Samuel

By Evan Snowberger

The book is about a young boy whose family is killed in a accident and the boy has to go and live with his uncle in Wyoming. The brother lives on and operates a ranch there and the main character has to go through a lot of changes from living in the big city in California to living on a ranch in Wyoming. The book starts with his move to Wyoming and covers his life until he is a grown man from there.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Feb 22, 2013
• ISBN: 9781481715454

Evan Snowberger

Evan grew up in Indiana in a small town. After he graduated from Purdue University he moved to Wyoming where he now lives with his wife and son. He currently works full time for a ranch outside of the town of Laramie, Wyoming.

Book preview

Chapter One

The year was nineteen ninety three and Samuel was at a tough spot in his life. He was ten years old, his parents and older sister had just died in an automobile accident, and he was being sent away to live with an uncle who he had only just met at his mom, dad, and sister’s funeral. To make matters worse, his uncle lived in Wyoming. Samuel had lived in Los Angeles his whole life and knew nothing about ranching or living on a ranch in the middle of nowhere, Wyoming. His uncle lived forty two miles from the nearest town. To say the least, this would be a big adjustment for Samuel.

When the driver finally pulled up to his uncle’s house Samuel was in shock. The house was small, maybe only three bedrooms, and there were no other houses for miles. This would be a huge adjustment for him. He knew that life would be much different for him here, the one thing he didn’t know however was just how different.

His Aunt Jennie came out to meet him when she saw the car pull up. Hello, she said, You must be Samuel.

Samuel didn’t say anything, he just nodded his head.

Your uncle Mike is out with your cousin Josh moving heifers. They should be back in just a bit, she told him. I will show you to your room.

Samuel glanced at a clock on the kitchen wall as they passed through. Seven p.m. the clock read, ‘isn’t that a little late to be out working,’ he thought. Why are they out working so late, he asked his aunt."

The heifers needed moved and they finally got time to do it this afternoon, she said. Here is your room she said. You can go get your stuff from the car and put it in here.

Samuel did just that. He was still trying to figure out what heifers were and why they would need to be moved, but he didn’t tell Jennie that because he didn’t want to seem stupid. He decided he would just have to look it up on the internet or something later. The driver of the car had put his stuff on the step and was leaving as Samuel and Jennie came back out the door.

Guess he didn’t want to stick around, said Jennie. He must have been in a hurry to get home to his family or somethin’.

Samuel just took his stuff to his room and unpacked a little. Jennie hadn’t called him for supper yet which he thought strange since it was nearly eight o’clock so he decided to use this time to get on the internet and see if he could find out what heifers were. He looked around the room and couldn’t find a computer anywhere. ‘I don’t understand,’ he thought, ‘why does my bedroom not have a computer?’ Once he figured out there was not one in his room he went to the kitchen and asked Jennie where the computer was and if he could use it.

I need to tell my friend back in L.A. that I made it here safe, he told her.

I’m sorry, but we don’t have one, she said. If you have his phone number you can use the phone and call him."

I don’t, he said, I guess I will just have to let him know when I can.

With that he went to the living room and found a dictionary on the bookshelf. He tried to find the word heifer in it, but he didn’t know how to spell it. He went back to the kitchen. He was still in shock that these strange people didn’t even own a computer. ‘I’m surprised they even own a T.V. he thought.

How do you spell heifer? he asked Jennie. I decided to just write my friend a letter.

He went back to the living room and looked it up. Heifer: a female member of the bovine species who has never given birth to a calf. He knew what a calf was; it was a baby cow, now he knew what a heifer was. ‘This ranch thing can’t be too hard,’ he thought, ‘I bet I learn it pretty quick.’ Little did he know that ranching was a hard life.

His mom had grown up here and he knew that. She had inherited half of the ranch when his grandfather had died the year before he was born and she had sold her half to his uncle Mike who had inherited the other half. Samuel had no idea what the ranch even looked like since he had never been there, but he had concluded when he arrived that it was going to be a lot different from L.A. and that there was no way that he could ever like it here even though he was told by his mother many times before she died that if he ever got to see it that he would love it.

Samuel just went to his room and lay on his bed after he looked at the dictionary. His uncle and cousin were not back yet and he had no idea when they would be. He just decided he would wait in his room for supper.

Chapter Two

When his uncle Mike and his cousin Josh finally got home at around nine o’clock that night Samuel was sound asleep on his bed. Mike sent Josh in to wake him up. Josh was only year and a half older than Samuel, but looked and acted a few years older.

Wake up, said Josh shaking his foot. You don’t wanna miss supper do ya?

You must be Josh, said Samuel opening his eyes slowly.

Sure am, said Josh cheerfully, and you must be Samuel.

I am, said Samuel.

Let’s go eat, said Josh leaving the room. There won’t be any food left if you don’t get movin’.

As Samuel staggered into the kitchen everyone was sitting at the table waiting on him.

I’m your uncle Mike, said his uncle sticking out his hand.

I’m Samuel, he said sticking out his hand awkwardly.

They shook hands briefly. Well, now that everyone has met let’s eat, said Mike.

Everyone began eating and as Samuel picked up his fork and began to eat Josh spoke. This place is a little different than L.A. huh, he said.

A little, said Samuel.

Don’t bother the poor boy with too many questions on his first day; said Jennie, I’m sure he has enough goin’ through his mind already.

