Defining Yourself

What Are The Signs You’ve Discovered Your Life’s Purpose?

Earning A Living

My dad was born and raised in Oxford, Mississippi, home of Ole Miss University off highway #6 of Layfayette County. Did you know Mississippi used to be the poorest State in the union? Yes, in the United States of America, Mississippi was without electrical power, concrete paved roads, and running water well into the 20th century. Many rural areas relied upon well-water, coal stoves, out-houses, fireplaces and dirt roads to get things done. However, things changed when gambling casinos and hotels moved to Tunica, Mississippi, at the turn of the 21st century.

Ms Olivia, my dear grandma, had lots of Mississippi farmland produce (vegetables and fruits) grown and harvested for human consumption. Her children eventually sold off these farmlands and lived on the rest. One Summer my dad introduced me to the neighbors. They had a feedlot (cattle producer’s guide to feedlot terminology), the type of farm, whereas livestock were harvested for consumption or use. On their feedlot were pigs (hogs), chickens, and cows. Chickens harvested for eggs and meat, pigs harvested for meat and feces or poop.

They harvested pig poop to produce methane gases (Feedlot Magazine). It truly makes you wonder why anyone would drill in Antartica or the Artic Circle deep beneath the earth or ice’s core, thus causing climate destabilization if pigs produce it naturally? That sounds like a future LIFEstyle Resource Magazine article.

On the neighbors’ farm, I took special interest in cattle herding livestock. Once the cattle are fat enough, they’re lined up to have heads removed. You can’t comprehend how cattle are oblivious creatures until you see them line up at a slaughterhouse.

Be careful who puts a ring in your nostrils.

The neighbors used all livestock for breeding and harvesting, so veterinarians were always on call. Especially cows used for meats, dairy milk and cheeses. Heifers are the female cows they’re used in this manner. However, the bulls needed extra care. Bull horns clipped and cauterized, branded for ownership and testicles removed. Often, rings are placed in the bull’s nostrils to control and steer the animal. After the bull’s testicles were removed, it became a steer (castration) and manageable. Bulls with testicles often performed in rodeo shows (rodeo events near you).

How can you commit to others when you can’t commit to yourself? To become prosperous, you must create multiple income streams. How can you create multiple income streams if you do not believe in yourself? In order to accomplish goals, you must first believe it and then have the faith to act it out with no evidence in sight. (Hebrews 11:1 KJV).

“In the end, all we have are stories,” ~ Margaret Atwood

Show up for yourself in life by keeping your self-proclaimed commitments. When you show up for work, it’s because you value the income and what it provides. Therefore, you respect the supervisors who train and position you. Respect yourself by completing goals, maintaining your health (mental and physical), and understanding the importance and the consequences of self disappointment. Show up for yourself. You simply have to do it a few times.

We all have our own stories to write, hills to climb and journey to walk. Who you honor in life matters because it creates a doorway for future endeavours. If you study the habits of fools, it will guide you in a foolish direction. To think otherwise is… Life is about relationships.