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My Cowboy Code
On this National Day of the American Cowboy, I felt inclined to post my version of the “code.”
- Live by the Golden Rule.
- Practice tolerance and understanding of others.
- Be hospitable to strangers. Anyone who wanders in, including an enemy, is welcome at the dinner table.
- Do not inquire into a person’s past. Take the measure of a man for what he is today.
- Never pass anyone without saying “Howdy”.
- Never steal or trespass. Thieves and trespassers pay with their life.
- Defend yourself whenever necessary.
- Family ALWAYS comes first.
- Look out for your own. Read more…
The First Serious Conversation
I picked up my son today from my mom and dad’s.
We buckled up, I started the truck, backed up, turned around and pulled on to the road. There was a bit of conversation about his hike on the hill with grandma, their new puppy and a request to stop by the pond to see the turtles. We stopped, counted the turtles, seven, and then continued on our way…in silence…for about three minutes and fifteen seconds…when the “big question” was asked….
Son: “Daddy, how long will you be alive?”
Me: “I don’t know son…that’s up to the good Lord above to decide.”
[approximately 30 seconds of silence]
Son: “Daddy [beginning to cry] …. I don’t want you to die…. I want you to live forever….”
Me “Kyle, I love you, and hearing you say that means the world to me, but we can’t live forever. It’s not in our control. It’s all up to our Creator.
[crying increased]
Son: “I’m going to pray that He lets you live until I die daddy.”
The conversation continued for the rest of the drive home, down the lane, out in the field and for a bit longer….
This was the first real “serious” conversation the two of us have had….and probably not the last.
It was a moment that I will treasure forever.
It was a moment that caused me to pause and contemplate.
I leave you to contemplate.
Happiness…Through the Actions of a Child
Making It To The Stump Was A Start
Happy - characterized by or indicative of pleasure, contentment, or joy
Last week, while I was heading someplace, I was listening to John Stossel, on my XM, “What Really Makes People Happy.”
I spent the next few days thinking about this question. I thought about myself and what makes me happy? Read more…
Sometimes It Takes An Anvil….
The Anvil
Last Thursday, I was helping my wonderful wife move a trunk of horse show supplies from the tack room to storage. As we were passing through the shop, we passed by my anvil, which I pass by numerous times each day. Thursday, however, as I went by, the end of the anvil caught me in the thigh…even though I had “given it a wide berth” or so I thought.
For those not familiar with anvils, I use ours to shape shoes for the horses and as an aid in the fabrication of steel projects.
For some reason, Job 37:14 popped into my head: “Hearken unto this, O Job: stand still, and consider the works of God. Dost thou know when God disposed them, and caused the light of his cloud to shine? Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, the wonderous works of him which is perfect in knowledge? How thy garments are warm, when he quieteth the earth by the south wind?”
Too often, we all get absorbed in what we feel is best, become overly concerned in what we can accomplish, care more for getting acknowledgment for our actions or are so engrossed in doing what we think is best, that we forget to “stand still, and consider the works of God.”
The good Lord works in mysterious ways and last Thursday, He used an anvil to remind me to stand still, consider his works and refocus on doing his work, putting others first and reminding me that it more important to build bridges on mutual trust and understanding than to force “education” on others.
It’s about listening…listening with the genuine intent to learn from each other.
Open your minds, open your hearts…
Take a moment to “stand still.”
Honors
