L'IL BUCKAROOS |
March/April 2017
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If you're a kid, you came to
the right place, because... this page is
just for KIDS! 
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This month in Wild Heart Mustangs™
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4-H according to Helen |
WHAT IS 4-H?4-H is a national club for kids, with local groups in counties throughout the USA. The club has lots of different programs in agriculture, environmental, animal, plant and other science topics, technology, engineering, math, health living and citizenship. The activities are fun, hands-on, challenging and free or inexpensive. You can choose from in-school, after-school, club and camp programs.
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Growing up I had always heard about 4-H from friends, but it wasn’t till the Spring of 2015 that I actually got involved in the program myself. The 4-H Honor Club was just getting started in my area (Obion County, TN) and a good friend of mine invited me to come to the next meeting of the season. I went and loved it! After that first meeting, I knew I wanted to join and become a real 4-H-er. I met with the 4-H extension agent for Obion County and she told me what to do to become a member.
The 4-H Honor Club is a serviced based club: it looks for ways to get involved in the community and help those around us. Honor club not only offered me tremendous opportunities, but also gave me some amazing friends and memories and a way to help others. Honor Club also allowed me to get involved in other programs such as 4-H All Stars, 4-H judging teams, livestock showing, summer camps, and 4-H Vol-State, all of which have made a lasting impression on me. Talk to your local County Extension agents to learn more about 4-H activities in your area. I am so thankful I got involved: it is truly a wonderful program! |
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IT ALL STARTED WITH A SHEEP
by Helen Kendall
Sometimes we have dreams and expectations that don’t happen. Other times, what actually happens to us turns out to be so much better than what we imagined for ourselves. Let me tell you a story of a girl and a sheep with attitude problems.
I had a dream that one day I would be a show kid. You know the kids that have big blingy belt buckles and scuffed up cowboy boots? Yeah, that kind. In my head, I was going to show a sheep and win the county fair. My sheep and I were going to look fabulous walking into that show ring, and we were going to be the talk of the town. We were going to be the definition of Southern pride.
Dreaming is one thing; reality is a totally different story.
I had a dream that one day I would be a show kid. You know the kids that have big blingy belt buckles and scuffed up cowboy boots? Yeah, that kind. In my head, I was going to show a sheep and win the county fair. My sheep and I were going to look fabulous walking into that show ring, and we were going to be the talk of the town. We were going to be the definition of Southern pride.
Dreaming is one thing; reality is a totally different story.
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I met Bertram in March of 2016. He was one of six very fuzzy, very stinky sheep that shared the same barn. Bertram screamed like a girl when I tried to put a halter on him, and, at first, he made me chase him a good ten minutes every morning before he let me catch him. To anybody else Bertram was just like the all the other sheep: stinky and dirty. But to me he was special because he was mine. Bertram stole my heart.
Bertram was one of those dreams of mine that turned out completely different from what I had planned. I was thinking of ribbons and glory. Bertram was thinking something else. << We both had big smiles the day we first met.
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My sheep taught me how to love. Yeah, Bertram was stubborn and clumsy and needy, but he showed me how to love deeper. Every morning, he would be waiting for me at the gate, where he would greet me with a nudge or nibble on my face. He would follow me everywhere, lean against me, and kick his leg when I scratched his back. My sheep loved me unconditionally, even if I made him go for runs and walk up big hills.
Learning to work together before show season begins
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Sheep kisses
are stinky but wonderful! My sheep taught me how to work. That summer I worked harder than I ever had before in my life. Between hauling 50-pound bags of feed and wrestling with a stubborn sheep, I learned how to sweat, y’all! I learned that I would only do as well as the work I put into something. I learned what dedication meant.
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My sheep taught me to never give up. The first show of the season came quickly. As we entered the ring, Bertram decided that he did not know how to walk. I decided that I might rather eat him for dinner than drag him around the show ring. We were fighting with each other throughout the whole show. Needless to say, Bertram and I got last place. I was frustrated and disappointed. I had poured so much time into this animal, but it hadn’t done any good. I was tempted to give up.
Getting pretty before a show.
However, I realized that I could either give up or figure out a new strategy. So that’s exactly what I did. Completely re-doing mine and Bertram’s daily workouts left us both exhausted by the end of each day. But you know what? Next show, we went from 22nd place to 3rd. Bertram ended winning multiple awards and ribbons. Was I tempted to give up? Absolutely. Did I? No, and perseverance paid off.
Back in the show ring again - it's all concentration now for both of us.
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Back to the drawing board: training continues, with lots of snuggles, of course.
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My sheep taught me how to let go. When you show livestock at your county fair, you sell your livestock to market after the show is finished. That night, driving home without a sheep in the trailer broke my heart. I cried all the way home. Turns out that showing a sheep was a lot more dirt, sweat and tears than ribbons and congratulatory handshakes.
But if I had the chance, I would do it all again.
In life, we will lose things that are precious to us. Bertram taught me to cherish every sweet moment and every hard moment, too. And he taught me how to let go gracefully.
So when I am an adult out in the workforce and life, I can look back to the moments Bertram and I shared. When things aren’t going right, I can remember that first show and be encouraged to keep going. When I lose something dear to my heart, I can look back and remember that stock show sale and be reminded that I am strong enough to weather loss.
So did showing a sheep give me all the glory and ribbons I had planned? No.
It gave me so much more.
My sheep taught me that every moment and memory life gives us holds something huge. We can learn something valuable from every situation and circumstance. Thank you, Bertram, for sweetly showing me so much about life and for helping me grow into a better, stronger person!
But if I had the chance, I would do it all again.
In life, we will lose things that are precious to us. Bertram taught me to cherish every sweet moment and every hard moment, too. And he taught me how to let go gracefully.
So when I am an adult out in the workforce and life, I can look back to the moments Bertram and I shared. When things aren’t going right, I can remember that first show and be encouraged to keep going. When I lose something dear to my heart, I can look back and remember that stock show sale and be reminded that I am strong enough to weather loss.
So did showing a sheep give me all the glory and ribbons I had planned? No.
It gave me so much more.
My sheep taught me that every moment and memory life gives us holds something huge. We can learn something valuable from every situation and circumstance. Thank you, Bertram, for sweetly showing me so much about life and for helping me grow into a better, stronger person!
FUN FACTS ABOUT SHEEP
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Sheep have very good memories. They can remember at least 50 individual sheep and humans for years. Fifty? Yes, 50!
Sheep are precocial and social - that means they're very independent from the moment they're born, and like to be in a group (like a flock). Sheep have excellent peripheral vision. That means they can see things all around them - even in back of them - without turning their heads! 
WANT TO COLOR THE LITTLE LAMB? |
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HEY, BUCKAROOS!
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