Cow Patty Days

Jun 5, 2017 | 19 comments

Growing up in a small southern town…

in the middle of nowhere,

about an hour away

from all urban arenas…

It was a place

far from distractions …

allowing

all the little growing minds

to intensely explore

their childhood wonders.

We,

as kids,

had the unrealized

and fine opportunity

to use our imaginations

on a regular basis

and to discover

the goodness in a day!

I think about the handful

of treasured friends

in search of makeshift fun

in this tiny speck of a town

we had the privilege

to grow up in…

Sometimes…

we’d dress up

in the craziest of outfits

and pretend to be manikins

in an abandoned storefront

on Main Street…

(Pre-Project Runway)

Sometimes…

we’d pretend to be gourmet chefs

and pull together a 5 course meal for the parents

with whatever was in the pantry…

leaving behind an explosion of a mess

in the appointed kitchen .

(Prelude to Robert Irvine’s Dinner Impossible)

and sometimes…

we’d find ourselves in the cow pastures…

traversing a mine-field

of buttercups and cow poop…

with a handful of firecrackers,

and a box of Fire chief matches…

 We’d all gather around…

honing in on the chosen patty…

and placing a tiny red fire rocket

right square in the middle

of its flattened muck.

 Lighting the threaded end…

We’d run for our ‘stay clean’ lives!

The thrill of dodging the cow crap

Was such a rush…

Now…

50 years of life

has gone through me…

and sometimes…

it appears as if

those imaginary cow patties

are falling from the skies…

where crap sometimes comes from all directions

and life just plain gets hard

for a moment….

If wisdom prevails…

I’ll rewind

my attitude

to the good old days…

of sweet childhood’s simplicity.

with a smile and a giggle…

Remembering…

to look for the thrill in dodging all the crap

and to recall all of the joyful buttercups

that bloomed so profusely

in those fertilized fields.

May we all

learn to bloom like buttercups

through those cow patty days

and make the most of whatever season of life

we find ourselves in!

Bloom Through the Cow Patty Days (20 x 20 mixed media $725.00)

19 Comments

  1. Kelly C

    What a great story! I love your style! I’ll not only look at cow patties but at life a little differently now that I’ve read today’s post!! Thank you! ❤️

    Reply
    • Kim Bullen

      Thank you Kelly! I felt like it was time to spotlight the cow patty which has been overlooked for quite some time! Thank you so much for reading the stories!

      Reply
  2. Taylor Latch

    I like this one! Sometimes you just need to think back to your happy place – helping you dodge the exploding cow patties. 🙂

    Reply
    • Kim Bullen

      Hehe! Yep… we all need to embrace our inner ‘buttercup’!

      Reply
  3. Patty Pierini

    You have captured small town childhood perfectly. We could use our imaginations and have more fun with crap than any toy money can buy. I have lived your cow patty days and am better for it.

    Reply
    • Kim Bullen

      Isn’t it so true? It makes me sad to see how little kids use their imaginations these days because the toy is distracting them from doing so… and I am guilty of mindlessly supplying my own kids with these distractions. What a gift we were given to have had boredom to play with and discover the joy of wonder! I love you Patty and loved getting to see you this weekend!

      Reply
  4. Carl Johnston

    I remember the cow patty days. So lucky to grow up where we did.

    Reply
    • Kim Bullen

      Weren’t they such an incredible treasure Carl? I miss those days so much! Who knows… if you see a girl in her 50’s tromping through a cow field… pull over… it just may be someone you know! Thanks so much for taking the time to read these Carl… it means so much to me!

      Reply
      • Carl Johnston

        I wouldn’t miss them. Proud of my old friend. Hope to see that girl in a field someday!

        Reply
        • Kim Bullen

          Maybe one day! Thank you for being such a support!

          Reply
  5. Dean Deslatte

    “Bloom through the cow patty days!!!”
    Definitely a quote to live by!

    Reply
    • Kim Bullen

      Hmmm… maybe I need to make that a t-shirt!

      Reply
  6. D at Be You and Thrive

    Oh how I love the crap and cow patty analogy! So much wisdom in thinking about why or how it seemed simple and fun as children. I realize responsibility, experience, hard times all add to the firecracker-in’ poop…but I do think I can do better with simplifying and considering all the beauty around the crap. p.s. Have I told you lately that I love you? Xo-D

    Reply
    • Kim Bullen

      I love your thoughtful comment! Made me ponder it all over again! And I especially loved you P.S.!!!
      P.P.S. Never enough And I love YOU and all of your incredible life giving messages to so many. Thank you D!!!

      Reply
  7. Linda

    I love this, what is seemingly a “light-hearted” story from childhood…but chalked full of so much wisdom…in learning to be “content” in whatever situation we find ourselves in…LIFE is all about our perspective….time to shift our perspective! “SHIFT HAPPENS”!! Linda

    Reply
    • Kim Bullen

      Linda!!! You made me laugh out loud with “SHIFT happens”. Thank you for the sweet words of encouragement with a side of giggle. I’m so thankful you are in our lives!!!

      Reply
      • Sandra Stine

        How insightful and time appropriate. Laughter does make life sweeter even with flying crap all around. I do remember some of those “what are we gonna do today” times in that small town we looked forward to visiting. Ha

        Reply
  8. Ellen Ferrari

    We had so much fun!

    Reply
  9. Theresa Edwards

    Love hearing this story, and the painting brings a big smile! Thank you for sharing the wisdom of your light-hearted childhood days 🙂

    Reply

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