Dear Reader,
Did you get a cowboy for Christmas? Did you know what you were asking for when you wrote Santa that letter? Or did it just kind of happen? Either way, if you have recently found yourself in a relationship with a cowboy and you didn’t grow up in the ranching world, here are a few things you might want to know.
- You are the new gate opener. Don’t take it personally, it’s the cowboy version of having a boyfriend to drive you around. But also, anyone who is in the passenger seat and is able bodied, is the designated gate catcher. If you get talked into a date of going to check on the cows, bring a decent pair of shoes. But the deeper you go into the relationship the more you will be asked to do around. So, either learn how to do the task, or purposely don’t learn so you will never be asked again.
- For this portion I want you to imagine all of your plans from tomorrow’s todo list to the next five years. Hold them for five seconds in your heart and kiss them goodbye. If you have any dreams of actually marrying this cowboy, get used to your plans being ruined on a daily to weekly basis. THE COWS WILL GET OUT, will go in labor, and wreak any sort of havoc when they sense that you have any sort of plan. That is why cowboys are so vague with their plans as if they might not happen. Because unforeseen circumstances are staring at you from the water trough.
- You should start working on your crock pot recipes. At some point you will be cooking for a large cow crew, whether this is the hired crew or your own crew that you grew yourself. These recipes are also handy for long days of heavy ranching when no one wants to cook and no one has time to run to town. Also, if you are shopping for a crockpot get one with a timer that will turn off by itself. No one wants to come home to burnt dinner after sewing up a half wild prolapsed cow.
- Don’t be offended if he compares you to a horse. In ranching, horses are considered things of beauty and nobility, and in the middle of nowhere, are a cowboy’s only companion and source of help in a bind. It may seem out of pocket, but trust me, your cowboy is trying to communicate with words when he is used to just using body language and clicks. If it helps, King Solomon compared his beloved to one of Pharoh’s mares, so it’s not a new idea. Now if he says you’re acting like a mare, that’s a different story and you may need to go eat something and drink some water.
- Be prepared to live on a limited budget. When my sister and I were in early high school and we started having conversations with our parents about colleges and future careers, we both just said we wanted to marry a cowboy. My mom, (who did marry a cowboy) told us to be prepared for a tight budget, especially in the begining. So, unless you have a job that you plan to keep after you get married or an awesome social media game, get really good at making a dollar stretch.
Planning a life with a cowboy is exciting and full of adventure, but it is also full of hard work and hardships. There will be glorious sunsets and warm denim hugs, but there will also be days when you pray that the sun will come out just for a few minutes and you are too scared to ask what your man got all over his clothes. But the good days will outweigh the bad and the adventures are worth the dirty jeans. And if you are nice, he will probably buy you a horse.
Sincerely,
The Rancher’s Daughter
From the Rancher's Daughter's Desk 