Last Saturday, a cold, windy, rainy day, was the Jr. Rodeo. Bethany and Joelle tied goats for the first time, and did a few gymkhana events. Jayden, Jayna, and Bria did stick horse racing and boot racing. And Jayna won at mutton busting. Here are some things I learned from them on Saturday:
1) From Jayna, champion Mutton Buster, who rode the sheep for 8.5 seconds (3.5 seconds longer than the boy who got 2nd): To win in life, you have to be brave enough to try and strong enough to just hang on. You don't have to tame life's muttons, and sometimes you're going to fall (that's to be expected), but if you get on and try when others are too afraid, and you hang on when things get rough and bumpy, you might just get the prize that God has for you. So, no matter what life throws at you, be brave and hang on!
2) From Joelle, who tied her goat to perfection, but it got loose a half second too soon: Sometimes even when you do things just right, things do go as planned or hoped. Don't despair! Tie your goats the best you know how, and let God take care of the rest. And maybe you'll get some perfect snapshots of life along the way.
3) From Bria, who was behind in the stick horse race, but came from behind to get a 3rd place trophy: Don't worry if others seem to be beating you, just keep running your own race. Don't get discouraged, don't give up, but see the race through to the very end.
4) From Bethany, who didn't win a buckle, but who ran her races faster than she ever has before, and had a lot of fun doing it: Don't compare yourself with others, but run your own race, and enjoy every minute of the race God has set before you.5) From Jayden, who threw a fit and didn't want to run his races and have fun: Don't throw a fit when things don't go your way, instead look for new opportunities to find joy in what God is setting before you.
6) From Jordyn, who spent the day cuddled in the car while the wind and rain stormed outside: Don't panic when life is storming around you because God has set you in a safe place and He is watching over you.
7) From me, who stood out in the rain and wind, freezing and watching and cheering: Even when you're in a storm, cold, shivering, and wet, there are moments of pure joy. Watch for them, revel in them, and know that every day, even the yucky-weather ones, are a gift from God.
4 comments:
Marlo and family,
What a fun way to spend time together! Your children are so precious, and I think I read somewhere that your daughter has the horse, oh, he or she is beautiful!!
Ruth
Thanks, Ruth. We have 5 horses. The one in the picture is Rusty - he's Bethany's horse. Joelle also has a horse, Ruby. And Jayna and Bria share Valentine. My hubby and I also have horses. In fact, we just had a very fun time at a gymkhana show (two-day show) called the Firecracker Frenzy, where all 6 of us rode together -- it's so fun to share something like that with the kids! (The two littlest ones are still too young to ride, but in a few years all 8 of us could be on horses - wow, that would be something!).
teaching kids to rope and tie animals? How about teaching them kindness and compassion???? Would you allow them to do that to a puppy? Seriously this is just awful to see.
Dear Anonymous,
I am hesitant to answer your scolding post since you didn't leave your name or identify yourself in any way. Because you've gone back several months without leaving a comment on any other post (even the one about adopting a rescue horse) or about the actual content of this one, I am concerned that you are either:
1) someone who trolls the internet for items related to rodeo, or circus, or things like that, and simply leaves scolding comments on all of them. (I don't see any value to getting into a animal rights political debate as I find that facts and truth are typically ignored in such debates in favor of rhetoric and emotions.) OR
2) someone who is going through my blog posts simply looking for something to criticize. (I also find it a waste of time and emotional energy to engage with those people who just want to find fault.)
HOWEVER, just in case you really are an honest reader who was offended by the picture of Joelle doing goat tying, I am going to go ahead and address your implied concern. So here ya go:
I'm sorry you were offended by my daughter goat tying. However, you'll be glad to know that the goats were not at all hurt during this event. In this event, the rider races down the arena on her horse, jumps off, then takes the goat and turns it over onto her lap, ties three legs and lets go. The goat remains tied for only a few seconds. The ropes don't burn the goat's legs, the goat isn't hurt when it's turned over, and the whole thing is very quick and simple. And different goats are used every few times (the goats go trotting away when their turn is over with no signs of trauma at all). You also asked if I'd allow them to practice on a puppy -- No, we didn't practice on a puppy, instead they practiced on each other. By doing the same thing to one another, we could be sure that tying wouldn't hurt the goat. In fact, my kids thought it was a lot of fun to play the goat as sister tried to wrap the rope around. So, rest assured that the goat in the picture was not at all hurt, but was just fine afterward (in fact, he jumped right up seconds after this picture and happily trotted around -- he also showed no signs of being scared, he knew how to kick free of the ropes and if he stayed tangled he would be let go in a few seconds anyway).
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