Forever May She Wave

The earth rumbles as the horses gallop into the arena, as the crowd cheers in appreciation of the sponsors and in support of the newly crowned Queen and Princess of the rodeo. The horses and their riders make their way into the center of the arena, and the crowd quiets down.

Everyone rises in anticipation; after all, this is Independence Day. Cowboy hats and ball caps make their way from covering heads from the sun, to covering hearts in reverence. All eyes look to the arena entry gate. A young boy enters the gate on his grandaddy's horse, as the announcer begins to read a poem about freedom. The horse slowly makes his way around the arena, as the American flag his rider holds on to gently waves in the breeze.

The poem draws to a close, and the music begins. No one in particular is here to sing the National Anthem today, so the crowd begins in unison. "Oh, say can you see, By the dawns early light......" The boy kicks the horse into a jog. "Whose broad stripes and brights stars...." As it builds, the horse and the flag pick up speed, and chills run up my spine.

I catch my breath, noticing the lump in my throat that always shows up when I hear the Star Spangled Banner. The boy just holds on as his horse makes the loop; it's likely his horse has honored this flag for longer than the boy has been alive. The crowd gets louder with every word, and the horse moves faster. The boy finally directs him to the middle of the are arena, between the Rodeo Queen and the pickup men, stopping as the last note of the song fades.

The crowd breaks in to applause, and cheers for the red, white, and blue. I look around to see that there isn't a dry eye in the grandstands- old men and young women alike wipe tears away, hoping no one else notices.

The announcer says a few more words about the importance of this day- Independence Day- and Old Glory finally leads the way out of the arena as hats move back to shade the sun. The crowd remains quiet as the arena empties out, and a moment of silence for those who can't be here to celebrate with us is honored.

Here in this arena, people honor not only our flag, but everything she stands for. We give thanks for our freedom, bought and paid for with the blood of our loved ones. We pay homage to those who have risked it all, so that we don't have to. We stand firm in our independence, knowing we must protect it at all costs.

Forever may the American flag wave. Forever may we remain the land of the free, and the home of the brave.

Richelle{Originally published by The Cattle Business Weekly July 2021}