Don't have time to talk this spring? I know how that goes

"I know how that goes."

I don't know how many times I've said that lately. It seems to come up at least a few times a week. I'll call a farmer or rancher for a story I'm doing, and they're in the middle of planting or calving or treating calves or planning their next move. They want to talk about whatever it is I'm calling about, but now is not a good time.

And when is a good time? Who knows?

And so I repeat my new mantra: "I know how that goes."

I do, in fact, know how that goes, because we're going through much of the same spring-time stuff around our place.

It's amazing to me, year after year, how fast this time of year sneaks up on us. One minute we're watching the forecast for snow, praying the cows will hold off from calving until it passes. The next minute, the lilac bushes are in full purple glory, the grasses are brushing above our ankles, and we're praying those last cows will just hurry up and calve.

It's a beautiful time of year, but a time of year we almost overlook in the hurry to get everything done.

The calves have been sick. It's what happens when the temperature goes up and comes down. Intermittent rain and damp conditions don't help. And when it dries up, the calves can't handle the dust. So more often than we'd like, the calves either have to be grabbed out in the pen or pasture and treated. Or, in the worst cases, when everything looks a little droopy, they all get run through the chute.

It's time to get everything out on pasture, but first the fence needs to be checked. We had a few nasty blizzards to start the winter, so who knows what condition the fences will be in? Likely there are wires down from snow drifts and deer, but hopefully the repairs will be light.

My husband a few years ago decided to focus on his cattle and have his cropland planted by someone with bigger, newer no-till equipment, either on share or custom-planted. But there's still fertilizing and spraying to be lined up and seed to be acquired.

Now, I can't pretend I'm working on any of these tasks this spring, other than being a sounding board for my husband. I spend 40 or so hours a week typing away on ag-related stories in my basement office and most of the rest of my time herding or feeding our children rather than our cattle.

But, I've been out there many springs, both on my parents' place in Montana or our place in central North Dakota, alternately freezing or frying, dealing with the trials of the season. I've been covered in mud or dust or various unmentionables. And I've watched as everything gets done, even when it seems it never will.

The spring will pass into summer soon. Those lilacs will fade and fall away, leaving just their thick green leaves behind. The chilly days and nights will be forgotten as they're displaced by the heat of summer. And while every year it seems like things will slow down, they won't. We'll move almost everything to pasture, but still a few stragglers need to be fed. And fences need to be fixed, cattle need to be checked, and hay needs to be cut and baled. Before we know it, we'll be dealing with harvesting and gathering the cattle back up.

This lifestyle never slows down. For most of us, there isn't a down season, because each new season brings its own jobs.

But, rest assured, if you're one of the lucky people who I try to reach for a story and the moment I call isn't a good one, I understand. I can wait until you have time.

I know how that goes.