Going to brandings has always been the highlight of each spring for me. Early in the morning you saddle your horses, put your chinks on, and slip on your boots, ready for the day to come. As you ride alongside your neighbors and friends, you can’t help but smile as you round up the calves. Once the sorting is done and irons are hot, the day truly begins. Those who are part of the ground crew get ready with vaccines, prep their tools for castration, and make sure their irons are just right. As the first cowboy or cowgirl throws their loop, you watch as they effortlessly pull their slack and dally, dragging the calf to the fire. It all seems easy right? From the outside looking in, it should be fairly quick and without complication, but we all know that there are far too many factors out of our control to have a truly “perfect” branding. About a week ago, I tagged along with the boys for the first branding of the year, and to be honest I knew in the back of my mind that sitting in a desk for 9 months may not have prepared me for the event. However, I figured it would be a great experience for me because I’ve been trying to learn how to rope and also thought one branding to add to my small list of three could only benefit me. I hopped on the little paint horse and reluctantly, I followed the boys into the branding pen. At first I threw a few shots and seemed to only catch one leg, so I let them go out of cowboy courtesy. As the time dragged on, I continued to miss and miss and miss. Heck, I doubt by the end I could catch the broad side of the barn. It felt like I had forgotten everything I had learned in the past, what was I even doing? I tangled myself up twice in my own rope, had my hat fall off, and honestly, I think I only drug about two calves to the fire out of the group of 70 that we had to rope. Some cowgirl right? As I sat in the pickup on the way home, all that was running through my head was, “And you call yourself a cowgirl?” I was embarrassed that I had done so poorly for myself, and to top it off I felt like my boyfriend probably shouldn’t claim to be associated with me. How could I have done so badly when at brandings when I had half the experience I roped and handled my calves better? It really had me on a reel of whether or not being a ranch hand is the right occupation for me. With my pride in the dirt and hands cracked and bleeding, I wondered why I was struggling so much with what seems like a simple task. Much like the unseen complications at a branding, your dreams and goals in life can be taken on an unexpected ride. We strive so hard for perfection, in our careers, relationships, image, and so on. I think that we often forget that the best learning experiences to reach these dreams are often our biggest failures. We focus so much on when we fail, that we don’t factor in where we started. When you think about what you’re working towards you should think about how hard you’ve worked to come this far and the triumphs, small or big, that you’ve had to achieve to reach where you are now. Just think back for a second, what have you DONE up to now, not what do I still need to DO? When I rode into the pen an older cowboy was making remarks at how new my saddle was, and I knew his intentions weren’t necessarily kind. But what that cowboy doesn’t know is that I worked over 300 hours for that saddle and that bringing it home to ride on my favorite horses last summer is one of my fondest memories. What I didn’t give myself credit for was the hours and late nights of roping a saw horse, working for horse trainers, and cleaning stalls just to learn more and try to be 1% better than the day before. I got so wrapped up in my failures at that exact moment that I completely dismissed all the hard work and hardships I had overcame to even reach this seemly inexperienced point. Sometimes in the process of roping your goals, you might catch one foot or miss your dally. Gather your thoughts and your rope, then throw another loop. We can either let our failures define us or better yet, we can use them to shape us. Take a moment today to appreciate yourself. Appreciate yourself for all that you have done so far and all that you have worked for. Never give up on your goals just because things might seem impossible at the time. Always remember, every single person in this world started out as beginner. No matter what you are striving for, keep your dreams in mind, but never lose sight of the work that has gotten you there. It may take you one shot or maybe over 1,000, but eventually you’ll rope two feet and drag your calf to the fire.
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AuthorThis is a blog to share many stories, laughs, adventures and lessons learned by yours truly, Haley Potter. Archives
July 2023
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