Category: Shalom Talk

After Hollywood settled down in life, he found a job working at the Q-Bar Ranch on the far west side of the Black Hills. He did not know how much he was going to love this job until after three or four years of work. He found it to be the perfect balance of solitude, time out on the range, chasing down the cattle that were in trouble, protecting them from the wolves and the bears and all the other critters that chased the cattle. He also loved the time spent with the men who worked on the ranch, working as small teams and sometimes in the evenings as they would sit and talk to each other, solving all the problems of the world.

But gradually, his most favorite time of all was the evening watch. Late at night, he’d go out on the range and he spent his turn on Guard. He was working and looking after the cattle to be sure that they were safe through the evening. It was the same type of job as a shepherd. He had read about this type of work in the Bible. Over the years he developed an affinity for scripture, he loved to read and study the passages his mother had introduced him to.

Yet tonight, there he was, riding his horse, watching the stars move, watching the shooting stars light up the sky, seeing the horizon change as the moon shifted across the heights. They could see the ridge outline and the mountains. They could see the cabin lights at the ranch. They could see the tree outline. And then he could hear his friends, who were a long way away, but they would be singing. They could hear each other sing. They sang beautiful harmonies. Slowly. He learned what they were singing. And then, when it was his turn, he would start a song for the others to sing. He would share the songs he learned from his mother. He often sang —

Moonlight on the prairie, cowboys are singing low.

Cattle are all sleeping, riders look to and fro.

Protecting the herd from trouble, cattle decide to trust us.

They come and touch my hand, never want to make a fuss.

These are simple songs. But they told the story of what a cowboy did and what a Cowboys life was like. The men that worked the range loved what they did for a living. Hollywood loved looking after the cattle. They all knew that these cattle ultimately would wind up on a dinner table someplace. So, while the cattle were in their care, they looked after them and gave them the best life possible. Make no mistake, the cattle are rough and tough. And yes, the cattle made a lot of noise and often resisted our efforts to look after them. Yet, the moments of tenderness we would experience with the members of the herd spoke volumes of the character and resolve the herd felt.

But in the end, everybody understood their role and the cattle really grew to appreciate these men as they raised them up over the years. Eventually the day came when we had to bring these herds into the gathering points. We gently loaded the cattle onto the train. These cows would go on a long journey.

But we know, we all seem to understand, and we even think sometimes the cattle understood how important their role was — people’s lives depended upon having something good to eat. The cattle lived a good life on the range but then gave themselves for others to live. And so, life progressed — it was not easy. It was not a life that was made for everybody. Our life was protecting and herding cattle. We spent time roping and gathering the cows during the daytime. We rode out into the rain, snow, hail, lightning, and heat to find and help the cattle. Sometimes we would see trouble on the horizon, when you are the only cowboy for 50 miles around, you are it. The cattle were our responsibility.

Yeah, you had those songs to sing, and at night when you could hear the silence, it was so, so quiet and so beautiful. But we had God on our side to keep us safe. We stayed the course, doing what needed to be done. And then came the songs and the poetic lyrics about real life, his life. And he was saying things like —

Soon it will be morning, west wind is turning gray.

Cattle will soon awaken, At the break of day.

Up the trail we travel, each step defines the fun.

We count heads carefully, Never want to lose one.

For hours he would spend time on his horse, moving to and fro, checking on the herd, talking to them quietly, keeping the peace, keeping them calm. They would gather in small bunches, and the young would circle around, nudging his horse.

He would wait quietly for the night to pass because the cattle knew he was there to protect them; they knew that they were safe. So, they just rested.

Sometimes things did not go so well. Sometimes a coyote or a wolf would move in looking for an evening meal and you would have to isolate those cattle and get between the cattle and the threat – Hollywood would stand his ground. The cattle knew their guard was going to take care of business. So, Hollywood would stand there and he would talk quite loudly and let that predator know he needed to move on, he was in the wrong place. Gradually Hollywood would coax the enemy away, and then the cattle would once again be relieved. They would be at peace and they would settle down once again, and he would return to his singing. Hollywood’s eye was always watching to be sure that the threat stayed far away and did not come close to his precious cattle.

Hollywood enjoyed the evening with his horse and his wonderful songs. He would look up at the stars, and he would describe the stars in song to the cattle. He would describe the way the moon looked, singing how the moonlight wrapped around his shoulders and lit up their eyes. He would sing what it was like to see the sunrise just starting to emerge. He would sing songs about how the warmth from the sun gradually emerged and filled up your face with pleasure. And then those songs would talk about the morning breakfast, what it was like to get a bite to eat during the day, and how welcome the rest was when your night’s work was done.

The songs were the threads that connected his life to God and to his work. As he got older, his songs became more important, he started writing them down so he would not forget. His voice lingers, even to this day, on the Wind River Range.

Exodus 14:13-14 — Do not be afraid, stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today … the Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.

Exodus 15:2-3 – The Lord is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.  The Lord is a warrior; the Lord is his name.

Please note: In 1956 a cowboy poet, Jim Jennings, published a short book about his experience working at ‘dude’ ranches in the west. My Great grandmother, Goldie Livingston, obtained a first edition copy of Jim’s self-published book in the fall of 1956.  The poetry in this story is adapted from Jim’s book.