hi I'm Mike and this is our Wyoming life
the old saying is that ranchers hire ranch hands to do the crap they don't
want to do like clean the chicken house clean the pigsty mow weed whack and it's
true we usually hire high school kid in the spring and then work him or her
throughout the summer and the early fall it's nice to have somebody out here to
do the grunt work but the best thing about it is getting to know these kids
and maybe have a little impact on their lives while they work here they're with
us from three to five days per week and over time you begin to trust them to
make good decisions and you start to trust that they know what they're doing
and don't need to be micromanaged this year our hired hand is Mitch he
started in February and today is his last day soon he will be an army basic
training and after that who knows where to thank him for a lot of hard work and
a lot of laughs we decided to give him some of the recognition that he deserves
when Mitch first came to the ranch he was no stranger to work and that's one
of the first requirements of working here well I've lived in Wyoming all my
life done ranch hand stuff not as a ranch hand but you know my plate my
parents had a place my dad's friends have had places I wouldn't help them
just I'm a country kid so pretty simple but nothing is simple as Mitch soon
found out there's probably not the reaction you wanted but there's a dead
character whether it was pounding t-posts or moving cows he had to have
the ability to learn and to learn to do some jobs you may hate just because they
need done cleaning and shaking a house it's just hot and dusty and gross you
know it can be you know thirty to thirty degrees outside and it's hotter than
hell in there it's just horrible it's definitely not all fun and games as most
of our ranch hands have figured out on average our ranch hands age between 14
and eighteen years old and most work here
for a few years mitch has only worked here for about
seven months making him our oldest and one of our short timers but that doesn't
seem to change the effect that the ranch has on people I've worked here for seven
months I I you know you wouldn't expect to have a connection within seven months
of working somewhere but you know you I was here when the calves were were born
I caved I I said him I bought you know the bottle calves I know I know I was a
major part of feeding them and you know working with them so there's a large
connection I you know you want to be able to see where where where they all
go and how they're doing because you know you have that connection here and
sometimes that connection doesn't come easy like when you have to rescue a calf
stuck in the mud I'm saving that calf right down here it's a-you know it it's
just part of the job it you know it it makes you feel good you know it's it's
money that Yost everybody here at the ranch it's you know it makes you feel
better that you know they didn't lose another calf because you you got out
there and you got in the mud and you know saved it most of the kids that have
worked here have an expectation about what they're going to do but a few like
Mitch are surprised by the duties of the ranch working on the ranch I expected
the the normal the work in the cows cleaning pigs all that I didn't expect
working in the garden weeding and picking vegetables it wasn't something
that I I thought I was going to enjoy but it turned out not being all that bad
just as people find new skills out here that they never knew they had everybody
has their favorite moments while working here some are simpler than others
favorite part of the last seven months probably have to be branding and there's
some good food I'm a food kid Mitch will be leaving Wyoming in a few
weeks for Missouri for basic training having gone through basic training
myself I have told him my stories but for each person leaving what you know is
a unique experience I'm kind of nervous about it you know I'm 19 years old this
is everything I've known for the last 19 years it's just you know kind of
nerve-wracking and for your family it can be a completely different experience
um my dad doesn't say all a lot about it I'm sure that he's nervous just as my
mom is my mom's kind of a wreck she's always crying and as hard as it can be
you'd hope that their time on the ranch has given them a chance to think about
their future may end up I may end up doing the 20 years and retiring out of
the army I may end up doing four coming back to Wyoming for a little bit getting
some some college education and then going on to work in you know most likely
diesel field diesel mechanic and you know it's just I'm going to go with the
flow if I like the army I may end up you know doing eight years 20 years doesn't
matter it just go with the flow at the end of the day we say goodbye shake
hands and send Mitch off hoping that something he learns here sticks with him
and not just on his boots because no matter what the future holds it's nice
to know that mitch has a good head on his shoulders and the skills to see him
on a good start to a great life I wanted to work on the ranch because it was an
obvious
hi guys be quiet I'm trying to do as we see Mitch off into the next stage of his
life we thank him for sharing part of his life with us here yeah he was an
employee but just like how the ranch grows on you and you become connected to
the land you become connected to the people on it also over the last seven
months I've spent hundreds of hours with Mitch most of it good some look bad but
in the end it all served a purpose I'd like to think that working here does
change people's lives it teaches them to solve problems and how to confront your
fears whether it's a charging cow or a bull or a broken lawnmower no one leaves
the ranch without learning something with Mitch gone we won't hire help until
the spring and until then I'm back on my own it's not so bad but it does take a
little bit of getting used to some projects I would put off until I knew
Mitch would be around to give me a hand and now that's not much of an option
with or without help certain things need to be done Thank You Mitch for all your
help and even though it hasn't even begun yet we wish you all the luck in
the army and we thank you for your service
one piece of advice I'll repeat is to watch that smart mouth and keep it
closed that's it for this week I know that you wish Mitch the best as well and
I thank you for it if you haven't yet please subscribe we have a lot more in
store and I don't want you to miss one minute of it like and comment and if
you'd like to leave Mitch a comment I'll make sure he gets it as well again
thanks for everything Mitch and thank you for cleaning the chicken house until
next time have a great week and thanks for joining us in our Wyoming life
you