Ballad of the Rancher’s Hat

Presley Wiseman

Perched proudly atop the shelf, the hat nearly brushed the ceiling. Its torn-up brim, the creases, and the sun-bleached leather—a relic infused with the tales of its previous owner.

It was worn on a ranch near the Mississippi River on the Illinois side. The owner was known as being a stubborn man with dry humor. He always knew how to make his grandkids giggle by giving a waitress a hard time, although the waitress was always confused by the senile old man. All that mattered to him was that he made his little ones smile, which he always did.

He barely laughed, though, the entertainer who could not be entertained. So when his first granddaughter would crack his tough exterior, the entire family would break their necks to see what had occurred. She loved being the one person to do this to him. It always made her feel closer than everyone else, and when the world made her feel small, she remembered that only she could light up the world of the toughest man in the Midwest.

When she shared her plans to leave for school, her grandfather playfully quipped about how she was leaving him in the company of "old ignorant pieces of work.” Honestly, he was happy she was going because he knew how much it meant to her. He knew she would thrive. He knew she was meant for something bigger.

She found that something bigger, at least she knew that is where she was headed, but it was not without its difficulties. Everyone misses their old lives a little.

After her second year away from home, she found a piece of the country she grew up with—in a friend, in a crush, and in line dancing.

Of course, like anyone who loves their relative, he made fun of her for this new gimmick. But then, like anyone would with their twin flame, he offered her his hat without giving her the chance to decline. One day, she received a package from the sticks, and sure enough, there was the classic hat he wore each day. It was wrapped in a leather sack, covered in bubble wrap, and then placed in a box. This was the one thing to make her tear up, but it was not bad. She liked the taste of salt, after all.

As she pulled it out of the sack, she got a whiff of bourbon, just like the ranch. Then, on the inside of the hat was a note, one too emotional for any reader, but to make it short, he made her miss home and said that it was rude for her to take his hat.

She would go on to wear that hat every weekend when the drum hit and the boots stomped, and when it was time to shut her eyes, she placed it the highest it could go so that from every angle in that small room, she could see a little piece of her grandfather—a tangible connection to the man who, in his own way, had taught her the value of a genuine smile.

Presley Wiseman is a current EIU student studying English with a concentration in creative writing and minoring in pre-law and ethics. Although her long-term goal is to work as an attorney, she is currently working on singing/songwriting. This last year, she had the honor of working on her own music in Nashville and recorded some of her original songs. In February, she released her debut single "Going, Going, Gone" under her artist name, Presley Brielle. In the upcoming year, she will be releasing more music, starting with her second single “Scabs.” Her music is on all streaming platforms including Spotify and Apple Music. For more, follow her on socials: Instagram: @presley_brielle_ TikTok: @presleybrielle.