Member-only story
An Ode to Grandpa Lee
An old-time pioneer amid modern vanity and “progress.”
The man stood tall in the wind with the sun beating down on his flat-brim cowboy hat. He was a working man, focused on his pioneer family in the western country they called home.
Building and designing structures high and wide, the man skipped across wooden beams high in the air, under shadows cast only by moving clouds; wide open spaces watched the scene as death-defying feats were carried out in relative obscurity, as just another day of work.
The man was an old-timer with relatively few years to boast, a before his time pioneer with an adventurous and loving wife plotting business in sagebrush lands far beyond the hyped city life bustling with seemingly meaningless activities.
His skin was as leather, scorched in the sun and beaten with high winds containing drifting sand mixed with alkaline dirt. The dry mountain air in the high desert cleansed his heart with comfortable respite from the high temps and harsh weather endured.
The season wasn’t to be wasted, yet taking it easy wasn’t forgotten, as the hard-working pioneer kept his sugary snacks and soda in an easy-to-access thermos in the back of his Ford or Dodge work truck. Rushing around wasn’t as important as enjoying and appreciating the journey at hand.
