I hadn’t seen Ray for several years when I ran into him at a horse sale. As we got caught up on each other’s lives, he reminded me of a day years ago when he and I were gathering cattle. Riding across a grassy meadow, we happened upon a friend of mine who had been staying at the ranch at Kilgore, Idaho. Duane was in a bit of a jam…his 1952 Willys flat fender had stalled while crossing a dry creek bed. He said that he thought a short pull start would get it going again. I threw a loop around one end of the front bumper and told Ray to get one on the other. We pulled the jeep out of the creek bed and into the meadow as the little four cylinder motor sprang to life with a pop.
Ray spoke wistfully of that day in the meadow at the ranch. If you had stumbled onto the scene without knowing what year it was, you’d have thought it was long ago and far away. It seemed like a time warp, a throw-back to a simpler life where a pull start was all that was needed to help someone on their way. Many of us who’ve lived long enough to see lots of change often yearn for an unscrambled life, disentangled from so many things that call our name.
In this season of hope, I pray that you can know the peace that surpasses all human understanding even though life has had its way with you. God’s blessings on your journey.