Essay Cowboys in our miso barrel By John Gathlight	フレームで見る  英文をプリントする  脚注をプリントする
ミソだるのカウボーイたち 少し前までギャスライト家では忍者ごっこがはやっており、息子たちは近所の子供と一緒に、黒い覆面をして家中を走り回っていました。ところが、その忍者たちが突然姿を消したと思うと、今度はカウボーイが出現。子供たちは今、カウボーイごっこに夢中です。そのきっかけとなったのは、アメリカのワイオミング州にいるジムおじさんから届いた1通のEメールでした - - 。

2年前、ワイオミング州に暮らすジムおじさんのもとでカウボーイ体験をした息子のジョニー

Armed with ninja weapons gleaned from the forest floor, our black-hooded little boys and the neighbors' kids all had the time of their lives. They battled for control of the miso barrel shogunate, as my wife and I were kept busy patching up scraped knees, and bruised fingers and egos.

But last week the little ninjas evaporated into thin air and were replaced by the wildest bunch of red-neck cowboys ever seen this side of the States. Our miso barrel treehouse is now alive with a posse of waist-high cow-punchin' cowboys, riding recycled-tire horses and sporting rubber-band pistols.

Our red necks were quite a demanding bunch. Out went the obento, the miso soup and the rice balls. Our cowboys were asking for grilled steak, big, juicy hamburgers, and root beer. Our boys' English developed a real Western twang and drawl. Bedtime songs went from Disney to "Home on the Range." The leader of the posse is none other than our own 9-year-old trail boss Johnny and his sidekick Denny.

What transformed the ninjas into cowboys was an email from our Uncle Jim in Wyoming. You see Johnny has real cowboys in his family! Not urban look-alikes or cowboy wannabes. These are the real leather-necked, rodeo-riding cowboys, and Johnny is very proud of them.

Two years ago Johnny and I went to Wyoming to meet his cousins for the first time. We had the most wonderful time of our lives. Johnny saw his cousin ride the bucking broncs in the rodeo, he ate real cowboy food, milked the cows, fed the horses and shot his first real rifle (under the very close supervision of his father and family). He was so proud to have family that were part of American history and even had a real post office in the confines of their ranch, like the ones you see in Westerns

ジョニーはロデオをする本物のカウボーイに魅せられた

The other night, after our cowboys hung up their lassoes and parked their horses outside, we had a great father-and-son talk. "Daddy what is talent? How do you get it? Talent makes you successful, right? That is why Uncle Jim's radio show is so good, right?"

I had to think for a second. "There are two types of talent. The type we are born with and the type we make from dreams, practice and hard work. It takes two types of talent together to make us successful."

"Daddy, they live so far away but now we can listen to them on radio from our computer! We live in a really cool world, right?" Denny, who wants to do something to change the world when he grows up, was excited. "Anything is possible, right? When I grow up, I am going to help change the world. Maybe help people who are starving get food or something! Does that take talent too?"

"Yes, it does. The first talent is wanting to help people and you have that one already!" "Cool. So can I have a real horse for Christmas?"

Uncle Jim's short email, "Check out our Radio Show," has provided great fun for our boys. As their dad, I know that in a couple of weeks our little cowboys will evaporate into something new and exciting but the awareness that dreams come true will stay with them for a lifetime.

But I can't help feeling like we live in a world of dreams. Our treehouse and my career all started with dreams that have come true. The Web and communication are borderless, and dreams and talent are infinite, and the opportunity to share them with the world is one of the greatest gifts of our time.

For any of you interested in Western music and great Western talk please check out www.clearoutwest.com.