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Monthly Archives: June 2015

Crazy America

Soccer with 19000 fans. My son sang the National Anthem at Sporting KC and I get to be an honored guest at the game against St Louis. I get to be at field level before the game. Drums are drumming. Gigagiant screen is broadcasting. It is intense here and intensity builds up to fever level as we get nearer to the start of the game. I’m standing where the visiting team is seated. They come into the stadiumas I try to stay out of their way. They are young and very fit…and all good looking!
Color guard marched out into field. Fans are screaming and emotions are high. Nathan and Ben take the field and get ready to sing.
I’m in a totally different world….think Tomorrowlamd combined with Gladiators in The Roman Colosium about to take to the field with Charlton Heston. It is that intense.
I had a blinding flash of the obvious. This must be what a horse goes through when being taken from peaceful pasture and deposited from trailer into the intensity of a big horse show. Aha!

After the fabulous anthem with the entire crowd screaming with anthem happiness, we are escorted to our seats in the stadium. We are seated in the next section from the opposing St. Louis fans. Never, except during the half, did the St Louis fans have a moment of quiet. The three or four drummers and several hundred screaming people kept it up the entire game. One chant was S……T……..L. I believe that stands for ST. Louis
The other chants were too complicated for me to remember. Nathan chanted along with St Louis fans in a slightly negative manner. He changed the words. Near the end, Nathan made a certain number of fans in our section chant the I Believe chant. Things get exciting at soccer games!

I got caught up in the talented Sporting KC players as they made the body moves and feet dribbling skills to keep the ball away from the opposing player. I watched for a while and thought,my goodness, this is just like the tricky cow moves when trying to get back to the herd, past the cutting horse, during cutting.

And then I knew that I have gone over the hill in horse crazyiness. Tony and Jenny Vaught must have made a deep impression on my brain in all the cow clinics and cow herding lessons for me to compare soccor with cow work.

I occasionally glanced at the big clock as time went on. I swear the clock said 60 minutes a while ago and now it sez 68 minutes. Oh wait, I remember that we count up to 90 minutes in a soccer game. I remember that penalties add to the time, but the penalty added times are not reflected anywhere. They are a secret.

We were at 90 minutes and the game went on. I must have been looking at the poor exhausted St Louis drummers when I realized that all the fans were cheering at something. Movement wasn’t happening on the field. I was trying to figure out what happened when I saw the teams shaking hands with one another. Oh, the game must have ended. The game ending must be a secret to new fans to the game. Everyone else seemed to be aware that the game ended. I stood up and cheered too, so everyone would know that I knew that the game was over and we won. YAY!
What crazy person invented such a game that ends and the new fans have no idea…and the clock is still at 90 minutes.
Soccer is weird…and so are horse events for those that don’t know the rules.

Cisco the Cow Horse and Cisco Love

The last cow clinic showed Cisco, a good ole boy who loves everyone, hesitating to wade (walk) into the bunched up cow herd. Cows can be intimidating when they are standing body to body touching and looking at us. Cows are even intimidating when looking at a bunch of them from the rear. Cisco was not willing to walk into the herd some of the days at the last cow clinic.

Cisco’s confidence increased this week. He was doing great with the cows. The weather turned hot, humid and all air ceased moving. I got off Cisco for a short break. I left all the cowgirls and cowboy in the center of the arena where they were holding the herd of cows. Cows were in the middle and cowgirls/cowboy had the herd surrounded.
Cisco has his bridle on and I didn’t want to take the time to get his halter to tie him up. Cisco deposited me nicely at the fence where I climbed off. He stood there nicely. I told him to wait for me at the fence and left.

When I reappeared in the arena, the cows were massed at the end of the arena and Cisco was in the middle….where the cows were supposed to be.

When I left him, he decided to go play with the cows! He strolled past the cowgirls/cowboy right smack into the cow herd. He nipped a cow! The cow startled and took off. All the other cows decided to leave also. The herd ran past the startled cowgirls/cowboy. Wow! Cisco is a cow horse!

I walked into the arena. Everyone was telling me what an amazing thing Cisco just done. Cisco looked up and saw me. His head came up. He left the horses and came all the way over to the fence to me. He walked directly to me! He left the other horses to be with me.

Thank God, I had brought him his favorite treat. He came to me and got an apple. If there was a best time in the universe to reward a horse, this was it.

Cisco and I have an amazing bond! I am humbled to partner with this horse.

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