Heavenly Horse Sense by Rebecca E. Ondov

Author:Rebecca E. Ondov
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780736944205
Publisher: Harvest House Publishers, Inc.

27

What? No Winter Pasture?

Take the yoke I give you. Put it on your shoulders and learn from me. I am gentle and humble, and you will find rest. This yoke is easy to bear, and this burden is light.

MATTHEW 11:29-30 CEV

October’s golden sunlight filtered through the white canvas of the kitchen tent. I sat at the plank table chewing on a pencil eraser while reviewing the list of horses and mules. Dawn’s cool breeze rolled off the mountain and through the tent, making the canvas door flap gently. I walked over to the corner woodpile, pulled out a chunk of split wood, and stuffed it into the stove. It belched a small cloud of smoke, and then the fire crackled and popped and roared to life. Sitting on the weathered wooden bench, I frowned. In a month and a half, 60 head of horses and mules will need winter pasture. Where am I going to put them?

Every December when the outfitting season rolled to a close, the herd of working stock would be trucked to winter pasture. Only the pregnant mares and yearlings would stay at the ranch and be fed hay through the winter. The day before I’d ridden into camp for this hunt, I’d gotten a phone call informing me that the winter pasture arrangements had fallen through. My stomach had been churning ever since.

Where am I going to find pasture? It’s not like everybody has hundreds of acres to spare. I groaned as my mind raced through possibilities. The pasture needed to be close enough that we could safely truck the stock in December over snowy roads. It needed to be located in one of the few “banana belt” areas of Montana where the snow never gets too deep so the critters could forage for food. Those spots were few and far between.

I nervously tapped my pencil. And how am I going to find pasture when I’m out here—14 miles into the wilderness with no phone? I fretted as I thought about my schedule. I was the cook for every 10-day hunt until the season was over. I would be riding out for two days between the hunts, but in those days I shuffled guests to and from the airport, bought and packed groceries, did laundry for crew, and took care of a long list of details for work and me. Besides, I don’t know a soul who has any available pasture. I rubbed my forehead. And if I can’t find pasture, it’ll cost about $12,000 for hay. No way we want to pay that!

The sound of voices and the clatter of hooves drifted down the mountain, interrupting my stampeding thoughts. What are the hunters doing back so soon? They just left! I walked over to the door where my jacket hung on a peg next to the stove. Slipping into my wool coat, I walked out the door.

Bob nodded and reined Hazy Joe, a brown Arabian mare, toward me while the guests rode to the hitching rail by the tack shed.

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