Why the title?

"Pioneers take the arrows"

Oh, wait. I should be upbeat and taking arrows doesn't sound like an upbeat thing to say.

So, let me amend that statement.

It was courage and vision that led the pioneers to leave behind a comfortable, settled life and trek West to begin a new life in a new place. Many of those from the East that went West found a strength within themselves that they didn't see while they were in their old life. Instead of being one of those that just kind of went along with the others in the old life, they became leaders and visionaries in their new lives.

The sentiments of that last paragraph come from a favorite author, Louis L'Amour, in many of his books. So, I can't really say that it is an original thought from me. However, what he said is truthful.

Welcome to being a pioneer. Look ahead and ignore the "barking dogs" that give you negative opinions and comments. Louis L'Amour also spoke of the barking dogs.

In some of his stories, it was usually a father or older man telling a young boy how it was that when the Westward bound Conestoga wagons rolled through towns, the dogs came out to bark at them. His character then told the young listener that the barking didn't stop the wagons from going on to their destinations.

Following the advice of the Louis L'Amour characters, may we all forge ahead with our plans, after carefully considering all consequences and leave the "barkers" behind.

Friday, February 4, 2011

The Pioneer Woman

In the city of Ponca City on Oklahoma, there is a statue of a pioneer woman with her bonnet, a bag, her Bible and her son in hand. An image of that statue is below.

The Pioneer Woman in Ponca City, Oklahoma (not a photo of mine).

Pioneer Woman Statue

However, this particular blog is about another “pioneer woman.” She has a blog by the name of “The Pioneer Woman” and she is an Oklahoma living in Osage County, Oklahoma. There was a story about her on KWTV Channel 9 News as a video piece. They also posted it on their website and the link to that story is below. The story is both the video and a written piece about her and her life. I found it very interesting.

http://www.news9.com/Global/story.asp?S=13970876

What was more interesting, especially for a novice blogger was her website. That link is here:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/

And then to find more of interest, she had written a little piece about blogging which I thought I would share. Believe it or not, even without reading this, I had already begun on my own blog to implement some of her suggestions. The link to the “Ten Important Things I’ve Learned About Blogging” is here:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/blog/2010/09/ten-important-things-ive-learned-about-blogging/

Overall, there is a lot on her blog. Just in the short time I had to look at it while at work today, I found that she posts recipes, has photo contests, and who knows what else. I won’t try to even begin to describe it to you, so you might just have to check it out yourself to see if it interests you.

She is a wife and mother and author. The video at the news story will give you an idea of what it looks like where she lives, both in her house and the surrounding area of their home. As the news story indicates, she has about 22 million page views per month. Thus, she would have to be considered a national treasure, one who seems to put a very positive image on Oklahoma and its citizens.

Like the original pioneer women, Lee Drummond has managed to show a spirit very much like the rest of Oklahomans.

Now, I just need to try to find some way to meet her.

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