The second day of intense winds brings a knock on my door at 8:00 a.m. as I sit at the dining table with my breakfast of french pancakes and coffee. A morning ritual of checking my email and visiting the news sites. Like any of that news is going to change my day! But now interrupted by all 3 Setters sounding the alarm. Having lived in a secluded rural setting for over 30 years I'm still not used to having neighbors that can make stealth approaches then suddenly rapping on your door! Bam! Bam! Bam!
In my bathrobe I respond to the racket thinking "Who in the hell could this be?" My first thought was Mary the lady two blocks north who makes it her business to know mine it seems but as I go to the door and look through the glass its definitely not Mary. Its my friend Tom who I haven't seen in several months!
Anyway I welcome Tom back to N.D. getting him a cup of coffee as I finish my breakfast catching up on each others first few days of the season. Tom had been in town early for an adult education round table at the local Catholic church that meets every week. Having gotten to know a couple of the parishioners while attending church here he was invited to attend. It was a pleasant surprise and I suggested since there was no hunting to be done in the wind that we should take a ride 40 miles south to a little German community named Hague. There is a Catholic church there on the National Historic Register I thought Tom may appreciate seeing. I explained the article just featured in the Bismarck Tribune detailing a recent renovation of the church and its history. Besides I said we can scout out some areas I haven't looked at in a while as we travel.
Tom cleaned out his front seat while I got ready to go and we were off on our road trip. Whenever Tom visits we usually meet up on a catch as catch can basis and today was no different. On the way down we drove by areas we'd hunted over the years remarking about the changes to the landscape and the times we'd had. For years we were on the road during vacations sharing these times together. Then I eventually moved out here full time and our routine changed as all things do eventually just like the landscape and bird populations.
One thing that never changes though is our ability to share and discuss our views on a myriad of subjects. We sharpened these skills having spent many long hours travelling cross country to our various hunting destinations. Good conversations. Funny conversations. Deep philosophical and profound conversations. While we may see the world differently in many ways we share the belief that only we are responsible for how we choose to live our lives.
As we approach the tiny town of Hague you see the church steeple jutting into the sky. A picturesque setting indeed. I had hunted in this area many times stopping at the local cafe for a piece of pie or two on the way home but never ventured into St Mary's Catholic church until today. As we pull up the cornerstone reads 1929. Built in the midst of the depression years solely out of the generosity of the members its an incredible sight. Almost certainly out of place in its surroundings. When we enter it's a 600 seat high ceiling church with all the statuary and art work you would expect in any big city cathedral but right out here in a little prairie town. We linger taking it all in for about 45 minutes before exiting. It's a story about faith and the perseverance of people to preserve and protect their church. Giving all they could and then some. As you look around there are no obvious signs of any wealth that may have existed in the old homes around town. None. Only the prairie that surrounds it.
We capped off our tour with coffee at the local cafe. A simple stucco building on main street if you will. We talk as a couple hunters make their way in as I ask jokingly "What are you guys doing in here today? It's not raining out there is it?" They laughed saying they just needed a piece of pie before they went out. Being I expect in their late 60's or early seventies these guys looked like long time hunting partners just enjoying each others company. Not unlike Tom and myself really.
Tom picks up the check and I head out to the truck with the wind blowing and a light drizzle coming down now as well. As I sit waiting a suburban with Minnesota license plates pulls up. An older gentleman gets out dressed in well worn hunting clothes and makes his way to the steps. He's got to be in his late seventies and moves slowly. I see his dog waiting in the front seat and notice the old hunters got an obvious wet spot in his crotch as he climbs the steps. He doesn't look like he would care if anybody noticed he had an "accident". Maybe he didn't even know. I had just seen the hunters inside who had about ten years on us and this guy had at least another ten years on top of that I'd guess. But still out there. Walking behind his dog. I watched as he disappeared inside the cafe. Thinking whats it going to be like for me at that age. Would I still be out here in twenty years?
On the way home the conversation drifted a bit as it always does covering people and events that came to mind. I couldn't help think about the changes at hand in both our lives. Will our common interest survive another decade or two. Will the conversation still be as relevant. Will we still be hunting like the old hunter I had seen. As I thought about the two guys at the next table I wondered if they ever thought about the same things. For Tom and myself the direction we each choose to go over time will most certainly be our own doing. That's the way we both lead our lives. Whether or not we'll ever have a cup of coffee in Hague again or sit beside each other in St Mary's Catholic church I don't know. Can't say. While we can't predict the future maybe we saw it today in the hunters we came across. The two guys next to us still at it in their 60's. Then the old man. Alone. Barely able to make it up the steps with his dog watching in the front seat. It all made good conversation for sure and another "Road Trip" I'll remember.
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