Excerpt
The rocks had been placed as anchors to the bottom of
the skin tents hundreds of years earlier. It was easy to see why the
Indians would have selected such a site for their teepees. Joel could
imagine the braves rising in themorning and scouting the distance
from this incredible vantage point, watching for the telltale dust
that would confirm the presence of a herd of buffalo.
After lying for a while on a mattress of grass and soaking up the
sun, Joel rose and, accompanied by Buddy, headed back to the
ranch house. As he strode down the hills he realized that he was
starting to appreciate how special a place this really was—from
the soaring eagle riding the swirling wind currents high above
him to the lushness of the rich meadows that stretched far below.
As he passed the small band of mares and their foals they
momentarily raised their heads from grazing and, as if feeling the
safety of the man who walked past, they returned to grazing. This
place that was so foreign to him only a month ago was starting to
feel like home. A really good home.
It was late afternoon by the time he made it back to the ranch.
Walking into the house at the end of the day, he was about to
engage in his ritual of taking the bottle of rum out of the cupboard
above the fridge and mixing a drink. Of course he knew that it
wouldn’t be just one drink. If tonightwas to be like any of the previous
nights on the ranch or back in Hong Kong, the first drink
would be the first in a series of a dozen or so, all of which would
sedate his craziness until eventually he would pass out. There was
something different about this Sunday. First of all, he had learned
about the incredible financial windfall he received for the old mare;
it was something that he still didn’t completely understand, but
something that he was determined to learn more about. Secondly,
free of financial burdens that had haunted him for much of his life,
Joel was feeling different. And thirdly, it was as if the serenity of
the hills had a special hold on him today.
Suddenly Joel realized that he had actually gone a day and a
half without a drink. This alone was some kind of record for him.
Libros Libertad 