Too Many Rules

While visiting with my young nephew this past week, I shared a story about our annual ride home from the Ogden Pioneer Days Rodeo. He suddenly said "I wish I had grown up when you did. Today there are rules about everything." As I reflected on his words, I came to realize that he is absolutely right. We have ruled and regulated ourselves to the point that we now steal the joy of life from our young people. Truly, this is very sad.

As a boy, I belonged to one of the Junior Posses that surround the Ogden, Utah area. In that day, every small community had a posse and we spent the summers competing for the honor and glory of our home towns. It was great fun and I treasure every memory.

When the Ogden Pioneer Days Rodeo, a PRCA sanctioned event, came to town, two posses would participate each night by riding in the grand entry and competing in a little bit of barrel racing. For me, the high point of the night was the ride home after the rodeo. Generally the rodeo would end around midnight. That is when the ride, and the real fun would begin.

This ride was a wonderful adventure for a small group of kids who generally ranged in ages from about twelve to fifteen. All night long we would talk, laugh, joke and bark at the moon.

Together we would ride down the sidewalks of Ogden's main drag. At one busy intersection we would stop and allow each horse a chance to drink from a water fountain while passing citified motorists would rubberneck and nearly drive their cars up a lamp post. Watching those people who with open mouths watched us was absolutely hilarious.

There were several fast food joints along the way. I loved to ride up to the order window to wait and watch. The girl inside would turn around and say, “May I take your ord...”. The words would die in her throat when she saw me smiling through the open window. Eventually, she would regain her composure which she would immediately loose again when she noticed five or six other riders lined up behind me. Then off we would go, juggling the reins, a drink, a double cheese burger, and an order of fries. Generally this proved to be too much for at least one of us and a horse's neck and shoulder would be covered in catchup, Pepsi or a malted milk. These little mishaps just added additional fuel to a night filled with fun and laughter.

Finally, I would arrive home as the sun began to rise over the eastern mountains. After putting my horse up and seeing to her needs, I would head off to bed, exhausted but totally happy.

These memories are a part of my growing up years that I will never forget and which I will always treasure. No harm was done and no horses were hurt during the production of our little adventures. These were just good, clean, wholesome, and healthy fun.

If a small group of kids were to try this today, the police would be alerted, horses impounded, parents called and charges filed. Considering what has been lost, I can only comment... What is the matter with us anyway?

Tweet

Notice: You must be logged in to leave a comment.