

Hell, we didn't care. We just needed to get close fast. That's it.

And you know we backed that runner into the box blind folded. And when we nodded and took that blindfold off, you had better been screwed down. That booger was floatin.

We just had a ring snaffle on him and herded him by those calves. He never even saw 'em. And wouldn't you know it. We won 1st, 2nd and 3rd on that thang that day.

Me and Chic and Richard. That Richard was a hellofa individual.

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We were sitting there with old westerns playin on a tv that was probably made the same year that movie we were watchin was made when some poor man on the tv headed out into the rain horseback.

We haven't had any good rain in a while so the comic relief and back-handed comments were flowin free when Dad remarked about how miserable that must be.

"I've been there, " Popo remarked but didn't sit up like he usually does before a story. Almost like he was feelin what he was talking about.

We were drivin a set to the Greeter, when I was just a little fella, comin from the Sarco. . .

That's a 20 mile clip for those not familiar with the area. We don't make drives like that anymore. I'm not sure if anyone does.

And we had one boil up over us and go to rainin. It hadn't been going too long and lightning struck not to far from the herd throwing dirt WAY yonder into the air. Haven't seen anything like it untill then. And hadn't since.

You know there was something else I saw on that drive, too. Those sparks dancin on the tips of those cattle's horns. not like the movies glowing and such, but dancing. Same as it does in the clouds, but from steer to steer. Damndest thang I ever saw.

We were out on that prairie country so it wasn't like we were going to go anywhere or get out of it. Probably a good thing with the way that lightin was hittin. A tree bustin or fallin could of killed somebody.

Anyhow, we kept a ridin. Didn't have much choice. Directly one of the hands come ridin up to me and says, "little boss, you need to climb down from that horse and unsaddle him. Cover yourself with that blanket 'cause we about to get some hail."

And damned if we didn't. Not even five minutes after he told me that we got the hell beat out of us. I'll never forget that trip. I don't know how he knew that about that hail.

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Well, hopefully you got this far. If you didn't, I understand. Since you did, I'm going to push my luck. ;)

Please say a quick prayer for all those who have seen the ways of life and freedom change before their eyes. Pray that we can adapt, overcome and persevere just as they did. Ask that they be given the strength and wisdom to continue guiding us through times that hopefully will mold us into the people that they already are.

Blessed by Down Syndrome (Part two)

Part 1 Here

Down Syndrome is definitely not a curse. It's not a misfortune, nor even a mixed blessing. Those with Down Syndrome are gifts delivered to us straight from the hand of God.

Pure, unadulterated and perfect kindness. Love in the flesh. The life they lead is most often cut short. Why?

Because we don't deserve to have them any longer than that. That's why. They are an opportunity for us to witness what it means to be 'good'. Not as in, good brownies or good times. Not even as in good family, or good spouse.

More like "God saw all that he had made, and it was very good" (Genesis 1:31)

Thanks Kevin. Good to see you again. Hope we can do lunch again soon - James

Who started this April Fools thing anyway?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29975985/

Stick to your guns

Many, Many colts come through here and everyone of them is different than the last one. In order to get the same results from different horses, you have to get pretty creative. Lots of thought goes into setting up a situation in order to get a young horse to decide it wants to do a certain thing. And it doesn't always workout as planned. You can't jump ship and start over doing something else or mass confusion will set in. You have to stick with it. Keep after the original concept until you get the response you were looking for. That's why it's so important to put some thought into your goal before you get started. Because if you don't believe in what your doing to get the response you need, you're going to start doubting yourself if it doesn't go smoothly.

In Today's Readings Daniel shares the story of three men who are rescued by an angel from the furnace of King Nebuchadnezzar. The only reason they got to see that angel is because they stuck to their guns. It sure would have been easier to hit their knees when the King told them to. However, they stayed true to what they believed.

Then in John's Gospel, Jesus shows us perseverance as well. Though the people continue to deliver a barrage of ridiculous statements, questions, and accusations Jesus calmly guides them back to the Truth. Even though He knows that that truth is going to end with Him being thrown into the 'furnace' as well.

He knew, though, that His God and Father would be there to rescue Him. Know that He is there for you. Be steadfast in your efforts to walk the line. Doing right will almost always get you ridiculed by someone. Sometimes it will be even worse. Stick to your guns. Your angel is waiting.

P.S. The other time an angel appears in a 'rescue' situation is when Peter escaped from prison. Another great story of perseverance. Here it is.