One Week Later

Here it is...just a week later and you would never know anything had happened. All that worry for not! Austin just continues on with his daily chores of feeding, helping dad and letting his pony out when he's done eating in the morning. Never mind that he likes to just hang out with the horses and play with them. Nothing has changed...Austin accepts that being around horses means occasionally injuries happen...it's part of life. There is just no fear in this kid!

I asked him one time if he was ever afraid when he drops down in to that chute ready to take on the wild beast and he said no way. Excited? Yes! Nervous, perhaps? Sometimes...but nope, he is not afraid. Why? He said that it is because he has faced the scariest thing imaginable and lived through it...his sister getting sick and possibly dying. Losing someone he loves is the scariest thing he can imagine and he survived it. After that, nothing is truly scary. Exciting...sometimes anxiety inducing...sometimes nerve wracking...but never truly scary. How many 11 year olds would say that? He has fear in it's true perspective. Something we face, tackle and move on. He does get startled...he does worry...and sometimes he is shocked beyond belief...but scared...not very often.

He just does what has to be done and moves on. Staring real fear in the face does that to us.

Looks like he's ready to tackle the season, huh?

"I took to the life of a cowboy like a horse takes to oats. " ~Clinton McCoy