Blessed Beyond Measure.

[Maple Leaf Angus]

Sometimes it does us good to just sit back and look at what we have, rather than worrying about what we "have not". Yesterday gave opportunity for one of those moments.

My sister and her husband dropped in for a visit and the evening meal, and since it was another super hot day, we just sat around in the shade and watched my cooking fire burn down to a bed of coals. Yup, that's right, I made a wood fire on which to cook supper.

Even though it must have been 90 in the shade, the birds did not slow down their singing one bit. The smell of new hay was heavy on the air. The cattle next to the yard were ambling about lethargically, almost to hot to graze, but feeling a need to get something into their tummies.

When the time was right, we put the foil-wrapped taters on the grill in the blistering heat. Then, we got the peppers, onions, celery, mushrooms, carrots (and a few other things I can't remember) mixed in oil and seasonings and dumped into the frying pan for a big ole' stirfry.

When the taters were about half cooked, we got to the good part - three big juicy sirloin steaks spread out next to the taters. They had been marinaded for the afternoon, but that might have been a waste of time.

When those big steaks were done just so, they were the most tender, melt-in-your-mouth morsels you ever tasted. There seems to be nothing like a bit of wood smoke to give a piece of meat an unmatchable flavor.

Then we got to sit down together for a meal that most of the world's peoples can only dream of. Didn't near finish the food we had prepared. Could hardly make a dent in the big bowl of fruit salad that my son and I had thrown togther that afternoon.

But that's o. k., because last nite before I went to bed, I snuck over to the fridge and helped myself to one more piece of steak, and it almost tasted better than when it came off of the grill. Don't know how that could be. And the fruit salad was beginning to get that mellow blended-together taste, so another helping of it didn't land wrong either!

Good food, good family time, a good life . . .

Thank you, Lord, for your immense blessings!

And to think that I had no choice to be born into this rich, beautiful land . . .

[HAY MAKER]

I admire your attitude MLA........................good luck

[Soapweed]

Great post, MLA. We are, truly, blessed beyond measure. There's nothing better than fresh air, good water, good friends, and plenty of elbow room.

Thanks for the reminder.

[ranchwife]

MLA---thanks for the beautiful reminder of how it is truly the simple things in life that make it soooo beautiful........not diamonds, mercedes or bmw's....not fancy houses with maids and servants....not yachts or private jets.....good food, good friends and a loving family are the glue that holds together true "wealth"

[Big Muddy rancher]

[Soapweed]

Big Muddy rancher: "Soapweed you forgot one thing. Food cooked over a open fire."

You are right, but the way it is justified is that if you have fresh air, good water, and plenty of elbow room, you are talking about ranch country, so there's bound to be cattle around. Cattle = beef = food, so it done took care of itself, and the good friends can help a feller eat it.

[Hanta Yo]

We grill outdoors all year long. Maple Leaf Angus, it doesn't matter where we live, we as "beef producers" (we're not strictly cow-calf, we care about the product we PRODUCE) love to eat what we raise, are proud of what we raise, and if we have some garden doins' thrown in, WOW, what a home-made feast!!! I loved reading your description of your meal, as it describes ours every day. We love listening to the birds, watching the bulls (happy as clams) in their pasture across the way, the smell of sage and of alfalfa, and the flowers around the yard. We are so truly blessed...we all take this for granted, (or have in the past), so THANK YOU for reminding us to "smell the roses" again. Maybe I'll come up with a "boring" description of a day on the ranch at our place. Hey, maybe this will catch on to everyone, I know we all love the place we are, I would love to smell the smells, hear the sounds, see in my mind the beauty of each and every ranch represented here on Ranchers.net. Maybe we can learn some "literary" descriptions, but what a chance to share our livestyle with those who have no clue... And DON'T tell me those who don't have a clue will try to take our land away from us to "protect it" We already protect it, and love it, and it is our home, our roots, our life, our everything.
'Nuf said.