My uncle was a cattle rancher in Oklahoma. He also owned a boot and saddle shop in town. When I was just a little squirt, my older brother and I would walk to town near the railroad tracks and just enjoy doing simple things that kids today would probably find boring. When we got to town we'd walk into our uncle's store and look at Justin and Tony Lama boots. It was just a stone building that was built in the 1800's. Inside near the front was an old timey cash register that could probably tell some interesting stories if only it could talk. On one of the counters were a few pair of silver spurs Uncle Don had made. If you needed some leather straps for spurs, he'd make them for you.
Usually when we'd visit the store he'd be either repairing a saddle or building a new one. He just loved working with leather. Sometimes he even would make custom cowboy boots. Some of the Highway Patrol officers would order boots from him. Wish I would have been old enough to learn a thing or two from him. His kids weren't interested in taking over the business, so when his health failed, the business was shuttered.
Today if you visited the town, you'd never know that a boot and saddle shop ever existed there. The stone building is long gone and nothing stands in its place. I'm not the only one who has mentioned that they miss Uncle Don and his store. He was quite a character and a hard worker. Many a largemouth bass, crappie, and of course deer were harvested by him.
It's probably all the smells of new leather that I had encountered as a little kid while standing in his store, that instantly takes me back to years ago anytime I visit a western wear store these days.
I miss the days when it seemed as though a kid could still be a kid. You still saw a caboose at the end of a line of freight cars passing down the tracks.
Usually when we'd visit the store he'd be either repairing a saddle or building a new one. He just loved working with leather. Sometimes he even would make custom cowboy boots. Some of the Highway Patrol officers would order boots from him. Wish I would have been old enough to learn a thing or two from him. His kids weren't interested in taking over the business, so when his health failed, the business was shuttered.
Today if you visited the town, you'd never know that a boot and saddle shop ever existed there. The stone building is long gone and nothing stands in its place. I'm not the only one who has mentioned that they miss Uncle Don and his store. He was quite a character and a hard worker. Many a largemouth bass, crappie, and of course deer were harvested by him.
It's probably all the smells of new leather that I had encountered as a little kid while standing in his store, that instantly takes me back to years ago anytime I visit a western wear store these days.
I miss the days when it seemed as though a kid could still be a kid. You still saw a caboose at the end of a line of freight cars passing down the tracks.
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