Getting the tour

My dad loves to give the tour.  The tour is a trip out to the pen of cows during evening feeding.  After helping to dump the buckets into the bunks, dad begins.  The tour varies depending on who is the recipient.  For my 5 year old cousin, he gets the version that explains the difference between a cow and a bull, and the possible up close and personal experience with a former show heifer.  For the past three years, I have been getting the tour.  My version involves standing in the middle of the lot as dad points to each calf and recites the name of the bull and the back story of the cow.  He also describes the plans he has for each calf whether it's the show ring, sale ring, or simply stay-at-home.  It's kinda funny that the man who claims not to remember his high school years can recite the lineage of every calf on the place. 

I love the tour.  It's time spent with my dad, (or Daddy as I like to call him).  It's also time reflecting on the blessings we have been given, and the future that we all hope for.  To many it would seem to just be some cows, boring old cows eating their feed, but to my father, and the rest of my family it's a passion.  One that can only be described as love for the land, the cattle on it, and the God who created it all.  So I'll treasure these tours until I get the chance to give my own.

A picture from one of last year's tours

'till the cows come home,
Ellie