in this collection of poems, 16 year old Eden stays for a month at her grandparents' cattle ranch in Tennessee, far away from her hometown in Wyoming. She learns how to work and help at a cattle ranch, and much more, and also gets to know her family...
early morning changes i'm up at 4:00 gage and charlie are up and stirring by 4:15 grandma is up by 4:45 we whisper quietly over eggs and bacon and sausage and biscuits and orange juice in tall glasses. where's grandpa? i ask shyly his knees are acting up today, he could hardly get out of bed. grandma sighs oh okay, so no cattle drive today? that's charlie. no cattle drive today. grandma confirms, and fixes a plate to bring to grandpa. tomorrow? that's gage. for sure tomorrow, you know grandpa won't let his knee control him for more than a day! they laugh.
kitty i go back to bed, the blankets i left are still warm the black and white kitty curls up by my chest, and we cuddle up and sleep a couple more hours and when i wake back up at 6:15, the kitty is still laying in my arms.
bootcut jeans i quickly pull on my bootcut jeans, black long sleeve and black belt with my wyoming belt buckle, and black boots, tucking my boots beneath the jeans, how it's supposed to be. the kitchen is empty, so i leave through the side door and make my way to the barn to matilda.
layout i love the layout of this perfect place. the barn is not far from the house, and the big outdoor arena and two sanded roundpens are not far from the barn each stall in the barn has a small paddock, the barn connects to two bigger paddocks, and then there's just pasture and pasture for acres and acres.
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comfortable matilda runs from grazing in her small paddock to the stall door to greet me. long blades of grass in her lips, she looks happy. so i am happy. hey girl, are you comfortable? you sure look it! i grin, stroking her still perfectly neat tight braids and her soft nose. i remember grandpa telling me where to get her grain for her, so i find it in the feed room across from the stalls, pour a scoop in a bucket, and set it on the ground in her stall to eat. my gorgeous horse eats happily.
sleepyhead i go to the arena, hearing noise there. goodness, is there noise! i see gage and charlie sitting up on the fence, messing with the ropes on an anxious bull and another boy's hand in it in the chute. gage gets down and prepares to open the chute, looking over to see me good morning again, sleepyhead!! he shouts to me, and i shake my head, laughing good morning!! i chuckle, and he looks away as i get closer to the fence of the arena to watch.
cowboy the sharp cut of his jaw and the tan of his skin hair like an ocean of dark brown eyes light like honey in the morning sunlight my mouth hung slightly open, i watch, frozen in my footsteps as he nods his head slightly to let gage know he can release the gate.
cowboy the chute opens and the bull bucks wild like nothing i've seen before he stays on with ease, one hand in the air that's it Cash! charlie exclaims he stays on until the guys yell 8, and he flies off voluntarily, body rolling in the dirt that's fun, he exclaims getting up off the ground with smiling teeth like pearls straight from a clam in the deep sea brushing dust from his chaps i feel funny i feel different i feel frozen i want nothing but to know him
