My Buddy
Jeff
July 4,1902-September
25,1981
Once in a lifetime,
comes along a special friend that has such an impact on your life
that you will never ever forget them. That person, to me, was
my cowboy hero and best friend,
Thomas Jefferson (Jeff) Hazelton of Ingalls, Kansas.
I met Jeff
as a young cowboy back in 1971. We became instant friends and
as time went on, we became the best of buddies. We went everywhere
together. Many folks called us "Mutt and Jeff".
Jeff taught
me many of life's staples that I live by even today. He taught
me that a true cowboy not only loves his horse, but even ahead
of that, he loves his God, his family, and his country. Under
Jeff's careful eye, I learned the art of gently breaking a horse
and making a good friend of him at the same time.
After I got
married in 1973, I no longer had the time for my old friend that
I once had, and I could tell that he was lonesome for the good
old days. Once after he had broken his hip, Judith and I went
to see him in the hospital, but found when we got there that "family
only" were allowed in to see him. Jeff promptly told the
nurse that we were family.
In 1982, Jeff
got sick. He was admitted into the nursing home in Cimarron. I
couldn't bring myself to go to visit him , to see my old friend
suffer, a decision that I have regretted every day since that
time. Jeff died that October. and took with him a piece of my
heart that will never be replaced. I only hope that he forgives
me for that transgression, and that he knows that I loved him
so.
Happy trails
old friend. God bless, and we'll see you again before too long.
