Bearhouse: A Special Place

By James Daniel and Fran Daniel

Bearhouse: A Special Place is an autobiographical book about the life, love, and faith shared by a family on a small farm in southeast Arkansas. It shares both the good times and bad, the laughs and the cries, and how a common love for Jesus and his creation led a family through life in the wilderness.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Oct 10, 2023
• ISBN: 9798385008803

James Daniel

James and Fran Daniel chose to live a life that was from another time and is foreign to modern Americans. James Daniel could have easily lived in the 1850s, ‘60s, and ‘70s – maybe more so than the 1950s, ‘60s, and ‘70s. James and Fran lived liked pioneers. They didn’t have much, but made-do with what they had. They lived off the land and raised and cared for their livestock, James broke and trained cutting horses, and they named every animal that they owned. They had four boys and raised them to love creation, but more than that, the Creator.

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Copyright © 2023 James and Fran Daniel.

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make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book

and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

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Scripture quotations marked (NKJV) are taken from the New King James Version.

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Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy

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ISBN: 979-8-3850-0878-0 (sc)

ISBN: 979-8-3850-0879-7 (hc)

ISBN: 979-8-3850-0880-3 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2023918418

WestBow Press rev. date:   10/04/2023

James and Fran Daniel chose to live a life that was from another time and is foreign to modern Americans. James Daniel could have easily lived in the 1850s, ‘60s, and ‘70s – maybe more so than the 1950s, ‘60s, and ‘70s. James and Fran lived liked pioneers. They didn’t have much but made-do with what they had. They lived off the land and raised and cared for their livestock, James broke and trained cutting horses, and they named every animal that they owned. They had four boys and raised them to love creation, but more than that, the Creator. They truly embraced God’s commands in Genesis:

Then God blessed them, and God said to them, Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth. Genesis 1:28 (NKJV)

So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. Genesis 2:20a (NKJV)

James and Fran not only embraced and loved the God of creation, but they loved the God of their salvation. James Daniel had an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, and he shared Jesus with each and every person he knew. James Daniel used his unique gifts and lifestyle to live out the Great Commission and impact the lives of the people that shared his interests. While he was by no means a perfect man, those that knew the real James Daniel, know that he loved his Savior.

Bearhouse: A Special Place was originally written by James and Fran Daniel in the late 1980s and early 1990s to pass on a knowledge of their way of life to their grandchildren. Since then, the book as it has been affectionately called, has been read by not only their grandchildren, but by and to their great-grandchildren. The book was updated in 2005 with pictures from their life and an afterthought by their grandson. It was printed, bound, and given to James and Fran for Christmas. Since then, it has been James and Fran’s dream to have it published and shared with the world. James passed away in 2011 and in 2020, the decision was made to publish the book.

This book, Bearhouse: A Special Place, is in memory of James Daniel, and in honor of his wife, Fran, who both have lived a life that was unique, their own, and honored the Lord. We love you Mimi and really, really miss you Pappaw!

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV)

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CONTENTS

Preface

Background

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Closing

Looking Back

A Tribute to James Daniel

PREFACE

The life of James and Fran Daniel seemed to almost be predestined. Before reading, Bearhouse: A Special Place, we want you to read a letter written by James Daniel to Fran Daniel in 1953. At the time the letter was written, James was twenty years old and in the army. We had dreams like all other young people. After reading this letter and then the book, decide for yourself if their dreams were fulfilled.

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Once upon a time there was a little old woman and a little old man. They were Mr. and Mrs. Daniel. They loved each other very much and lived way out in the country. They were very happy with their three kids and all the animals they could feed.

But before this time, they had gone through some hard times and some unhappy ones. For Mr. Daniel had been in the army for two long years, but they kept their love as warm and gentle as it had ever been, and the Lord said it was good that they love each other so much. I will bless them with three children when James gets out of the army, and so he did. Now they look back and see that it wasn’t as bad as they thought it was. They have many cows and hogs and chickens, and don’t owe anybody a penny. On Saturday and Sunday, the whole family will saddle up their horses and away they will go. All the horses are pretty, but Mr. Daniel has the most beautiful horse I have ever seen. They called him the wonder horse, Buddy. But of course, Mrs. Daniel thinks her dog Skippy is much smarter.

