He was tougher than nails and had the biggest heart

 

Clifford Olson, Dad and of course when I was young I called him Daddy.  It always amazed me how he could solve a problem and typically it was during the night.  He would take a problem and go to bed and in the mornings he would wake up and he would have the answer.  The real problem is he would wake up like a storm meaning he would be so focused on fixing what was broken or doing whatever was on his mind.  He was also funny in that he never got mad a me or any other person but he could use choice words at an object or situation (that means he could cuss a blue streak).  Let me give you a few ideas of what I am talking about when I say he was so tough as nails but had a big heart.

One time we were out cutting firewood as our house was mostly warmed by the fireplace and we burnt a lot of wood every year.  The tree fell the wrong direction and a limb flipped up and hit him in the ribs.  He could hardly breath so we took him to the house where he told mom to wrap him in those tan colored ace bandages.  He told her to pull them tight.  If you have ever had a broken rib you know that it feels better to have a tight wrap  around your chest.  It just makes it where you can breath a little easier.  I personally have experienced broken ribs and a punctured lung and it is not fun.  Well, after dad got wrapped up he turned to Larry and me and said Let's to back to work cutting wood.  We did and I would say he moved a little slower but we kept cutting wood.

On another occasion we were working on some farm equipment and he cut his hand.  the cut was almost a slice in that the back of his hand about two inches wide and an inch wide the skin was peeled back where you could see the tendons and muscle in his hand.  I took him to the house and he told Shouna (my wife) to pour hydrogen peroxide on it.  He just gritted his false teeth and told her to keep pouring.  Then we said we need to go to the doctor and get it sewn up.  He said just put that old skin back on and tape it down.  We did and he said, "let's go do something, even if it is wrong".  

Then there was the time before I was even born but I know the story.  He got his teeth kicked out by a mule.  Or I should say he got his mouth crushed by that mule.  The story is that it was a disaster and he had to go to Tulsa for a dental surgeon to repair everything.  He stayed with the relatives at Oologah after the surgery.  They removed all of his teeth and his mouth was infected so they had to scrape the top of his mouth and put new skin on the roof of his mouth.  He told me that the only pain killer he got was some whiskey before and after the surgery.  He said he paid one of my relatives a $1 to keep him supplied with ice that he could use to keep the swelling down and the pain at a minimum.  

Oh, there are more stories and I always wished I was that tough.  And now his heart.  I remember a time that he assisted a family that needed their clothes washer repaired.  He found the parts and made multiple trips to fix the machine and then mom purchased Christmas gifts for their three girls and they waived any charges.  

The stories go on and I don't believe that a person goes to heaven by doing good or works but Mom and Dad were poster children for good neighbors and good people.  Their hearts were always serving others.  They did believe in Christ just so you don't get the wrong idea.

Well, what do you Learn in the Osage?

• character of a man or woman shows
• You don't judge a person by their color or their tattoos (well maybe) 
• You do judge a person by their work ethic and their honesty
• But you don't judge a book by its cover

Thanks for listening,

gary

gary@thepioneerman.com