4th Place Winner of the Ag Heritage Essay Contest
The CowboyMy great uncle loves to tel! stories. Having grown up on a working farm, many of
the tales he tells relate to agricultural living. The one that stands out the most in my mind
is the story about his cow, Rosie.
Obviously, life was much simpler back in his day. Children got their amusement
from elements ofthe outdoors. My uncle was looking for something to do on one hot
sununer day and came up with an idea- he was going to train Rosie to ride. Standing her
next to an old stump, he climbed aboard, a bit clumsily. Rosie sure didn't like this idea!
She ran off, leaving my uncle in the dust far behind her. But alas, he didn't give up! After
a few more unsuccessful tries, he finally got Rosie to stand still with him on her back.
Soon they traveled the farm together, and my uncle discovered another idea. Rosie sure
ate a lot offeed, and it had to be carried all the way to her field. Why not have Rosie do
the work?
As my uncle backed her to the feed pile, he loaded two bags on her back. Then, he
hopped on her rump behind them. It took Rosie quite a while to get used to this! Yet, with
a little more patience, soon Rosie was bringing herself her own feed.
Rosie has been long gone, but the cheerful story of the boy and his cow lives on.
This tale depicts the simple joy that was rural America years ago. It is a wonderful
example of older generations of West Virginia history.
Submitted by:
Amanda Smith
Jefferson FFA
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