I just returned to Florida from another fantastic visit to my beautiful Colorado. This past weekend was the Park County Fair, it also became the weekend for the new batman and the day a man would walk into an Aurora movie theatre set a bomb and shoot into a crowd killing 12 and wounding many more. Through the excitement and stress of the fair we all somehow found our own little ways to honor those who had been lost in this horrible tragedy. As for me I choose thought to be my tool for dealing with tragedies of the world.
As I sat and thought of this evil that had been done, and of all the evil being done. My heart felt heavy and depressed at the thought of how horrible the world has become, as I know many of you have thought along these lines. I continue to watch the news and observe closely what is going on around me. The more I thought the worse I felt. Then I had one of those beautiful moments of hope and relief, one of those moments that reminds me that there is opposition in all things and Heavenly Father will always allow the good to counter the bad.
So what was this magical moment? Well as I sat and agonized over the thought of evil taking over the hearts of men I looked around and saw what was right there in front of me. You want to know what I saw? I saw people, beautiful people that I know and love with all my heart. These people are some of the hardest working, down to heart people I know. I looked I saw the kids, the 4hers, these kids are tough and full of passion and heart. I have never met a kid that works harder than a 4her or a farm kid. They don't mind getting stepped on pushed around and beaten down because they know how to wipe the dust from their jeans and stand right back up again. When they need to they have heart and a connection to this earth that one can only have by working it and it's creatures. Yah they eat their own animals but these kids put more heart and love into that animal than you will ever know unless you have done it. It's hard as hell to sell those animals but because of the love you have for them and the others of the future you keep doing every year because of the reward of giving an animal the best life and bringing it to it's purpose is amazing.
Anyway back to what I was talking about, hope. These kids are strong and bring me hope. I saw that in my little brother Malachi who despite his very injured foot and a steer that decided to be a nasty little devil, finished the show, evan after being trampled multiple times. I don't know if there ever was a time I was more proud of him than in that moment after showmanship went bad and he told me he needed to finish the job! In my eyes, in that moment my little brother became so much closer to being a man than most in our world will ever be. This is the spirit of a 4her, I have to finish the job, even through the pain. The 4her spirit is also caring and teaching, I saw that when I watched an older 4her surrounded by little children as she washed, brushed and took care of her calves. Every time I turned around the 4her had another little girl helping her wash or another boy asking to sit on her steer. Without fail every time she gave them a big smile and took the time to let them be a part of her project.
That's how the 4h kid is, sure there are the moments of stress and politics that invade the 4h situation, feeling still get hurt and many end of leaving because of it, but the program of 4h teaches you more about life and what the real world is like in ways that no other activity can. So as I sit and think about this tragedy and all that goes on in our world. I will think of these kids that continually work to make the world better in a seemingly small way. I will think of them and the tears shed for a little steer, hog, or lamb and I will see how they have the very smallest taste of what our Savior feels when he watches his lambs go off to the slaughter. I will look at these 4hers and I will find hope for the future!
No comments:
Post a Comment