I’ve grown up attending fairs. Now, I know when most people think of the fair, they picture carnival rides and cotton candy, but all I can picture is the barns and show rings. See, I didn’t just grow up attending fairs. I’ve grown up exhibiting at fairs through both 4-H and open class shows. When you think “fair”, you think rides and sweets and wandering around until your feet fall off. When I think “fair”, I think of the smell of the barn, the soreness of a day’s hard work, and the feeling of happiness when I do well.

The fair is where I have been able to prove myself after every year of hard work. It’s a place to test myself against the other people out there doing the same things I’m doing. You play a sport? I show animals. We both may work all year long, but I also get the joys of helping deliver newborn lambs into the world and snuggling with sheep that have been with me all their lives. We both may feel victory, but I also have the satisfaction of knowing that my project is helping feed my family and my community. We both may feel defeat, but you know no sadness until a beloved animal dies with their head on your lap. These are all the things I celebrate at the fair. To you, it may be just another collection of animals, but for me, it’s show season.

As I prepare for my final show as a 4-H member, I can’t help but look back on all the great times and the sad times. Every win has shown me what I can do and every heartbreaking loss has taught me what I can do better the next time. I have learned the value of perseverance and humility. Every time I shake a judge’s hand to thank them for coming, even after I lose, I remember the value of time. My time is valuable leading up to the show, but the judge’s time is valuable when they come to the show to judge. The show wouldn’t happen without them. The days leading up to the fair I’m up early and in bed late to make the most of my days as I prepare my animals. I train my animals, clean them, make posters, fill out paperwork, haul supplies, and more. And through it all, I have learned that it’s important to keep your eyes on your goal and work through whatever obstacles have been set in front of you.

4-H has been a huge part of my life for twelve years. I have watched older kids and their examples of leadership, then applied those examples to my own style of leadership. I have watched as kids grew up in 4-H to become leaders in their own rights. 4-H has shown me what can be done when we put our minds together and work for a common goal, but it has also shown me the uncommon strength of the individual, and how one person can change an outcome. But beyond all of these things, it has taught me about putting other people first. After all, our pledge is this: “I pledge my head to clearer thinking, my heart to greater loyalty, my hands to larger service, and my health to better living for my club, my community, my country, and my world.”