Re posted with repairs.. I added the pictures and changed the text a bit.

Barbed Wire, for many it just another fence with some cows on the other side, not really understanding the reason for it, or how much time it take to "hang" that wire. Posts were hand cut, all the postholes were hand dug and set without concrete. Many of the hand set posts are over 50 – 60 years old and are still keeping livestock in and some crazy teenagers out. Mostly. But not often.

For us out here in "The Country" It is a needed necessity, and a pain in the... Well you get the idea. Tendin fences is a daily chore, mendin where its needed, replacin where worn, stretchin where loose. It’s a constant; there is always something that is wrong with the fence line.

I have dealt with many a problem because of barbed wire. Tendin to injured horses, intoxicated city kids driving thru it and parking in my pasture.. Several hundred cuts and some purty deep, chasing livestock down the road because someone cut the fence. I even know of a couple cowboys that were taken to the hospital from a wire breaking while stretching. They ended up with several thousand stitches because of it and a healthy respect for what the old man said..

Heck, even pard from overseas got tangled in it. Thanks for the story Jonathan [link]

There are some times that this chore becomes less than work and more of a respected trade or job. Teachin my younger boys the how to and don’ts of this job gave us a lot of time to learn from each other. A friend of mine up in Montana wrote a poem that sums it all up.. [link]

Fenceline

walking the fenceline
father and son
dads' big steps
makes the little man run

they are fixing the hole
where the cows got out
'cuz cows are better of within
rather than without

hammer and staples
and fencing pliers
are all they need
to mend the broken wires

dads' knowing hands
shows how it is done
and gives a lesson
to the little one

the lesson is this:
work is its' own reward, you see?
it must be approacked with skill
and integrity

walking the fenceline
isn't it grand to see
a father and son building fences
and memories?

There is a lot of history behind barbed wire. Range wars, the end of the cattle drives on the Goodnight-Loving trail and Chisholm trails, forever closing the awesome trail drives north to Colorado and Kansas City, Kansas. Even that famous movie, Lonesome Dove, was loosely based on the lives of Charles Goodnight and Oliver Loving.

Why not dedicate some time to the folks that saw some beauty in the “wire”. Good or bad, it has its moments.