I’m sure most of you realize I write about things that are not always popular with everyone. I also know my blunt style of telling things as I see them does not make everyone happy. But at my age, after spending a lifetime raising and breeding sheep, I feel I have the right to do so. In fact I think I have some good messages for all sheep people to at least think about.

I’m happy to be back, your great letters are very rewarding to me. I do not take the honor of writing in the Suffolk News lightly. From now on all my articles will render the title "Story Telling Time." All I’ve ever tried to do is tell you a story or at least just talk with you. As always, I’ll try and keep my articles simple, a little on the far-out side, and interesting. Hopefully you’ll find some of my statement humorous-Lord knows we all need a few laughs in our busy and stressful lives.

As you can see, I’m even changing my picture. I’m proud of this picture. The Block and Bridle Club at Michigan State had this taken and it hangs in their huge new judging pavilion.

I’m a very competitive person, so I couldn’t let Neil Anderson, with his D.V.M. and P.H.D., get the best of me. Then of course we have Annette Benson with her hair all fixed pretty, looking so neat. I just wanted to keep up with the two of them and show you what an old livestock man looks like when he gets cleaned up. Now all we have to do is get our president John Eagle cleaned up. Maybe if we could take a pair of sheep shears and trim that beard a little, we would really be in business. On the other hand, John is a carbon copy of Lincoln-we wouldn’t want to destroy that look.

Before I ramble on anymore, I think you all should know that Ronda Sparks, our Office Supervisor in the Missouri Office, is taking on the big task of putting our Suffolk News out. This is not an easy job and we should all appreciate her extra efforts. Both she and Mrs. Benson in Utah will help you with your advertising. Few magazines can match our low price. Another reason for advertising is one that’s never mentioned. We enjoy seeing pictures of our sheep and our names in the paper and magazines.

While on the subject of letters, I would like to share one I got from a grandfather in Tennessee. In the Christmas issue of the Suffolk News, I wrote about my father, and the special trust and love he had for his livestock. I told about his best team of horses, and their ability to pull any load he hooked them to. It was my greatest livestock thrill.

The letter I received started out by saying he felt he knew me well because of my articles and that he envied the special relationship I had with my father. He then told about his granddaughter and their experiences with raising Suffolk sheep. He said that they had been doing it for eight years, and each year they improved. I could read between the lines: the wonderful bond and togetherness they had shared would be something the granddaughter will never forget. I just know when she gets older and has children of her own, she will tell of the many wonderful events and experiences that she shared with her granddad.

He finished the letter in a very touching way. He said that when he went to the barn at night to check the ewes, he could feel the very "presence of God." Dramatic, you bet. I knew just how he felt and considered myself lucky to still be able to lamb out ewes.

Grandparents are the Answer

As the years go by, I worry more and more why our children are not breeding their own lambs. Go to any sheep show, and all the action lies with the showmanship contest and the wether show. The breeding sheep shows are getting smaller and smaller. We must not destroy this great learning experience of breeding sheep. It should be part of their culture, as well as ours.

The answer to getting kids back to breeding sheep is the grandparents. They have the time; most of them have even stashed a little money away. The most important thing they have is patience and a special love they can share with their grandkids. I’m counting on all you grandparents to help me get this very important project rolling. When you start spending your spare time on a sheep project with the kids, life will once again hold it’s meaningful purpose. The aches and pains you have will disappear, to say nothing of all the useless visits to your doctor. In short, be like the grandfather in Tennessee, share your life with your grandkids, and feel the very presence of God when you enter the barn.

Pondering the Propensities

I never claimed to be brilliant, in fact, I never was the best student, but I do enjoy being around people that are. I have a feeling that John Eagle, President of our Suffolk Association, is such a person. He not only used this big word, but he has another great word that we all understand: compromise.

I’m sure this time you all realize that our two associations have merged. Things have not gone as fast as I expected, and I’m sure many of you feel the same way. Before we get upset with this situation, we must remember that our two associations have been split for 60 years. It takes time to settle strong ideas and feelings, especially when you have 16 directors located all over America. The only way the problems can be accomplished is through compromise. Let’s hope our directors can do this for the good of the Suffolk sheep business.

Now let’s get back to John’s big word: Propensities. To be honest, I didn’t have a clue what it meant. My wife, who is good with words, didn’t know either. Feeling that knowledge was always important, she looked it up in the dictionary. It means: an "intense and often urgent natural inclination." In short, I think it means to get things done quickly and properly.

John used this big word to describe Brenda Miller, a top Suffolk breeder from his state of Oregon. Brenda and I had a great conversation in Louisville, last year, about the sheep business and life in general. Her thoughts and comments were such like mine that is was scary. While she is probably half my age, we are very much alike, meaning we make our living off the land and our livestock.

Our conversation got on the big topic of sheep business today, and you probably guessed it, the wether business. At Louisville, the excitement, interest, and yes, the fun, all seemed to be invested in the wether show. Our question was: "Has it really helped the sheep business in general?" I hate to yell you, but we both doubt it has. At this time it has nothing to do with the real world of raising sheep. Is it hardly more than just a sport? It is simply a three to nine month project where kids and their families miss the great birthing miracle, a special bonding and culture that only comes with the breeding of sheep. This is something important to think about, you better be sure. I forgot to tell Brenda that if she thinks the wether business has gone wild and crazy, she should go to the cattle barn and see what it’s like to show a beef steer. In the beef show, hair is now the big thing, in fact it’s the name of the game. We now trim the steers just like the breeding sheep. The time one can spend on a show steer is endless.

Another thing I didn’t tell Ms. Miller is that I wouldn’t even think of eating one of those tired old lambs or steers. I’m sure it would be like eating a racehorse. I never have been sure which species has run or walked the farthest.

Somebody to Love

My wife, Thelma, of over 51 years, who had never been sick a day in her life, suffered a massive stroke the 20th of November. She was cutting our youngest son, Brian’s, hair, when she just went numb. Of course I would have put her to bed thinking that she was tired. Thank God, Brian, his wife, and our grandson, Jeff, had the good sense to get her to a hospital.

She was in a coma for five days, being kept alive by all sorts of gadgets with tubes and wires all over her body. The doctors gave her little chance of living, let alone being normal. I finally couldn’t take it any longer, and on the following day, I went to her room and yelled her name, just like I have for years when I wanted her to come to the barn to help a ewe have her lambs. She opened her eyes for the first time, and with tears in her eyes, I could see she wanted to tell me that she could make it, and not to worry.

A million things went through my mind those terrible days. The feeling of loneliness at times was almost unbearable. I do not know what I would have done without my four children and 13 grandchildren. I spent endless hours by her side. I’m sure she knows we tried to pay her back for the love and attention she always gave us.

At this time, by some great miracle, or special act of God, my loving, giving, caring, hard-working wife is almost back to normal. During this time we had received over 200 cards and letters. We feel blessed with your caring words, and we cannot describe what it meant.