The Box Butte County Fair has come and gone.
All that remains are dying spiders who failed to save some pigs from Saturday’s auction.
Oh, and memories. Let us not forget the memories that were made by old and young alike.
Mostly, and appropriately so, the young.
This aging fairgoer will carry the memory of the honor of serving as the co-emcee of the queen contest.
Twelve outstanding young ladies vied for the one-thousand-dollar scholarship and all the glitter that it accompanies.
The Queen’s court consists of three other talented girls.
That means there are eight girls who – on some level – deal with disappointment.
My heart always goes out to them. It’s tough watching someone who has tried so hard leave the stage empty-handed.
I’ve dealt with it before.
My oldest daughter, Kacey, competed twice but was never chosen.
However, she did offer the crowd her God-given talent for music and her overall charm.
And Kacey still holds the memories of the friends she made by participating.
She also did her part to help make the 2011 and 2012 Box Butte County Fairs more fulfilling. Without brave participants, there would be no queen contest.
Disappointment doesn’t kill us. And, yes, to share that overused cliché, it only makes us stronger.
Given that, allow me to share a few of my youthful disappointments as a member of 4-H and FFA.
August 1968 – Lancaster County Fair: At age nine, it was my first experience showing a steer. I received a red ribbon. I was expecting a grand champion, accompanied by a purple rosette and lots of popping flashbulbs.
August 1969 – Lancaster County Fair: My garden produces entry was disqualified. I didn’t correctly follow the directions as to how many ears of corn I could enter.
September 1976 – Nebraska State Fair: After being crowned the Lancaster County Fair champion in swine showmanship, I set my sights on winning the state title.
However, while washing my gilt the afternoon of the competition, soap got in her eyes, and she couldn’t see. The gilt stood dead still in the middle of the show ring.
I was handed a red ribbon.
April 1978 – Nebraska State FFA Convention: As a candidate for a state FFA office, I gave one hundred percent. However, I wasn’t selected. A year-long dream was over. I was devastated. How could I have set myself up for such immense disappointment?
Today, I smile as I relive those memories.
I’m sure the eight young ladies who gave one hundred percent last Wednesday night and walked away crownless will someday do the same.
If they haven’t already.
Sometimes there are silver linings within the dark clouds of disappointment.
During the 2011 Box Butte County Fair queen contest, Kacey did receive a crown and sash as the second attendant. However, it was quickly announced that the wrong girl had been crowned. Off came the crown and off came the sash. A quick hello and goodbye to the several-hundred-dollar scholarship also added insult to injury.
I still remember the gasps that echoed throughout the grandstand.
Kacey never shed a tear. She smiled and accepted the mistake with grace.
She then left the stage humiliated, but in good spirits.
The next day was the annual cookie jar auction.
Several parents who had witnessed the horrific mistake the night before bonded together and bought her cookie jar for over six hundred dollars.
They marveled at how elegantly Kacey handled the public embarrassment and felt she should be rewarded.
That day, Kacey – and her mom and dad – learned that some crowns are laced with the glitter of compassion.
It’s a glitter that never fades.