11/30/2022
She used to be a cowgirl before fear and doubt crept in. She used to swing a leg over any old horse in the corral and ride hell bent and fast over the land. She used to be a cowgirl before she was a mother and a wife. She used to be at the barn from sun-up to sundown before she was cooking breakfast, driving carpool and tending to heart matters. She used to be a cowgirl before the world called her to make a dollar. She used to train c**ts, craft leather and make goods to get by just to ride her horse another day instead. She used to be a cowgirl full of grit, faith and fearless before she doubted her ability and the horse she rode. She used say ‘what the hell’ and give it all she had. She used to be a cowgirl, but now she doesn’t just climb on the cold-backed, snorty c**t with a grin. She hesitates and is a little scared now and again. She used to be a cowgirl, but real life has changed her some as responsibilities pull at her heart, breaking it now and again. She wouldn’t change being a mother, a wife, or a bread winner for her family; those are great accomplishments. But if you see her starting to let the housework slide now and then, that she says it’s cereal for dinner, or she pays a late fee on the power bill, that’s because she’s reprioritizing her heart a little- she’s making room for the things that speak most to her. The barn, the outdoors, the horses, and her cowgirl spirit are calling. It’s her balance; a piece of her she’s not willing to give up. If you find her at the corral instead of the stove, she’s rekindling her heart flames and shoring up her foundation so she can be all she needs to those she loves. Because she used to be a cowgirl, and a damn good one at that.
Written by me, Heather Countryman ©
