OUR LAST DAY AT THE RANCH & A GOODBYE TO BELLE

We started the morning knowing it was our last day at the ranch.  I knew there would be many 'lasts' today & that always fills me with a sadness.  I have a habit of becoming attached to places & with our 7 weeks at the ranch earlier in the spring & our current 12 weeks now ending we have spent nearly 5 months of the past 12 months  right here on this great ranch in Arizona's Cochise County near McNeal Arizona.  We have made a few friends, had a really great time, & created enough memories to last a lifetime. 

     

OUR LAST MORNING WALK ….. GLEASON & PEARCE PLAYING

Took a last walk around the ranch after supper tonight saying goodbye to the chickens, the donkeys & Charlie the cat atop the hay bales.  Gleason & Pearce will do a last sleep over in the motorhome tonight before we leave in the morning.  Ranch owners Jeanie & Ray will be here early & it will be like a shift change with one crew coming on & one crew leaving.  We know Gleason & Pearce will really be happy to see them & that makes leaving a bit easier for us but I still always find it hard because I become so attached to the animals & especially the doggy guys.  Now, I had better get myself out of this sad mood or my whole post is going to become very soggy.

 

GLEASON & PEARCE WAITING FOR THEIR SUPPER TONIGHT & PEARCE WON’T EAT UNTIL I GIVE HIM HIS SMOOCH           (click pics to enlarge)

Had us a nice clear sunny morning going for us as we headed over to Belle's place to say goodbye around 11.  Belle's lady cousin, Willy & her friend Betty had arrived a few days ago from the east & we were glad we got to meet them.  It makes us feel much better knowing Belle is in capable & caring hands for the next month or so.  Two young fellows are in place for now at the ranch feeding & caring for the animals so we've got our fingers crossed that all will work out.  Belle was her usual beaming self when we came in & she always makes us feel so welcome.  She just loves Canadians:))  She had a few issues with her email program on the computer so Kelly set to work straightening things out again.  It's an old computer & I'm afraid Belle is fighting an up hill battle with it.  But she sure does well for 83.  Motty was able to get a lot of things corrected with it last week but the computer is just simply too old & too tired.  The computer is Belle's lifeline so I hope it hangs in there for as long as possible. We will be in touch with Belle via emails though & that is always a positive thing. 

                                

OK GUYS, SEE YA LATER…………

We chatted about the ranch, had us some laughs, some words of encouragement & some words of wisdom.  We talked a bit about Belle's health as well.  With Willy's & Betty's help she is finally going to give the Doctor a call Monday about her ongoing painful hip.  We were heartened by that & hope Belle can receive the proper medical attention now.  She broke that hip last August & had another fall after that.  Told her next time we see her we want to see her out of that wheelchair & outside in the fresh air.  While talking, her sparkling eyes suddenly lit up & she said, " I want to show you something."  Willy slipped into the other room & came back with a beautiful hand knitted afghan.  It was spun from goat hair & had all the vibrant colors of Belle's Peacock outside.  The blues, purples, & greens so perfectly blended together just like the Peacock itself.  A very big warm & sincere thankyou goes out from all of us here to our email friend Renee up in British Columbia for doing this for Belle.  Renee, I wished you could have seen the joy & excitement in Belle's face today.  She was bubbling like a little school girl at the thought of a stranger from afar taking the time to make that for her.  She is also looking forward to seeing you on your travels to Arizona soon.  Thankyou for being so thoughtful & thankyou to all the other folks as well who have taken an interest in Belle's life & have sent her letters & emails of encouragement & help.

 

BELLE’S NEW AFGHAN WITH THE COLORS OF BELLE’S PEACOCK

We stayed for a little over an hour & then it was time to go.  It was time to say goodbye to Belle Starr.    Seems it was only yesterday that we were saying hello to Belle for the first time but now here it was time to say, "OK, see ya later."  And see her later we just might, depending where our travels take us over the next few months & if it's anywhere near here on our return trip we'll definitely stop in to see her.  If not, maybe we'll make it back in the fall.  We'll still be able to be a part of her life though & stay informed as to how she is doing & how the ranch is coming along.  It has been quite a whirlwind of emotions & activities these past 6 weeks with seldom a dull moment at the Silverado Ranch but despite the ups & downs I am a better person today for having met Belle.  She has taught me something & I know it will take time for it to sink in & become sorted out in my mind but she has definitely planted some new software in this old tired hard drive head of mine.........and I thank you for that Belle.

Didn't want to wait until morning to hitch up the car so upon arriving back at the ranch I moved the motorhome ahead a bit, wiggled the car in behind & hitched it up.  Dumped the gray & black water tanks & stowed the gear.  Added water to the fresh water tank & disconnected the water hose.  Only thing left to do in the morning is pull in the slides, take down the Star Choice satellite dish, & pull the electrical plug.  That's it and we are gone.  No idea where yet but maybe we'll have that figured out by the time we get to wherever it is we are going to. 

ALL HITCHED UP & READY TO ROLL IN THE MORNING

And I want to welcome the FREELY LIVING LIFE family & John R to our travels.  Thankyou for taking an interest in the Bayfield Bunch & their daily activities.  Much appreciated:))

OK, better wrap this up or I'll be typing more sad stuff into this post.   I'll be OK once we get a few miles on down the road but until then I've got a couple old ranch Pals to spend some time with now because tomorrow morning I have to tell them...........OK guys, see ya later:((

GROANER'S CORNER:((  As you slide down the banister of life, may the splinters never point the wrong way!!

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The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.