By Melissa Hart

Maybe it was the rolling hills in the landscape of middle Tennessee. Maybe it was the sweet sounds of live country music lifting into the night sky on a warm Tennessee Friday night. Maybe it was the smiling faces of everyone in attendance who meandered through the back roads of beef cattle and Tennessee Walking Horse ranches to attend a grand sale. Whatever it was, the Grand National Ayrshire Sale was a grand event for everyone.

The south in July is synonymous with hot and humid and that described the night that would gather friends, neighbors and cattle buyers alike to Lynn Lee’s Dixieland Farm in Wartrace, Tenn. As cars drove up the long curvy driveway, they drove past Red Angus bulls standing in a pond keeping cool and four young donkeys playing under the shade of the Live Oak trees. Attendees were greeted with a line-up of classic John Deere tractors, an old Chevy truck adorned in John Deere green and yellow, and a 1957 Bel Air in pristine condition with its shiny black paint and silver trim.

While the caterers put out the traditional BBQ spread with all the fixin’s and buyers were inspecting the string of Ayrshire heifers ready for the sale ring, others were sittin’ a spell and enjoying a cold drink.

Wth big fans moving air around the newly constructed shop turned banquet hall /sale ring, dinner was served and the sale began. Serious buyers and cattle aficionados paid close attention to the red and white cattle presented in the ring, making sure to mark down every price. Others who came for the gathering sat scattered about socializing in small groups just outside the barn enjoying the cooler breeze ushered in by the setting sun.

When the last animal went through the ring, it was time to celebrate with live country music. A local Nashville band set up and entertained the crowd late into the evening with sounds of George Strait, Willie Nelson and George Jones among others.

This Friday night in July, the noisy sounds and bright lights of downtown Nashville Honky Tonks entertained bachelorettes and bridal parties and fun-loving millennials while miles away over the ridge, a bright moon and sparkling stars lit up the Tennessee night sky over Lee’s Dixieland Farm where couples danced, kids played and friends were refreshed with easy conversation and a much needed slower pace.