Leave Your Corral

Tepid steps toward a greener pasture.

Leave Your Corral

First there was the stretching of the neck.  Then, I could hear a little snorting.  One front hoof took a small, timid step forward.  I knew he wanted to change his circumstance.  It was obvious the green grass, just through the open gate, was tempting him.  At the same time, I could see the gears turning in his head.

“If I stay here I know I’m going to be fed on a regular basis!”

“What if I can’t get back here, where I know I’ll be fed?”

“Is the grass over there as good as it looks?”

Do these questions seem familiar to you?  They are familiar to the steers I raise and they’re intriguing to me because I’ve spent a lifetime battling these same questions.  Right now, in the fall season, I’m reminded of this internal battle because it is a time for preparation.

As the temperatures plummet, the grass in my pasture goes dormant.  That means I need to shift my steers from the pasture to the corral where I can feed them hay.  It’s a place where they can stand around to eat and not destroy the pasture that will sustain them through the spring, summer and early fall.  It doesn’t take them long to understand that if they just hang around in this location, lots of food will automatically be delivered to them twice each day.  Still, I leave the gate open so they have room to roam and graze on the vestiges of the summer’s bounty.

But, roaming and grazing almost immediately lose their appeal when ease, comfort and a full stomach are the rewards of stasis.  Immobility comes with a cost though.  While they get seemingly everything they need by just showing up, I’ve noticed that their hearts become greedy and the joy they feel by romping and chomping in the field disappears and turns cold with the season.

Being out in the broader world does indeed have its dangers.  The unknown scares both cows and humans.  But, it shouldn’t stop you and me from stretching our necks a little.  It shouldn’t stop us from sniffing and snorting to see if the air in a little different circumstance is better than where we are today.  Taking short steps toward a happier and more joyous life is the mark of a leader.

One steer stretches his neck through the open gate.  He sniffs and snorts.  Then, one hoof takes a tentative step into the broader, greener pasture.  He walks through!  The others are soon to follow.  They begin to roam.  They begin to romp.  They begin to chomp.  Joy pulses through their whole being!

You and I were created to live a life of joy.  Being a leader means that you open the gate and blaze a trail toward joy for others who will follow you.