Borrowed Trouble

Chapter Four: Samuel

In the days following Francis' death, there was definitely a shift in mood around the Barrett home. While both father and son were upset over the loss of the woman in their lives, there was a new purpose, a new energy in both parties.

For Samuel this was a chance to start his life—a life he felt as though he placed on hold for his mother. Although, he wouldn't change anything for the time he got to spend with her and all that he did to help his father in later years. There came a point during Francis' long illness that Henry decided he was needed more at home than in the stockyard where he had made a career of helping with all manner of stock that was driven into the larger city by those outlying farms.

That was never his father's dream though. In the early 1800s, Henry Barrett and his young wife had left the east coast in order to travel west. This was at the early onset of westward migration. At that time there was no gold rush in California. There really wasn't even an easy path west. Most of those travelers were fur trappers following a path only passable by foot and at times horse.

It was definitely different now. People were leaving Saint Louis in droves to travel to this new western land. Most were looking for the opportunity to strike it rich—but not the Barretts. No, they were just looking for the opportunity to start anew. To start fresh. To find a place where a dream could be fulfilled and new memories could be made while still cherishing the old memories.

It was these thoughts that filled the minds of both men as they readied for their adventure. Daily conversation centered around possibilities. Where would they go? What would they need? And most importantly, when would they leave?

There was one item that was discussed that was never a question though. They never actually pondered what they would do when they got there because they knew exactly what that would be. Ranchers. They were going to settle a piece of land and become ranchers.

It made sense. Henry had worked with cattle to make a living, granted though it was just in a stockyard, but it was still cattle nonetheless; and when he decided he needed to spend more time at home, Samuel took his place.

In fact, Henry had always wanted to work with livestock. It was the reason he and Francis had decided to travel west in the first place. They wanted to take advantage of all the land had to offer. They wanted to raise cattle and produce and essentially be a self-sufficient operation unto themselves. That's also how Samuel has been raised—to respect the land and all it had to offer. So what was once Henry's dream had now also become his son's dream. They truly were like two kids preparing for the adventure of a lifetime. And that is exactly what it was.

Samuel looked through the catalog open on the table, writing that which he thought was necessary for the upcoming journey. "I'm thinking we need to double up on all the seeds we were originally planning on taking. We don't want something to happen to our first year's crop and then not be able to get anymore seeds."

"Sounds good to me. I'd hate to have to live without tomatoes," Henry responded. "That's not really a life worth living."

Samuel smiled at his father who was busy trying to mend a pair of socks—something both men were able to do after Francis had taken to her bed about two years ago. He'd have to agree. Tomatoes were a staple in their life. While neither could cook very well, there was too much that could be done with a tomato to make whatever had been burnt on the stove more palatable. And if it couldn't be saved, there was always soup, and tomatoes added a lot to any soup base.

The pair had finally settled on a departure time. They decided to leave in the early spring. In just about two short months, they would be leaving out of Saint Louis heading toward Independence, Missouri. From there they would be following a group led by William Randell, a man revered for his ability to safely lead people west. While they wouldn't be traveling the entire way, the idea was that they would settle land not far from an established city and hopefully a site destined to have railway at some point in the near future.

In their minds, the railroad was key to the future success of their ranch. Since they would be starting off small, the closer they were to transportation, the less they would lose in the actual driving of the herd. At least to begin with they wanted to reinvest as much as their profit as possible back into the bovines they planned on raising.

What was once a dream was quickly becoming their new reality. It was just about time to start the actual packing of the newly purchased wagon sitting out behind their house.