These words rang in my ears many times during my childhood. As we grow, adults tend to give you the minimum of information by saying ‘don’t do that’, or ‘don’t go in there’. But you ask yourself, “why??” Is there something in there that may harm me, “what is it??” and yes, in the absence of any further information, you invariably ignored the basic warnings and went about seeking confirmation as to why you had been given the instruction.
There were a number of these warnings given to me over the years, but I still sought out the confirmation. One specific incident occurred as we were about to go out. The plan was to move the calf that we were rearing, from the milking shed and tether it out in the paddock so its mother could feed it that night, as we would not be home to milk her. I was told to wait until my father came to assist, as the calf was now rather large and very strong. I duly ignored the instruction and went to the milking shed to move the calf on my own. Well, I untied the calf and was walking out through the yard, which was very muddy at the time, when the calf bolted. I did not let go of the rope and was dragged through the mud and manure for some considerable distance, until the calf stopped at its mother to drink. I was covered in mud and manure from head to toe. My father arrived and secured the calf to the post it was to be tied to. All my mother and father could do was laugh at the sight of me soaked, and in need of an urgent bath and a fresh set of clothes to go out.
History is a marvellous thing, we cannot change it, we can only learn from it. Ignoring instructions does become part of your adolescent leaning process; fortunately my learning process did not result in any serious ongoing injuries.
Barry O’Connor.
September 2021.
There were a number of these warnings given to me over the years, but I still sought out the confirmation. One specific incident occurred as we were about to go out. The plan was to move the calf that we were rearing, from the milking shed and tether it out in the paddock so its mother could feed it that night, as we would not be home to milk her. I was told to wait until my father came to assist, as the calf was now rather large and very strong. I duly ignored the instruction and went to the milking shed to move the calf on my own. Well, I untied the calf and was walking out through the yard, which was very muddy at the time, when the calf bolted. I did not let go of the rope and was dragged through the mud and manure for some considerable distance, until the calf stopped at its mother to drink. I was covered in mud and manure from head to toe. My father arrived and secured the calf to the post it was to be tied to. All my mother and father could do was laugh at the sight of me soaked, and in need of an urgent bath and a fresh set of clothes to go out.
History is a marvellous thing, we cannot change it, we can only learn from it. Ignoring instructions does become part of your adolescent leaning process; fortunately my learning process did not result in any serious ongoing injuries.
Barry O’Connor.
September 2021.
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