The Flow of Life - Transcript

"[Carl Schneidereit] As far as the oasis. I have a lot of people come in here and say, 'Oh, this is a little oasis.'

"I'm Carl Schneidereit and I will be 76 [years old] in October.

"I appreciated a rancher that lived between Johnstown and Wood Lake. He had a big long sign, years ago along the highway. And he said on that sign, the words read; 'Don't drive through like hell, this is God's country.' And I feel that this is God's country here."

Carl was raised on the family ranch which was settled in 1885, in the German Valley, north of Brewster. In a land of sand, his home is surrounded by water.

"[Carl Schneidereit] I have seen the lake dry three times in my lifetime -- and some of the best farm ground when it's dry. And it runs in a cycle where it's dry for 15-20 years and then it'll be full for that many years.

To live in this land one must learn to flow with the cycles of nature and of life. This is what Carl does. In 1956 he married the love of his life Roberta Neeben???

"[Carl Schneidereit] Roberta. You've heard the saying love at first sight.

"She was a wonderful mother -- a wonderful wife. I made a very good choice. She was a very wonderful person. Everyone in the community loved her."

For 45 years Carol supported his family in good times and bad. He wasn't much of a rancher but he was willing to work as a mechanic and a welder. And in his spare time -- an artist.

[Carl Schneidereit] "I see beauty in sculpturing. You look at the beauty that surrounds you. You can see beauty where ever you look, if you notice it. I don't know if you noticed the cross and bible along Highway 7. But I did want to show that the Lord is everywhere even on the prairie."

Then on one fateful day in 2001 everything changed. It began with an invitation to a wedding addressed to Carl and Roberta Schneidereit.

"She got the invitation or we did to our nephews wedding in Colorado. And she was reading the invitation -- she was real thrilled. She got to cut the cake. And I don't know what made me turn my back to her and look to the west and I actually seen a very bad accident. I turned around and I said, 'Honey, I don't think I better go.' And I never could bring myself to tell her what I'd seen. It was just like a voice inside of me said, 'Don't go.'

"So, I was working here and she pulled up and we told each other how much we loved each other, hugged and kissed each other, and rather than taking the drive out to the road, she drove up here to the sign and parked, and looked at the place for the last time.

"She was killed on our 45th wedding anniversary. I think the comfort that I have is knowing that she's in heaven."

The cycle of life in the sandhills continues. Carl finds comfort in the beauty all around him. And thanks to his son Ivan the Schneidereit ranch provides a living.

How are you and Carl alike?

[Ivan Schneidereit] "Our last names are the same."

How are you different?

[Ivan Schneidereit] "Our last names are different.

[Ivan Schneidereit] "We got one of the best places in the world to live and you can't get any better than that."

For many years Carol and Roberta opened their home to guests. It was a way to pay the bils and more importantly to share their love of this special place with others.

[Carl Schneidereit] "We wanted to make people feel at home. We did. My wife and I had a special hobby that we told everyone and that hobby was collecting friends. And we had many [friends]. That in itself was a joy for us."

Now Carl carries on that tradition without his wife and as long as he lives in God's country he can accept the inevitable ebb and flow called life.