Last day is always the hardest day for me to watch. It’s a bittersweet day. Excited that after five months we talk something else besides pigs, and you get to hear something else besides pigs also; but so heartbreaking watching them have to say goodbye to their pigs that they have come to love and
They know their personality, what the like and don’t like, when they are having a good day and when they are having a bad day.
They have spent countless hours working side by side with their pigs and building relationships of trust with them. How else could a little girl that weighs next to nothing when she is soaking wet get a 236 lb pig to move and not take her down, or a 10 year old move a 280 lb pig! They have nursed them back to good health when they got sick or got sunburned.
They have spent 128 days with them and have easily put in over 1,000 hours of their time training feeding and playing with them.
To them Pua and Petunia are not just pigs they have become someone that they love with their whole hearts and it’s hard to say goodbye knowing what the end result is going to be.
Yes there will be tears shed today and it won’t be just the two of them crying and I don’t care! They have earned that right to express and show their love, and as their mom I have earned that right to shed a few tears myself. They may be tears of gratitude that we are done for another year or they may be tears of a broken heart because their heart is breaking also or maybe a combination of both.
I good friend of mine told me once that 4-H does so much more than just teach them about animals and responsibilities. It teaches them about love!
This world today needs more love, kindness, goodness and gentleness in it. I am thankful that they have had this opportunity to not only be reminded about what they already know but to be able to put that knowledge into action.
This is the last day and the hardest day, but also one of the most exciting days. This is the day that all their hard work pays off. This is the day that they get their paychecks. 4-H is so much more than learning to work hard and take care of an animal it’s also about learning the business side of having an animal. They have kept track of all the money they have spent on the pigs this year from vet visits, sunscreen, shampoo to feed.
Thank you everyone who has encouraged them and has talked to them all summer about their pigs in the stores at the post office or even by the side of the road, you have helped them prepare to talk to the buyers today. Thank you to those who have boosted them or will boost them by giving them money and thank you to our future buyers.
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