Even in Texas, the idea of living in the open country can be an unfamiliar to people. For me, it is a reality that I have lived with all my life. It is normal around our warm, welcoming home to have the responsibility of taking care of the many animals that are continually around the house. I love the fact that it is normal for a big dog to jump right on top of the couch and not worry about your personal space. If they need something they seem to think it is okay to bother you about it until you will give in to the puppy face that they learn to have when they want something.

Dogs are not the only thing that you may find at my house. You can always find a cat that is open to any attention it can get. I believe that the first day a cat or kitten comes into the house it automatically tries to learn ways to get your attention and make sure to get it in long periods of time. I remember when I was little, a kitten went so far as to where it would rub against my face so where I had to pet her to get her to stop.

 Besides domestic animals, we also used to have horses in our “backyard,” our five acre piece of land. Unfortunately, last year we had to sell them after years of owning them. What I love about horses is they all have interesting personalities. For instance, one of our horses would be so gentle that he wouldn’t care if you hugged him all day and when it came to being brushed he soon came up with a strategy to untie the rope when we were not looking then walk off like nothing happened. This is compared to the pony that didn’t like too much attention and had unpredictable mood swings. He also seemed to know when somebody was taking a picture, and how to pose at that moment. The hilarious part of these horses is that they were best friends. They would always be together and seem to almost stand up for each other when it came to the other horse. Our other horse was known to think that he was the king of all horses and all living being around him. When it came to feeding time he would attempt to claim any area that had the most hay, he was very dominant over the other horses, but when it came to people, he was gentle and loving.

To me, living with lots of animals gives me a life that is never boring. Even though they can be annoying and needy at times, I still love them and feel like they are part of helping who I am and becoming today.