The morning construction began, the animals all stood together.
Hill Country, Texas. The moment construction worker Dan put his drill into the northwest corner of the farm, the cattle behind the fence stood up in unison. Ruby the horse neighs high in the air, Rex the old dog begins to growl low, and the animals, who had never been near this corner in ten years, were frozen over the fence today, looking at us. Dan said, “What’s going on?” Tom had no answer. Why had all the animals on the farm avoided this one corner for ten years?
My father’s words came to mind.
Each time the drill pierced the ground, the animals’ voices grew louder. My daughter Sarah ran out of the farmhouse. ‘Dad, there’s something wrong with the animals.’ As Tom Wheeler, 52, watched the scene, he remembered the words of his father, Edward, who had died two years earlier. Never do anything in there. Why did he say that? He passed away before I could ask him why. What exactly is written in the envelope left on the desk?
The drill hit something.
When the drill had dug about 60 cm into the ground, there was the sound of metal hitting something hard. Dan stopped drilling. ‘It’s not a rock.’ Tom moved closer. From the ground, he began to see something of wood and metal covered in dirt. At that moment, the animals’ cries stopped all together. The farm was engulfed in complete silence. Tom fell to his knees. What lay beneath the ground was about to be revealed.
My Father and Thunder’s Story
Ten years ago. Tom’s father, Edward, was a quiet man who had kept the farm for nearly 50 years. He seldom expressed his emotions and did not speak much to his family. However, he treated his only horse, Thunder, as if he were a different person. Thunder was a chestnut horse born on the farm, and was the first horse my father worked on when he was in his thirties. Tom had wanted to know what had happened between them since he was a child, but he had never been able to ask his father. What exactly was the bond between his father and Thunder?
Every morning at 5am, just the two of us.
Everyone on the farm knew of my father’s relationship with Sander. Every morning at 5:00, Edward went to Sander before any of the other animals. They stood side by side for half an hour alone, doing nothing. Tom’s mother used to say, “It was a conversation. As a child, Tom had no idea what that meant. It was not until long after Sander’s death that he understood.
The spring that Thunder died.
It was ten years ago in the spring that Sander died of old age. Edward was alone at the farm from morning to evening, not letting Sarah or Tom know. When Tom visited him the next day, his father was there as usual. When he asked, “Where’s Thunder?” He said one word: “Gone. He was gone. He said nothing more. But that weekend, the animals on the farm began to change. What was about to happen to the animals?
Animals began to avoid the northwest corner.
The week after Thunder’s death, all the animals on the farm began avoiding the northwest corner. It was Tom’s mother who first noticed. She took him to the vet and soil tests showed nothing wrong. Still, the cows, horses, and dogs would not eat grass from that corner. Edward never once said, “I wonder why. No one questioned the meaning of his silence at the time.
Among my father’s belongings was an envelope.
Edward died two years ago and Tom took over the farm. When he was sorting through his father’s study, he found an envelope with Tom’s name on it in the back of a drawer. But Tom never opened it. I don’t know why. He just felt that it was not the right time yet. The envelope lay in his desk drawer for two years. And now, something was about to emerge from beneath the ground. What “the time” had my father’s envelope been waiting for?
Decision to drill a well
Two years after taking over the farm, a severe lack of water trapped the farm. A check of the groundwater veins showed that the most likely location was in the northwest corner. My daughter Sarah told me. Grandpa’s words are important, but they mean nothing if the farm doesn’t last. Tom was unsure of his decision. That night when he called the contractor, Tom opened the drawer, wondering why the envelope was there. Then he closed it again.
On the first day of construction, the animals’ reactions exceeded expectations.
When construction began, the normally calm Ruby kept neighing violently. Bruno, the cow, did not leave the fence all day. The old dog Rex kept barking low at the excavator. Dan said, “I know what this farm animal is.” It was meant as a joke, but no one laughed. The next morning Tom went out to the farm and all the animals were standing quietly facing the northwest corner. What on earth do the animals know?
