The Dun

By Dr. Greg Quakenbush, Geissler Corp., & Dr. Doug Ford, Production Animal Consultation

Ihave heard it said, “Your journey is where you are.” As a boy growing up, I wanted my journey to involve growing up on a large ranch in rural Colorado or the sandhills of Nebraska. What I have since learned is sometimes entering through the back door can be an even better option. Your zip code and environment do not have to determine your destiny in life.

As it turned out, I was given the opportunity to grow up in one of the most prominent equine practices in Colorado. The practice is located in Golden, Colorado. Golden is nestled in the foothills below Lookout Mountain and is home to Colorado Kool-Aid brewed with pure Rocky Mountain spring water, the prestigious Colorado School of Mines, the famous Westernaires drill team, and the Hillcroft School of Horseshoeing. In the 50s and 60s, the practice was very mixed and covered a 100-mile radius. The majority of ranches were in the foothills and mountains west of Denver and ran 200 or less mother cows. Over the years, many of the original cattle operations sold out to high-dollar developers for residential or commercial use. With this shift came an abundant wave of backyard horse owners, brood farms, and exclusive horse stables. How could I have known that this experience would prepare me for a distinguished career in veterinary medicine and eventually fulfill my dream of owning a ranch?

In addition to cattle and horses, I was exposed to every creature known to man. With this opportunity, I became very observant and confident in my clinical experience. The range and scope of veterinary cases was extraordinary! Reproductive physiology in brood mares including a new technology called ultrasound, lameness in dressage and hunter jumpers, routine maintenance procedures, major colic surgeries, and assorted minor surgical procedures. Pharmacology, clinical pathology, radiology, and late-night calls all occurred under the influence of my hero and amazing mentor, Dr. John Pallaro. At the time, I could not comprehend how all of these experiences would propel me towards fulfilment of the true blueprint for my life. Today, I understand that the step-by-step process I experienced was God’s perfectly orchestrated plan. Sometimes conflicted, I learned that my plan was not necessarily His plan. As it turned out, every step of the journey was part of God's perfect appointment for my life. These childhood experiences became my foundation, and the diversity and experience developed my confidence both as an individual and as a future veterinarian.

One of my favorite memories as a teenager has led to one of my most precious life lessons. Doc was the attending veterinarian for the Westernaires. This organization was founded to develop personal growth and core values while teaching junior and senior high age girls advanced equine riding skills. They performed all over the country at various rodeo events presenting America's colors using high-speed technical horseback maneuvers. The horses were great, but all those teenage girls! Get the picture? Whenever possible, in the name of science, I jumped at the opportunity to be at Doc’s side when attending an event. As it turned out, my tenure with Doc opened many doors, but a cute 16-yearold equestrian was not one of those doors. At the events, I became intrigued by the dynamic of the horse-rider interaction, the horse-horse interaction, and the rider-rider interaction. I observed that like humans, some horses do not get along with other horses. This was apparent by the assorted lacerations, bumps, bruises, and dented pickups and trailers, not to mention countless broken reins.

Recently, I was at a large branding. The sweet aroma of a wood-fired branding box, in combination with all makes, models, and paint jobs on the four-legged equids, outfitted with assorted unique paraphernalia, brought back many fond memories. There were also tents, awnings, campers, Yeti coolers, cow dogs, and an indescribable maze of steel and aluminum trailers of all makes and models. Nowadays I just enjoy watching the interaction of all the moving parts. As I sat quietly in my canvas camp chair, I observed one of our special young cowgirls ride towards trailer city to tether her mount. On her way to the trailer, one of the attending top hands got a foot taller and with great conviction yelled, “Whatever you do, don’t tie up next to that dun horse!”

In the moment, an extraordinary revelation was born. In life we have a choice. We can tie up next to the wellmannered sorrel, the cow-savvy buckskin, or the spooky illmannered dun. We can tie up next to doubt, strife, unforgiveness, lust, gossip, drama, and hypocrisy, or we can tie up next to peace, joy, wisdom, truth, integrity, and faith. It is our choice; all we have to do is discern what is right, decide where we want to tie up, and pull the trigger. Sin is the same way! In that moment, it became crystal clear. When temptation comes, we must simply ask ourselves, do we really want to tie up next to the dun?

Do we want to experience the consequences of the broken reins of life, the lacerations and scars of disobedience, or the guilt and regret from tying up to the wrong trailer? “When the student is ready to learn, the teacher will appear.”1 Do not let the teacher be a painful and regretful outcome. Pay attention; choose to be obedient.

Digging Deeper

If someone did you the favor of warning, “Don’t tie up next to the dun horse,” and you ignored their counsel and did so anyway, it might be appropriate to call you a “fool”.

The Bible has a lot to say about fools and advises us not to call someone a fool carelessly. “Fool” is mentioned in the New Testament around 41 times depending upon the translation; however, the Book of Proverbs really examines and speaks to the perils of “fools” as that term is used about 76 times.

A fool in scripture is not necessarily one who lacks intelligence. A fool is a fool not because he cannot do something, but rather because he will not do something.2

At the top of this definition sits the individual that when he has a chance to obey God chooses not to. Considering that there is a God who created us and seeks to care for and love us, only a fool would walk away and ignore or reject His guidance and concern. Rejection which ultimately always has detrimental or even catastrophic consequences, just like when you go ahead and tie up next to the dun after having been forewarned.

Psalm 14:1 says, “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” This sounds much like what one would hear from an atheist; however, as mentioned before, this position has nothing to do with a lack of intelligence, lack of money, or lack of status. So why the rejection of God? This question is too involved for this discussion by your humble authors; however there seems to be a connection between the goof who ties up next to the dun and the one who decides to reject God outright. Neither one wants to be told what to do or to be held accountable. They do not want the rules or morality to apply to them, and they seemingly are not concerned with the concept of consequences.

If foolishness was a disease, one might want to get vaccinated or have some medication on hand in case of an outbreak. Maybe social distancing would work, but a better recommendation would be to pull out the owner’s manual on wisdom versus foolishness. The single best read would be Proverbs. Proverbs has 31 chapters that provide brief instructions regarding the meaning of life, wisdom, righteous living, honesty, hard work, humility, and other actions that contribute to living an effective life. How about making a commitment to read one chapter of Proverbs a day? What do you have to lose? Do not be foolish (or lazy) and reject this offer!

The following are a few examples regarding wisdom and fools from the Book of Proverbs:

Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Proverbs 10:23 Doing wrong is like a joke to a fool, but wisdom is pleasure to a man of understanding.

Proverbs 13:20 Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.

Proverbs 18:6 A fool's lips walk into a fight, and his mouth invites a beating.

Proverbs 19:1 Better is a poor person who walks in his integrity than one who is crooked in speech and is a fool.

1 Quote from Dr. Tom Noffsinger

1 https://archive.org/details/WhatMakesAFoolAFool

Jose Valles and his wife Areli Monarrez-Valles were inducted into the Seward County Community College Hall of Saints in January 2020.

The following articles have been translated into Spanish: Ángeles de Nieve •••••

Vaqueros