She was right; he wasn’t ready to answer any questions just yet. Josh did as he was told and the conversation the rest of the meal was either about the ranch or local events. Things Samuel knew nothing about.

Well boy, said Mike looking at Samuel, You may not think much of this place right now, but it will grow on you. You may even grow to love it as much as the rest of us.

Samuel just sat there quietly and finished his meal.

Would you leave the poor kid alone, said Jennie, he’s been through enough for one day.

The meal was good and Samuel ate all of what was on his plate. Mike and Josh ate second and third helpings, but Samuel had more than enough after just one. ‘Those two sure can eat,’ he thought to himself. They could eat a lot, but the work they did made them able to eat more than the average person. At least the average person that Samuel knew.

After supper they all went to the living room to watch television. Mike began flipping through the channels in order to see what was on.

Why don’t you just check the guide channel? asked Samuel.

We only have eight channels, and none of them is a guide channel, said Jennie.

What’s a guide channel? asked Josh.

It’s something they have on cable television, said Jennie, they only have cable television in town.

No cable, only eight channels, said Samuel, how on earth do you find something to watch?

If there is nothing on any of our eight channels then we just find somethin’ else to do, said Mike flipping through the rest of the channels.

Samuel was astonished. What kind of place was this? How was he going to be able to live here? He didn’t know the answers to these questions. All he knew was that this was an entirely different world than what he was used to.

This is a good one, said Mike, Rio Bravo, I like this one.

Never heard of it, said Samuel.

It’s a good one, said Mike, classic John Wayne.

John Wayne movies are good ones, said Josh.

Samuel took their word for it. He wasn’t sure who John Wayne was, but he had heard that he was a famous western actor a long time ago. It turned out to be a somewhat entertaining movie, but he didn’t think it was as good as any of the modern movies that he was used to watching. He nearly dozed off a few times during the movie, but he managed to stay awake until the movie was over at eleven o’clock.

Time for bed, said Mike getting up out of his chair.

Samuel and Josh got up and headed toward their rooms. Samuel was tired. He had had a long day full of new experiences and he had no idea what was to come the next day. He wasn’t even sure he wanted to know. He didn’t know how these people could stand to live in this world of no internet or cable television.

He lay awake for over an hour thinking of the day and everything that had happened to him. He wondered what would become of his life now that he was here. He finally fell asleep somewhere around midnight.

Chapter Three

When Samuel finally woke up around nine the next morning the house was completely quiet. ‘Everyone else must still be sleeping,’ he thought. He went down the hallway to find out that the house was empty. He found himself a pop tart and ate that with a glass of milk. When he finally did go outside at around ten he found Jennie working in the garden.

There you are, she said.

Yeah, he said. Where is everyone else?

They are out baling a little hay, she said.

Oh yeah, said Samuel.

I will take you out there and you can help them, said Jenny.

I don’t know, said Samuel. I don’t even know what that is.

Well, you have to learn sometime, said Jennie. If you are going to live here you are going to have to help out around here.

I don’t know… said Samuel.

Let’s go, said Jennie getting into the old Ford pickup they used to do stuff around the ranch. Come on, get in the truck.

Samuel got in. He was worried about what was about to happen. He didn’t know anything about ranch work and he never had to do any kind of work at home in L.A. when his parents were alive. Little did he know, he would have to learn how to do everything Josh did.

When they finally got to where Mike and Josh were he could see Mike driving the tractor pulling some sort of contraption behind it that spit out the hay bales and a wagon behind that with Josh on it dragging bales to the back and putting them in a stack. When they pulled up to where the tractor was Mike stopped and got out of the tractor.

Good, you finally made it here, said Mike. After today there will be no more sleeping in, you are to start getting up with the rest of us and helping out. Get on the wagon and let’s go.

But, I don’t know what to do, said Samuel.

You are going to drag the bales back to me and I will stack them, he said. Josh can drive the tractor for a while and get a break from being on the wagon.

I… I, stuttered Samuel.

I will show you what to do, said Mike, now let’s go.

Samuel got on the wagon and Mike showed him how to drag the bales back to him so that he could stack them. Samuel grabbed the next bale and it was very heavy. He thought it must have weighed a hundred pounds.

It’s too heavy, said Samuel struggling to pull the bale.

No it’s not, said Mike, you just need to try harder.

Samuel did try harder and he did get the bale back to Mike. During that time Mike had already walked to the front of the wagon and carried three bales back to the back and stacked them.

That’s good, said Mike, now keep goin’.

Samuel did keep going and managed to drag a total of ten out of fifty back to Mike by the time they got the wagon filled up. He was thirsty and exhausted. He was ready to go home and rest.

Get yourself a quick drink of water while Josh and I hook up the next wagon and we’ll do it again, said Mike.

Samuel did as he was told and was only able to get twenty one of the one hundred bales dragged back to Mike. Mike was doing most of the work and Samuel wondered how the man could do so much work and not be tired. After that load Mike showed Samuel how to drive the tractor and let him drive it for a load while he and Josh loaded the wagon. Josh kept up a lot better than Samuel and his ability to do the hard work was evident to Samuel. Samuel thought it was just because Josh was a little older than him. That may have been part of it, but most of it was the fact that Josh had been helping out on the ranch his entire life and Samuel had never had to do a day of work in his life.