Rural Routes, Blog Version

REWIND

(“Rural Routes”, October 1982)

Bird hunting is big business these days and local eateries are kept busy feeding hungry hunters.

Several days ago my husband and I were interrupted in our noonday meal by a hesitant knock at the kitchen door. We opened the door to a thoroughly wet and frightened young man who had lost himself in the confusing vastness of the (local) community pasture. He had become separated from his father and other companions and didn’t know how to get back to them.

We invited him to sit down while we finished our meal, but he declined the offer, saying he was too wet and dirty to sit on a chair. The words came out in a rush now as he told us how had gone through ditches and ponds to escape the ‘cows’ that had chased him out of their pasture. To the uninitiated, all four-legged bovines are cows, regardless of gender.

“Cows won’t hurt you,” my husband said.

There was silence at first, then:

“I hate cows”, the boy said. He obviously did not believe my husband.

The boy’s father was found several miles south of our farm. The boy’s absence had only just been discovered and the father was relieved to find him so soon.

But not as relieved, I’ll warrant, as the son.

FAST FORWARD

Both the eateries in my small town are closed now. The hunters might stop for a snack at the local grocery store, but they’d have to take it outside to eat.

The community pasture is smaller than it once was. The pasture contained both municipal and Crown lands and several years ago the land use agreement between the municipality and PFRA was terminated. The municipal land is now used by a community grazing co-op. And last year the federal government announced plans to close its community pastures in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

I doubt this story would happen again in 2013. A teenager lost in the pasture would just whip out his cell and call his dad.

On second thought, I take that back.

He would text his dad.