A friend of mine sent out a picture of antelope in her backyard. She lives in a very remote place in Wyoming. But when I saw this picture it kind of took me back to an extremely memorable summer when I was younger.
When I was around 12 years old, I spent the summer with my neighbor and her friend at her friends cabin right outside of Colorado spings up in the mountains. It was the cutest house you ever did see. It had this babbling brook around it with a gated entrance that said Swiss Chalet. The house was kind of small painted white, but had mountain scenes painted all around it. On the house were painted deer, antelope, mountains, it looked like a postcard. Her father had painted the house back in the 1930s and he kept it up until his death in 1974. Behind the house were two pretty large mountain/hills. Anyway, in the back yard she had some hammocks set up (there were no neighbors anywhere for miles and miles) and I went out one night and fell asleep in the hammock. I remember waking up the next morning, it had just turned light outside and there was a very light fog around me. Stepping out of the fog and coming towards me were a whole herd of deer. I just laid there while they all just ate grass around me, it is still etched in my memory so clear. Even when I moved to get up they didn't move at all. They told me that the deer on her land are protected and they have lived for decades without really being around people. I couldn't imagine that this day and age but 30 years ago, it was probably true. Of course when I tried to pet one they wouldn't stand for that and all ran away, but it was incredible. I think it was so magical because I knew they were wild. I have never seen anything like that again, just in the zoo or at a nature preserve, but nothing like that.
One funny note about that trip (actually it's not that funny but to me with a warped sense of humor, it was really funny). The reason my neighbor's friend wanted to go up to her parents house (she hadn't been there in a while which was evident with the hundreds of mice that were running around that we had to set traps for and dispose of - very traumatic for a sensitve 12 year old) anyway, it was around 1977 and her father had died in 74 and her mother and just recently died at that time (okay this is not the funny part I don't want you to think I'm that crazy warped). Well, she had brought her mother to Kansas City to put her in a nursing home so after she died, she had both her parents ashes in the car in two little silver, metal box earns with no writing on them. Her plan was to sprinkle their ashes on top of one of the little mountains in back of their house. Well, she didn't tell that plan to us until later. One morning my neighbor Ruthie - who reminds me a lot of Ruth Gordon that played Minnie Castevet in Rosemary's baby - just a little over dramatic over the top personality...anyhoo, she and I got up for breakfast one morning and she said she was going to make us some hot cocoa. I heard her in the kitchen grunting and groaning and struggling with something when her friend Bea walked in the kitchen and screamed - RUTHIE, What are you doing with my mom's ashes????? Ruthie screams and says - WHAT??? I thought it was hot cocoa - OH MY GOD, I almost drank your mother! - At first Bea was horrified but then we are started laughing so hard (of course me being 12 years old made it a LOT more funny and I had to call my mom instantly and tell her what happened). I'm still laughing about it this morning.
I know, I'm crazy...hee hee hee
When I was around 12 years old, I spent the summer with my neighbor and her friend at her friends cabin right outside of Colorado spings up in the mountains. It was the cutest house you ever did see. It had this babbling brook around it with a gated entrance that said Swiss Chalet. The house was kind of small painted white, but had mountain scenes painted all around it. On the house were painted deer, antelope, mountains, it looked like a postcard. Her father had painted the house back in the 1930s and he kept it up until his death in 1974. Behind the house were two pretty large mountain/hills. Anyway, in the back yard she had some hammocks set up (there were no neighbors anywhere for miles and miles) and I went out one night and fell asleep in the hammock. I remember waking up the next morning, it had just turned light outside and there was a very light fog around me. Stepping out of the fog and coming towards me were a whole herd of deer. I just laid there while they all just ate grass around me, it is still etched in my memory so clear. Even when I moved to get up they didn't move at all. They told me that the deer on her land are protected and they have lived for decades without really being around people. I couldn't imagine that this day and age but 30 years ago, it was probably true. Of course when I tried to pet one they wouldn't stand for that and all ran away, but it was incredible. I think it was so magical because I knew they were wild. I have never seen anything like that again, just in the zoo or at a nature preserve, but nothing like that.
One funny note about that trip (actually it's not that funny but to me with a warped sense of humor, it was really funny). The reason my neighbor's friend wanted to go up to her parents house (she hadn't been there in a while which was evident with the hundreds of mice that were running around that we had to set traps for and dispose of - very traumatic for a sensitve 12 year old) anyway, it was around 1977 and her father had died in 74 and her mother and just recently died at that time (okay this is not the funny part I don't want you to think I'm that crazy warped). Well, she had brought her mother to Kansas City to put her in a nursing home so after she died, she had both her parents ashes in the car in two little silver, metal box earns with no writing on them. Her plan was to sprinkle their ashes on top of one of the little mountains in back of their house. Well, she didn't tell that plan to us until later. One morning my neighbor Ruthie - who reminds me a lot of Ruth Gordon that played Minnie Castevet in Rosemary's baby - just a little over dramatic over the top personality...anyhoo, she and I got up for breakfast one morning and she said she was going to make us some hot cocoa. I heard her in the kitchen grunting and groaning and struggling with something when her friend Bea walked in the kitchen and screamed - RUTHIE, What are you doing with my mom's ashes????? Ruthie screams and says - WHAT??? I thought it was hot cocoa - OH MY GOD, I almost drank your mother! - At first Bea was horrified but then we are started laughing so hard (of course me being 12 years old made it a LOT more funny and I had to call my mom instantly and tell her what happened). I'm still laughing about it this morning.
I know, I'm crazy...hee hee hee
No comments:
Post a Comment