Fair Fever - Catch It!
When I think of the fair, I think of my family and of the great preparation for life the fair afforded us. Although we didn't always win, we sure had fun trying.
Mention the Canfield Fair to almost anyone and listen as people tell you about a story that happened to them at the fair: maybe about the time a cow drug its handler out of the showering or the beautiful girl on the the midway, or the time a tractor backfired and all the sheep tried to escape the ring.
It is wonderful when a volunteer such as a 4-H leader, Jr. fair leader, or Boy Scout leader, etc. takes the time to love children enough to donate their time and effort to teach young people more about difficult aspects of life. Another person might be their strongest competitor, but if it is show time and one has broken a halter, another will share.
To sit in the bleachers and watch our friends show their animals and get enthused about that, as opposed to who's got some designer name on the back of their jeans, that's a wonderful thing to give those kids.
For a kid or an adult, there is something about the way the evening lights glint off the Ferris wheel; something about the scent of corn dogs mingles with the scent of dust and manure; something about the chant of the game barker "ring the bottle, ring the bottle," mixed with the sounds of bleating sheep from the barn; and the Derby cars warming up in the infield.
Note the kid with the pink cotton candy stuck on her face, the boy in 4-H leading the angus calf, and the old man in overhauls tending to the antique tractor.
Enjoy yourself! Its Canfield Fair Fever - Catch It!
Thank you,
Jim Brown, Jr., President
