Spring Fever!!!

Over the past week I have visited two local chapters who had the heart in it to win it but, somewhere along the way, they got a little side tracked. Oh boy do I know the feeling! It's that time of year where the weather is pretty, the end is near, and Spring Fever is infecting us all! There are many days where I find myself daydreaming at the library or at my desk just thinking of events to come but then realize an hour later that I have homework and other chores that must be done before the night's end. I remember that I have responsibility which, is so easy to give up. This past week has been interesting to say the least. Making those presentations at those chapters was extremely rewarding in the end just as going to the school show back home. I was able to have a weekend, go home, and just relax, or so I thought. On the bright side, I was able to see hundreds of members from the six different high schools in my school district take their spot in the spotlight, exhibiting their projects and showing off their hard work. I know what it takes to get there, I've been there, I've done that for four years, but every year was a little different. I went from bawling my eyes out over my first hog "Sunshine", to crying my senior year over the fact that I was never going to be able to show in Official Dress again. And that weekend was nothing different. I saw younger members learning the ways of the show to the older members rejoicing over the fact that their hard work had paid off. 

 

Two of my agricultural science teachers really shined the light on my best friend and I. They showed us no special treatment and expected nothing less than our natural willingness to work, and that's exactly what we gave them. Whether it was us setting up and helping with the Buyer pictures to marking animals the last night for the processing plants, we were there with a smile on our face, bundled up in our jackets. The last night after we spent a majority of our night marking animals and getting things ready for the next morning, we helped them unload a hog back at the barns. Well, while my best friend and I were unloading the gilt, our two teachers were inside prepping the pen. After all of that was said and done, we went back to the other barns, unloaded the trailer and sat around and talked for hours upon hours. After we all shared HILARIOUS stories, one of our teachers brought us back to a serious note. He told us that while my best friend and I were unloading that gilt, he turned to his teaching partner and told him, "Man, we had it good didn't we?". Our other teacher replied, "Yeah, yeah we did." He late goes on and explains to us that my best friend and I were the reason to why they had it so good. He tells us that out of all of the kids they have taught, we were the only ones who come back and without even being asked get right to work, helping whomever and wherever we can. They said that they were so grateful to have two great kids here with them and after that, all bets were off! I was sitting there, trying to hide it, even though I was not successful, the tears just streaming down my face. 

Those two men touched my heart and made me realize why I do the things I do. After my teachers left to go home, my best friend and I realized that we were the lucky ones. We both knew that we would do anything for those two men at the drop of a hat, just as they would do anything for us. They said it's kids like us that make it all worth it. Well, it's teachers like them that keep us going. Going back, seeing my old friends and teachers really gave me that extra push to keep going to the end of the tunnel. It was a refreshing experience that renewed my spirits and revived me. Maybe next time you have a chance, do something just for you. Take some "me" time and relax. Go out and watch a movie with your friends, make dinner with your family, or just sit around and talk to those who you love the most. Who knows, maybe you need to do something for yourself for a change to keep up your efforts of serving others? So overcome that awful fever and know that you can and will get things done! 

Peace and Love, 

Mai Lee