In early April, our horses finally arrived at the farm – two Paso Finos named Serafina and Sonny. We had to really work to get the pasture ready for them. Here’s how it’s been going. . .
Situation 1: Upon arrival, we realized that one of our horses has asthma issues related to smoke exposure. Friends, it’s burning season in Kansas. This means that many farmers who enrolled in CRP with the federal government, are burning their fields to help keep invasive trees and weeds at bay. It’s good for the ground when done at appropriate intervals, but bad for lungs and allergies, including our horse.
Having a horse with an inflamed airway is not fun. She takes medication every day – well she does if she eats it. This week, she needed to have her temperature taken so I learned how to take rectal temps on a horse – by taking one. That was not in my 100 year life plan. I could see my mom as if she was there with me saying . . . “Jesus, LaVerene, just get out of the way.” So I harnessed her strength, wisdom, and get it done attitude, and mustered enough courage to take the temp.
Situation 2: This year we had a stable built so that we have a place to keep the horses during blizzards, etc. This week we tried to put the horses in there to help minimize smoke exposure for Serafina. Well, we caught Sonny (4 year old gelding) first and I took him in. Serafina got upset about it, which she clearly communicated to Sonny. Sonny got stressed and then proceeded to kick his stall door down. He then sprinted out of the barn, and across the property until he found Serafina and the greenest grass on our 80 acres to eat. True story. Lesson learned. They travel from pasture to barn together from now on. . .We will all, horses included, be having therapy at a later date!
Ongoing Situation: Water. . . Luckily, in our pasture, we paid to have a well dug so our horses are okay. However, part of our decision to move here was based upon our approval to receive water from a local rural water district. For the last several months, that has proved very difficult. Presently, the water we have access to most of the day drips slowly from the faucet. Their contract says that we must pay the bill, even if we don’t use the water. What if we can’t use the water?
Check out the video below to see how bad it is. This is actual video footage with the faucet fully turned on. I didn’t realize how bad infrastructure in rural America was until moving here. Friends, it’s bad. Since I didn’t know – I’m guessing many others don’t know so I’m taking some time to help people be informed.
Now for the why: Well, here is a video of why we keep going. Look at this sunset and watch Sonny run down the fence line in the prairie. There is something undeniably beautiful about a Paso Fino horse on the prairie, grazing on tall grass. We get glimpses of this kind of reward daily, despite the turmoil.
Seeing the horses in a 15 acre native grass pasture reminds me of what it must have been like before this land was colonized and horses and bison roamed free. I can see a snippet of what my Kickapoo ancestor, Cloud Black Thunder saw. I can also see what my great great immigrant grandparents took. It’s an interesting position to find oneself in – holding space for such duality.
Our farm is counter-cultural in our endeavors – putting land back to native grass and actively building wildlife habitat. Anyone with financial swagger would say we are nuts. This is a poor investment according to people who value capitalism. The investment is (I hope and think) a different kind of reward. In truth, when I see nature return, most of the time I weep at its beauty.
For far too long, we as a country have sacrificed the permanent on the altar of the immediate. This has put us all, whether we admit it or not, in a very precarious position environmentally. We, at The Old Wasmer Place, are planning for long periods of drought and extreme weather to the best of our abilities. It seems that water scarcity is becoming a bigger problem everyday.
As my favorite bluegrass band, Balsam Range sings. . .”I guess we’ll all drink money when the well runs dry.”