Be Humble in Your Approach

Growing up in a time when towns in Arizona were smaller is something I will always cherish. It was a much simpler time and a much slower pace.  I started Cowboying for different ranchers when I was in my teens and one truth that made itself drastically clear, I hated working cattle. Horses on the other hand were a different story. I would ride colts all day for any outfit and went on a quest to learn all I could about working these amazing creatures. There was no lack of old cowboys to gain knowledge from and they were as vastly different from each other as the animals I wanted to learn about. Sans one common denominator, every one of them was an ornery, crotchety, cranky old cadger. And yes, both the horses and the cowboys. I was fortunate that I figured out very fast what was what, they were ornery because they had a limited tolerance for bullshit. To many came to them to learn what they had to teach and showed no respect for what it took to acquire this life time of knowledge. I figured out if you are humble in your approach and show proper respect, you can gain a lot from those who came before you. I spent time riding colts, working rope horses and working for veterinarians. I loved every minute of it made almost no money at it. I acquired a great deal of information and that is priceless to me.  I get a lot of young guys who come and seek what I have learned about guns, horses and tracking, guess what, I am a grumpy ole curmudgeon who just shakes his head and laughs. I have a limited tolerance for bullshit. Best I can tell you, be humble in your approach.