Be Bold, Have Faith, and Show Gratitude

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I have one word for you: gratitude. Let that word sink in because it is something I personally think is lacking in today’s world. Living in a pandemic has created a society of people that are too easily discouraged and most of all scared. Our “go-getters” of the world have tucked tails and are confined to isolation along with the masses, only finding themselves in the daylight cloaked with masks like the other sheep.

I will not let this be about those people, however. Since when have people been rewarded for being just like everyone else and for following the rules? For instance, Pancho Villa and his efforts to overthrow the Mexican dictator, Porfirio Díaz. He took his skills and used them for the good of the people, despite breaking the law, and helped deliver the Mexican population from the suppression of the Caste system. Instead, with this I plan to say that the industry that I live and breath has those rule breakers that are not defined by pandemic, but rather defy it. Perseverance is all we have left to do. No longer shall we go without social interactions with people around us where children are only confined to phones and tablets. Let us rise and do what we love.

Today, I am sitting at a pig show in Oklahoma. Surrounded by individuals who all share the same passion and drive as me, I am humbled and reminded of that word: gratitude. On a day like today, I could not think of a better place to be, it is a safe-haven if you will. Here, in the stock show industry the kids drive the adults and empower one another with the inspiration of success and valuable moments. We do not let masks and viruses be our ball and chains and we do not live with a burden of a mask. However, there are people to be thanked for these experiences to be happening. They go above and beyond to keep us going and to preserve the culture and tradition we have created.

These rule- breaking individuals should be accredited with more than just putting on a livestock show. They are saving lives. Ladies and gentlemen, it has been kept quiet, but it should not be any longer. Suicide rates are up amongst

teens, especially in Colorado. Kids are being isolated and feel that there is no end to the loneliness. Unable to go to school and participate in extracurricular activities that get them out of the house, involved with amazing people and doing things that are out of this world. At what point do government officials realize that the cure to the pandemic is lethal.

So I say to you, if you can take anything away, have gratitude for the little blessings in your life. Take advantage of the big opportunities and thank everyone along the way who has made that opportunity available. Living in the pandemic is hard, but it is harder if you let it get you down. Have faith, always persevere, trust God, and have no fear. We will not be stricken down from doing the things we love. So today become a rule-breaker and give yourself and others the chance to do something unthinkable.