Cyndi's Two Cents

God Bless America!

Commentary.

It gets so crowded in the barns on show days that many exhibitors move their chutes and supplies outside onto the grass to get their cattle ready for the ring.  It was a hot and sunny morning for our breed’s show day at the Missouri State Fair, so we set up a pop-up canopy to keep the direct sun off the cattle and the people getting the cattle ready.

I was standing beside our grooming chute watching my husband and a couple of friends fitting a bull calf for competition when I heard the familiar music begin to play over the public-address system.  I closed my eyes and soaked in the sound of our National Anthem.

When I opened my eyes seconds later I saw that one of my friends standing just a few feet away from me had turned toward the direction of the music and stood solemnly holding his hat over his heart.  Nearby, I saw the man who had been pushing his son around the barns in a stroller standing quietly with his hat in hand over his heart.  There were others, too, who stopped in their tracks to pay respect to the music that evokes a love of country and respect for all who have sacrificed so much for our freedom.

Those on their knees with clippers and cans of adhesive (for those unfamiliar with fitting cattle, think hairspray) working on the bull calf’s legs did not stop or stand, but they silently and respectfully removed their caps.  Kneeling was not a sign of anything other than commitment to a task.  It’s best not to take a break once you start pulling hair and using adhesive.

When the music stopped, everyone went back to what they had been doing before it started.  The fitters put their caps on and didn’t miss a beat.  The man with the stroller picked up where he left off and headed back toward the barn.

We didn’t talk about it until later when someone said they didn’t remember hearing The Star Spangled Banner playing across the fairgrounds every morning at 10 o’clock at past fairs.  Maybe it had played and the music was all a part of background “noise” or perhaps we could hear the public-address system this year because we weren’t in the barns with so many noisy fans and blowers and people talking.

That moment when the music played at the Missouri State Fair, my admiration for those standing near me grew exponentially.  Not one of those people who stood at attention or removed a hat were looking around to see who else was doing it.  I am the one guilty of that action.  Reverence for our flag and our country is ingrained deeply within each and every one of them.

God bless America!