07/08/2026
County fair season is here.
For some of you, that means the week you’ve been looking forward to all year. For others, it means you’re about to find out whether all those plans you made back in the spring actually worked.
Either way, I want to wish you luck.
I’ve spent most of my life around livestock shows, and one thing I know for certain is that very few projects go exactly according to plan. The animal you thought was going to be easy can turn into the one that tests every ounce of patience you have. The one you weren’t sure about might surprise you. Feed programs change. Animals get sick. Hair doesn’t grow. Weight doesn’t come the way you expected. Sometimes you finally figure out in July what somebody was trying to tell you in March.
That’s part of it.
I hope you’ve worked hard. I hope you’ve spent enough time in the barn that you know your animal better than anybody else does. I hope you can look back at where you started and see a difference, not only in the animal standing at the end of the lead, but in yourself.
Because that’s really the part we don’t talk about enough.
Some of you have already learned the lesson this year’s project was supposed to teach you. You learned that feeding livestock takes more than dumping feed in a pan. You learned that consistency matters. You learned that there are some things you can fix and some things you can’t. You learned that waiting until two weeks before fair to get serious usually doesn’t work.
Some of you haven’t learned your lesson yet.
Don’t worry. County fair has a way of teaching.
Maybe you’ll walk into the showring and everything will come together. Maybe you’ll win. Maybe you’ll stand at the backdrop holding the banner you’ve been dreaming about all summer.
I hope you do.
But some of you are going to walk out of that same showring disappointed. You’re going to think the judge missed you. Maybe he did. You’re going to wonder why somebody beat you. You might have to admit they were better that day. You may find out that the thing you thought didn’t matter mattered quite a bit.
Pay attention.
There’s a lesson in winning, and there’s a lesson in getting beat. Truth is, I’ve probably learned more from the times I got beat than the times I won.
And somewhere in all the excitement of fair week, don’t forget how you got there.
Don’t forget Mom and Dad.
You may be the one holding the lead, but chances are pretty good somebody else paid an entry fee, bought feed, pulled a trailer, found a spare part, stood in the barn with a flashlight, drove back to town for something you forgot, or listened to you complain when things weren’t going right.
Someday, you’ll understand that part better than you do now.
Don’t forget your 4-H leaders and FFA advisors. Don’t forget the breeder who answered the phone. The neighbor who helped. The older kid who showed you something. The person who took five minutes to explain what you were doing wrong instead of just walking past.
And don’t forget all the people at your county fair who are doing jobs you may never notice. Most fairs don’t happen because somebody gets paid enough to make them happen. They happen because people care enough to keep showing up.
Most importantly, don’t forget the One who gave us the chance to do any of this in the first place.
Thank God for the opportunity to care for livestock. For the ground beneath our feet. For the rain when it comes. For the feed we’re able to put in front of them. For the families who stand beside us. For the people placed in our lives to teach us. For the ability to get up in the morning and do the work.
We spend a lot of time praying for the win.
Maybe we ought to spend a little more time being thankful we got the chance.
So when you get to county fair, enjoy it.
Work hard. Help somebody. Pay attention. Say thank you. Be humble when things go your way and learn something when they don’t.
Be proud of the work you’ve done.
And when it’s all over, whether you’re carrying home a banner or just loading the trailer with a little more knowledge than you had when you unloaded it, remember this:
As long as you learned, you didn’t lose.
Good luck at county fair.
I’ll see you in the barn.
