The
Cow Pasture
When I was about seven years old, my
family and I lived on a farm owned by Earl Wallace. I think my
father did work for Mr. Wallace to pay for the rent of the house. I
don't believe the house is standing any longer. I can remember that
house as though it were yesterday that we lived
there.
On that farm was an apple orchard
behind our house, which was also a cow pasture. As you know, cows
can make quite a mess. Once, my cousin (a girl just a year or so
younger than I was), was visiting our house along with her mother, my
aunt.
She, along with my two brothers and
I, were walking through that cow pasture, and we came upon a cow pile,
which was very fresh. My older brother said to my cousin, "You know,
this is good to eat." Of course, she knew
better than that. My brother kneeled down and put his face just
above the cow pile and pretended to be licking it up. My other
brother did the same thing. Then my cousin said, "Okay, I will do
that, too." Then she proceeded to kneel down to pretend that she was
going to eat. When she did, my older brother hit her on the back of
the head and put her face right down into the middle of the cow pile.
When she raised her head up, she was
crying with everything she had. My brothers were laughing, and,
quite honestly, I cannot remember whether I laughed or not. She
began to run in a direction she thought was toward the house, but my
brother had to turn her around in the right direction.
She went toward the house, and by
this time my mother and aunt had come out of the house to see what was
going on. All I remember from that time is that my aunt was
screaming at everyone. She was really upset. I remember that I
had no discipline for this, and my mother and brothers disappeared into
the house. We have not talked about what happened from that day to
this; so I cannot tell you what happened to them. I am sure it was
good enough, because this never happened again.
