7:43 p.m. - 2002-10-06
Sunday serenity
My Dad and I went traveling north and east of the city today. The weather was in the mid 60's F/ mid teens C. The country on this side of the city is called rolling grassland or high plains being at an elevation over 4000 ft/1100 km above sea level.
Big blue bowl - the sky - with wispy white trailers of cloud for accents. The hay has been taken off, with bales running at about $350 each right now because of the drought. Depending on the severity of the winter, it could mean great hardship for a lot of ranchers. They've already had to sell off a lot of their cattle and horses, at a great loss, to ensure that there was enough grass and feed for the balance of their stock. We did pass several herds along the road though. Black Angus mostly. Some sheep as well. Horses visible back in the pasture. Everything looks calm, prepared and serene. The dooryards are orderly, the farm houses are snug, the lawns manicured waiting for that first big snow. A lot of wildlife still in evidence - pheasants, rabbits, geese, hawks.
There were a couple of stories in the news this week about the wild animals' reactions to humans as they prepared for winter. There was the moose that went on a rampage in one of the towns a bit further west. It's their mating season and apparently one of the bulls decided that someone's yard was a barrier to his intended, so he trashed it. The homeowner was philosophical noting that they were living in moose territory so that was a chance they took. In another instance, a man had a close encounter of the third kind with a grizzly that was probably trying to get his fill of the last of the berries in the area. Again, he must have felt the human was competing with him in some way because he chomped down on the man's arm crushing the watch he was wearing. All things considered the fellow can count himself lucky. Bears don't usually stop at your watch.
I was telling my Dad about the workshop I had attended. I hadn't realized how much I miss being where expressing and freely debating ideas is encouraged. In the industry I work in I think they would still burn people at the stake for heresy, if they could get away with it, for expressing a thought not approved by the industry bosses. Walking on eggshells is about the only way to get through most days. Usually I just keep my thoughts to myself -I get into enough trouble just bringing forward the physical evidence of problems.
What I also miss is being around people who think beyond the latest fads or gossip and who are interested in the long term, rather than what they can get out of the immediate situation. Not all the people I deal with are like that - I always find one or two interesting people anywhere I go - but it is the norm in most of the offices I am sent into.
When I was growing up, I watched my parents take into consideration the family and the community whenever choices were necessary, so I find it difficult to operate from the other mind set. Debate at the dinner table was also a favorite pastime although my Dad is one of the most accomplished Devil's advocates I know. It's nearly impossible to beat him in a good argument - used to drive my Mom and a couple of my sisters crazy. The trick is not to take it too seriously. When we travel, if we aren't talking about family or history, we usually are having a good political debate. Today was a good day for that since we chewed over some of the material that was presented at the workshop and how it relates to some of the work I've done and some of the work my Dad did in years gone by. Then we moved on to international issues. (Bravo Papa Jean - nous vous remerci!) It helps to think out loud.
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