American Cowboys

In the days of being politically correct there are people who insist that the life of the American Cowboy is still alive and kicking. They travel from town to town in search of a payday. They may have ranches where they work during the week but on the weekends you can find them at rodeos. What I consider the true American sport. Baseball, football, and basketball have become such a publicity show and if a player gets a sore toe he doesn't play and is still paid a fortune. The rodeo cowboy actually pays to compete to try to win the purse. What would football be if the players had to do that. But when you see these guys all dressed up in what most people would consider a cowboy costume, and I have heard it put exactly that way, you are looking at a piece of American history. Those clothes you see aren't a costume, just everyday working clothes.

But it isn't just the clothes or the sport, it's family. These guys will ignore you if they don't know you, but if they see your kid is in trouble they'll put their lives on the line to protect them. They don't have a lot of money but they'll loan you their last dollar if it means you compete against them or not. You can't touch their hat without them being insulted but they'll lend you their horse to go rope a calf or bulldog a steer. And on any weekend you'll find them and their kids all involved in the same sport. Fathers against sons, mothers against daughters, and in the stands the little boys and girls watching wanting to be just like their dads and moms, and falling asleep in their dad, or moms, arms while they watch another kid doing the same thing on horseback.

At the beginning of every rodeo is the National Anthem, and a prayer, and nobody complains. Probably because that complaint would fall on deaf ears. These people all believe in our country and what it stands for, and to hell with anyone who doesn't like it.

Like I said they aren't the most politically correct people in the world. Just some of the best.