Saguaro Corners

Among the many ventures and adventures the folks had was the cafe across from the entrance to the U.S. National Park in Tucson, Arizona. They came upon the little cafe by happenstance when Dad worked at Lockheed in Tucson. Thru friends and acquaintances, they met the owner of the tiny cafe who was looking for someone to run the business for him. There wasn't much trade, mostly sales of cold bottled and canned soft drinks and an occasional hamburger. There was a separate building with two motel rooms available in case a tourist wanted to spend the night instead of driving the 17 miles back into Tucson for lodging.

The folks were given full reign on how to run the little cafe. It wasn't long before word got around to the local cowboys that the cafe was open for business and they began to ride their horses over for bottles of coke and a burger. Mom added homemade chile and various sandwiches to the menu which went over like gang busters.

Occasionally a cowboy would stay to chat a bit after eating and friendships began to develop. When Dad got home from his work at Lockheed, he helped Mom in the cafe and some of the cowboys from the neighboring ranches began to drop in during the evenings to chat and tell stories about their work experience.

One afternoon one of the cowboys stopped at the cafe and asked Mom if she would be interested in buying a horse. The question was so totally unexpected, it took Mom a moment to collect her thoughts. The cowboy needed the money and if Mom didn't buy the horse he would continue to look for a buyer. The price was $100, and she would be getting 2 for the price of 1 since the horse was pregnant.

Mom paid for the horse and got a bill of sale then the cowboy helped her stable the horse in a lean-to shed in back of the cafe. Later he came by with a bale of hay and some feed for the horse.

When Dad got home from work, he was as surprised as Mom was that she had actually bought a horse. The horse was a bay, brown with black mane and tail with the name Pepper. Mom and Dad were excited at the prospect of a foal due in a few short weeks. The cowboys answered any questions they had and the event was anticipated with curiosity; would it be a filly or a colt and when would it be born, during the day or night?

Each day after Dad got off work from Lockheed, he gave his attention to Pepper and he and Mom pampered her with treats. While Dad was away at work, Mom made frequent visits to Pepper to check that all was well. One afternoon during one of those visits, Mom was astonished to find Pepper in labor and the foal due any minute. It was a thrilling event and when it was over, a dark brown colt managed to stand next to its mother. Mom was sorry that Dad hadn't been there to see the birthing, but that didn't detract from their excitement of having a new born colt to name. There was only one that came to mind and they both agreed on it. Saguaro.

Bowl of Chili