When I opened my eyes my face was plastered against the hot red clay. I didn’t move, instead I lay there and tried to remember where I was. That only lasted a moment when the exploding sensation inside my head brought me to the realization that this was not good. As I tried to lift my head the world spun and I dropped my head back to the baking clay earth and noticed the simmering heat waves in the distance. I could smell the dry clay dust mixed with the urine and dung of cattle and horses that roamed on uncle Cletus’ ranch. I started to wonder where everyone was, surely someone will come check on me.

After I lay there for a few minutes taking inventory of my bodily pains I decided I was okay and tried to jump up. As I pushed myself up and tried to hop up to stand the world spun again and I ended up slumped on my butt, holding my head, trying to stop the spinning which continued even though I closed my eyes. Now I thought I might throw up and moved my legs so I wouldn’t get it on my clothes.

Where is everyone? I placed my smashed hat on my throbbing head and looked around. I know I had been riding with others but saw no one in any direction as I took in the vast horizon of the open pasture of Texas. I’ll just sit here for a while until they return. They are probably trying to catch my horse.

As I sat there in the baking heat my memory had started to come back. Oh yeah, I was out riding with my cousin John, we were on his family’s ranch, but why wasn’t he coming back? As I became more and more uncomfortable in the heat, the world was still spinning and my head felt as if it would explode, my thoughts turned to perhaps he didn’t know I had fallen and hurt myself. I decided I needed to walk back to the house. Unfortunately I couldn’t remember what direction I needed to go in.

The first thing I needed to do was see if I could stand. I rolled to my hands and knees which were now covered in stickers that pierced my skin and jeans. These were nasty dagger covered star shaped nuisances that existed in every inch of Texas as far as I knew. Along with rattlesnakes, scorpions and every kind of stinging critter you never imaged.

Still dizzy I got to my feet and started pulling the stickers out of my hands, jeans and shirt. Which meant that with every sticker I pulled out of my clothing I would stab my fingers with the pulling. I decided I could live with the red clay dirt covering me from boots to face since brushing with my hands revealed more hidden stickers.

Where is John? My head is exploding and the world is spinning. Looking again at the dead grass, rocks and sagebrush of the endless horizon in every direction I notice that there is a town off in the distance. My uncle had grown up in this area and was related to everyone I had ever met here. Since I could not remember where the house was I decided I would walk to that town and someone there would call my uncle Cletus to come get me.

Off I went. Stumbling, nauseated and dizzy as I was, I had to get somewhere before I passed out in that all encompassing heat. I wasn’t making very much progress when I saw my cousin John coming on his horse pulling the reins of the horse I must have been riding.

I was so happy to see him.

“Where are you going?” he asked as he rode up with a big smile and laughing.

“I was walking to town. I couldn’t remember where the house was.”

At this he cocked his big ol’ cowboy hat and looked at me more deeply. “You okay?”

“My head hurts pretty bad and I think I’m going to throw up.”

Then he said, “You don’t look too good either. Come on, let’s get you to the house.”

We rode back to the house together with him holding the reins of my horse while I just hung on.

My aunt Dama put me on the living room couch in the dark and brought me an Ice pack for my head, aspirin and a big glass of sweet ice tea.

My thoughts were still not really clear and after she had asked me a bunch of questions to make sure I was okay, she laughed and said, “Well, I always said you could fall off a horse in more ways than anyone else I’ve ever seen.”

We all laughed and I held my throbbing head and said, “Don’t make me laugh.”