The Great Escape

Milah over at View From My Back Porch posted a couple of days ago about her daughter's cows getting out. Just had to chuckle as she described chasing those cows around and her story brought back one of the funniest memories I have from childhood. When I was maybe 7 years old we moved into a small house that had only a small plot of land. My Daddy had always "farmed" as much as possible. We never owned land but he would rent property that had land enough to raise fields of corn or cotton as well as have chickens and cows. But this house just didn't have the land. Still he had one cow that he was keeping. I was too young to remember the specifics as to why we moved into that house in the first place or why he just had to keep that cow but I do remember we were only there two months at the most. Daddy's cow had to be tied up in the back yard because there was no fence, no cow lot, nothing but the back yard. We hadn't been there long when one morning, Mother and my brother - Sidney - and I heard a strange noise coming from outside. Perplexed, we looked at each other and listened carefully. The noise started soft, got louder and louder and then gradually faded away. It was a sound coming from all around the house, not just from one direction. I was absolutely terrified! I just knew it was the Boggie Man coming to get me. Finally, Mother headed out the door to see where that sound was coming from and what was its' source. When we got out the front door, we saw a blur go whizzing by. It took a few seconds for us to realize what we were look at. It was Daddy hanging onto that cow's tail and running for dear life! Seems the cow had broken the rope that held her in the back yard and was making a mad dash for freedom. Daddy had grabbed the only thing he could - her tail. Round and round the house they went and as Daddy made each round he yelled "Siiiidneeey! Siiiidneeey" The effect on the sound as Daddy went around and around the house made it difficult to understand what we were hearing but he was just calling for Sidney to come help get that cow under control. I was so relieved that it wasn't the Boggie Man coming to get me that all I could do was laugh. Daddy, of course, did not think it funny at all. It wasn't long until we moved from that house into the house that really became our home. The new house had a couple of acres so Daddy could have his cows and he always grew a nice garden but farming still meant he had to rent his truck patches. This would be the house where my brother and I spent most of our childhood; where mother and daddy spent over fifty years, and where each in their own time would die. Lots of good memories in this old house, too, but they will be for other postings. The weekend is coming up and I hope you have a great one. Pray for our country and God Bless!