Welcome to Carpenter's Bluff

Today Carpenter's Bluff Bridge connects Grayson County TX, with Bryan County Oklahoma.

Welcome to Carpenter's Bluff

In 1981 my maternal grandmother was very sick. At that time only one doctor in north Texas could treat her. It just so happened that the doctor was in Sherman, Texas. My mother and father decided to rent out our home in Wichita Falls and move with her. My grandmother found a house near the hospital and we found a small farm house in in the nearby countryside called Carpenter's Bluff

It was about twenty five miles to school and the bus ride took two hours to get to and from. We caught the bus at 6am and we made it home just shy of 5pm. My mom and dad worked from early morning to dusk. When we were home, we were right there with them. I milked the cow every day before school and worked with dad in the evening. I learned how to kill and clean fish, chickens, turkeys, and pheasants. We built chicken coops and a pig pen. In the early summer of '81 I learned how to castrate young pigs. I can still vividly recall the pungent odor.

My first horse was a young Appaloosa I named 'Apollo'. My grandma said he was the only thing on the farm greener than me. Right away, mom and dad used the opportunity to teach me how to castrate a horse. Mom said we had to, because she did not want him mating with her 'Paint' mare. "Besides," said mom, "It'll help calm him down so you can ride him".

"You are going to learn from him and he is going to learn from you", said my mom, a veteran farm girl. She chased me and that horse all over the stable yard. Every time he threw me mom grabbed him and held him, " Come on, get up and get back on!" She would yell. Mom had him by the halter when he raised up on his hind legs, dumped me on the ground, and pawed at her. She just pulled him back down and held him for me to get back on. Once again he raised up, this time I held on, but he caught mom with his hoof to the top of her head. It did not knock her down though. So while he was still in the air she tightened her fist and punched him right in the mouth. He dropped down on all fours, looked at her with a stunned look in his eyes. The two of them were instantly locked on to one another's gaze. Apolo looked down, nudged mom's arm as if to say he's sorry and mom caressed the side of his face. She gave him about ten feet of rope and began running him in a circle.

When Apollo and I were exhausted, mom said, " Ok, now we've got him where we want him." She grabbed a halter and lead rope and led us around and around in a slow walk. Then she led us out the gates and into the yard, where he could feed on the long Johnson grass. We took him to the back porch where my sister and brothers helped me wash and brush him. After we and Apolo had a good meal, Apollo stood by the gate and watched us while we worked in the garden. it was as if he felt more like a member of the family now, and not like a kept animal. I learned how to green rein him and soon, we were riding all over the stable yard.

A few weeks later I had saved up enough to get a bridle and bit. My grandfather bought me a used saddle and blanket, and I was all set. The only thing left was to acclimate him to the new digs and teach him how to obey signals. After an all day struggle to get him use to the gear, I was back on top. Mom rode her horse right next to me and held on to his lead rope. When I pulled the reins to the right, mom pulled him, and her horse 'Baby', to the right. She stopped them both when I pulled back on the reins. Soon, Apollo and I were accomplished riding partners.

A few months later mom bought a quarter horse from my uncle. Her name was 'Lady'. She was the daughter of the famed race horse 'Go Man Go'. She let me do all the work training Lady and soon my little sister was training her to be a cross country racehorse. Apollo and I spent many hours roaming the country side. We explored the woods behind our house and rode to the store for sugar, salt or what ever mom and dad needed. The bridge to Bryan County, Oklahoma was about three miles from our house on Farm Road 120. On the other side of the Red River was a little roadside store. There was a dance hall in the barn around back where everyone gathered on the weekends. Apollo and I would ride up nearly every day in the summer and soon made friends with the neighboring farmers. When my blossoming horse training skills were noticed, a man named Vernon Blackford agreed to pay me twenty dollars a week to come to his farm and help him break his ponies before he sold them. One week I made a deal with him to haul brush and dead trees off his property in exchange for a Shetland pony and a young goat. My younger brothers shared the pony and we all grew to have a 'love/hate' relationship with Billy the goat.

(Picture: Mom and Dad)

My family only lived in Carpenter's Bluff for a few years, but it was long enough to make an indelible impression on me. In Wichita Falls the ground is hard and mostly clay. The first time I road in the back of my dad's pickup truck and smelled the sweet air I felt at home. The soil was so soft you could stick your finger in it clear to the knuckle without effort. The grass smelled fresh and it was as if with every breath I was breathing life. We had only one TV channel and it did not seem to matter. Our time was spent outside, we ran and climbed, tended to animals and rode horses. We did'nt have much but what we had was enough.

(Picture: Me and My Cousin Jackie)

Today when I watch my children play, I feel like I am neglecting them. I would love to trade my son's GameBoy and Playstation for a hay loft in a barn, his bicycle and rechargeable Jeep for a horse and goat, and his Microwave diner for a home cooked chicken dinner with garden vegetables and drop biscuits with home made butter. I know my kids are ok and they have all they need, but there is just something to be said for the values of life a kid can only learn on farm.

This is the first post here at 'Carpenter's Bluff'. Unlike the content you will find at 'The Squamata Report', here you will find stories of family, local history, nature, farmlife, faith and light hearted stories of triumph and lessons learned. I built this site to give me a place to write about all the things that do not fit in the political environment of The Squamata Report. I hope you will check in from time to time.

God Bless!