Cliff and Opal Olson in Grainola, Oklahoma on the farm 1 mile north and 3 west on Beaver Creek.It was rough growing up in all that filth in the barn yards, hauling hay with all that dust flying around, digging in the dirt, feeding the hogs and drinking from the creek and the list goes on and on. Germs were everywhere and we hardly ever got sick. I wonder why? Do you suppose it was because we built up immunities by being exposed to so much? Maybe it was the hard work that made it so difficult to get sick. My dad was 87 and smoked cigarettes at about 2 packs per day starting when he was about 16. But he worked so hard and so long every day of his life. I honestly don't think he knew how to play and actually work was play to him.
I remember my brother in law (not mentioning his name) went to work with dad, Larry and me and stated that dad needed all of us. By noon he was complaining how hard we had worked and wanted to quit. Dad just laughed and kept right on going. Dad could out work any person I have ever met. The only people I know who come close to him is his grandsons, Richard Crow and Cliff Crow. They are both pretty special in my eyes and dad just loved them to death.
Dad had a sense of humor like no other and he never got mad at people (a few exceptions) but he sure could get really angry at things. Wow! Dad was never over about 147 pounds when he was sopping wet and fully clothed. For the most part he was about 135 pounds his entire life. One of his favorite sayings was, "let's go do something even if it is wrong". I am certain that he had A.D.D., he could not sit still. I remember when the Dallas Cowboys were playing the Green Bay Packers and it was in the fourth quarter and the score was going back and forth and he decided we needed to go do something productive, like sweep the dirt floors in the barn or clean up the junk pile. Those never made sense to me but we sure did them every year at least once and sometimes more, especially sweeping the dirt floor in the barn.
My dads favorite words were: Hell, shit and damn and not necessarily in that order. But they were never directed at me, just stuff and situations like when he hit his finger with a hammer while building one of the many barns we built. Dad had an engineer mindset even though he never went past high school. He could fix anything and he could figure any situation out. I was always amazed how he could go to bed one night and wake up early with a solution to a problem. Now that reminds me of my oldest son, Chase, who can solve and fix about anything. He is a real thinker, just like his granddad.
Now that I think about it Dad's legacy is his children's work ethic and integrity and I would have to say he planted those traits in his grandchildren. Have you ever given thought to what your legacy is? What are you saying to your children and grandchildren by your actions and priorities? Even if you don't realize it you are leaving a legacy. Think of it this way, if you are willing to have a government that spends more than they bring in and support a government that tolerates bad behavior in individuals then that is what you will leave as a legacy. You will be known by the seeds you plant. Just something to think about. The other day I took a homeless person to eat and got to know him a little. I don't have to say a thing to my children or family about that. They see by my actions, not my mouth. Now don't think I do that every time because I do not. I am not perfect and neither are you or anyone else except Jesus Christ. I just want to be remembered by my children as doing the right thing, not the easiest and certainly not at their expense.
So what do you learn in the Osage?
- walk tall and do the right thing, not the easiest and what looks politically correct
- give and forgive but always strive to do the right thing
- I have to say forgive again as probably the thing I see most troubling is the inability to forgive someone that has wronged me or you
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