My sister, her husband, and I made our annual visit to the state fair today. In the past, we had gone the last weekend of the fair, but this time we went the first weekend. It was a quite different experience. We watched some of the 4H youth show their cows. After one boy brought his cow back to the pen, he walked out with his siblings and dad. He was crying (maybe because he didn’t win) and had his arm around his little brother who was supporting him. We also watched some of the horseback riding competition. One incident that caught my eye was after a girl finished her ride, some younger kids were eagerly waiting for her and took care of the horse. We saw other kids preparing their goats, getting photos with their award winning chickens, and taking their rabbits to be judged. There were so many animals to see. My sister and I even went into the petting area because we had to pet the baby pigs and goats and puppies and kittens. That was all run by the youth too. They were holding the animals and told us all about them. I am always impressed by the young people who participate in the fair, but this year even more so. They were friendly, respectful, and very caring with their animals. And there were obvious tight-knit family bonds.

I Found God today in the actions of caring youth.