Mystery

 The Church is the presence of the Kingdom of God in Mystery. LG

           https://youtu.be/PLqCavZF5Co         

Rescue Mission

Over the years, Dad has come to my rescue in many and varied ways. This time, the tables were turned. I got a call Thursday afternoon that he was stranded at the cabin. He drove in, and his pickup wouldn't start when he went to drive out. There was no rush as he had plenty of accommodations. But that evening, White Horse and I hit the trail.

We borrowed our new ranch partner's tilt bed. I think this relationship with Jack is going to be a real win-win. 

We stayed the night at the cabin and when we went to load up in the morning, Dad's pickup started. So he headed for town, only to make it a mile or so down the highway before she quit. We were suspecting the fuel pump. So we jumped it on the trailer and completed the journey to Worland. 

Beautiful drive down Tensleep Canyon. Fun to take it slow for a change. Lots to see. 

Once back at the ranch, she started and ran enough for us to get her backed off the trailer and put in the shop. 

This is an interesting tilt bed trailer. It's got a lot of pivot points and latches.

Before it was said and done, one of those latches jumped up and bit me!

Nothing Dad couldn't fix with a blue shop rag and a little black tape.

Then we went to cleaning out his bed. Our mission was to pull the truck box off and expose the fuel pump.

Six bolts hold the bed on. 18mm. 

Then remove the fuel-fill set up. 

Unhooking the lights was probably the hardest part. 

Then, with the help of a cherry picker and a couple of hands that are working on the house, we pulled the box back and rested it on the tires. 

Thus, exposing the top of the tank and the fuel pump assembly that rests inside of it. 

After unhooking the lines and wires, we pulled the culprit out. 

Then slid the new one in. 

Rehooking all the lines and wires again. She fired right up. 

Then restocked the tool box. 

And went back to work.

Mission accomplished. A rancher's truck is his lifeline. Without it, he's lost. With it, he's ranchin! Breakdowns are going to happen, but woe to poorly manufactured parts that cause them! This is the third fuel pump that has been put into Dad's truck. This time, I think we got it. We put in a good quality pump and are pretty confident that it was done right. A lot of guys will drop the fuel tank to change the pump. That works if you have a hoist and an empty tank. We had a full tank of gas and no hoist. Pulling the box was our only option. Worked good. Dad is now back on the road and the world is a safer place because of it. Dad is used to rescuing others, but it doesn't hurt for a guy to have to get rescued himself. Keeps you humble and compassionate. No time to waste, though. There's miles to cover! Let's ranch. 

Discipleship

Mary was closer to Jesus as His disciple than as His mother. 

           https://youtu.be/mat1sLnqkiQ         

Horse Update

Usually around this time of year is when I put the horses up for the winter. I'd enjoy riding again, but the opportunities to do so are definitely fewer. Regardless, it's a good time to make sure they're ready for the cold and reflect back on the year. 

Buck still rules the roost at the Marton Ranch. Having a mare around seems to have breathed new life into his old bones. 

Red finally made it back home to my brother. I had a couple guys put some more rides on him as he needed more attention over the summer than I was able to give him. He's all yours now, Luke. He left a brumby and came back a saddle horse. 

Mollie gets the tough horse award this year. When I needed her most, she came through with a willing spirit. Glad she's on the ranch. 

Overall, Chief had a good year. Put on a show for the school kids, drug calves around, let all sorts of folks ride him, and went on round ups. But his lameness concerns me. Seems to be in his front right leg. Likely it's down low, but maybe in his knee. I'll probably just let him rest until spring and see how he looks. I don't foresee it being too serous, he's only 12 and has had a pretty easy life. He probably just twitted an ankle when Buck was chasing him away from Mollie. 

Definitely going to take some time to get all the cockleburs out of his mane.

After a solid freeze is a good time to deworm a horse. Some people do it often, but I only do it in the spring, after the frost comes out. And in the fall, when the frost goes in. My preferred dewormer is the cheapest one on the shelf. 

I give a whole tube to each horse. Open wide!

It takes them a minute to swallow. Not sure they enjoy it, but they seem to be tolerant.  

Let 'er buck!

Good stuff. It's been an up and down year in horse world. At times I wonder if the work is worth the handful of times I get to ride. But each time I do ride, I'm reminded that it is worth the effort. Horses keep you humble. They keep you grounded in creation and alive in spirit. The best thing for the inside of a man is the outside of a horse. Ranch on. 

