Over the years, I have attended
many 4-H workshops, seminars, camps, and contests on every level from County to
Nationals and I have spent countless hours studying on my own just to complete
the different projects and competitions that I had started. Last year one of my
fellow 4-H members asked why I work so hard.
My answer at the time was 4-H is what I do. For a few months after last
years fair, I dwelt on the question trying to figure it out. Then the new 4-H
year rolled around and here I am working just as hard spending more time
studying and preparing for County, District,
State and National
competitions.
I love to check the mail at this
time of the year, why because I am a member of at least three different cattle
associations, and this is when they send out all the different cattle
production sale magazines. The first thing I like to read is the different
ranch histories on what they have been doing for the past year, to improve
their ranches and production of their herds. Most of them talk about EPD’s, the
different breeds, and their efforts to improve the environment.
Then I read this Article written by
Lindsay Williams in their magazine about their up coming sale and
consignors. I believe that this describes
why I do what I do, and why I work so hard.
Here is what she wrote:
“Recently,
the superintendent for our Columbus
School wrote an article
discussing attitudes of marathon runners” Lindsay believes it applies to
their consignors, and I believe it also applies to members of 4-H.
It went like this.
“Every
year, major cities like New York and Boston hold marathons and
10,000 or more runners enter these elite races. Why??? The odds of losing are
overwhelming. In fact, almost every entrant in these major races knows he/she
stands no chance of even placing in the top 1,000. So why do they run? They run
because they are doing it for themselves. They have set a personal goal, not
only to compete, but also of being part of an elite event in which they are
both a competitor and a finisher. They are hoping for a personal best finish time along the way, and the honor of saying
I ran the race. That is the attitude and character of our consignors, and they
are a credit to the industry. That is
what life and success is all about: Being in the race”.
Many 4-H members start out as
Clover Buds at the age of five years old; by the time, they have completed the
4-H program at the age of eighteen they have invested thirteen years of their
lives. 4-H members like distance runners train for years just to improve by
small increments. Ultimately, they turn the endless hours of training and
personal sacrifice into a chance to compete against others just to see how they
stack up, and enjoy the comradely of being with other like-minded individuals. The
finish line is a place of joy and celebration knowing that through the 4-H
program, we will have polished our ability to complete all that we start,
knowledge to achieve our goals, and friendships that will last a lifetime.
After reading Lindsay’s article, I
realized we in 4-H are long distant runners in a marathon preparing ourselves
to enter our lives as an adult with a personal best finish, and the confidence
to say we ran the best race of our life.
4-H Motto – “To Make the Best Better”
