Punchy Protagonist

She stood there, panting and taking turns eyeballing each of the four of us. She had never been away from her home, her safe place, and now she was five hours away staring at four brand new faces in a brand new barn as we just stared back. The look in her eyes read of fear with not a glimpse of trust to be found. Yet.  She didn’t trust any of us as far as she could throw us, and at a year old and around 1000 pounds, she could’ve thrown any of us pretty far if she so desired. Two attempts got her off of the trailer with no injuries to anyone, but it was certainly the journey getting her to her pen. She breathed heavy and plastered herself against the barn wall, where she adamantly stayed any time one of us tried to approach her. Getting too close to her was met with a bolt in the other direction.    If she could have climbed the panels of her pen, she would have.    We all knew she wasn’t crazy, but she wasn’t going to just be one you walked in there and started ...

I haven’t posted lately, and honestly I haven’t known quite what to post. Every day I wake up with a new feeling about the current situation we all seem to be in. I have trouble getting all those thoughts and feelings into something coherent that I can actually write out with any remanence of finesse. Tonight, however, I went to my classroom. I just went to get some things to bring home. It is a different situation than the last time I was in there. The last time I was there, I was frantically trying to print off AMI work and was still in the dark about whether or not my classroom would get any use before the end of the term. Tonight, my classroom was the same as ever but now the situation is completely different. When I say that my classroom was the same as ever, I mean it looks the same as the day I left it in March. Chromebooks were still out on the tables, abandoned for weeks, just like my students set them on the table to go to their next classes not 5 minutes prior. Notebooks...

Resolutions. Something that people strive for in the new year and, the majority of the time, fall short. Famously around the globe, there are millions of jokes, memes, and social media posts made about resolutions that were made and put by the wayside. As the Mad Hatter says, I have been considering things that begin with the letter M. In this case, it is "myself." In my sometimes whirlwind of a life, I usually spend the least amount of time in front of the mirror as possible. But sometimes, life hands you situations where you take an extended look at yourself. And, through that, are born blog posts. Most years, I do not bother with resolutions and, if I am honest, the list I am about to diverge probably don't fall under the typical "resolutions." 1. Stop worrying.  I know that everyone worries, and there are things in life that are worth worrying about. However, sometimes I catch myself worrying about things that should not be of any consequence. ...

On Christmas Eve, one of my old show heifers had a calf. My boyfriend, parents, and I scooped up the calf and lead the cow to the barn because the calf was getting kicked when it tried to nurse. After finishing work with the pair, as we were standing in my parents’ driveway, my boyfriend pulled out a ring and proposed to me. For us, raising cattle is an adventure we love to do together. We plan on continuing to have cattle and building our herd together just like we will build our life together. I found out later that he was planning on proposing when a certain heifer calved...the first one we bought together as a couple. Unfortunately, she hasn’t calved yet because she got bred later than we thought. Knowing that I was getting impatient because his self-announced timeline was running out (and because I might have voiced that I didn’t want to get put off again and again) he chose another time to propose. He chose to keep his word to me and adjust his plan.  This is not only a s...

There is currently a post ciruculating around the agriculture community on Facebook, some of which I am a frequent browser of. It reads: To the women raising cattle for butcher, but cuddling a wet, struggling newborn calf, that’s covered in afterbirth, inside their pickup truck.   To the women who believe in God and the word, but also believe that everyone has a right to love who they want.   To the women who aren’t trying to prove they can do anything a man can do, but genuinely enjoy pushing themselves to conquer any challenge.   To the women with broken and chipped nails, but still have painted on red polish.   To the women giving immunizations and administering medicine, but still believe in the healing powers of stones and plants.   To the women always dressing up for the occasion, wearing yesterday’s curls, blue jeans, and the heels of cowboy boots.   To the women busting their knuckles and callusing their palms, but still wearing their ...

Today was the first Sunday for the new pastor at the church I attend. It also marks the first time that church has had a female pastor in its 167 year history. It also marks the first time I have attended a church with a female pastor. She was positive, straight-forward, and spoke as if God’s love naturally poured out of her. For the first time in a while, my heart felt light in church.  For the first time in a while, I felt comfortable in the pew and content after the service. For the first time in a while, I saw a person in the pulpit that I felt I could talk to without judgement, even with uncomfortable topics. And that was just after one sermon. So, naturally after that revelation, I decide to post a little message of my own. Today’s post is brought to you by the letter F...for Feminism. I was raised by a family of strong women and by men who did not try to silence or squelch them. I was raised by men and women that told me that I, as a woman, could be anything I wanted to b...