Jesus Speaks

Through the four Gospels.

           https://youtu.be/SRqhYJdO4Vw         

First Love

The first love for all of us should be discipleship.

           https://youtu.be/DbQTUHFaUFk         

Turkey Trot

Turkeys hanging around the church is not an uncommon sight. Especially with Thanksgiving around the corner, they find St. John the Baptist to be a safe space. I've actually enjoyed watching them throughout the summer. 

These are wild turkeys, though I don't doubt that they were planted in this area within the last 20 years. All these guys have beards, the tough of hair like feathers sticking out of their chest. That is a male trait, though random females can sport them as well. My guess is that these are all young males.

A group of turkeys is most formally called a rafter. But you can get by calling them a flock, gang, gaggle, end even a posse. This rafter of birds has been wandering around the church grounds all summer. Here the toms, male birds, strut around. Probably just fronting each other, but maybe trying to impress then hens, female birds. 

Turkey track brands are fairly common throughout the cowboy state. Not having any enclosed corners, like a B or 8, it probably goes on a cow real nice.

The only drawback to having turkeys in the neighborhood is their scat. It isn't a pleasant mess to come across. However, it is rather few and far between. Geese are dirty birds, their feces is everywhere they are. Turkeys, on the other hand, don't drop everywhere they walk. That being said, you definitely want to check your boots before entering the church. 

Fun stuff. My first encounter with church turkeys was on an Easter Vigil in Moorcroft. Just as we were leaving the church to start the Liturgy at the outdoor fire, a turkey walked in and went downstairs. I said, Leave it. We'll shoot it later. But an old rancher went down and herded him back outside. That pretty well broke the ice for a beautiful Catholic night in Wyoming. Beside their sporadic droppings and a few rocks being kicked out of the flower bed from their scratching around, I enjoy our little posse of turkeys. Thanks Lord. 

Shooken

Make sure when our Lord shakes the fence at His final coming you land on the right side!

           https://youtu.be/7WxTQXJamrA         

Sight Seeing

Dad and I were on a mission to pick up a little equipment in the Thermopolis area. While at it, we thought we'd do a little sight seeing along the way. So we called Uncle Phil and hit the trail. 

The Owl Creek drainage, west of Thermop, was our region to explore. 

This area is no stranger to either Dad nor Uncle Phil. Dad pumped a lot of oil wells around here and Uncle Phil spent time in these mountains growing up. 

There is quite a bit of oil activity around here. Grass Creek and Hamilton Dome have produced a lot of oil over the years. 

Big old ranches as well. This is part of the Arapaho Ranch, which is ran by the Arapaho Tribe. 

Rock Creek is where Grandpa William Murdoch homesteaded. Rough and beautiful country up there. 

We didn't go up Rock Creek, but walked into Anchor Dam. Cool rock outcroppings. 

Anchor Dam was built in the 1950s and backs up the south fork of the Owl Creek.

A real work of art. 

Unfortunately, the reservoir doesn't hold water for very long. Durning the construction, several sink holes were found. In a good runoff year the reservoir will fill up, but before the summer is over, it is back to a creek running through it. 

In the years that followed, they dammed off a tributary that would loose a lot of water. No doubt it helped, but the water still disappears. 

Though, the dam is a bit of a lost cause, it's still a fun place to visit.

Before we headed out, we enjoyed some lunch that Mom made us. Thanks Ma. 

After our sight seeing, we got down to business. Dad located some old oil field stairwells and landings that we could use on our barn project.

So we hitched up White Horse and drug them out of the weeds.

Then used a loader nearby to load them up. 

Strapped them down and headed for home.

Score. There is plenty of material here to work with. We plan to use them to get us up into the barn loft from the outside.

Fun day. This is country that I'm not real familiar with. I've been to most of these sites before, but didn't really know much of the history. Beautiful. Great find on the scrap iron too. We will make good use of it. On to the next one. 

Already But Not Yet

The Church is the presence of the Kingdom of God, already! 

           https://youtu.be/4cmPt_vupXQ         

Gratitude

Grounds us in God.

           https://youtu.be/cprhZQlSzPY         

Servant Song

We serve God out of love, not as slaves.

           https://youtu.be/KbFCs52OEHM