They lived on that farm for the rest of their lives. They never had much, but they didn’t owe much either. They people that knew them said that Mr. Daniel said, I came here with nothing, and I will leave here with nothing. They said Mrs. Daniel was very friendly, but oh Mr. Daniel, you had to prove to him what you were before he would have anything to do with you. But after anyone had proved themselves to him, he would do anything for them.

Their two boys were just like Mr. Daniel. Their names were Danny and D’Artagnan (one of the Three Musketeers.) The little girl was the spitting image of her mother; oh, she was a gorgeous thing. She did everything those boys did too.

Then as the years passed by, the boys became men, and the girl became a woman, and they all got married and had kids, and Mr. and Mrs. Daniel grew older and older, but as they grew, their love grew too. The happiest time of year was Christmas. They became kids again at that time of the year.

The years rolled on and one day they found Mr. and Mrs. Daniel dead. They were laying on the bed in each other’s arms. The Lord had taken them exactly at the same time. Mrs. Daniel was eighty-four and Mr. Daniel was eighty-five.

The End

Well, how did you like it? I hope that is the way it is too. I’m going to close now.

Love James

+

Fran Daniel

I LOVE YOU

BACKGROUND

Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. Every

good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and

comes down from the Father of lights, with whom

there is no variation or shadow of turning.

James 1:16-17 (NKJV)

I don’t know about other people, but as I grow older, I look back over my life and wonder why – why the acceptance of Jesus and God came so easy for me and so hard for some other people, why God brought Fran and I together, why we had all boys and no girls, and so many more whys that I can’t count them. With God and family the most important things in my life, the next big why is why horses are so important to me. I really can’t explain this why in my life, but I will try.

As far back as I can remember, just the sight of a horse pleased my eyes and gave me a feeling of kinship. I know this seems strange, but without knowing what I was doing or even trying, I seemed to be able to think like a horse, or to know what he was thinking. Later in life, a man by the name of Jack Carter made this statement to another man about me, but never said it to me.

During my lifetime with horses, I have helped hundreds of people in training and handling of horses. The first thing I tell them is, You have to bring your brain level down to theirs. A horse cannot bring his brain level up to anything but a horse.

I don’t know if there is a gift or if it’s in my genes and inherited, but I assume a little of both. So, I will start this book of my life with horses with my mother’s daddy and my father’s daddy.

I never knew my father’s daddy – he died when my father was thirteen years old. I have two pictures of my grandfather that are really old. He is sitting on a horse in both of those pictures – the same horse in both of those pictures.

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Even though horses have changed in the last one hundred years, due to breeding for specific events in showing, the horse in the picture is obviously a quarter horse. One of the pictures shows my grandfather in a pen or corral with several long-haired steers.

According to my grandmother and other people I have talked to, my grandfather was a real horseman – not only in riding and training, but in horse trading. She told me the story a lot about some nomads that came through their little town in Mississippi trading horses.

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My grandfather bought a horse from them that was supposed to be a good work horse. The horse had long hair and was in poor condition. He took the horse home and when he tried to work the horse to a wagon, he found that the horse was not broke and probably never would be.

He kept the horse about a year. He knew the nomads came through their town about once a year, selling and trading horses. During that time, he fed the horse real good and he wormed the horse by whatever method they used then.

When the nomads came to town, he sold the horse back to them for a nice profit and a lot of satisfaction. They never knew they bought their own no-good horse back.

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My grandfather on my mother’s side was Ed Deal. He was a farmer in Drew County south of Ladelle, Arkansas. He used his horse for plowing and wagon and buggy pulling. He was real picky about his horses. He wanted horses to rest on the weekend, and