“Sherman Andrew” my father, Avery T. Beck was calling me. I was playing basketball on my dirt basketball court where my big wooden backboard was connected to the west side of our big wooden granary. I was eleven years old, about the same age as Aaron, Spencer and Caleb almost ready to be a deacon. I had a new basketball net on my basketball hoop and I was having a great time trying to make baskets. I was mainly practicing side shots where I would dribble the basketball either on the left or right of the hoop and bank the ball off the backboard into the hoop and when I did it right, the new net would make a swooshing sound that was so, so sweet! Such a sound is one of the sweetest sounds I know.
I knew I needed to answer my dad when he called, so I reluctantly put the ball down by the basketball goal and ran around to the east side of the granary which was my dad’s shop where he had a his tools and equipment and would repair farm machinery and things. “Sherm” my dad was saying, “I’m in the middle of this repair work on this sugar beet cultivator and need to finish today. I want to test it out this evening so I can use it behind the tractor at 5:00 AM on Monday morning.
I knew that my dad thought Monday was an important day of the week, and he considered getting a good start on the work on Monday was a very important thing. He used to wake my brother Paul and me up about 5:00 AM on Mondays; (he would wake up about 4:00 AM) by saying: “Wake up you guys………The day after tomorrow is Wednesday, the week is half over, and you haven’t got anything done yet!”
Then he would sing: “Wake-up and do something more, than dream of your mansion above…..doing good is a pleasure, a joy beyond measure, a blessing of goodness and light……….”
My father told me that he would like me to jump on my horse, Bonnie, take the big shovel and go down in the lower field and change the irrigation water from one end of an alfalfa field to the other side of the field. It would be rather easy, since I would mainly need to remove a canvas dam which was just a little larger than a baby quilt. I would pull it out of the water, clean the mud off with my shovel and place it on the ditch bank to dry. This would allow the water to flow on down the ditch and water the rest of the alfalfa field. I would need to take some dirt and dam up the small ditch where the water had been going so has to stop the water from continuing to water the part of the field that had sufficient water. It was easy assignment and I was happy to help my dad with this work. I liked assignments on the farm that would allow me to ride my horse.
I put my rubber boots on that went almost up to my knees, I put the bridle on my old horse, Bonnie, who seem to be excited to get out of her corral. I think she knew we were going down in the alfalfa fields where she would be able to pull some new green alfalfa up and eat it instead the old dry hay which we fed her when she was in her corral. As you likely know, hay is alfalfa that is dry and put in stacks to feed to cattle and other livestock.
I had put the shovel against a fence so that once I was on the horse’s bare back, I could put it over my shoulder and hold it with my right hand while I held on to the reins of the bridle with my left hand. The bridle is the thing made out of leather and metal which I had put on my horse’s head and in her mouth. Away we went and Bonnie was excited because without any encouragement from me, she began to lope, which is between walking and running for a horse. It felt good to be on the horse, I was sweaty from playing basketball and there was a slight breeze going across the fields as we headed down to the lower fields where we had a large field of alfalfa growing. Usually in one summer, you can harvest alfalfa three times: 1st crop, 2nd crop, and 3rd crop. We had already cut the 1st crop and the 2nd crop was almost ready to harvest, so the alfalfa was quite tall as we stopped close by the canvas dam which I needed to remove from the ditch to do my assignment from my father. I just dropped the reins on the ground since I knew that Bonnie would just wait for me, happy to eat fresh alfalfa right from the field. However, my horse seemed cautious and jumpy. As I jumped off her back and grasped the shovel which I had stuck in the field like a spear while I got off the horse, I saw what Bonnie was worried about. About 9 feet away right next to the canvas dam was a small skunk! Before I could hardly think, the skunk looked at me with fearful eyes and then up went his back right foot and zippy-zoom, skunk stink-water was shot right at my face. That skunk was an incredible excellent shot; the stink-water came at me just like he was aiming a powerful super squirt gun. I quickly put the metal shovel in front of my eyes and the stink-water hit right in the middle of the shovel and went all over the wooden handle of the shovel, on my clothing and especially my boots. Bonnie quickly backed away, but I don’t think any stink-water got on her, and she didn’t run away, thank goodness.
Oh my goodness sakes alive, I had never, NEVER, smelled anything so bad, absolutely dreadful and awful. I went to back away from the skunk, because I knew that most skunks can shoot stink-water at least twice and the skunk evidently thought I wanted to cause him hurt and trouble, but I tripped over myself and down I went. As I rolled on the ground, I put my fingers to my lips and stuck my tongue out and blew as hard as I could, calling Jasper, The Friendly, Talking, Saber-tooth Tiger.
Before that skunk could shoot again, JASPER WAS THERE! THANK GOODNESS!!!!!!!!! Jasper told the skunk, (I couldn’t understand skunk talk, but Jasper explained it to me later) not to be scared and not to shoot me again. He told the skunk, I wasn’t going to hurt him or cause him trouble.
I saw the skunk almost smile and then much to my relief, he put his back leg down, and I was out of danger from being shot with stink water a second time. Whew………that was too close. I was so thankful that Jasper came quickly.
I quickly pulled out the canvas dam and let the water go down the ditch, I quickly put some dirt in the little side ditch so the water wouldn’t leak into the wrong field and then with difficulty, I got on my horse. Bonnie did not want me to get on her back because I smelled so bad. Finally, however, I did get on her back and turned to tell Jasper ”thank you” and he told me” You are welcome,” and he said: “call me any time until you turn twelve” and then Jasper reminded me that he wouldn’t be available to help me after I turned twelve. I thought to myself, maybe I don’t want to grow up and be twelve after all, even though I had been looking forward to it until this experience.
I went back to the house. My dad and mom said I was so lucky the skunk’s stink-water didn’t get in my eyes because that stuff can make eyes go blind. My mom had me take my clothing off outside the house, and she burned my clothing and my rubber boots. My dad had to replace the wooden handle on the shovel, since we couldn’t get the stink out of the wood, it did come off the metal shovel.
So that time, I called Jasper on purpose and thank goodness he came quickly to help me and to tell the scared skunk not to shoot me a second time. Oh my, I was one lucky boy. OH MY GOODNESS SAKES ALIVE, I’M GLAD JASPER CAME QUICKLY AND EXPLAINED HOW THINGS WERE TO THAT LITTLE SKUNK.
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