Queen of Youth

“Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.” 1 Timothy 4:12


This picture of me showed up on Facebook courtesy of my Aunt Norma this week:

I hadn’t seen it in years, but I remember I was running for Rodeo Queen at the time and came in second to a girl who couldn’t even ride a horse! (Winning was based on ticket sales, and she beat me.) But I won a belt buckle, that is lost in space somewhere, that I truly loved at the time. My mom sewed that shirt I’m wearing and made the concho thing around my neck. The shirt was magenta with black fans. Those pins on my straw hat were also my mom’s. One is of a barrel racer (which I have a scar to prove I did a few times) and the other is my mother’s middle and my first initial.  I got those earrings for Confirmation.

My mom once ran for Rodeo Queen too, or it was reported that she was signed up to. One of her friends, reportedly AunT who comments on this blog, signed her up and made up some fliers. My mom was wearing a big black cowboy hat in the picture and a dark jacket and tie, I believe. I haven’t seen one those fliers in years, but I remember my mom did not like that picture and swore she never actually ran for Rodeo Queen. Too bad. I liked the picture and never could figure out why she didn’t.

This picture of me was taken by my mom’s friend, Cindy, behind the nursing home where my mom and I worked in the kitchen. I believe I am 14 years old in this picture and was just about as happy as I could be. I was in the FFA and was some kind of officer – Reporter, I think. (I was President my senior year.) And I had yet to discover boys and all the grief that comes with that. I had a 23-year-old Appaloosa mare that would scream at the horse shows and try to buck me off for the first 15 minutes that I rode her. She and I would eventually come to terms, but I had to wear her down every single time I was on her. I loved her, and she probably secretly loved me, although it was hard for her to show.

I was really glad to see that someone still had a copy of this picture and now I have it saved to my computer forever or until something tragic happens to all my files. I may set it up as my wallpaper! I like that I have the same toothy smile (although I’m a little longer in the tooth) and freckles on my nose. I now share those freckles with my two boys and they seem to appreciate them more than I did at their age. I like the fact that I can look at that picture and remember so many good things about that time in my life.

I like to take lots of pictures of my kids, sometimes to my husband’s chagrin. I like to flip back through them on the computer, reminiscing about each phase of their short lives. Perhaps someday, one of the photos I take will stick in their minds like my Rodeo Queen photos stick in mine. Maybe they’ll remember their childhood fondly.

And if they don’t, I’ll have plenty of photographic evidence to the contrary!

“I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging for bread.” Psalm 37:25